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 Gran
Turismo 5 Prologue (Playstation 3)
Serving more as an extended demo than a
full-fledged installment in the series, Gran Turismo 5 Prologue still
delivers a solidly entertaining racing experience that adds a few new
elements to the game. The biggest addition is the inclusion of online
play, which allows you to compete against other players and rank your
performance against them. The game itself stays true to the GT tradition
of realism and authenticity with stunning recreations of vehicles ranging
from standard production models to exotic sports cars. Visually, GT5P
pushes the PS3 with fill 1080p rendering that delivers beautiful car
models with reflective hoods, photo-realistic equipment and an impressive
new inside the car view. While not as elaborate as earlier models, this
prototype is definitely worth checking out for a glimpse of Gran Turismo's
next evolution. |
| It's
been almost exactly a decade since the launch of the original Gran Turismo
on the PS1, and while this latest release isn't exactly a full-fledged
title, it still offers the same realism and authenticity that has made
this driving simulator so popular over the years. The game offers a
sizeable garage encompassing more than 60 vehicles from well-known and
exotic manufacturers such as Nissan and Toyota. While other games have
more cars, the level of realism in GT5P is incredible when you consider
that each individual car has been simulated down to the smallest detail in
terms of both appearance and performance, giving players an excellent
sense of how they perform in the real world. The tracks aren't as
extensive in number as other GT titles but, the six included here show a
great deal of authenticity and have been recreated down to the smallest
detail. The developers have recreated each track nearly flawlessly by
measuring them almost exactly the same dimensions and scale as their
real-life counterparts. This gives the game a great deal of authenticity,
and players accustomed to the feel and style of previous Gran Turismo
titles will feel right at home immediately. The game's structure is fairly
basic and offers a number of compelling game modes. The deepest of these
are event modes, where you can work your way up the ladder to unlock more
advanced vehicles. You begin at the lowest of three vehicle classes, which
consist of ten different events that you can race. In order to move on to
the next stage of vehicles, you need to win medals in all ten events,
which isn't as easy as it sounds.
Picking the right vehicle before each
stage begins is essential, since the wrong vehicles have no chance. In
addition, there are some events that are limited to specific vehicles and
classes, so you need to have them in your garage beforehand. Each event
has a specific vehicle type or requirement that must be met before racing.
Before each race begins, you can tweak a variety of settings including
automatic steering, turn compensation, racing line and other options for
your vehicle. Once you get on the road, you'll usually have to face off
against a variety of other vehicles, though to be fair, they aren't as
difficult as it seems initially because they move in somewhat predictable
patterns. The main challenge is learning the lines and curves, mastering
the art of cornering and drifting before you have even a chance. As you
win or place in each race, you'll earn credits that you can use in the
dealerships to purchase additional vehicles. You can also sell cars in
your garage that are no longer useful or under-powered to help you
purchase more upgrades. While the game starts off a bit slowly, as you
build up skill and earn better cars, the races become much more
challenging which makes it worth the effort to get through the earlier
event stages. Gamers who want to see more of the game's courses and
vehicles right away can choose to go into the Arcade mode, where they can
race right away, the drawback here is that you won't win any credits for
your victories. Progression unfolds at a fairly rapid pace if you put the
effort into things, and you'll quickly find yourself in the more exciting
second and third tiers where the faster sports cars can be purchased and
unlocked.
 The
selection of vehicles is quite impressive, though there are a few areas
that will probably be considered disappointing by some players. Primarily,
this will probably be the track selection. While individually, the tracks
are impressive and include the legendary Daytona speedway and an
impressive London street course, there are only six unique courses
included in the game, which doubles to 12 when you count the reverse
modes. It makes for a somewhat limited experience that can become
monotonous after awhile, especially during long play sessions. Helping to
mitigate this to some degree are some of Gran Turismo 5 Prologue's
innovations. Most of these lie in the areas of online play, which has been
implemented here for the first time. These modes allow you to race against
other players online from around the world and compare your speeds and
times against others in the new ranking mode. The gameplay in these areas
is just as you'd expect it to be, and most players should feel right at
home. Some minor issues, such as the lack of damage and rubber-band AI
remain in this edition of the game, but GT players are probably used to
these quirks by now so it shouldn't be that much of a big deal.
There is also a new multimedia feature
called GT-TV which allows you to download and watch special short movies
and video related to Gran Turismo which includes vehicle spotlights and
behind-the-scenes footage that can occasionally be very interesting. These
new online components are integrated seamlessly into the main game
interface which is quite easy to use and navigate. Gran Turismo 5P's
controls are also interesting, since this is one of the first games to use
the newly-released Dual Shock 3 controller, which provides a decent rumble
sensation that compliments the action perfectly. The game feels much more
natural with this interface and this gives the game a visceral feel other
racers on the PS3 seem to have missed to this point. Given their
long-standing partnership, it's also no surprise that the newest GT
supports a variety of Logitech steering wheels, ranging from some of the
previous wheels to the newest release. Visually, the game looks sumptuous
in HD and reaches a truly astonishing level of realism, with a significant
leap forward evident from GT4 the moment your turn the game on a look at
its beautiful vehicle renders, elaborate track designs, fantastic light
sourcing, beautiful reflections and incredibly smooth frame rate. This
helps to make a coherent and beautifully polished experience throughout,
where everything from the opening cinemas to the menu screens and vehicle
performance combines to create an absolutely seamless racing experience.
While some of this is lost in during the heat of racing, you can go back
and enjoy the view using the game's elaborate replay feature. Most
impressive on this front is the new in-cockpit viewpoint, which looks
incredibly lifelike and authentic an helps to immerse you into the driving
action in an excellent new way. It's an already impressive title, and most
players will probably appreciate the visuals, but you have to wonder how
much better the real GT5 will look when Polyphony has had the time to
truly polish to the experience.
 Despite
its somewhat limited scope, Gran Turismo 5 Prologue offers a tantalizing
glimpse into the future of the franchise. It's brilliant visuals define
high-definition realism with incredibly detailed car models, amazingly
detailed courses alive with trackside objects and varied scenery. The cars
themselves perform exactly as you'd expect them to and the attention to
detail is evident in the smallest nuances of their controls and
responsiveness. This high-fidelity to authentic design is what has always
set the GT games apart, and the first proper PS3 edition shows the
developers at Polyphony Digitial are once again up to the challenge.
Prologue's biggest addition is its extensive online component which has
been integrated seamlessly into the main game with rankings, multiplayer
races and new downloadable video content via the GT-TV service. While the
number of courses and vehicles is limited by GT standards, Prologue still
delivers plenty of content and solidly entertaining driving action. This
makes Gran Turismo 5 Prologue a surprisingly robust and well-rounded
package for what is essentially a demo, which should satisfy racing fans
until the full game is released some time next year.
-
Michael Palisano
Grade:
B
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