Do seasonals ruin A-spec for you?

[J. Clarkson]

Just a thought. I played GT5 when it came out and finished A-spec mode before the seasonals were introduced.

My Ps3 died about 6 months ago and I ditched it along with all my games, no save backups.

Christmas came along and my wife (gotta love her) got me a PS3 SuperSlim with GT5 Academy Edition.

I started from scratch, played some A-spec events until I had enough to slap some upgrades on a Peugeot 207 GTI and finish the Tous France seasonal.

Now, I have 3 millions credits, I am level 22 and have a nice little garage.

I still play A-spec for the cars, money and completion and I have to stop myself from buying cars for specific events.

In short, I play A-spec as if seasonals didn't exist.

A friend of mine has done a LOT of seasonals and can't get himself to play A-spec anymore.

How did Seasonals impact your A-spec experience?

 

[Neergestort]

I haven't played A-spec since the introduction of the seasonals. Maybe only one or two long distance races. The replay value of seasonals is much higher because of the high rewards. That money keeps expanding my garage. Nice to have a fully tuned and stock car of any brand, any type.

 

[J. Clarkson]

I haven't played A-spec since the introduction of the seasonals. Maybe only one or two long distance races. The replay value of seasonals is much higher because of the high rewards. That money keeps expanding my garage. Nice to have a fully tuned and stock car of any brand, any type.

Hi Rotterdammer!

I play for the sake of "Pokemon". Collecting as much cars as possible. Some just don't show up in the UCD and the only way to get them is by playing A-spec.

Seasonals helped me get my favorite-of-all-time racecar, the Raybrig NSX.
I drive seasonals for cash and A-spec for the cars.

 

[ytevo79]

I too finished A-spec (bar the 24h races) before the seasonal events came about.

But my friend has just got a PS3 and GT5 and has levelled up unbelievably fast with the log in bonus and high rewards. But its OK for him because he's a more casual gamer. I on the other hand, would welcome the less of the grinding that seems to plauge GT5 more then the other games did. I mean come on, not being able to win and sell prize cars over and over? I've deleted 2 Red Bulls, a Ferrari P4 and various other duplicate cars the game wouldn't alow me to sell lolwut? Or give to my friend as gifts.

A-spec was pretty dull looking back at it compared to the seasonals. But if I was new to the game I'd want to complete as much A-spec as possible, while doing seasonals to reduce any unnecessary grinding. Because most of them offer a more realistic challenge as well :

 

[thiagoturbao]

I started this game around 5 months ago now, first i made all the licences and went to A spec..The carrer on GT5 shud be the most boring carrer mode i´ve ever played in a racing game, really easy from the begin to expert...Didn´t made the endurance tho...Than I started to do all the seasonals, there were loads of them to do...It s more challenging on races bcoz they always put a rabbit starting 30sec ahead of you, so you need at least keep on track to win it (I just don´t understand why the Ai can´t be 30sec faster and start beside you, instead half lap away and 5 or more seconds slower than you). The TT´s are really fun, not for the gold time, wich is not competitive at all, but to compete with the other racers on the world and see how you do on a proper ranking, normally try to put myself inside top100, for that I really need put myself into build a good car and nail the cornes, instead the A-spec where you will always win without a proper well made car and rubish laps...
So to me, if there were no sesonals, just A-spec and B-spec mode this game would b getting dust by now, or I would just play online races.
cheers

 

[SirAlanClive]

Without Seasonals the game would be dead for me now. I've reached level 40 twice because of a bad save game. There's no real 're-play-ability' in A-Spec because they're too easy, even if you try to win only using the cars found on the grid. I like the surprise element inherent in those Thursday mornings but I'm quite often disappointed by the races we get. I'm sure it would be relatively easy to design a form of A-spec which was more re-playable and I hope we get something better in GT6

 

[Samus]

What is there to ruin? A-Spec is awful.

 

[VBR]

What is there to ruin? A-Spec is awful.

It's the bad AI that has ruined A-Spec & the Seasonals! Both are a horrible experience for me, I've given up on A-Spec all together, & just do some of the Seasonals when I want money to buy cars. Most of my racing is done online with good, clean, genltemnen racers. That's where the real fun is in my opinion.

 

[TokoTurismo]

Deleted.

 

[fitftw]

If I just got into GT, I probably wouldn't do A-Spec. Luckily I got the game on release day.

 

[shepzki]

I finished everything in A-Spec a long time ago including the endurance races, before the patch came out that allowed you to save mid-race. Nothing will compel me to revisit them, I liked it in GT4 because you could clear off your gold trophies and rerun the tournament and will the prize cars again. You also had something to aim for with A-Spec points, I was about 1,000 off maximum in GT4 and it was great fun but stupidly removed in GT5.

I don't see how Seasonal events ruin A-Spec because it was rubbish to start with.

 

[ytevo79]

I finished everything in A-Spec a long time ago including the endurance races, before the patch came out that allowed you to save mid-race. Nothing will compel me to revisit them, I liked it in GT4 because you could clear off your gold trophies and rerun the tournament and will the prize cars again. You also had something to aim for with A-Spec points, I was about 1,000 off maximum in GT4 and it was great fun but stupidly removed in GT5.

I don't see how Seasonal events ruin A-Spec because it was rubbish to start with.

Hey Shepzki, nice to see someone from Lincolnshire on here

As you mentioned about the prize cars, that was my biggest gripe about GT5(and the credit limit) and I can't understand why it was removed. At least it made grinding more tolerable which I don't mind when there's more to look forwards too!

 

[NCRthree]

It's the bad AI that has ruined A-Spec & the Seasonals! Both are a horrible experience for me, I've given up on A-Spec all together, & just do some of the Seasonals when I want money to buy cars. Most of my racing is done online with good, clean, genltemnen racers. That's where the real fun is in my opinion.

Indeed. ASpec career was so poorly executed that I put GT5 away for several months after going through the events. I couldn't believe PD had put out such a pitiful "career" compared to the old GT's. Only reason I put the game back in was after discovering GTPlanet and online racing.

I've gotten much more disappointed with GT's AI behavior since I started F1 2012 this month. I can set up a race with qualifying, different level AI, weather and race length. No chase the rabbit. Had some great races where I've only gained or lost a couple positions. It's still hard for me to believe that no event generator was included at game introduction with differing AI levels. Inexcusable in my opinion.

Only reason I've played GT5 offline again is I like to play test driver with various cars. Some of the seasonals have been pretty challenging for sure but revisiting Aspec is a time waster.

 

[MXH]

Agree with pretty much everything that has been said. Seasonals is the only reason why I occasionally play Gran Turismo 5. If anything, it's keeping the game alive, barely.

 

[byegad]

I love the Seasonals. Although the Lambo one is driving me mad at the moment and I'm not fast enough for TTs to be that interesting.

 

[playnthru]

No... I finished A-spec 2 years ago.👍 I didn't have internet at home until a month after I finished A-spec. I missed all the early online events.

 

[FormulaKimball]

No... I finished A-spec 2 years ago.👍 I didn't have internet at home until a month after I finished A-spec. I missed all the early online events.

So did I - and some of them I really regret. I was A-Spec level 40 before I even thought of doing Seasonal races... so a lot of silly grinding to get there with only A-Spec's economy. I would say people who start the game later and do a combo of both Seasonals and A-Spec have just what we need - since many of the Seasonals are the same A-Spec events with different circuits, it makes up for the thin A-Spec events by themselves.

I would echo all the comments about the terrible non-adjustable AI being the real bane of GT5's A-Spec *and* Seasonals - everything that's wrong with the gameplay really comes back to that. If the game gives us all these A-Spec and Seasonal races against AI cars, then offer a selection of difficulty levels, and I don't merely mean "amateur" and "professional" ... I mean like Unreal Tournament or something where there's always another difficulty to try ("I hope you like to respawn" ... "you're already dead"), even if it means making the AI cheat.

 

[lbpomg95]

I occasionally go on A Spec. Mostly it's the daytona supercar challenge. I figure I may as well get at least SOME cash for breaking in my car, as opposed to racing route x on practice. Other than that, I'm level 40 and have won all A Spec except endurance races, so I do 500pp seasonals if I'm in need of cash.

 

[Morgoth_666]

A-Spec ruins A-Spec. It was weak enough before they introduced(and forced) the parkbots, those sealed the deal. There is some fun to be had from the endurance races, but you're still stuck with the parkbots... unless you are lapping them in which case they turn into blockbots.

Seasonals are basically just hard-mode A-Spec, with you starting from the back instead of the middle. You get to race on different (and usually more) tracks than the regular events, and the added variety of course creator tracks which unfortunately they won't let us download to actually have fun on(and eventually they started repeating the same ones). And you get to make more - ok probably too much - money. So if you consider the Seasonals to be A-Spec, as I almost do, you could make the argument that they really improve it.

But the best thing they do to improve A-Spec is make replaying it completely unneccessary. In a short time you can get all the money you need, meaning less time wasted playing chase the leader in 10-year-old events against parkbots, and more quality time spent driving cars for enjoyment, hotlapping, finding out that while limited there is a good deal of fun to be had in Arcade, and of course racing against real people(who contrary to popular opinion, are not all alien-fast or rammers). And they even give you the opportunity to do some events in standard A-Spec that you just feel like running once in a while, with no concern for how much money you'll get. All of that sure beats the grinding of low-payout races the game was originally stuck with.

 

[alf158]

As i got to level 40 in A spec and B spec before the seasonals were on then no........
I have started again with other usernames, Rennerste and restocalste are two usernames i chose.
Hmmmm, Please don't take offence but i need to say this:
Just a thought If you are that big mouthed idiot (well were, 'cause i *know* you're not!) Jeremy Clarkson from Yorkshire, England then even though i have never met you, i dislike you immensely!
You sir are a male chicken! Ok? Just thought i would get that off my chest!

 

[T51R]

As i got to level 40 in A spec and B spec before the seasonals were on then no........
Hmmmm I need to say this:
Just a thought If you are that big mouthed idiot (well were, 'cause i *know* you're not!) Jeremy Clarkson from Yorkshire, England then even though i have never met you, i dislike you immensely!
You sir are a male chicken! Ok? Just thought i would get that off my chest!

Yes, the seasonals definitely ruined A-spec for me. I feel A-spec was very lacking in terms of a challenge and of creativity with racing. You can only take so many years of 'Turbo Challenge' where you can use something like a damn X2011.

They should have added options for higher difficulty and not allowed the X2011 to be used in races with normal road cars except maybe one or two for some cash grinding. Now all this and more is available through the seasonals, there is no need to go into A-spec for me anymore except to win a couple more cars. I think they really need to bring out an Endurance seasonal, imagine a 24 hr TT!

 

[Anathema]

Since I'm only level 38 in A-spec and 10+ in B-spec (only for the Furai), I still stick to the seasonals because they give more experience and also cash.

Only thing I haven't done in A-spec are the Endurance events - I can't bring myself to do them at the moment. Do I think the Seasonals are bad? No, they're actually quite useful for seeing how weak of a car you can use to take down supremely good ones compared to yours, which improved my lines and style for the longest time. (I only recently made the switch to manual, and just like everything else before it, I now don't even think about it and do it instinctively.)

 

[JJSCHMITTY2000]

Yes, the seasonals definitely ruined A-spec for me. I feel A-spec was very lacking in terms of a challenge and of creativity with racing. You can only take so many years of 'Turbo Challenge' where you can use something like a damn X2011.

They should have added options for higher difficulty and not allowed the X2011 to be used in races with normal road cars except maybe one or two for some cash grinding. Now all this and more is available through the seasonals, there is no need to go into A-spec for me anymore except to win a couple more cars. I think they really need to bring out an Endurance seasonal, imagine a 24 hr TT!

You just contradicted yourself. You said time trial that was timed. Kind of a technicality, but it would have to be based on laps completed, not time. If it was time, everyone would just get first for obvious reasons.

 

[Nicko]

Since the seasonals have been introduced, I haven't really touched the A-Spec mode at all. As others have said, the higher payouts and rewards make the A-Spec mode a little redundant.

 

[gt5scrub]

bspec+seasonals ruined gt5. its just 2ez now.

 

[testorz]

I actually enjoy seasonal's because it gives the game huge replay value and I have fun tinkering with the right set ups for various cars and events !

 

[Ills1999]

I agree with testorz, seasonals only add much more depth to the basic experience. Without seasonals, I think people would be hard pressed to own every car in the game and would likely drop it sooner, not later.

 

[krasch27]

I also agree. The seaonals pay really well, even before you take the performance difference bonus into account. Although most of us think they are too easy, I'd have to say they are improving. Its great to have new races and TT's every fortnight to look forward to. The seasonal events also make you drive and tune cars you may of never bothered to try unless regulations forced you to.

 

[Argon]

You just contradicted yourself. You said time trial that was timed. Kind of a technicality, but it would have to be based on laps completed, not time. If it was time, everyone would just get first for obvious reasons.

No he didn't, TT in that context means Tourist Trophy not Time Trial, at least I hope that's what he meant


In response to the OP....

Seasonals have really given the game some longevity and I am really enjoying the weekly challenges. If anything the seasonal races have taught me that technique is much more important than tyres or tunes although it has also forced me to learn tuning too. I re-do A-spec races quite often now and try to win with the lowest spec car.

 

[SirAlanClive]

The Seasonals also introduce a completely new competition: being the first to post a thread about the new Seasonal on GTPlanet. I think ZachAttack1991 is top of the leaderboards there