After numerous delays the follow-up to the best racing game of all-time, Gran Turismo 3: A-Spec, is here.
Gran Turismo 3 came out early on in the PS2 game cycle and became many people's (including mine) favorite game. The career mode was deep, there was so many cars to unlock, you could get the cars suped up and best of all the game had the best graphics of any game, at the time. But this is now 2005 and we've seen Half Life 2, Doom 3 and other amazing-looking games. Probably the biggest dissapointment for this long way, for Gran Turismo 4, is that after all this time the promised online-play was axed. So is Gran Turismo 4 worth the hype and long wait, even without online play?
Without even being a racing or racing-game fan, without a doubt the graphics once again are mind-blowing. They're not Unreal 3 next-gen quality but heck, they are the best the PS2 can possibly put out. Also once again the cars look spectacular with every single detail, from the wheels spinning wildly while going 150 MPH to seeing a shadow of the driver, it just looks awesome. But the best new addition to the series is non-crappy looking backgrounds! No more playstation 1 quality backgrounds, all around the entire game now, finally, looks like a PS2/PS3 game.
As I mentioned in the introduction, online play has been axed and it is a dissapointment for all Gran Turismo players out there. However because of no online-play the team at Sony and Polyphone Digital had the time to re-do/perfect the physics and an all new AI, which makes the game even more realistic. Now onto modes there is of course your standard Arcade mode where you can do single races from 1-2 players or via LAN 2-6. In photo mode you can take pictures of the race (while viewing a replay) and the other part of this mode allows you to "take your favorite car and travel around the globe to conduct photo sessions in exotic locations through a variety of angles" (thanks to sony.com). In B-spec mode you take the role of a race team manager and help the AI driver to compete in races while viewing/directing through the broadcast-style camera view.
All of the above modes are nice but the meat and potatos of Gran Turismo 4 is the, guess what, "Gran Turismo mode" which is basically the same as a "career mode" in sports games. In this mode you can go to different races and play for money which you can use to buy/sell cars and upgrade parts. Also throughout your career you will unlock new cars and courses. For Gran Turismo 3 players, we all know this but what you don't know is that there is now over 200 various championship races and now over 80 manufacturers which gives you an enormous selection when buying a new/used car. So facts aside, how is the mode? Just like GT3 this mode is absolutely as deep and addicting as they come. You will want to get gold on every single license, win gold in every race, get every car and get all your cars and best as possible. But since there is so many cars, races, unlockables and licenses you will be hooked to the mode for a month at minimum.
No online-play aside, the wait was definately worth it. Even better graphics, putting this as the best-looking game on the PS2 once again and now with an even deeper Gran Turismo mode, you'll have GT4 in your disc driver for a long time.
