#9. GRAN TURISMO (PSP)

Gran Turismo’s portable debut (and to date, its only portable outing) didn’t arrive easily, and though those many years of development and delays didn’t result in the stellar quality that this series is generally known for, Gran Turismo for the PSP was by no means a slouch. Offering surprisingly realistic visuals (for its time, and for the hardware, if nothing else), tight simulation and driving mechanics, and a healthy roster of vehicles to choose from, the portable racing sim made a strong impression on most who played it. There were clear issues, of course, with the lack of upgrades and a traditional career mode being chief among them, but even so, it was a solid taste of Polyphony Digital’s series on the go.

#8. GRAN TURISMO 6

Gran Turismo 6 arrived smack dab in the middle of the biggest lull the series has experienced to date- and it showed. It did, of course, excel in all the ways that a GT game is expected to- it had a sizeable roster of vehicles, was brimming with its love for detail, authenticity, and attention to detail, and as always, its driving mechanics were second to none. Some questionable decisions, however, dragged the experience down in unfortunate ways, from its iffy microtransactions to its unnecessary focus on multiplayer gameplay.

#7. GRAN TURISMO 5

Gran Turismo 5 was where the series’ downward trajectory began (and lasted until not that long ago). Arriving after a long and protracted development cycle, GT5 was far, far from a bad game, and like pretty much every other game on this list, it’s still probably one of the best racing sims we’ve ever played, at least where its driving and sim mechanics are concerned, while its incredibly vast offerings in terms of features, tracks, and vehicles were mighty impressive. But with a half-assed damage system, frustrating progression in its career mode, and surprisingly little improvements being made over its direct predecessor, Gran Turismo 5, for all of its excellence, didn’t quite live up to expectations.

#6. GRAN TURISMO SPORT

Gran Turismo Sport remains one of the most controversial and divisive games in Polyphony Digital’s series- and looking back at the state it was in at launch, it’s not surprising to see why. There was no shortage of core issues with the game, its overriding emphasis on online multiplayer being chief among them, especially since it came at the cost of a traditional single player experience. The fact that the game launched with a disappointingly small selections of tracks and vehicles didn’t much help matters either. Sure, Polyphony Digital’s post-launch support did eventually turn GT Sport into a far better game than it was when it launched, but it was still far from the game series fans wanted it to be.

#5. GRAN TURISMO 2

Gran Turismo 2 is, in essence, the prime example of a perfect iterative sequel. Following up on its revolutionary predecessor was by no means an easy task, but Polyphony Digital chose to do it in the best way possible- by expanding on all the biggest strengths of the first game. More cars, more tracks, a better physics engine. There’s an argument to be made that perhaps its unambitious nature as a sequel held it back from being as memorable as the first game was, but if all you’re talking about is execution of ideas, there’s little to dislike here.

#4. GRAN TURISMO

The one that started it all. In pretty much every way, the original Gran Turismo has been thoroughly outdone by its many successors, but given the game’s significance, you can’t help but respect it. For its time, it was an absolutely revelation. It looked amazing, it controlled like a dream, it was brimming with an impressive roster of modes, cars, and tracks, and above all else, it established ideas and mechanics that have by now become staples not only of the series, but an entire genre.

#3. GRAN TURISMO 4

Now that we’re in the top 3, there’s very, very little separating the three games that are left, and there’s a strong case to be made for each of these three being the definitive Gran Turismo experience. Gran Turismo 4 is, for many people, still one of the best racing games out there. It’s the quintessential GT game, with excellent driving and physics, best-in-class visuals, and oodles of content to keep players busy for dozens upon dozens of hours. Not everything in the game was equally fleshed out, but there was more than enough here to impress even the most cynical players.

#2. GRAN TURISMO 7

Gran Turismo had been in a bit of a slump of form since the launch of GT5, with the multiplayer-centric GT Sport being something of a nadir for the series, so there was a great deal riding on Gran Turismo 7. It pretty much had to be a return to form- and boy did it succeed in doing that. For fans of the series, the genre, and car culture in general, this game is a dream come true. Its single player component is densely packed and ingeniously structured, the game looks absolutely gorgeous, and the level of authenticity and realism displayed here just blows you away. It’s also probably the most approachable game in the series in a long, long time, so it may very well bring in a massive audience- even by Gran Turismo standards.

#1. GRAN TURISMO 3: A-SPEC

It’s hard to top Gran Turismo 3. It is, in every sense of the word, an unabashed masterpiece. It may not have been overflowing with content the way something like Gran Turismo 2 was, or Gran Turismo 7 now is, but the game’s biggest strength lay elsewhere- in how focused and tightly designed it was. Its roster of vehicles was full of cars that felt amazing to control, it had some of the best-designed tracks this series has ever had, and for its time, it looked unbelievably amazing. It’s not just the best Gran Turismo game, it may very well even be the best racing game ever made, period.

Back in 1992, producer Kazunori Yamauchi compiled a group of seven developers to create Gran Turismo for Sony’s upcoming PlayStation console. He aimed to bring simulation racing to the mainstream, and he was stopping at nothing to achieve that goal. For him, Gran Turismo’s development was his entire life. Yamauchi once stated to Autoweek: “It took five years. In those five years, we could not see the end. I would wake up at work, go to sleep at work. It was getting cold, so I knew it must be winter. I estimate I was home only four days a year.”

After those grueling five years of development time, its 1997 release was met with widespread critical and commercial success. It still holds the crown as the best-selling original PlayStation game to this day, having shipped over 10.85 million copies in its lifetime. And it’s no secret why; with 140 cars, 11 tracks, and great AI for its time, Gran Turismo was one of the most fleshed-out and impressive racing games ever made at that time in videogames, effectively achieving exactly what Yamauchi had hoped – mainstream appeal.

The unexpected success gave Yamauchi the drive to get to work on a sequel with hopes of improving the formula even further. By 1999, Gran Turismo 2 was hitting store shelves with an unprecedented 650 cars from a variety of manufacturers, making it even more robust and impressive than the original game. Unfortunately, a collection of errors and glitches plagued the game’s release, perhaps due to its rapid development, prompting Sony to issue updated replacements for those experiencing problems.

Luckily for the franchise, these problems didn’t seem to stop the game from receiving universal acclaim again, and Yamauchi was ready to keep things going. With the move to PlayStation 2, Polyphony Digital was able to improve the graphics substantially, allowing Gran Turismo 3: A-Spec to boast some of the system’s most impressively-detailed cars and tracks. This increase in detail meant the team had to reduce the amount of cars available in the game to 180 in order to ensure the quality remained high across the board.

The reduction in cars was a small price to pay for the beautiful graphics and enhanced gameplay. It didn’t take long before critics were singing the game’s praises and falling in love with its improved features and gameplay. It’s still one of gaming’s best-selling titles of all time, and is currently considered the second-best racing game of all time by aggregate site GamingRankings.

Not one to rest on his laurels, Yamauchi once again set out to continue his life’s work. Gran Turismo 4: Prologue teased the upcoming launch of Gran Turismo 4 with a sneak peak at the new and improved features Polyphony Digital were bringing to the full game’s launch. While the title only launched in Japan and Europe, it still went on to sell over a million copies.

When the full release of Gran Turismo 4 finally launched in North America in 2005, gamers and journalists were amazed. With 51 tracks and an unprecedented 700+ cars from 80 manufacturers, it was an awe-inspiring addition to the successful franchise, propelling it even further than before. The addition of pickup trucks, a B-spec mode that allowed players to simulate the job of a racing crew chief, and massively improved physics, all combined to make Gran Turismo 4 one of gaming’s most sought-after titles that year. It went on to once again become one of the best-selling video games of all time.

With the arrival of the PS3, Gran Turismo 5: Prologue’s Australian and European launch once again raised the bar for the series with better graphics and new gameplay elements, selling 5.09 million copies and becoming the second-highest grossing PlayStation exclusive. So, what game could have possibly unseated it from first place? None other than the full release of Gran Turismo 5, of course.

The fifth entry introduced gamers to 16-player online racing, a feature that saw players around the world ecstatic at the chance to finally pit their skills against other sim-racing fans. It also added the franchise’s first external and mechanical damage models and the ability to turn cars over during a race. Add that to the fact that the game offered over a thousand cars and plenty more offered through DLC, Gran Turismo 5 was doing what the series was always best known for: Improving beyond everyone’s wildest expectations.

However, the game was criticized for its mixed graphics and the detail of standard cars which lacked cockpit views. Furthermore, many critics and fans were not happy with the game’s damage model and the uneven AI. The game finished up with a rating of 84 on Metacritic which isn’t bad by any means but this when the series started to lose a bit of steam as well. Compared to GT1, GT2 and GT3 which were rated way above 90, and GT 4 coming very close to 90, one could easily see some cracks forming in the series’ quality.

Gran Turismo eventually showed up on Sony’s PSP in 2009, going on to sell nearly 5 million copies and becoming one of the best-selling games for the handheld. The game might’ve been on a portable system, but that didn’t hold it back very much. Running at a solid 60fps with over 800 cars and 45 tracks, Gran Turismo on PSP refused to be thought of as a lesser entry. Still, the game’s critical response was mixed, with many criticizing its lack of career mode and upgradeable vehicles. The game finished off at a rating of 74 over at Metacritic.

With Gran Turismo 6 launching near the end of the PlayStation 3’s lifecycle in 2013, some expected the game to see less success than previous entries. And while it didn’t initially see a slow takeoff in North America, the game went on to be a critical and commercial success. However, despite the fact that it offered a host of improvements to graphics and car customization, Gran Turismo 6 was criticized for its focus on its online component and microtransactions, marking the first time a franchise had seen many of its long-time supporters lose faith in Yamauchi and Polyphony Digital’s integrity. It finished with a Metacritic score of 81.

As new sim-racers like Forza had entered the playing field over the years leading up to Gran Turismo 6, gamers were offered new places to get their fix, leading many to speculate Gran Turismo’s days as the industry king were nearing the end. Forza was growing from strength to strength with its Motorsport and Horizon brands, while Gran Turismo was struggling to keep up.

2017 brought the release of Gran Turismo Sport and it saw a drastic change in direction for the franchise. It placed emphasis on competitive online driving and eSports, lacking a single player campaign when it launched. It also lacked dynamic weather and day/night cycle thanks to its always online requirement. However, it also improved on vehicle design and PvP elements making it a solid entry. But for most of the old fan base, GT Sport came off as a disappointment. Although Polyphony Digital have continuously added updates in the form of single player races, tracks and cars, and have started to gain traction again, many fans haven’t really forgotten its underwhelming launch and its disappointing Metacritic score of 75.

Gran Turismo Sport simply wasn’t Gran Turismo 7 though, and the desire for a core entry in the franchise remains. Yamauchi has gone on record promising that a new game in the series is on the horizon, and there has been speculation that the game may even serve as a massive boon to the PlayStation 5 launch lineup. There is no doubt that quality wise, Gran Turismo has seen a dip since the PlayStation 3 days. Gran Turismo Sport is a shining example of how developers can convert an underwhelming experience at launch to a fantastic one almost two years late.

We just hope that this isn’t the case with the next Gran Turismo. Gran Turismo as a brand has defined each PlayStation era and the next game needs to get it right from day one. We hope it will be beautiful combination of the past, present, and future games. If Yamauchi’s dedication to the series is any indication of its future, we’re hopeful that not only it will be worth the way, but it will stand toe to toe against fellow competitors.

Note: The views expressed in this article are those of the author and do not necessarily represent the views of, and should not be attributed to, GamingBolt as an organization.

Sony Computer Entertainment America recently shared sales for Gran Turismo 5 and 6 along with total franchise sales for the present litigation with VIRAG, the Italian flooring company. Documents pertaining to the case revealed that Gran Turismo 6, which released in December 2013, sold 2.37 million units till date on PS3.

It was also revealed that, “Sony America distributed the Gran Turismo 5 game globally, including throughout the United States and North America, and to date over 10.89 million copies have been sold.”

Total franchise sales total 72.6 million for the 17 years that Gran Turismo has been in existence, which is incredibly good when compared to racing contemporaries like Forza Motorsport (though that series is roughly 9.5 years old, it’s only sold more than 10 million copies thus far).

What are your thoughts on the success of Gran Turismo 6 and more importantly, are you looking forward to Gran Turismo 7 on the PS4? Let us know your thoughts in the comments below and stay tuned for more information in the coming months.

(Source)

Once upon a time, Gran Turismo 7 used to be the peak of the racing sim genre. But it was soon upstaged and overtaken by the competition, such as Forza Motorsport, which took from what Gran Turismo did well, and continued to add to that by being progressive and adding features that would be expected.

Gran Turismo, by comparison, began to feel painfully antiquated, and lost a lot of its sheen. The games still don’t even have a damage model, for instance. The problems with Gran Turismo 5 and 6 caused the games’ performance to suffer, and surely must have gotten Polyphony Digital’s attention, because according to this new translation GTPlanet received, the developers are promising better things for Gran Turismo 7.

“Yamauchi has guaranteed that the seventh chapter will solve many problems related to the physical impacts and simulation of damage, two aspects that have always been taken seriously by fans of this saga. It also confirms a greater number of premium cars in Gran Turismo 7, although – for the moment – Yamauchi-san has preferred not to say too much about figures.

“Finally, when asked about the alleged arrival of Gran Turismo 7 in 2017, as initially feared by some sources, it came a blunt denial: “People will never wait so much.”

Will Gran Turismo perhaps be featured at E3 this year? We’ll find out next week! Stay tuned.

Sony will be putting a stop to all DLC purchases for Gran Turismo 5 starting April 20th, so if you want to buy any GT5 DLCs, you should definitely do so while you have the time. Considering the fact that Gran Turismo 5’s online servers will also be shutting down on May 20, I guess it’s fair to say that the game’s active online life has come to an end.

The official GT blog says that, if you want to play any of the DLCs, you should install the ones you’ve purchased from the game’s home menu before April 20th. You can also reinstall previously purchased DLC from the PS Store download list.

Gran Turismo 5 is not the only PS3 game who’s online life is coming to an end. The online servers for MAG, SOCOM Special Forces, SOCOM Confrontation, Resistance: Fall of Man, Resistance 2 and Resistance 3 will all have been shut down very soon.

So yeah, you should download any GT5 DLCs you want to while you still can.

Sony will be discontinuing online features for several of its popular PlayStation 3 games come May 2014, they confirmed on the PlayStation Blog.

Starting 20 May 2014, online services for Gran Turismo 5, Resistance: Fall of Man, Resistance 2, and Resistance 3 will no longer be available. If you’re a fan of games like MAG, SOCOM: Confrontation, and SOCOM: Special Forces, you get an even shorter window, as the online modes for those games will be discontinued 28 January 2014. Effectively, this will render MAG and SOCOM: Special Forces useless, as neither of those games has an offline mode.

The cynic in me wants to believe that the discontinuation is being done to push people towards new corresponding PlayStation products (Gran Turismo 6, and Killzone Shadow Fall), but on the other hand, it is entirely reasonable and possible to suppose that the cost of maintaining the servers was far too great considering the presumably low population all these games were getting.

Still, it’s a rather uncharacteristically anti gamer move by Sony (especially considering that some of these games weren’t even three years old) at a time when they are doing their best to sell themselves as being ‘for the gamer.’

Call it backlash or a community that is unsure it needs an upgrade, but Polyphony Digital’s Gran Turismo 6 has debuted in the UK and according to the latest sales charts (courtesy of Gfk Chart-Track), the game has debuted at eight place across all formats while selling five times less than its predecessor.

Of course, this doesn’t include digital sales so it’s highly possible that the lack in sales would be covered up by PSN purchases. There’s also the fact that just about every franchise is down in sales this year, from Call of Duty: Ghosts to FIFA 14.

That didn’t stop Ghosts from taking the top spot this week with FIFA 14 in second and Battlefield 4 in third. Assassin’s Creed IV: Black Flag also managed to hold steady, ranking in fourth place this week. Grand Theft Auto 5 ranked in fifth place, securing its spot in the Top 5. And before you ask, yes: Sony’s Knack is still outselling Nintendo’s Super Mario 3D World.

(Source)

Gran Turismo 6’s release is right around the corner and they’ve been doing a whole lot more to keep up with things. The improvements to the series goes much deeper than simply another installment on the racing franchise. There are some real improvements to the series, and it’s going to be great to get our hands on all the changes that are going into the franchise.

"The painful loading times from Gran Turismo 5 have been reduced, and the graphics have been improved by several notches. While Polyphony is certainly following their standard development schedule of two games per console generation, GT6 certainly isn’t just a filler in this franchise to just keep up with their release schedule."

The Gran Turismo series has always strived to make the most realistic racing game they possibly can, and with each iteration that is released, Polyphony seems to be getting a little bit closer. The Polyphony team has been collecting data on tracks and cars since the release of GT5 and it’s looking like it will really pay off for them. According to the developers they’ve rebuilt the physics engine along with complex aerodynamics and suspension system. This brings a much more realistic weight displacement as players race through corners and over hills. For instances, it’s clear to see how the vehicle shifts it’s weight from one wheel to the other in the trailers, when the player breaks hard, and swings through a corner. This is a much more true-to-life addition to the game that may not be immediately noticeable, but would be if you went back to play the older ones on the PlayStation 2.

The developers have done a good job of improving the franchise from the ground up. The painful loading times from Gran Turismo 5 have been reduced, and the graphics have been improved by several notches. While Polyphony is certainly following their standard development schedule of two games per console generation, GT6 certainly isn’t just a filler in this franchise to just keep up with their release schedule. Lead developer, Kazunori Yamauchi is probably one of the biggest critics of the franchise. He knows what is wrong with each game and what he wants to fix moving forward. It’s this honesty with himself and his development team that allows for vast improvements from game to game.

Not only has Polyphony made changes to the physics, they’ve made extensive overhauls to the audio in the game. While this may not sound like too much, it’s incredibly important. The right audio queues can tell the player how they approach a corner, whether it’s too fast, too slow, just perfect or completely over the limit. The developers are trying incredibly hard to make this game feel like you’re really racing and with a steering wheel and pedals they very well may have nailed the formula for the ultimate simulator.

"Polyphony is releasing GT6 with full 1080p and 60 frames a second support, giving the feeling of a much more fast paced, nail-biting experience. This is a vast improvement over GT5. While this is a great move overall for the game, it definitely seems to suffer from a lack of hardware boost on the PS3."

Polyphony has also done it’s damnedest to keep things that have worked in the past, while changing many aspects of the game. The driver’s view is something they have improved upon. With a static camera they’ve managed to nail the feeling of acceleration and deceleration. While many racing games use various visual effects and physics to control this feeling, making it a dramatic shift between braking and accelerating, GT6 is looking to make it as realistic as it can. The feeling of deceleration takes time and the player can almost feel the weight of the car as players move through the turns.

Polyphony Digital and lead designer, Kazunori Yamauchi are certainly willing to change anything that they feel needs a face lift though. The previous games only serve as a benchmark to move things forward. They’ve decided what worked, and what didn’t work. Remember that sluggishness in control that took awhile to get used to in GT5? Yeah, Yamauchi and his team admitted that it was a problem, without even batting an eye either. The changes to weight distribution in the turns and more accurate physics makes all this feel much more smooth and much more accurate.

Polyphony is releasing GT6 with full 1080p and 60 frames a second support, giving the feeling of a much more fast paced, nail-biting experience. This is a vast improvement over GT5. While this is a great move overall for the game, it definitely seems to suffer from a lack of hardware boost on the PS3. The current demo for GT6 works well so far, however there are a few issues with it, the game has a tendency to skip or feel jittery from time to time, especially leaning into corners with quite a few vehicles around it. While it’s relatively rare, gamers may get annoyed with it if it’s not fixed before release. The good news is that this game doesn’t have to be played in 1080p, and playing in a lower HD resolution seems to fix the frame dropping issues.

There’s really a lot to look forward to in Gran Turismo 6. Polyphony keeps pushing the envelope with each release. Unfortunately, as with every new entry, we may be waiting a bit to see what comes next in the Gran Turismo series on the PlayStation 4, but it will be well worth the wait seeing as there’s already a plenty of differences between Gran Turismo 5 and 6.

The championship will be taking place in Mumbai, New Delhi, Gurgaon, Bangalore, Ahmedabad, Kolkata, Chennai, Hyderabad, Lucknow and Pune, with players facing off in GT5 game. Two finalists will then compete in Gran Turismo 6 when it launches in Mumbai on December 6th.

Country Head of PlayStation India Atindriya Bose stated that “The partnership with Mercedes-Benz allows us to offer a combination of the virtual and real life experience of driving one’s dream car. Gran Turismo 6 focuses on the high-end simulated driving experience. The GT6 branded Mercedes-Benz car is an opportunity to relive the experience in real life as well. “

Managing Director & CEO at Mercedes-Benz India Eberhard Kern stated, “Both the brands have the right synergies and we have seen this through all our partnerships with Sony PlayStation globally. I am delighted to extend this association to the Indian market as well. The technology used in the game is the closest one can get to drive the actual car and I am confident the Mercedes-Benz GT 6 Racing Challenge will create new levels of excitement for gaming enthusiasts. I look forward to a great GT tournament.”

Gran Turismo 6 releases exclusively for PS3 worldwide on December 6th.

Sony has officially announced an event for Gran Turismo’s 15th Anniversary which will occur on May 15th 2013. This event will be supported by car companies such as Mercedes-Benz, Tesla, Toyota, KTM, Audi, Honda, Ford and Jaguar. The car manufactures will also show off numerous vehicles that are new and old.

Sony Computer Entertainment Europe president Jim Ryan has told CVG that  “it will be a pleasure to see Yamauchi-san and hear what’s next for Gran Turismo.”

He stated: “The Gran Turismo franchise continues to be extremely important to PlayStation.

“We felt that 15 years of GT was an event worth celebrating along with our colleagues from the Americas, Asia and Japan. We are very grateful to our manufacturer partners for helping us to bring together a fantastic event.

“As well as experiencing the development of the franchise and comparing the virtual and real, it will be a pleasure to see Yamauchi-san and hear what’s next for Gran Turismo.”

Take a peek at the teaser trailer for the May 15th Gran Turismo event below:

Are you excited for the announcement of the next Gran Turismo? Let us know in the comments below. Check back on GamingBolt on May 15th for the reveal of the next Gran Turismo.