Constant Improvement: 5 Ways Gran Turismo Sport Keeps Us Coming Back
Earlier this year we took a second look at Gran Turismo Sport, the latest entry in the legendary racing game franchise that launched on the PlayStation 4 in the fall of 2017.
While the game showed promise at launch, many players found it light on content. For that reason, we were happy to find that developer Polyphony Digital had taken some big steps to improve the game and make it a deeper experience for both casual and serious racers alike.
With updates coming at least once per month, the game has continued to evolve and grow in 2018. We recently jumped back in and were quite happy with what we found. Here are five highlights.
1. An Improved Online Experience
Despite the addition of a single player campaign mode that rewards both prize money and experience points, the core of GT Sport is still in its online racing features, and these have been greatly improved upon with recent updates.
Along with the selection of daily races, there are ongoing test seasons in preparation for the full launch, FIA-sanctioned online championships. With points acquiring during every “season,” the matchmaking system does its best to pit similarly skilled drivers against each other.
While it might not be perfect, half a year later GT Sport has definitely delivered on its promise of bringing a new way of online racing to the world of consoles, and racking up championship points and prize money online can become quite addicting.
2. More JDM
In our last story on GT Sport we mentioned that Polyphony had started working on the game’s lack of Japanese sports cars from that fantastic ‘80s and ‘90s era, and in subsequent updates even more JDM machinery has been added to to the mix. Recent additions include the R33 Nissan Skyline GT-R, which completes the trio of ‘90s era GT-Rs alongside the R32 and R33 models that had already been added in previous updates.
Equally important for JDM fanatics is the addition of the Supra (not just the brand new concept version that is scheduled to be added soon, but the iconic JZA80 model, added in January).
Soon after the JZA80 was added to the mix, Polyphony also added a third generation Supra—the 1988 3.0 GT Turbo A model to be exact.
Not to be left out is the addition of the SW20 Toyota MR-2, and stepping even further back in time to the 1960s, the historic Toyota 2000GT can also be driven in the game.
For fans of rotary Mazdas, the FC3S RX-7 has been added as well, a perfect compliment to the FD3S that had been previously added to the game’s roster. It’s a joy to slide around the track, complete with its shift buzzer going off as you near redline.
3. More Classic Cars
Elsewhere there have been plenty of other great additions to the car roster, including an array of vehicles representing different eras of automotive history. At launch GT Sport’s car list was populated almost exclusively by late model vehicles, but now it includes all sorts of of historic machines like the Ford GT40 from 1966.
Polyphony has also given some love to some “modern” classics as well, with the BMW E30 M3 making its debut in the most recent March update.
The great era of 1990s supercars is also represented with additions like the Lamborghini Diablo GT and the McLaren F1—either of which would be a worthy purchase with your in game winnings.
Fans of American muscle cars aren’t left out either. The February update included the 1970 Dodge Challenger R/T and the 1971 Ford Mustang Mach 1—as well as the Italian-bodied, American-powered DeTomaso Pantera.
Naturally, all of the cars are up to GT Sport’s incredibly high standards of detail, and their sound effects are much improved over past iterations of the franchise.
4. Tsukuba!
Not only have dozens of new cars been added to GT Sport since launch, but new places to race as well. There are a handful of new layouts based on the courses included at launch, along with the legendary track at Monza.
The addition we are most excited about came last month when Japan’s Tsukuba Circuit was added to the track roster—a welcome addition for anyone who follows Japan’s Motorsport and tuning scene.
Tsukuba is ground zero for Japan’s time attack scene, regularly hosts drift events and, of course, was the familiar proving ground for new cars in countless Best Motoring battles over the years.
The last time Tsukuba Circuit was featured in a game was GT6 back in 2013, and to see it rendered in full next gen detail with GT Sport’s powerful graphics engine is a welcome addition. It’s the perfect place to test out the new Super GT race cars that have been added, the JDM classics or any other of GT Sport’s vehicles.
5. It’s All Free!
Perhaps the best thing about all of this new content is that it’s free to anyone who owns the game. There is no season pass to buy or a la carte DLC to pay for.
The cars will still cost you in-game credits to buy, and while the more exotic machinery will take some saving, many of the new additions are priced quite reasonably and can also be won as prize vehicles.
Whether you bought the game at launch and then stepped away or have yet to try it out, this might be a good time to get into it. No, GT Sport still doesn’t have as many cars or tracks as its rivals, but all of the new content has continued to improve the game and make it a much deeper, more enjoyable experience than it was at launch. We can’t wait to see what’s next in the ever expanding world of Gran Turismo Sport.
