Gran Turismo
A few minutes after receiving my first paycheck back in January 1998 I walked to the then Virgin Megastore on Oxford Street and converted a good chunk of my pay packet into a Playstation. There is something about taking a big box back home that makes me all fuzzy inside and I was the happiest rodent in the race that day.
But it wasn't for a few months down the line that I stumbled across the first few gaming masterpieces. Back then I was not a very sophisticated gamer when it came to choosing a game. I often picked one up based on their covers, which proved to be very hit and miss experience. Making a great discovery resulted in a sense of euphoria but bring home a dud would be emotionally crippling.
The two games that I most fondly look back upon are the originals of Kojima’s Metal Gear Solid and Yamauchi’s Gran Turismo with the later sucking up my free time like a Dyson on crack.
Gran Turismo was light years before it’s time. The graphics were impressive, even though by today’s standards each car looked like one big fat pixel on wheels. But back in the day that was mind blowing. What made it a true pioneer in the racing genre were the game physics and tweaking options made available to the user.
Each car handled in its own unique way, front wheel drive cars would understeer, rear wheel drive cars would oversteer, each upgrade would make a noticeable impact on your car’s performance and handling, all the cars and upgrades were authentic and if you were a gearheaded grease monkey you could even tinker around with the suspension stiffness, gear ratios and downforce.
The Playstation’s sensitive analogue thumsticks also worked perfectly in tandem with the game’s need for delicate handling. It was a match made in silicon heaven and I collected all the cars and parts and could race around each track with me eyes closed.
With the release of Sony’s new platform, the imaginatively named Playstation 3, and the barren field of exclusive titles currently available on the system Gran Turismo 5, and my other blast from the past the new Metal Gear Solid: Guns of the Patriot, to shoulder the burden of bringing gamers back to the Sony brand.
I was playing Gan Turismo 5 Prologue, which gives you access to 50 cars and 6 tracks that will be featured in the final build. However the most important feature of this £24.99 game is that it is the first time the series will be venturing into the online space. I have put a good few hours into the game and I have to admit I am falling in love all over again.
After playing Forza 2 on my 360 though it’s hard to get used to no vehicle damage and dare I say it … lack of achievement points.
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