GT5 Prologue adds stunning firsts to the record-breaking series:
Ferrari cars make their debut in Hi-Def graphics New London track
Gran Turismo online - featuring online races and BBC Top Gear content
Sony Computer Entertainment UK has announced the launch of GT5 Prologue for PlayStation®3.
The release marks the 10th anniversary of the Gran Turismo® series. Widely acknowledged as the most realistic of driving games, Gran Turismo has sold almost 50 million copies worldwide and picked up a Bafta award to make it the world’s most successful gaming franchise. Now backed by the graphical power of PlayStation 3, the stunning High Definition format of GT5 Prologue is poised once again to set a new bench mark for driving simulators.
GT5 Prologue will be available from 28 March for the suggested retail price of £24.99, available both on Blu-ray disc and as a download from PLAYSTATION®Network (PSN). By popular demand a London track will be making its Gran Turismo debut. The route travels past famous landmarks such as Piccadilly Circus, the National Portrait Gallery and Trafalgar Square as you screech down Regents Street and up Charing Cross Road - parts of London normally associated with the hustle of London traffic, black cabs and double-decker buses.
In all the game features six incredibly detailed tracks from around the world including the London course, the Swiss mountain range at Alp Eiger Nordwand, the 2.5 mile Daytona International Speedway, the High Speed Ring and Japan’s Fuji Speedway and Suzuka Circuit. The realism does not stop with the tracks. Even fans from previous GT games will be amazed by the advancements made in replicating many of the world’s finest cars.
The passion of gaming legend Kazunori Yamauchi, the Japanese creator of the series, is translated into each car performing, handling, sounding and behaving like its road or track going equivalent. It took the team approximately six months to develop each car with, on average, each car model made up of over 200,000 polygons (that’s forty times more than the car models in GT4). With more than 70 cars to choose from, including the Nissan GT-R, Ford GT, Audi R8, TVR Tuscan Speed 6, Aston Martin DB9, the mighty Ferrari 599, the only dilemma is which car to power up first. GT5 Prologue is further enhanced by its online capability that is accessed through the game, so that all you need is a PlayStation 3 and a broadband connection.
One of the online services will be Gran Turismo TV, a dedicated online channel packed with news and content from the world of motoring and motorsport. Downloadable content on GT TV, for example, will include 40 episodes from the cult BBC Top Gear programme. For the first time ever in the illustrious history of Gran Turismo, gamers are now able to compete online with up to 16 players from all over the world able to race head-to-head.
The online race feature includes time trails, downloadable ‘ghost’ replays and ranking boards. GT5 Prologue also features an all-new ‘physics’ design for the most realistic driving simulator ever seen and new artificial intelligence opponents for the toughest race challenge yet.
Popular features in GT5 Prologue will also include two-player battles on the split screen mode, a vehicle tuning function, the drift trial mode and a driving line aid to help drivers learn how to take the racing lines.
Developed hand-in-hand with the motor industry’s leading marques, including Ferrari for the first time and privileged access to Nissan’s GT-R development programme, GT5 Prologue sets an industry standard. GT5 – the full title – launches in 2009. Until then, there is enough ultra-realistic, high-speed racing in GT5 Prologue on PS3!
To find out more, visit granturismoworld.com.
