Original URL: https://www.theregister.com/2013/12/18/review_gran_turismo_6_game/
Gran Turismo 6: Another glossy, gorgeous Mario Kart on steroids
The PS3’s GT5 gets a shiny new trim, but too few new features
Posted in Personal Tech, 18th December 2013 20:14 GMT
Review I must admit to being rather surprised when Gran Turismo 6 was first announced. Not because yet another entry into Polyphony Digital’s driving series was a shock, but rather because it was announced for the PS3, not the the PlayStation 4.
GT6: Revved not revised
GT6 for PS4 makes rather a lot of sense, you see. The opportunity to give the series a graphical overhaul, a chance to inject some unpredictability into those on-rails AI racers, and the perfect way to hype Sony’s next-generation console.
Not to mention the potential of seeing GT6 go wheel-to-wheel against Forza 5 on the Xbox One.
Nocturnal (carbon) emissions
Alas, though, that isn’t what we've got – at least not yet. And so here we are with GT6 on PS3, a game that’s perhaps best summed up as GT5 all over again, albeit with a new intro video and interface.
OK, maybe that’s a tad unfair. GT6 offers perhaps the fullest virtual driving experience I’ve ever seen on a console. Just as long as you switch to manual gears and remove the blue racing line aid once you’re comfortable. Trust me, the experience will be far more authentic, and rewarding, when you do.
Every car’s unique handling quirks are replicated, every bump in the road perceivable and every change you make to tyre balance, exhaust, power, et al accurately reflected in your car’s subsequent outing. It’s all there, flawlessly handed to you in one perfect, responsive package.
Shot like a Top Gear special
It’s this attention to every conceivable detail that has always been Gran Turismo’s hallmark, and fans won’t be disappointed here. Though, once again, not every car gets the full premium car treatment – meaning you won’t always see the sharpest bodywork or dashboard interior view.
For newcomers, GT6 offers a gentle – some would argue too gentle – introduction to the ways of racing. Everything from the game’s freshly honed interface, through to the pedestrian Beginner’s Championship has been engineered to ease you in smoothly and comfortably.
The new interface is designed to ensure you’re only ever a button press away from changing your car. The option to have the game suggest a recommended purchase for specific events is good news for those who don’t relish trawling through an almanac of automotive history.
A game with flare
As I said, the Beginner’s Championship is ridiculously straightforward to win, as are virtually all of the initial events. It’s enough to make veterans wonder why these early events aren’t optional, as they waltz to win-after-win in their mandatory first car: a Honda (yes, really).
Events take the form of either races or time trials, and winning such events then opens compulsory licence tests. It’s these you’ll need to grind through – that’s really the only apt description – in order to unlock the next batch of races.
That’s not the whole story though, as the likes of Lord March invitational events, Coffee Break Challenges – basically gymkhana events – and One-Make races – where all cars are of similar make and power – open up new ways to compete.
Help from the garage band
All in all, there’s rather a lot to do then, and racing against the clock to snag those difficult golden trophies is as addictive a challenge as ever.
Yes, you can drive on the Moon
GT fans can expect to see some repetition mind you, with whole tracks – London, Rome, Madrid and more – all seemingly ported directly from GT5. That said, a track set on the lunar surface at least offers something different, as do some lovely new weather and night-driving effects.
Been there, but haven’t done that
It must also be said that these real-world locations all look gorgeous – as they did before. But for every lavish car texture and photorealistic building, there’s a weirdly blurry tree just moments down the track. Plus, long loading times between circuits are off-putting, especially after experiencing the next gen.
Like its predecessor, GT6 lets itself down in the AI stakes too. The computer-controlled drivers simply don’t race like real drivers would. It’s like they must follow the blue racing line I mentioned earlier and don’t see the player’s car, let alone react to it.
Even when racing in a marginally slower car I was able to get the drop on them time and time again by out-breaking them into corners.
Goodwood if it could
Worse, they generally just smashed into my rear bumper as they dumbly looked to re-take the lost position. I can take tactics like that from Bowser in Mario Kart, but it’s pretty dim in a driving sim.
At least Polyphony made a smart choice when it came to the online component of the game. Here you’ll actually need to unlock the National A licence to go online.
Depending on how many superfluous events you complete, and how fastidious you are at accruing golden trophies, multiplayer could take more than ten hours to unlock, which I don’t think is a bad thing.
Guiding lights
What such a restriction assures is that once you do venture online you’ll have a respectable fleet of cars and enough driving knowhow to compete.
That said, the online mode is currently messy at best and finding a suitable game is slow-going. In short, it needs a similar overhaul to that of the game’s interface and even a promised patch seems unlikely to address all the issues.
The Reg Verdict
Gran Turismo 6 feels like a game behind its time. It’s too similar to GT5 to whole-heartedly recommend to anyone but the series’ biggest fans. And even they might abandon it once GT7 comes out on PS4 – something that could happen as early as next year, according to recent quotes by the game’s developer.
Bringing up the rear
It’s not that GT6 is at all bad – quite the opposite in fact. But the lack of advances, especially when it comes to AI, limits the spectacle. It’s as if, somewhere amid all the statistics and attention to detail needed to create the perfect driving simulation, Polyphony forgot to inject any real thrill.
Buy it for the improved interface, the brilliant handling and the million little flourishes that go into each car’s set up. Just don’t be surprised when you ditch it for what will hopefully be a complete overhaul of the series in GT7. ®
