Gran Turismo has been a cornerstone of Sony and the PlayStation since the original console in the 1990s.
In total, there have been seven titles spawned from the famous simulation racing series but there hasn’t been a numbered entry since Gran Turismo 6 on the PS3.
With the PS5 being released later this year, rumours of Gran Turismo 7 being a launch title have been rife.
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It would certainly make sense for the legendary racing series to drop their latest title on the ultra-powerful PS5. So what do we know so far? And what do we want from the game?
The Past
Before GT, racing games were largely gimmicky, they were Mario Kart without the power-ups.
The introduction of 3D graphics to the home consoles, though, created an opportunity for Polyphony and Sony.
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Gran Turismo was a serious racer for serious racers, it changed the genre forever. Rave reviews followed and the series carried on being the go-to for the next two generations of consoles.
Release date
There isn’t a huge amount that’s been revealed to us so far other than that Polyphony are developing the next GT game.
With E3 2020 in June and Gamescom 2020 at the end of August we can expect to hear much more about the game here, perhaps even a trailer.
The most likely release date in Holiday 2020 side-by-side with the PS5.
There is supposedly a major announcement coming from Sony in February, so that should give us a clearer indication of when we can expect to jump on the track in a new GT game.
Gameplay
In terms of the game that Polyphony is aiming to produce, there isn’t much to go on other than this statement from Kazunori Yamauchi, the creator of the GT series:
“I think the next title that we’re going to create will be a combination of the past, present and future – a complete form of Gran Turismo.”
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That’s all well and good but what does that mean? Well, it probably tells us that GT7 will the best of what made previous titles great, what GT Sport did well and where Polyphony see GT going in the future.
This is should result in a concentration on a trifecta of features and values that have been at the core of Gran Turismo.
Physics & handling
What makes every GT game great is its physics model.
The gameplay and even the graphics have been called into question in recent iterations but nobody can question the accuracy of how the cars handle and feel.
In Gran Turismo 6 and Sport, you can purchase a race simulator that is so detailed that most professional racing teams would be happy with it.
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The physics are the most realistic out there, it’s a bargain when you consider it’s only around £50 when new.
That won’t change in Gran Turismo 7. It will be the most accurate and realistic sim racer available.
Graphics
Second is the graphics and detail when it comes to the models of the cars.
In past editions, blacked-out interiors and low-res graphics for cars had plagued cockpit and third-person views. Damage had also been poor, slamming into a wall at 200 mph just used to leave you with a dent.
This simply won’t be the case for a game that’s is sure to showcase the abilities of Sony’s new console.
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I wouldn’t be surprised if Sony have bolstered Polyphony’s ranks with more personnel to help on these very issues.
The PlayStation 5 boasts an AMD Ryzen CPU with eight cores and the maker’s new 7nm Zen 2 microarchitecture, a next-gen Radeon GPU capable of ray tracing, a super-fast SSD that can load games in the blink of an eye.
This should make GT7 the best-looking racer around, as well as the most realistic.
Cars & tracks
Gran Turismo games have always had a lot of cars and locations for you to race around.
GT Sport currently boasts 324 cars and 82 configurations of 32 locations.
It would be reasonable to expect GT7 to top that eventually, though not at launch.
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Gran Turismo Sport has been a well-supported game in its 2+ year lifespan, and new content should keep arriving for GT7 too.
The classic locations Brands Hatch, Interlagos, Spa, and the Nurburgring are certain to be included, while fresh city locations should come in too.
Sport Mode
The world of sport that GT has managed to achieve in GT Sport was a big improvement to the GT experience. The online elements of Sport can be carried forward to GT7 with a few tweaks to take it to the next level.
More races, of varied length, along with the introduction of a dynamic weather system could really lift the whole experience for racers.
