GT6: world's most popular racing game updated
The world's most popular racing game is about to launch in its sixth iteration... And it's good!Gran Turismo, the world’s most popular and arguably best racing game and simulator is about to launch in its sixth iteration. Little surprise, after 15 years of success, 70 million units sold, three billion online races covering 45 billion virtual miles...
Sony Computer Entertainment has just confirmed the release of Gran Turismo 6. All of the cars and tracks from Gran Turismo 5, which has sold over 10m copies since launching in 2010, will be retained in GT6. But in true retail tradition, wait… there’s more. Notable new additions to the already impressive line-up of historic cars, road cars and the latest race cars, brings the total car list to 1200 at launch, with new cars set to be continually added online. In addition, several thousand aerodynamic parts and custom wheels will be available for almost all cars, and players can personalize their own custom cars in game to the greatest ever level possible.
The UK’s famous Silverstone Circuit will be just one of seven new locations in Gran Turismo 6, taking the total to 33, with 71 different layouts available. An impressive 19 of them brand new.
There will also be regular additions of new tracks set to be made available online. The improved course maker function will provide gorgeous scenery spanning several tens of square kilometers including the magnificent backdrop of Andalucía.
Thankfully the team from developer Polyphony Digital has also reworked the games interface, which was a clunky part of GT5. Hopefully work is also being done on the AI driver routines to make the offline racing sparkle a bit more.
In fact, GT6 will sport an entirely new physics and game engine including a partnership with Yokohama Rubber and KW Automotive to improve tire and suspension kinematic modeling simulation aspects of the code.
“It is amazing to think that it is 15 years since we first released Gran Turismo,” explained Kazunori Yamauchi, during the GT6 announcement at Silverstone Circuit.
“Things have changed a lot since then and now Gran Turismo 6 is a further evolution of my dream.
“We’re pleased to deliver GT6 to PlayStation 3 as we have a very loyal community on that platform. However, we have refactored the game to make it very flexible and expandable, with a view to making many future developments.
“The launch will be only the beginning for GT6. The game will continue to develop throughout its life. I already have many ideas for things I want to achieve in the next 15 years of Gran Turismo!”
The theme of Gran Turismo’s collaborations with partner companies will increase with the inception of GT6. The team promises to blur the line between the virtual and real will be announced in the run up to the game’s launch.
Not least of these is GT Academy, a collaboration with Nissan to unearth real racing driver talent that first ran in 2008. This competition will return to participating territories for its biggest ever year in 2013, with the entry mechanic set to take place on an exclusive GT6 demo in July.
The game will also feature a Course Maker for the creative GT fans willing to create their own racing circuits.
At this stage, GT6 has been announced for the PlayStation 3, apparently designed to push the hardware of Sony’s flagship game console to its limits. No word at this time about a PS4 edition.
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