The Gran Turismo 6 release date is just months away as we continue to learn more about the upcoming game from Polyphony ahead of the 2013 holiday season.
The best selling racing game franchise on the Sony game console, Gran Turismo 6 carries the heavy burden of its past as it must live up to Gran Turismo's 15 years of breathtaking racing simulation. A pioneer in its day, rivals Forza Motorsports as well as the upcoming Drive Club for PlayStation 4 threatens Gran Turismo's crown. Refusing to surrender the throne, the upcoming Gran Turismo 6 promises to be the greatest evolution in the franchise yet.
Beyond the obligatory improvements in graphics and renderings, Gran Turismo 6 boasts a new physics engine for its game that will require the PlayStation 3 to wring out every drop of its computing ability. According to Polyphony Digital President Kazunori Yamauchi, Gran Turismo 6 boasts several improved parameters including refactoring, flexible expandability, adaptive tessellation, and dynamic range “50 times greater” than Gran Turismo 5.
The physics engine is half computer engineering and black magic. In order for Gran Turismo to make its cars handle more realistically, Polyphony partnered with Yokohama Rubber tire company and KW Automotive suspension company to produce the most authentic virtual driving sensation ever experienced.
While the amount of enhancements included into Gran Turismo 6 are certainly remarkable on paper, how does Gran Turismo 6 actually feel in the game?
Video game journalist Matt Kamen of IGN had the privelege to test drive the game on the Silverstone GP Circuit to see what's what.
"Visually, the game’s on another level. That’s easy to say and often harder to quantify, but even from the early build shown, the difference is clear. The lighting and texturing alone already look better than anything seen in GT5, and wire-frame models of individual components like light fixtures or interior dashboards reveal a level of detail and intricacy that invites madness if you stare at it for too long," said Kamen.
"Jumping behind the wheel of a virtual Nismo 350Z and taking it around the newly included International Circuit at Silverstone reveals that the greatest improvement so far is a quantum leap in responsiveness," Kamen continued. "In fact, handling was so significantly improved – particularly when using the immersive force-feedback steering wheel and floor pedals – that it took a few laps to get to grips with it, as the initial tendency was to put more effort into steering than proved necessary. Figuring out when to change gears proved key, with a first-lap schoolboy error on approach to a particularly sharp corner leaving me struggling to regain power and acceleration on the straight."
"My immediate reaction was frustration, quickly replaced by determination as I realised the game was doing exactly what it set out to do – provide an incredibly close approximation of how the car in question would actually respond under the same conditions. Instead of powering around like it was just a game, the car demanded to be treated as a real vehicle would be – it felt like I was actually driving, which is perhaps the highest accolade a driving game can be given."
Wow. No doubt, Gran Turismo always strived for OCD levels of obsession in order to move realism forward. The immediacy of vehicle handling experienced by Kamen in the upcoming Gran Turismo 6 no doubt represents the envelope that Polyphony is boldly pushing. We will learn whether Gran Turismo 6 will live up to the expectations of driving enthusiasts in the months before its 2013 holiday launch.
In the meantime, be sure to watch videos of a Mercedes-Benz SLS AMG GT3 as well as the KTM X-bow R lapping the Silverstone GP circuit. The third video shows a Nissan 370Z lapping Autumn Ring Reverse. Finally, don't miss an exclusive teaser featuring Polyphony president Kazunori Yamauchi with Gamespot:
