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You are here: MacNN Forums > Enthusiast Zone > Gaming > Gran Turismo 5

Gran Turismo 5
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Jawbone54
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Nov 30, 2010, 12:50 PM
 
I admitted months ago that I'd probably be suckered into buying GT5, and I took the plunge Saturday on an impulse buy. I've put about 10 hours into it so far, and I have a few quick impressions:
  • The cars look unbelievable. The standard ones are decent, but the premium vehicles are staggering, especially in motion. Also, the much-maligned trees really aren't that noticeable, though I have seen some aliasing on the underbellies of the cars, as well as some pretty horrendous spectators.
  • The menus and presentation are as bad as all the reviews are stating. They clearly put 99% of the work into the cars, and left the menus to someone who really doesn't know what they're doing.
  • The camera feature for taking screenshots is really, really nice, and they even added photography-centric controls like shutter speed, aperture, and EV compensation. I'm trying to find a way to upload some of the shots I've taken.
  • The A.I. is terrible. They're not aggressive enough, they brake at odd times, and it feels like Polyphony Digital didn't even really try in this aspect.
  • This is a sim, for better and for worse. I still think F3 does a much better job of blending a simulation with a game, but as far as making these cars feel real, GT is still unparalleled. I still prefer Forza as a game, but there's something alluring about the uber-realistic simulation of GT5 that is keeping me intrigued. I'll see if that appeal lessens in the coming days.
  • Not being a car junkie, I don't understand what effect all of the tuning options are having on my car, and that's because GT somehow neglected to include a chart system that displays how the tuning is going to affect your stability, acceleration, etc. This is clearly a game for car nuts (and this type of thing is what's probably going to keep me from revisiting the game when I'm done with it).

All in all, I've been enjoying the game so far, but I think the 86/100 average it's getting is fair. It feels like they were making a simulator instead of a racing game. Granted, that simulator is incredible, and the wealth of cars is amazing, but it's almost more fun to do the license tests than race.

I tried to dig up the old "official" thread, but the 'NN said it was too old. It was probably from around the third or fourth delay.
     
The Final Dakar
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Nov 30, 2010, 12:52 PM
 
Now I understand why you weren't on NFS.

Admittedly I didn't do more than skim the reviews, but I had no idea they were complaining about menus.

It's somewhat surprising how low the average is, but that's what you get when you're delayed this many times.
     
Jawbone54  (op)
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Nov 30, 2010, 01:02 PM
 
Yeah, and pretty much the only times "I" logged onto XBL was when the wife wanted to watch Bones on Netflix. I'm going to be on NFS tonight to cleanse my palate.

The menus haven't necessarily been slammed, but most reviews point out that they're pretty cumbersome, some complaining worse than others. There's NO consistency from screen to screen. Some of the icons on the side of the home screen look like they're from a completely different style of game than the larger, strangely-tiled options on the right, with yet another set up top. Horrible to look at.

Also, IGN on the limited customization:

Customisation options, however, are limited, especially in the wake of Forza 3's more comprehensive efforts. Beneath the skin it's detailed enough with several layers of upgrades that can be applied, (although, strangely, it's no longer possible to upgrade a car's brakes) but beyond that there's little else that can be done; paint jobs are limited to either the body or wheels while bodywork options are few across both the standard and the premium cars.
     
The Final Dakar
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Nov 30, 2010, 01:06 PM
 
It's odd, I was browsing youtube looking at some of the tracks from the older NFSs, and while they're nothing special, I was taken with how straight-forward (and responsive!) IIIs menus were. I'll post some stuff in the HP thread later if I remember.
     
Jawbone54  (op)
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Nov 30, 2010, 01:14 PM
 
I've got to go back through and figure out which one it was that I owned back in the day.

[EDIT]It was Need for Speed III: Hot Pursuit for the original Playstation.
     
The Final Dakar
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Nov 30, 2010, 01:16 PM
 
I'm guessing one of the PS2 ones.
     
Jawbone54  (op)
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Nov 30, 2010, 01:18 PM
 
     
sek929
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Nov 30, 2010, 03:31 PM
 
IMO the menus for all GT games have been needlessly complicated and confusing.

If they didn't make the AI better then I don't see the point, honestly. In older GTs (and Forza as well) once you learn the tracks it becomes nearly impossible to lose. The AI always races incredibly cautious and can usually be beaten on every single turn on the track, after that the game becomes a grind of epic proportions as you sit minutes ahead of the pack simply trying to beat your best lap time.

I guess challenge exists by turning off all assists (TCM, Anti-lock brakes, etc) but that is an exercise in masochism.
     
The Final Dakar
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Nov 30, 2010, 03:40 PM
 
In the early hours of Hot Pursuit, I was in the middle of a race when I realized how much more enjoyable its more relaxed atmosphere was.

GT. It's the the hardest of the hardcore.
     
sek929
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Nov 30, 2010, 03:43 PM
 
I would come back around to the series (and genre in general) if I had a racing wheel.

At this point I've played GT3, GT4, Forza and Forza 2. That's a lot of racing sims played on a controller.
     
The Final Dakar
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Nov 30, 2010, 03:48 PM
 
I bought the racing wheel for GT3 (That's how excited I was). And by bought I mean wasted $100. I got way more use out of a $50 set of cheapo Logitech speakers they threw in with them.

Anyway, the force feedback was an excellent experience, but finding a decent set-up was impossible, let alone quick and easy to do on a whim. I really wonder how people set-up the pedals – I find they slide around so easily as to be worthless. I think I often mapped accel and decel to the steering wheel paddles just to avoid using them.
     
imitchellg5
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Nov 30, 2010, 04:21 PM
 
Originally Posted by The Final Dakar View Post
GT. It's the the hardest of the hardcore.
Try iRacing.
     
The Final Dakar
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Nov 30, 2010, 04:26 PM
 
I knew some douche bag would come in here and point to some obscure game no one plays. Good job.
     
imitchellg5
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Nov 30, 2010, 09:18 PM
 
iRacing isn't that obscure, it's actually the biggest PC-based online racing. Sure GT5 is the most hardcore of what the average consumer may play, but it's certainly not the most hardcore of the hardcore.
     
Jawbone54  (op)
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Dec 1, 2010, 12:05 AM
 
Originally Posted by imitchellg5 View Post
iRacing isn't that obscure...
iRacing

The service was launched to the public on August 26, 2008. As of June 2010, 30,000 individual members had signed up.
30,000 (worldwide) is fairly obscure. I'd never heard of it.
     
imitchellg5
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Dec 1, 2010, 01:11 AM
 
It's pretty famous among petrolheads, many racing stars endorse it. Like I said, different crowd, but for sure more hardcore than GT5. You simply can't get hardcore from an controller.
     
Jawbone54  (op)
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Dec 1, 2010, 03:14 AM
 
At what point does hardcore become something other than a game? GT5 already feels close to the line.

iRacing is even more realistic than GT5? Then I'd probably call it a simulator, and avoid the game classification like the plague.
     
The Final Dakar
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Dec 1, 2010, 10:54 AM
 
Originally Posted by Jawbone54 View Post
30,000 (worldwide) is fairly obscure. I'd never heard of it.
My hero. You beat me to it.

Originally Posted by imitchellg5 View Post
It's pretty famous among petrolheads, many racing stars endorse it. Like I said, different crowd, but for sure more hardcore than GT5. You simply can't get hardcore from an controller.
Take the pedantry elsewhere.
     
The Final Dakar
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Dec 1, 2010, 11:48 AM
 
Posting the interesting quotes...

From behind, late in the race: a racing fan reviews Gran Turismo 5
Lets talk about the AI. As the GT series got longer in the tooth, the behaviour of the AI opponents became a more noticeable problem. The problem was that AI cars would follow the racing line, no matter what, even if that "what" was your car in their way. Forza gave your AI opponents character (all you M. Rossi fans out there know what I mean), but the one thing they didn’t do was just circulate the track oblivious to every other car. While GT5 represents a step up from GT4 or GTrologue in this regard, it’s still not good enough, especially with this level of competition.
Since there’s no damage penalty, there’s almost no incentive not to bounce off the AI cars, using them as cornering aids. There isn’t even much time penalty for driving into a tire barrier at 150 mph, something that ought to have race-ending consequences. Worse yet, there aren’t any collision noises, and the lack of any significant aural cue is very unhelpful when your car gets rammed. It is also very easy to get stuck to the back of a slower car in front, when you ought to be able to power them out of the way. It’s even possible to bounce off a traffic cone on occasion, which can’t be right.
A fifth of the cars, likewise, look and sound terrific. Unfortunately the other 800 are ported over from GT4, GT PSP, and GTrologue. These range from looking decent to fairly shoddy.
I didn't realize the advertised numbers were pulling previous versions. While applaud the concept, I always thought this was partly to blame for taking six years. Now I find it was mostly reuses. Wow.

The license tests are back, some as infuriating as ever, but they’re not mandatory like they were in the past. They do give you a lot of experience points though, as do the special events. These also pay more than the other races in career mode, but they only pay out once; Gold them all and you won’t double your money doing them again.
Thank god.

The Good

The premium cars are gorgeous
Online play with up to 16 players
Dynamic weather, day-into-night racing
The Nurburgring Nordschleife is great
The Bad

800 cars just copied over from previous games
Clunky interface
Collisions still aren't right
AI still not good enough
In a game that's about cars, making the majority of them lower-quality models without interiors is ridiculous
The shadows look terrible
The Ugly

The way damage is rendered on standard cars
Getting knocked out of the Top Gear challenge for the seventh time
You'll often ask yourself what the hell they've been doing for six years
     
msuper69
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Dec 1, 2010, 11:53 AM
 
I was thinking about getting GT5 but after reading all the reviews and comments, I'm not so sure anymore.
After all that time and hype, it sounds like they blew it.
     
SpaceMonkey
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Dec 1, 2010, 11:58 AM
 
I'll wait until I can pick it up for a good price used.

"One ticket to Washington, please. I have a date with destiny."
     
The Final Dakar
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Dec 1, 2010, 12:00 PM
 
The guys says its still a fun game. It's just not everything you'd expect a 6 year game to be.
     
Jawbone54  (op)
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Dec 1, 2010, 01:45 PM
 
Originally Posted by msuper69 View Post
I was thinking about getting GT5 but after reading all the reviews and comments, I'm not so sure anymore.
After all that time and hype, it sounds like they blew it.
I actually don't regret picking it up. It's still a very cool game. I'm just not sure if I keep on playing it because it's interesting or because it's fun.

Originally Posted by SpaceMonkey View Post
I'll wait until I can pick it up for a good price used.
Nothing wrong with that idea.

Originally Posted by The Final Dakar View Post
The guys says its still a fun game. It's just not everything you'd expect a 6 year game to be.
Bingo.
     
The Final Dakar
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Dec 1, 2010, 01:54 PM
 
Originally Posted by Jawbone54 View Post
I actually don't regret picking it up. It's still a very cool game. I'm just not sure if I keep on playing it because it's interesting or because it's fun.
You'll rarely here me use the term, but I think part of the appeal is the raw graphics-whoring of the game. I must have spent 1/3rd of my time in GT3 watching replays because it looked so amazing at the time. That got old after a while, too, and like I said, between the dry gameplay, and increasingly marathon-like races, it just lost its appeal.
     
Jawbone54  (op)
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Dec 1, 2010, 02:06 PM
 
Originally Posted by The Final Dakar View Post
You'll rarely here me use the term, but I think part of the appeal is the raw graphics-whoring of the game. I must have spent 1/3rd of my time in GT3 watching replays because it looked so amazing at the time. That got old after a while, too, and like I said, between the dry gameplay, and increasingly marathon-like races, it just lost its appeal.
It's funny that you mention the replays -- I've been watching every single one of them at least for 30 seconds, as well as taking a massive amount of screenshots.

I've found that a 1.0 aperture, 1/500" exposure, and a beautiful car makes for a nice PS3 wallpaper.
     
sek929
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Dec 1, 2010, 04:25 PM
 
No penalty for hitting other cars and barriers? Seriously?

Forza 2 had that fer christsakes
     
Jawbone54  (op)
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Dec 1, 2010, 04:39 PM
 
Yes, and I shamefully admit to having possibly taken advantage of that in a comeback scenario...or two...so far...
     
The Final Dakar
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Dec 1, 2010, 04:43 PM
 
That's why I stopped displaying GT3. My strategy had devolved into slamming into cars and using the most overpowered car I could find for a race.
     
sek929
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Dec 1, 2010, 04:50 PM
 
In GT3 there were several courses I could lap the entire grid three times because of hairpin turns you could simply ride the wall at full speed. Not to mention instead of braking for a turn where vehicles were in front of you I would simply smash into their rear ends just so to send me through the turn at maximum speed.
     
imitchellg5
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Dec 1, 2010, 05:05 PM
 
Originally Posted by The Final Dakar View Post
Take the pedantry elsewhere.
Well I'm sorry I don't meet your standards. I won't post in this thread again.
     
Jack-o-Bower
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Dec 2, 2010, 03:22 PM
 
GT5 is the real car simulator and is the benchmark for most racing games. Though it has its weak points like long menu waits and in game progression pepper its vitality but its still a superb game with its realistic graphics and driving physics.
     
The Final Dakar
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Dec 2, 2010, 04:54 PM
 
The failure of Gran Turismo 5: the power of menus and UI
Seems like a great premise for an article until i read this:
An example of a great menu system is Call of Duty: Black Ops. The game begins with the protagonist staring at a computer screen that doubles as the main menu. The room he's in is also the first environment in the game, and you can look around and gain information about your surroundings. It's simple, easy to use, and helps build tension while giving you data about the game world and the position you're in. The act of including the menu system into the game world itself works very well, and takes away the feeling of playing a video game; everything is internally consistent. It even goes a bit deeper with secrets and Easter Eggs integrated into the game world via the menu.
Yeah, that menu is great. Unfortunately everything after it is a god awful mess. It's like a house with a really great front door that then leads to a maze.
     
Hawkeye_a
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Dec 3, 2010, 09:10 AM
 
I was sortof looking forward to this game. I was hoping for a visually stellar experience and well.. i'm pretty disappointed with it. The environments, quite frankly look like shyte, and even some cars look like something left over from last generation.

That's lack of polish.

I know many people claim it's a SIM, but i think this game probably took it a step too far in favor of the obsessive car hobbyist, by focusing too much on the technical aspects of the game, and not enough on a fun experience.

I'm sure some cars look awesome, and i have friends who went out and bought a PS3 with a copy of this game, but i'll have to pass, as it looks way too involved with a steep learning curve and dodgy visuals(due to lack of consistency and polish).

IMHO
     
Andy8
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Dec 3, 2010, 09:43 AM
 
Nurburgring Nordschleife Gran Turismo 5 vs Real

The game is faster than the real thing, just.
     
exca1ibur
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Dec 4, 2010, 03:33 AM
 
I've been at it for about 4 hours straight. So far so good, Menus don't bother me as much as all the bitching I've heard. Lot of clicking around, I'll admit but other than that big deal, I have no issue navigating around. There is a LOT of stuff in this game I'm still finding an unlocking stuff.

The standard cars do have low res-textures and are lower polygon count no doubt, however when racing you really don't pay it much attention. The leveling system I didn't like much at first but it's grown on me.

The only big issues I have is you can't mod ALL the cars. Some you can't even put rims on. WTF is that? On the other hand Kart racing is a blast. It's not perfect at all, but it isn't the spaw of satan as some people think. No regrets on picking this one up, either.

PS - I will say this... F*CK the Top Gear track challenges!
     
The Final Dakar
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Dec 4, 2010, 03:54 AM
 
Originally Posted by Andy8 View Post
Nurburgring Nordschleife Gran Turismo 5 vs Real

The game is faster than the real thing, just.
Not even. He lost a lot of time to traffic.
     
ajprice
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Dec 4, 2010, 05:53 PM
 
Anybody flipped an R34 Skyline yet? The underside is erm, interesting... I never knew the whole of GT5 was 1/18 scale and the cars were die cast.

http://www.gtplanet.net/gt5-easter-e...ast-underside/


It'll be much easier if you just comply.
     
The Final Dakar
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Dec 4, 2010, 06:09 PM
 
The undersides don't matter particularly much to me, but the inside of the wheel/tire is hilarious.
     
The Final Dakar
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Dec 7, 2010, 03:24 PM
 
Gran Turismo 5's Balloon Crashes And Robot Drivers
Not quite sure what they're making fun of here. The weird thing is, this is the kind of crashes missing from NFS (screw the slo-mo cut scenish crashes), where if you're lucky you land on your tires and keep driving.

The AI demo further down the page is impressive, though. I didn't realize Forza had such smart drivers.
     
The Final Dakar
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Dec 8, 2010, 12:46 PM
 
GT5's Toy Car Logos Are "Embarrassing" (And Gone)
Real driving simulator Gran Turismo 5 features an Easter Egg for lovers of model cars. The undercarriage of a GT5 auto sports the logo of die-cast collectible maker AUTOArt. Enjoy it while you can, because that logo will soon be erased.
Dear video game blogs: It isn't an Easter Egg if its unintentional.


You Will Soon Be Able To "Play" Gran Turismo 5 From Your Computer
One of Gran Turismo 5's more hardcore features is the game's "B-Spec" mode, which lets you manage a car race instead of driving one. Soon, part of this feature will be coming to a PC (or Mac!) near you.

Since all you're doing in B-Spec mode is issuing basic commands like "enter the pits" or "overtake that guy", and since some of the races in B-Spec mode can go forever, it's a big ask to have you sitting in front of a console the entire time instead of doing something more productive.
Pretty damn awesome if it happens.
     
shifuimam
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Dec 25, 2010, 11:14 PM
 
Having been thoroughly inundated with GT5 commercials since getting cable TV, I gotta say - those graphics look absolutely stunning.

Quite an improvement over GT3.
Sell or send me your vintage Mac things if you don't want them.
     
The Final Dakar
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Dec 26, 2010, 01:19 AM
 
Subtle return.
     
exca1ibur
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Dec 26, 2010, 02:20 AM
 
The game is great, I've been on it pretty heavy. If you like GT games you'll like it. Some of the complaints are valid, most of them I find to be nit-picking. Not perfect but not the disaster most seem to be bitchin' about.
     
The Final Dakar
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Dec 26, 2010, 03:09 AM
 
I don't think it's a disaster. I do think a Triple A title that was 6 years in the making is going get critiqued harshly.
     
Jawbone54  (op)
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Dec 27, 2010, 12:46 PM
 
Originally Posted by The Final Dakar View Post
I don't think it's a disaster.
Agreed.

I do think a Triple A title that was 6 years in the making is going get critiqued harshly.
Agreed.

I'm still playing the game, and even having a good time with it. Unfortunately, I felt like I was grinding to get better cars within about three hours of game time. It's still a good game, but a let-down for the franchise and genre.
     
The Final Dakar
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Feb 22, 2011, 11:54 AM
 
Read this another forum. FWIW
Someone on another forum calculated that it had taken me something like 8 hours to buy around 700 cars just because of the load times / animations / save times.
     
   
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