GT Academy 2012 Begins Today on PlayStation Store

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It’s the moment aspiring race drivers have been waiting for: GT Academy 2012 is available now! If you think you have what it takes, go to PlayStation Store and download the free demo of GT Academy 2012 right now.

(That’s right — you don’t need to have a copy of Gran Turismo to play and compete!)

This national competition, designed to turn the best Gran Tursimo players into real-life race drivers, welcomes players of all experience levels. Each participant will compete in a series of virtual trials, piloting Nissan cars, over an eight-week period in 40 different events. Each round features five events that players can retry as many times as they want. Only the fastest lap times will be recorded and ranked. Rounds 1 and 2 are the first set of trials to open, and Polyphony Digital will release subsequent rounds every two weeks.

Here’s a list of rounds and when they will be available:

Round 1 and 2 (Registration not required):
5/1 (Tue) to 6/24 (Sun)

Round 3 and 4 (Registration not required):
5/14 (Mon) to 6/24 (Sun)

Round 5 and 6 (Registration not required):
5/28 (Mon) to 6/24 (Sun)

Round 7 and 8 (Round 8 is Final / Qualification Event):
6/11 (Mon) to 6/24 (Sun)

The last stage of this eight-week competition will serve as the finale—Round 8, Event 5—where it all boils down to one FINAL online time trial challenge. Only the fastest lap times will go up on the national leader boards, so in order to move up in the rankings, you must continually improve your performance. Take all the key driving techniques that you have acquired from each of the trials, and unleash them in Round 8, Event 5. Your performance here will determine if you have what it takes to move on to the GT Academy 2012 National Finals.

More information on GT Academy will follow very soon and you can read up on all details and specifics through the official site and our Facebook page.

For now, download GT Academy from the PlayStation Store and start racing!