GRAN TURISMO 4
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Gran Turismo originally popped its head up on the PlayStation in 1998, fast becoming not just one of the most successful car games of all time, but simply one of the most successful video games of all time. It was hard back then to see how they were going to improve on what they'd built but the sequel arrived and blasted it out of the water. The game was immense, the number of tracks, cars and modifications had never been seen before and it once again raised the bar for all other racing games. Then their first PS2 outing arrived; Gran Turismo 3 was essentially a smaller version of GT2, with a serious lick of graphical and aural polish, but size isn't everything and this still proved to wow everyone who played it. So what happened since?
This game's been in production for what feels like an absolute age. GT3 was the first game I bought when I got my PS2, so it shows how long we've been waiting. We've had reported release dates flying further and further back, the online section gets scrapped to ensure the Christmas release deadline (which it obviously didn't make, but they still left out the online anyway) and they release "Prologue," which was basically a twenty quid demo of what's to come. Then out of the blue, I go to buy my morning paper and it's there in the supermarket. So has it been worth the wait?
Of course it has! Gran Turismo 4 is quite simply amazing, even the loading screens look classy! I'll give you a car themed comparison on why. In much the same way as essentially there's not much difference between a 2 litre Audi A4 and a 2 litre Mondeo, once you actually pay attention you can tell which is which blindfolded; the doors on the Audi clunk, rather than click, the engine purrs rather than whines, everything is simply thought about and tweaked that little bit more. That's what we have here, like Halo compared to other first person shooters. It's not so much bigger or better than a lot of the competition, it just feels far better to play.
The guys who made GT4 must love cars, and I mean really love cars, to the extent that if they didn't produce games of this high calibre then I'd be worried about them. Stashing copies of Auto Trader under their mattress, or scurrying to turn off the telly when the wife catches them with Top Gear on pause. The level of detail they've reached here is nothing short of astonishing; there are over five hundred cars, from vintage through to concept, each one looks and handles differently and can be modified to give you that extra zip or improved handling.
The number of tracks is also huge; there's over fifty to go at, including racing circuits, cities, snow, rally and in addition each one can be played in reverse, so in real terms you can double that fifty. I think you're starting to get an idea now of how huge this game is. It'll take you absolutely ages to get through; I've been on it non-stop for nearly a week and it's still nowhere near finished (and I'm still loving it).
Those of you who did waste, sorry, spend money on GT4 Prologue, are rewarded with being able to bring over some credits and license test passes from your old saved game data, so you can get a good head start on the crowd. Also, if you had GT3 you can carry over up to a hundred thousand credits, easily enough to get you a pretty mean motor. Unfortunately I had neither of these things, so I had to start from scratch and I found it a bit tough to begin with. The initial ten grand was fine for getting me a decent enough car to get through the first of the Beginner courses but little else, so I restarted a few times and always ended up stuck. However, once I decided to start afresh by taking all the license tests, things changed and I was soon ploughing through the game with no problem.
There are absolutely loads of them as well, five licenses in total, each comprising of sixteen tests, they're pretty challenging but not so difficult that you're bored before you've started. These are also perfect for showing off the car physics Gran Turismo is famous for. You get to drive cars of all types, ages and speeds throughout these tests and they all feel wonderful. The road surfaces feel sublime, as you can feel every bump and bank, thanks to the expert use of the vibration function on the PS2 controller. Later on, to shave off those precious couple of seconds, I found myself having to change my game. I always play car games from the outside view, as far away as possible but I found it was easier to see the racing lines if I opted for the in car view, I'm still playing in this view now and it's really improved my game. After each licence is passed, you're rewarded with a car that you race to earn more cash, unlock more courses and win more cars.
The gameplay map seems a little daunting at first, as there are options all over the place. Once you're familiar with it however, the layout is definite improvement on its predecessors. The race types are broken down into groups, each country can be visited to race, buy and modify cars and there's also a specialist tuning shop and used car garages scattered around. Whatever you need to find, you can usually come across it in more than one place, so you're never left frustrated navigating through hundreds of menus.
I only have a couple of small gripes, the first being that each time you enter another race you need to change your car manually. For example, if I'd finished the 4WD races and wanted to try an FF race, I'd have to go all the way out to the garage and change the car, to go all the way back in and select the race. It would have been cool if when you entered a new race, the game automatically brought up a list of your compatible cars so you could switch instantly. The other gripe is about the trade option. You can trade a vehicle from your friend's memory card by accessing it and then paying going rate for their car, which sounds great but in practice they've missed a trick here. You get the car but without any modifications and your friend doesn't get any credits for it. This makes the whole process a bit pointless; he may as well just give you the make and model number and let you go find it on your own. Of course, these are very minor issues in a truly superb game.
Once you've gone through the faff and got into a race, it's worth the wait. The graphics are amazing, better than any I've seen on PS2 and better than a lot I've seen on Xbox too. The cars look beautiful, each one shining and polished, the lighting is excellent, the backgrounds and tracks are all incredibly detailed and the draw distance is amazing. The only obvious flaw is the lack of damage and dirt to a car throughout the race but this is a small price to pay for a game that looks as beautiful as this does.
Once actually racing, you're rewarded with the best handling in any car game; it really is as close to the real thing as I can imagine anything getting. TOCA does an excellent job at realistic handling versus playability, but GT4 raises the bar. It takes some getting used to though, as having spent the last year or so playing Project Gotham Racing 2 and Rallisport Challenge 2 on Xbox, it took my a while to unlearn the bad habits I'd picked up from those more forgiving games.
Once you're in the throes of a race, a bigger problem becomes apparent; the AI cars are on rails. They have one set path from which they don't deviate and if you're in their way, they smash straight into you. It would have been fantastic had the game felt a little more like playing against real people, especially since the online option has been dropped. It is possible to approach a corner at speed and simply bounce off the AI cars to gain the lead, while if you did this in TOCA, your vehicle would be knackered and you'd have the car you knocked off trying to get its own back for the rest of the race. Those would have been welcome additions here.
This is nearly compensated for, as each of the race types is handled brilliantly; even the rally and snow sections are excellent and once again the attention to detail is remarkable. I remember watching an episode of Top Gear where Jeremy Clarkson was taking a Jaguar around the Nurburgring; he was interviewing some English bloke that had been practicing on Project Gotham to learn the track. The guy said it showed him the track and he knew where the corners were but wasn't expecting so many bumps on the road surface. Whether they're all in the correct places I don't know, but you can certainly feel them here - and the replays - wow! Especially in the rally sections, the way the tyres move, the car banks and reacts to the road is verging on the level of obsessive compulsive disorder on the part of its makers. Which can only be a good thing.
In two player, the game's great, not a hint of slowdown and from the beginning there's loads of tracks, race types and cars to choose from. Although the game can also be played over a LAN with up to six players, it's such a massive disappointment that the online section isn't here. This game could have been (hopefully eventually will be) the ultimate online racing experience. I'm keeping my fingers crossed that the reason the game was ten pounds cheaper than normal is that they're going to release an upgrade disk soon that rectifies this. For now though, at least we've all got time to get plenty of practice in.
Sound wise the games fantastic too, Pro Logic II is supported (if you've got a new enough amp to decode it) and the engine noises, clunks and bumps all sound spot on. The soundtrack is huge, with around ninety songs to choose from, all by original artists, ranging from classical to metal. So even if there are songs you don't particularly like, it doesn't matter; simply access the Jukebox option in the game menu and tailor the play list to your own specific tastes.
The only other new thing to report is the addition of B-Spec mode. This basically allows you to play the game as a manager rather than a driver, giving orders to a computer controlled car on how aggressive to drive, when to pit and overtake etc. I don't really rate it that much but the game's certainly no worse for having it in there. There's also photo mode, where you can take pictures of your car and print them. I can see where this function would have had its perks in DOA Volleyball or Rumble Roses but I can't really get that excited over it here. Again though, these extras can only add to the game.
GT4 only falls short of the perfect ten because of the lack of online play and the on-rails AI, yet these are small prices to pay for an otherwise outstanding game. Chances are if you've got a PS2 you've bought this already. If not go buy it NOW! If you've got an Xbox then there's a good chance you're probably reading this to see if it really is that good. It is, so buy a PS2 and GT4 NOW!
There's not a game I can call to mind that comes anywhere near Gran Turismo 4 in terms of lifespan. Pound for playtime it must be the cheapest game ever made; the career mode is huge, there's endless arcade options and once you've tired of it ages from now, the official steering wheel might have dropped to a more reasonable price (it's £100 currently!) so you'll be able to buy that and start from the beginning all over again. I love this game and so will you, it's an essential purchase that you simply must have in your collection.
Reviewed by kenneth paulsen(All Rights Reserved
cheats
Horsepower Boost
When you get a new car, give it an oil change and your car's hosepower will be increased.
900,000 credits in 15 minutes!
First, buy a DTM car or pick one up from your garage, then tune it up a bit.Go to the Deutsche Touring Meistershaft (DTM) Championship and enter it.Let your B-spec. driver do all the races in pace 4 with time sped up by 3x. Normally your B-spec. driver should do all the 5 races in 15 minutes. Every win is worth 15,000 credits+ a bonus of 75,000 for winning the championship+ a bonus of 700,000+ credits for selling the car you won from the championship (Mercedes CLK-GTR Race Car). Thats makes in total 900,000 credits in 15 minutes. Get ready to store all those 4,500,000 credits LMP cars in your garage.
Win Circuit de la Sarthe passing mission
T This mission requires that you pass all three of the same cars as you. This can be done very easily if you know where to look. You should be able to pass the car right in front of you when you start in the first part of the straight. When you get to the chicanes, brake as if you were taking the corner, but go straight. You will then encounter a wall. Steer around it. You will encounter a few more walls. Keep doing this until you see the track again, then get back on the track. You should be in second place with a large head start on the last car. Do the same thing with the other chicane. While on the final straight, be sure to keep out of line of the car behind you. You can lose if you don't!
Unlimited Money
To make this cheat work you must first have a car's hp around 356 and higher.Then enter the first Japanese championship, if you get first in all five races that will be 35,500. Also when you win you will get a Nissan Fairiady Z Concept LM Race car (hp 507) which is worth 319,000. Then you got the championship money which is 35,000. all together 389500, plus you can do it again.
Unlock Rare Black Versions of Cars
TTo unlock the powerful black versions of the Mazda 787B, Nissan R92CP, Toyota GT-ONE, and the Nissan R390 race car. You must wait for the days 694-700 in the Used car showroom early 90's for the 787B and the R92CP, and the late 90's used cars showroom for the GT-ONE and the R390. the early 90's black ver cars cost 1m+ while the late 90's black cars cost 2m+. And for the Gran Tursimo F1 black version you must have a 100% completion to unlock the F1 car in black.
Unlock Cars & tracks
Finish GT career mode to unlock more cars & tracks
Prize car list
Win the event listed on the left to win each car.
LICENSES
Domestic B: VW POLO 1.4 '02
Domestic B all Silver: MAZDA KUSABI '03
Domestic B all Gold: HONDA S500 '63
Domestic A: PONTIAC SUNFIRE GXP CONCEPT '02
Domestic A all Silver: HONDA DUALNOTE '01
Domestic A all Gold: NISSAN GT SKYLINE GT-R '01
International B: NIKE ONE 2022 '22
International B all Silver: MAZDA RX-8 CONCEPT TYPE2 '01
International B all Gold: JENSEN INTERCEPTOR MK3 '74
International A: NISMO 270R '94
International A all Silver: Nissan GT-R Concept '01
International A all Gold: Dome Zero '78
S License: MERCURY COUGAR XR-7 '67
S License all Silver: Pontiac Solstice coupe 2002
S License all Gold: Ford Model T
BEGINNER HALL
Sunday Cup: AUTOBIANCHI A112 ABARTH '79
FF Challenge: ALTENZA CONCEPT '01
FR Challenge: NISSAN SKYLINE 2000GT-B (S54A) '67
4WD Challenge: TOYOTA MOTOR TRIATHLON RACE CAR '04
MR Challenge: LOTUS ESPRIT TURBO HC '87
Lightweight K Cup: GINETTA G4 '64
SPIDER&ROADSTER: CHRYSLER Prowler '92
Trucks: CHEVROLET SILVERADO SST CONCEPT '02
PROFESSIONAL HALL
Clubman Cup: MAZDA MAZDASPEED ATENZA '05
Tuned Car: NISSAN OPTION STREAM Z '04
NA Tuned: HONDA NSX-R CONCEPT '01
Turbo Tuned: MAZDA BP FALKEN RX-7 (D1GP) '03
Boxer Tuned: RUF CTR "YELLOW BIRD" '87
World classic tour: Mercedes Benz Daimler motor carriage 1886
World Compact Car race: Honda S800 RSC Race Car '68
Supercar Festival: CIZETA V16T '94
GT World Champion Cup: Ford GT LM Race Car Spec II `04
JAPANESE RACES
Japan Cup: NISSAN FAIRIADY Z CONCEPT LM RACE CAR '02
Japan GT Cup: NISSAN MOTUL PITWORK Z(JGTC) '04
70's Classic: Skyline Hard Top 2000GT-R (KPGC10)1970
80's: MITSUBISHI HSR-2 Concept '89
90's: Nismo 400R '96
MANUFACTURER RACES
Daihatsu
Copen race - Storia X4 '00
Midget II Race - Midget '63
Honda
Type R Meeting - Honda HSC "37th Tokyo Motor Show Concept car" '03
Civic Race - Mugen MOTUL Civic Si Race car '87
Isuzu
Sports Classic - 117 Coupe '68
Mazda
Club "RE" - Cosmo Sport (L10A) '67
Roadster Cup - Eunos Roadster J Ltd '91
RX-8 Cup - RX-8 Concept LM Race car '01
Mitsubishi
Evolution Meeting - Lancer 1600 GSR Rally car '74
Mirage Cup - Mitsubishi I '03
Nissan
Race of Red Emblem - Nismo GT-R LM roadgoing version '95
March something - Nissan mm-R Cup car '01
Silvia Sisters - SilEighty '98
Club "Z" - Fairlady 240ZG '71
Subaru
Subaru 360 Race - Subaru 360 '58
Race of Pleiades - Impreza Touring car
Suzuki
Suzuki K Cup - Suzuki Concept - S2 '03
Suzuki Concept - Suzuki GSR - R/4
Toyota
Altezza race - Toyota Altezza Touring car '01
Vitz race - Toyota Vitz RS Turbo '02
Hyundai
Hyundai Sports Festival - Clix '01
Aston Martin
Aston Martin Festival - Aston Martin DB9 Coupe '03
Lotus
Elise Trophy - Elise Type 72 '01
Lotus classic - Elan S1 '62
MG
MG Festival - MGF '97
Mini
Mini and Mini big - Mini marcos GT '70
TVR
Black Pearl Racers - Cerbera Speed 12 '00
Triumph
Spitfire cup - Triumph Spitfire 1500 '74
Alfa Romeo
GTA cup - Giulia Sprint GTA 1600 '65
Citroen
2HP - 2CV - 2CV Type A '54
Renault
Clio Trophy - Lutecia V6 24V Race car
Megane cup - Avantime '02
Peugeot
206 cup - Peugeot 205 Turbo 16 Rally car '85
Alpine
Alpine cup - Alpine A110 1600S '73
Audi
Tourist Trophy - Le Mans Quattro '03
A3 cup - Quattro '82
BMW
1 series Trophy - BMW 2002 Turbo '73
Group "M" - M3 GTR '03
Mercedes
Legend of Silver Arrow - CLK Touring car
SL challenge - 300 SL coupe '54
Opel
Speedster Trophy - Calibra Touring car '94
VW
Beetle cup - Beetle 1100 Standard (Type-11) '49
Lupo cup - Karmann Ghia coupe (Type-1) '68
GTI - cup - Golf GTI '76
Chevrolet
Corvette Festival - Corvette Z06 (CII) Race car '63
Camaro Meeting - Camaro IROC-Z concept '88
Chrysler
Crossfire Trophy - Dodge Viper GTSR concept '00
Saleen
Saleen S7 Club - Nike One 2022
Shelby
Shelby Cobra cup - Mustang GT 350R '65
AMERICAN RACES
American cup: Chevrolet Corvette Convertible (C1) 1954
Stars and Stripes: Chevrolet Camaro LM Race Car Concept
Muscle car cup: Shelby SS 454 1970
Old Muscle car cup: Plymouth Superbird 1970
EUROPEAN RACES
European cup: Jaguar X/220 LM race car '01
British GT car cup: Jaguar E Type '61
British Lightweight: Lotus Europa Special '71
German touring car cup: AMG Mercedes CLK - GTR race car '98
Italian Festival: Alfa Romeo 155 2.5 V6 TI '93
French cup: Citroen 2CV Type A '54
Europe classic car cup: Mercedes Patent Moter Wagon
Europe hot hatch car cup: Volvo 240 GLT estate '88
1000 miles!: Giulia Sprint Speciale '63
Race A: BMW M3 GTR race car '01
Race B: AMG Mercedes 190 E2.5 - 16 EvolutionII touring car
ENDURANCE HALL
Motegi 8hr: Honda NSX-R Prototype LM Road Car '02
Grand Valley 300Km: Sauber Mercerdes C9 Race car
Nürburgring 4hr: Audi Abt TT-R touring car '02
Nürburgring 24hr: Formula Gran Turismo '04
New York 200 Mile: Dodge Charger Super Bee Hemi '71
El Capitan 200 Mile: Toyota Minolta 88C-V race car '89
Laguna Seca 200 Mile: The Ford GT40 LM Race Car '69
Infineon 200 Mile: Ford GT LM '02
Fuji 1000Km: R92CP race car '92
Suzuka 1000Km: Lister Storm V12 race car '99
Motegi Super Speedway 150 Mile: Honda NSX-R Prototype LM Race Car '02
Le Sarthe 24hr I: Audi R8 '01
Le Sarthe 24hr II: Bentley Speed8
Roadster 4hr: Mazda RX-7 LM race car '01
TokyoR246 300KM: Mitsubishi FTO super touring car '97
Tsukuba 9hr: Nissan Calsonic Skyline GT race car '93
SPECIAL CONDITION
Rally Easy - Toyota RSC rally raid car '02
Rally Grand Canyon Easy - Ford RS200 '84
Ice race Easy - Toyota RSC '01
Rally D'Chamony Easy - Infiniti FX45 Concept '02
Rally D'George 5 Easy - Alpine A310 1600 VE '73
Rally Swiss Alps Easy Mitsubishi CZ3 Tarmac
Tahiti Easy - Renault 5 Turbo '80
Tsukuba Wet race Easy - Mazda RX-8 Concept (TypeI) '01
Rally Yosemite I Easy - Land Rover Rangestormer '04
Rally Yosemite II Easy - Hyundai HCD VI '01
Rally D'Unbria Normal - Lancia Delta HF Integrale Rally car '92
Rally D'Caburi Normal - Subaru Impreza Rally Car Protorype
Rally Grand Canyon Normal - Mitsubishi CZ-3 Tarmac Rally car '02
Ice race Normal - Mitsubishi Lancer Evo IV Rally car
Rally D'Chamony Normal - Subaru Impreza Rally car '01
Rally D'George V Normal - Renault 5 MAXI Turbo Rally car '85
Rally Swiss Alps Normal - Toyota Celica GT-FOUR Rally car (ST205) '95
Tahiti Normal - Ford Escort Rally car '98
Tsukuba Wet race Normal - Mazda Atenza Touring car
Rally Yosemite I Normal - Subaru Impreza Rally car '99
Rally Yosemite II Normal - Toyota Celica GT-FOUR Rally car (ST185) '95
Rally D'Unbria Hard - Lancia Delta S4 Rally car '85
Rally D'Caburi Hard - Ford RS200 Rally car '85
Rally Grand Canyon Hard - Mitsubishi Starion 4WD Rally car '84
Ice race Hard - Nissan Bluebird Rally car '69
Rally D'Chamony Hard - Lancia Stratos Rally car '77
Rally D'George V Hard - Peugeot 205 T16 Evo II
Rally Swiss Alps Hard - Nissan 240RS Rally car '85
Tahiti Hard - Mitsubishi Pajero Rally Raid car '85
Tsukuba Wet race Hard - Ford GT '02
Rally Yosemite I Hard - Suzuki Escudo Dirt Trail car '98
Rally Yosemite II Hard - Mitsubishi Pajero Evolution Rally car
MISSION HALL
Complete the following stages:
1 - 10 DMC DeLorean S2 '04
11 - 20 Jay Leno Tank Car '03
21 - 24 Pagani Zonda LM Race Car '01
25- 29 Toyota 7 Race Car '70
30 - 34 Nissan R89C Race Car '89
CITY COURSE | POWER & SPEED | ORIGINAL COURSE | REAL CIRCUIT
Family Cup Events only. AI difficulty can be changed from 0-10. 500 cr prize.
How to Burnout
Finally a way to burnout! First, go to your garage and pick a car with a lot of torque (at least 600.0ft). If you don't have a car with a lot of torque in your garage, go buy one! Then take your car to its tune station and make sure it has "Brake Conroller" Bought and installed. Then take your car to any track, but dont start yet first goto settings on the screen right before you start a race, and maximis the braking on the front wheels and none on the back. Then start the race, After you start going, STOP!, The Start going, Then Press brake while holding the gas, THEN YOU SHOLUD START BURNING OUT! (keep tring you'll get it eventually) P.S. Makes great pictures!
Missions hall: Skyline GT-R Test course
This test may at first seem nearly impossible, however there is a trick which will make it fairly easier.
There are 5 enemy Skyline GTRs on the track, and you. Straight at the start of the race, make sure you stay right behind the GTR in front of you, it will block the wind and make you go faster, making it easier to catch up, when you enter the first turn, they will slow down. Go to the outside of the turn and pass them from the outside, you will then see the red GTR in the front, keep going as fast as you can and hit it at full speed, you WILL get a 5 second penalty, but it wont bother you much, hitting the red GTR will send it ahead of the pack, when the penalty is gone, get behind it and catch up to it, but do not pass it, instead, get behind it and "push" it. Stay right behind it all along the 3 laps, in the straights you should be able to reach 275km/h. Upon entering the very last turn of the race, go to the inside before the red GTR brakes, and stay to the inside of the turn (do not go where its flat, stay in the bent), near the end of the last turn, you should be close enough, get behind the yellow GTR, and you should be able to catch up to it before crossing the finish line.
This test is very hard and may take a few attempts before getting it right.
Faster lap times on Fuji 90's
After you come around the corner where you have to slow down to the second gear, fly on down the big turn WITHOUT using your brakes. There should be a really sharp turn coming up, the red number will show up, don't mind it, just keep pressing on the accelerator, and instead of actually making the turn, just fly throught the grass, and slow down enough so you can make the next turn. (This can also help you pass people in a race).
Slide Show trick
First you must go to home with a saved slide show. Then go to photo lab witch is on the right hand side. Go down the left hand side and press X on slide show. Then if you want say a photo on the bottom to the top or vise versa go to the photo select it then hold X while pressing down or up and you see that your photo is now on your cursor.Then place the selected photo were you want and let go of X. Then if you want to change the speed of the slide show right were it says exit there should be a little icon by it then click on it. It will say how fast you want the pictures to go and then how fast you want them to fade!
No annoying rally penalties
Its really annoying when you get a rally penalty. The reason you get the penalty is because the car is hit on the front or on the fenders. To prevent these penalties, turn enough so that the car's back end hits the wall. You will save so much time using this method.
