Gran Turismo 4 is the type of game that strives for meticulous detail and realism. It’s a video game for sure, but in the last three installments there has been a progression of some type that brought them closer to the real thing. Gran Turismo 4’s advancements seem to be more rooted in its visual polish and sheer delivery of options than any of its previous incarnations. While we were initially promised online play, that omission is soon forgotten when you realize just how entertaining the game can be hours on end in your own living room. If the game seems aimed at the more hardcore fans of racing games, then you would be right to assume so. It’s not terribly difficult to get used to, but little things that seem simple on paper can become a nail bitingly frustrating task to master. Regardless, Gran Turismo 4 is one of the best racing games on any system and we will tell you exactly why.

 

Featuring over 700 cars and 50 race courses Gran Turismo 4 delivers plenty in the way of variety. This isn’t a typical arcade racer; in fact, most of its driving mechanics are very close to their real life counterparts. It’s not safe to say that driving in Gran Turismo 4 will necessarily make you a better driver in reality, because if you try to drive like this on the road, you will sure be picking up your own pieces off the road side. You have your basic acceleration, brake, emergency brake and the options to change your camera view. All of these are mainstays in most racing games. Something new to the series is the added ability to boost with some cars. It isn’t a huge advantage, but it’s interesting to see the influence other racing games have had on the series. GT4 isn’t simply going to let your crash around its courses at the start though. In Gran Turismo mode, you must go through several license and driving tests so that you can qualify for official races. This is where most people will have the biggest problem with the game. The tests are as unforgiving as can be, just as they would be in reality if you were applying for such a profession. If you miss the mark by just a second, plan to do it all over again. Over and over and over, you get the picture.  

Once you break out of the chains that is the license center you can move onto the races which are the meat of the game. Exhilarating as always, if you know how to drive well, you will have a blast with the game. The AI is competent and always puts up a fight and most of the time you have to have full concentration in order to pull off first place. 

Aside from the mainstay A-Spec mode, there is B-Spec which puts you in the chair of a manager and you give specific cues to your driver as of what to do. It’s a bit disconnected from the rest of the game, but it is a nice break from the constant chaos that comes from direct control. 

With the money you gain from races and special events you can purchase over 700 different chars and customize them to your liking. This is where many enthusiasts get hooked as it almost feels like catching Poke’mon. Getting all the cars is something you can shoot for, but expect to be playing the game for hundreds of hours on end.  

The game also has a new photo mode where you can take pictures of your cars or races and then print them out on your printer using a USB connection. It’s a neat feature as long as you have the ink to fill all of those pixels.