Gran Turismo 5 at Tokyo Game Show: Community Features, Legacy Tracks, Weather Effects, X1 Prototype

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At last night’s Gran Turismo 5 panel at the Tokyo Game Show in Makuhari Messe, Polyphony Digital’s Kazunori Yamauchi gave an extensive update on new features coming to GT5. Highlights included new community features related to My Home, weather effects such as rainfall, returning legacy tracks, and new cars. For more details, see the full announcement on Gran-Turismo.com. But first things first! Watch the new Tokyo Game Show trailer for Gran Turismo 5 below.



My Home Detailed

Gran Turismo 5 will include a big focus on social media functions and community interaction. The record of your playing experience, as well as your future objectives, are all organized on the “My Home” screen — a sort of “home base” for GT5 players. In addition to your PS3, My Home will also be viewable from your PC’s web browser starting on November 2nd, GT5’s release date. Kazunori explained that while console gaming and web browser gaming are separate fields, GT5’s My Home function will help bridge this gap.

Gran Turismo 5 for PS3: My Home

My Home is made up of three modes: GT LIFE, Profiles, and Community. Today, Polyphony Digital primarily touched upon the Community element. Kazunori explained that, while the major feature of the Community element is the ability to privately communicate with and race your PSN friends online, there are many other communication features built into GT5. Sharing photos and user-created courses, mail, and even a BBS bulletin board will all be included in the Community section of GT5. These functions will also be available for use in a web browser on Gran-Turismo.com as well as your PS3. You’ll also be able to “gift” cars or car parts to your PSN friends.

Gran Turismo 5 for PS3: Special Events Gran Turismo 5 for PS3: My Home

Inside Community is “My Lounge,” in which up to 16 friends can gather to hold online races. Lounge rules are up to you and can be changed from lounge to lounge: A Spec allows you to race from behind the wheel, while B Space allows you to give commands to an AI driver as a sort of “director’s mode.” The AI driver feature also allows you to “rent out” AI drivers, and they’ll gain experience as they race.

Remote Racing is a special mode in Commmunity that also ties into the AI drivers and web browser support. In Remote Racing, you can set up an AI driver as “public,” and he may race against one of your PSN friends while you’re away. When you return, he’ll have gained experience while you were away. In Remote Racing, you’ll be able to watch these races, but not give AI commands like you would in the standard B Spec mode.

New Cars and X1 Prototype Reveal

With over 1000 cars in the final game, Polyphony Digital showed off a selection of new cars, starting with the X1 Prototype Project, a dream car that was designed in a partnership between Red Bull Racing and Polyphony Digital. See the mysterious X1 Prototype in the new video below.



Kazunori explained that both teams were interested in building a car that “throws aside all rules and regulations,” and was built for maximum performance — “the fastest racing car on land.” The X1 Protoype will be playable in GT5. In addition to the X1 Prototype, Kazunori also introduced a selection of new cars that will make it into GT5 on November 2nd.

Isuzu 4200R ’89

Gran Turismo 5 for PS3: Isuzu 4200R '89 Gran Turismo 5 for PS3: Isuzu 4200R '89

Citroën GT by Citroën Race Car

Gran Turismo 5 for PS3: Citroën GT by Citroën Race Car Gran Turismo 5 for PS3: Citroën GT by Citroën Race Car

Volkswagen typ2 (T1) Samba Bus ‘62

Gran Turismo 5 for PS3: Volkswagen typ2 (T1) Samba Bus Gran Turismo 5 for PS3: Volkswagen typ2 (T1) Samba Bus

Volkswagen Kubelwagen typ82 ‘44

Gran Turismo 5 for PS3: Volkswagen Kubelwagen typ82 Gran Turismo 5 for PS3: Volkswagen Kubelwagen typ82

Volkswagen Schwimmwagen typ166 ‘42

Gran Turismo 5 for PS3: Volkswagen Schwimmwagen typ166 Gran Turismo 5 for PS3: Volkswagen Schwimmwagen typ166

Returning Legacy Tracks

Kazunori also confirmed that some popular legacy tracks from GT’s history have been rebuilt and remodeled for GT5. Check them out in the screens below.

Gran Turismo 5 for PS3: Trial Mountain Circuit Gran Turismo 5 for PS3: Trial Mountain Circuit

Trial Mountain Circuit in Gran Turismo 5

Gran Turismo 5 for PS3: Laguna Seca Raceway Gran Turismo 5 for PS3: Laguna Seca Raceway

Laguna Seca Raceway in Gran Turismo 5

Gran Turismo 5 for PS3: Sarthe 2009 Gran Turismo 5 for PS3: Sarthe 2009

Sarthe 2009 in Gran Turismo 5

Weather Change Effects

Finally, the Polyphony Digital team also confirmed that environmental changes due to rain and snow have been implemented — down to functional windshield wipers. Combined with other new visual effects such as day-and-night cycle, lightning and tire smoke, Kazunori explained that the weather effects will allow for more immersive racing experiences. Kazunori also confirmed that the weather effects wouldn’t be available on every course, but primarily courses focused on endurance racing.

Gran Turismo 5 for PS3: Eiger Nordwand

Gran Turismo 5 for PS3: Eiger Nordwand Gran Turismo 5 for PS3: Eiger Nordwand

For more details on Gran Turismo 5’s Tokyo Game Show announcements, visit Gran-Turismo.com.

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109 Comments

5 Author Replies

  • I’m terrible at GT games and I keep buying them because they are awesome games. And this looks like I’ll be driving off the road and skidding into walls again with this one too. God, it looks SO good.

  • i might start playing GT PSP again…. sweet

  • MASTERFUL

  • wow i hate racing sim games but when you throw in the infamous samba bus… well idk but that better be in nfs: hot pursuit (it could be called the groovy dlc and you would have to run the hippies across the border while getting run down( also no way im buying this :( i tried the demo and it just wasn’t my type it was even harder than forza ( i only like racing games with nitro, car crashes, and/or guns)

  • This is what I have been waiting for since the first Gran Turismo. Simply awesome!

  • Pretty sure Turn 10 just pre-ordered this… :)

  • Excellent, I hope weather effects could be later assigned to any track via a posterior update, this game is pure awesomeness!!

  • Weather was epic, still stoked and cant wait!

  • Its amazing how 13 years ago i played gran turismo on my psone and now we got the most realistic graphics for a racing game ever. I NEED THIS GAME!!!

    GO PlayStation!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

  • Will Gran Turismo 5 support Worldwide matchmaking, Sid? Thanks

  • I can honestly say this game will be the first “cheap game” for $60 it has lots of things to offer that other game devs will charge and make it add on.

  • GT is unreal no game this generation will come close to it.Why cant all developers put this kind of effort into their games.

  • Absolutely AMAZING. Can you imagine what GT6 will be like??? How could they possibly top this, I tip my hat to you polyphony digital, hell I bow down to you lol, seriously this is godly.

  • Laguna Seca my favorite spot to drift at and cant wait to be able to play gt5

  • I am now pre-ordering this game just because of that video.

  • I pre-ordered the collector’s edition of this Masterpiece, it’s as good as SOLD!!! 8)

  • Car damage both visible and mechanical add realism to racing games. can we expect to see any of this in GT5? If so how good will it be? If there are damage physics in GT5 how will it compare to Forza Motorsport III?.

  • =-) Nuff said

  • really impressed with the weather and time of day stuff looks awesome. im asuming from various videos that are doing the rounds on the net and that not all tracks will feature real time weather, that the feature will be dynamic on all real world tracks/ locations. and any fantasy tracks will not use it? will the weather be static for these? or sunny and set to day/ night?

  • The one and only thing that really puzzles me is why a studio that is so meticulously designing cars, tracks and menus (which are all superb by any standards) can make the one thing that breaks realism for me every time I look at screens or videos of GT5 – black shadows in bright day light… is it so hard to tint them slightly blue and make them a little more transparent? as a fellow games developer I think it’s not… Still GT5 will be an awesome game, just always wondered how a studio like polyphony can let that slip their otherwise hawk like eyes when it comes to detail.

  • Crazy, what can’t Polyphony do, this just makes the wait so much harder.

  • OMG OMG OMG OMG I love it. I wonder how the life like it will be. I’ve done some runs in Willow Springs at night and I know how hard it is. I just hope that it will knock FORZA out of the competition for good.

  • This game took forever to be made, yet it’s way ahead of the competition.

  • The weather effects look amazing :P Well, all of it does :P

  • I’m so freaking ready for GT5. :D

  • Too many games coming out around the same time it’s hard to get all of them, I may have to wait on GT5 and get LBP2 or Black Ops or even Medal of Honor. Oh wow, even Assassin’s Creed Brotherhood comes out at the same time. I hate when the gaming companies do this to us…

  • At 0:56 you can see a red van. What is that?

  • Awesome… so glad to see that weather effects made it in. Is it just rain, or is snow making an appearance too?

  • Just looks amazing

  • Ooh, like the Citroën GT by Citroën Race Car

  • @loadstone007 – that would be the same van that there are pictures of a little further down in this very same article…lmfao…

  • I can’t wait for this game. I happy that more detail is in Le Mans Cars now than GT4. There are still two thing I want to know if they will happen. Will PD bring back Red Rock Valley Speedway from GT2 via DLC ( GT5:P had DLC when they added the 3 cars), and will the cars still shoot fire out the exhaust?

  • Anyone know if GT TV is returning for GT5?

    I love Top Gear, and it would be great to be able to watch it before doing a lap around their Test Track!

  • Also, any plans to reduce the price of GT5:Prologue before the release of GT5?

    I would like to get it to fill in the gap between now and the full game’s release but the price feels a little high for a game that will be effectively obsolete in November.

    Or maybe you could just make it free to PS+ subscribers before then?

  • Oh and @81, yes, GTTV will be coming back. They just pulled most of the content from the Prologue servers because they propably rebuilt the entire server cluster for GT5.

  • omg!!!!! thank god i payed it off already! cant w8! Nov 2nd is taking forever

  • @85 ADR143

    I know, the wait is killing me!!! I’m playing GT2 to kill time but I would prefer to be be playing GT5: Prologue… Or, better, GT5 already!

  • @65 yes there is car damage and it does affect your car and it way better the foreza.. They siad the car will go slower is its majored damged . They been making this game for 5- yrs, its blow the xbox game out the water. clearly out the water..

  • OK, the night rainy driving and the water effects on the windshield just made my jaw drop, I cant seem to pick it back up.

  • Is any possibilties that we can get a tourist trophy 2 after this masterpiece?

  • Looking at this almost makes me wish I gotten a PS3 instead of a 360 when I had the chance,

  • you guys should do a social experiment. show that rain footage, without the ps/gt logos in it and see how many people think it’s real footage.

    i’m sure that could help your advertising ;) 9 out of 10 people couldn’t tell GT5 from real life footage.

    I can’t wait for the stateside release :) only been wanting this game for 3 years now.

  • Can’t wait for this one.

  • Will this “realistic” game still let you tunnel directly into a wall at 200mph and yet drive away with just a bump on your fender?

    That has always been the part that shattered any illusion of reality in this series.

  • @MagnusRahl

    and where are these “black shadows” you speak of mister dev? have you seen the video in high resolution? they don’t look solid black to me at all, and I’m talking about the shadows from the cars in bright sunlight one can barely see for a second in this video.

  • @95 Yeah, well its called real DRIVING simulator.. if you want to crash go play burnout… *sigh*

  • It would be awesome if the weather reflected the real world weather of the track in realtime.

  • @Suprageek:

    It’s not that I want to crash. But if it happens, the game should be able to address the fact that it happened. Every other game on the market has this capability. Why not GT?

    It’s a sad embarrassment that they haven’t been able to successfully incorporate this into their “real” simulation.

    It’s not 1998 anymore.

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