PSP Review - Gran Turismo

Then there is the Driving Challenge mode, which if you’ve played previous Gran Turismo titles, you will be familiar with the concept. You will be put up against various tasks, such as coming to a complete stop in an outlined zone, or taking a sharp corner properly. Tasks must be completed within certain time-limits to achieve a Bronze, Silver, or Gold trophy. The challenges vary greatly in difficulty, and layout. As if the reward of more credits to buy more cars with wasn’t enough, all of the challenges teach you something valuable about how to play the game.

The game plays very much like you would expect from a Gran Turismo game, with each car having a completely different “feel” on the road. Each car is modeled after it’s real-life counterparts, even down to the sound of the engine. The engine sounds aren’t of the best quality through the PSP’s speakers, so if you are the type to be thrilled by the growl of each car’s engine then you might want to pick up a pair of headphones. While on the subject of sound, it’s important to note, that a Custom Soundtracks option can be unlocked early on in the game, allowing you to play music stored on the PSP’s Memory Stick, or the PSPgo’s internal flash memory, in the background of your races. Custom soundtracks give GT your personal touch, and make racing long laps even more enjoyable.

Graphics are outstanding for the PSP, some of the best the PSP has to offer. Sensation of speed, and an impeccable physics engine make each an every turn impressive. Different terrains, such as mud or snow can completely change how your favorite car will handle. Each track has been designed with great detail, producing breathtaking backdrops to epic races to the finish. One such example of detail, is being able to easily make out numerous landmarks in Times Square on the New York track.

To round out this, deep, enthralling racer, are small tacked on features like the GT Theater, which doesn’t offer any value to the game. It doesn’t hurt the game at all either, but it serves as nothing more than time to kill, watching your saved replays of your previous races. Another feature that doesn’t offer much value is the sharing/trading of cars with friends via Ad-hoc. Acquiring new cars from credits you’ve accumulated through racing is the whole point of the game, so trading in a sense, actually takes away from the game.

Overall, Gran Tursimo for the PlayStation Portable is a fantastic game, and definitely lives up to the quality that Gran Turismo fans have come to expect from Polyphony Digital. The lack of a career mode does hurt the game (enough to prevent a 5 out of 5 score), but there is more than enough content to keep you busy even without it. The sheer number of available vehicles, and track variations could potentially keep you busy for a long time to come.