Gran Turismo 7 Review: Return of the King

[Confus]

Does the stats that a vast majority of the players didn't even watch the intro video of Sport Mode in GTS need to be reposted?

Therefore, there is no excuse to fix the AI. None. Especially when the game has been advertised and focused almost entirely on single player up to release.

But as usual, buck passing all over the place.

I haven't watched it, either, because I only care about collecting and tuning cars. I feel like a lot of people play the game that way, too, hence why PD hasn't invested more time in improving the AI. I'm not saying it shouldn't be improved or that your and others' critiques aren't 100% valid, but I'm personally totally fine with the AI as is.

 

[Conquerer]

The AI might be too easy for the hardcore , but 90% of the people who will play the game will be casuals like me.
I’m sure it’ll be challenging enough for us.
The hardcore have got online if they really want a challenge.
Win, win.

I don't see why they can't just get with the times and add difficulty levels. There's no way you can properly tailor a game for everyone without doing so.

 

[o000o]

I struggle to remember the differences between GT5 and GT6.

The gameplay graphics yeah, but the menu and the progression system (not saying either are good) is clearly different. GT5 with separated (ugh) A and B-Spec with Special Events added in, as well as having Used Cars filled with all the Standard roster in the game. GT6 that had the License logos (N, B, A, IB, IA, S) as the Career menu, the game that had you need to complete all 1 License events and then have you take the License for the next event.

My thing is after racing online with good people right here from GTP the AI will never be good enough for me period… just a tool I will use to get better for my online GTP leagues!

There are many reasons why people would not want to play online (or in general want single player games) while being serious about racing too.

In my view there are 2 issues with the AI:

• it drives badly, which hinders my driving
• it is too slow in the hardest setting. Why can't I have a AI setting for decent drivers?

This makes the AI a dissatisfier. I can live with it because I like the the game anyways, but why not improve the AI?

They're improving it but it's not done yet.

 

[AlexKalopsia]

My hope here is that Sophy will be introduced as an extra difficulty level (3 peppers), and that should mitigate the current disappointment from the more hardcore players.

 

[GTFan24]

Btw @Jordan small question, is the grand total of songs indeed 300 along with 75 artists?

 

[Conquerer]

Yeah, I don't get the AI obsession, either. I think PD agrees that anyone who's serious about racing will be doing it online. I've always felt like the offline races were just opportunities to earn credits and experience points.

This is just dismissing the concern rather than addressing it though.

How can other racing games have competitive AI while GT is so incapable of it? It's not an AI problem; it's a GT problem.

 

[Scaff]

My hope here is that Sophy will be introduced as an extra difficulty level (3 peppers), and that should mitigate the current disappointment from the more hardcore players.

None of the options discussed for Sophy in GT7 include using it as opponent AI.

 

[Igano]

None of the options discussed for Sophy in GT7 include using it as opponent AI.

Which is the biggest let down.

 

[MasterGT]

I struggle to remember the differences between GT5 and GT6.

That isn't the same thing. At my age, I, too, forget a lot of details about previous versions.

 

[Silver Arrows]

None of the options discussed for Sophy in GT7 include using it as opponent AI.

Which is ultimately proving how people hitching their wagons to Sophy being the AI savior of the franchise is short sighted and, frankly, reeking of huffing copium.

We have absolutely no time line on when Sophy will be placed into the game. It is a guarantee that it won't be coming to the PS4 version of the game because of the computational power needed, which once again raises a lot of questions as to why the game wasn't exclusively next gen, and also has the knock on effect of making the game's support end at a specific point, and transition to PS5 development only...and pissing off a whole lot of people who have still not gotten PS5's. And until then, the AI is still laughably bad, proving to be bad for everyone involved and likely being just as easy as GT6's was.

There is simply no excuse for the AI to be this bad, and have one person working on it in general when other games have made better AI with barely as many people, or with the same amount of people. But as is so typical in this forum, people's own desires and wants with the game mean that what they do with the game can be applied to the rest of the people playing it. Not plussed on the racing and just want to customize cars? Well, of course everyone wants to do that! Finding that online play is where you get the most competition? Of course everyone wants to go online (even when the stats from GTS that few people actually watched the online onboarding videos)

All of this breaks apart when the simple fact that the single player portion was so heavily pushed in the run up to the game that it should be fixed and edited. You simply cannot expect people to spend significant time in the single player portion and expect people to be happy with the game when even the most basic of racer can trounce AI by 30 seconds or more with upgraded cars, and anyone with a modicum of skill (so basically, this forum) can do it in a stock car, going by the criticisms from reviews for this game.

 

[Samus]

Yeah, I don't get the AI obsession, either. I think PD agrees that anyone who's serious about racing will be doing it online. I've always felt like the offline races were just opportunities to earn credits and experience points.

So why did they craft a huge offline experience, why is the game centred around it? The last game was focused on playing competitively online, this one isn't. Front and centre is the offline cafe mode and all the races you need to enter to complete it. There is no excuse for still not putting any effort or extra manpower into AI. What they showed with the Sophy AI demonstration clearly demonstrates they know what they have now is rubbish, and that people DO want what they demoed, but so far that is still just a pipe dream. What they've given us is the same poor system they've had for 15 years.

Look at all the comments under the videos for Sophy

The AI overlords are here to take over. This is where it all begins

Can't wait to get my **** pushed in trying to win the Sunday Cup

"Y'all think gt ai is bad huh?Ok no hard feelings"-Kaz

The AI is so aggressive! that's amazing! Also, their lines are freaking crazy...people will be studying those lines profoundly to better their own lap times.

Love it. Can’t wait for GT7.

This AI is relentless, and i love that, I'm ready to learn from the best

AI going to make career mode fun and challenging

..they go on and on in this manner. I haven't seen one single comment along the lines of "AI is fine as it is, I don't want this"

The idea that most people don't want better AI is completely unfounded, yet people keep peddling it as if it's some proven truth.

 

[opelgt1969]

Wow. Can't imagine playing on PS4. Instant loading is so amazing on PS5.

Are these load times first time loading track or after first time loading, didn't load times become shorter after you have loaded the track in GTSPORT.

 

[z06ongt4]

@Jordan so even without updates at the moment, do you in your expert opinion think this is the best Gran Turismo since GT4?

 

[Silver Arrows]

Also, it matters if the AI is bad, because ultimately if you even do stuff like only liveries, or only photo mode...you still ultimately need to race to get anywhere in those aspects. So it doesn't really matter what angle you come at the game from, you'll be greeted with poor, slow, and ultimately brain-dead AI. Polyphony knows that the AI needs to be fixed - it's clear that's one of their goals with Sophy, but once more, there's no guarantee that what Sophy was shown as, will ultimately be what it's presented as when it gets added to the game. If it gets added - which makes the Track Creator comparisons I have made a few times even more relevant.

 

[B_Springer]

Hello fellow SimRacers! 🙂

I have only one big wish that doesn't came to reality, and that is "custom offline championships" and "race weekends" with qualifications and race. Combined with the new weather system is gonna be awesome.
That is really the only one thing I've missing so much.

I can't wait to start playing this on launch day.
❤️🏁

 

[JTB10000]

Honestly, I wasn't expecting that much brutal honesty about the A.I. and campaign mode considering GTP's pretty close relationship with PD. But, I don't think 4.5/5 stars reflects what you said about such a big part of the game; 4/5 seems more fitting.

 

[O604]

Future lobby message when I step away...

"Hey, where did go? We're waiting."
"Sorry, PS4 load times."

 

[Magog]

Honestly, I wasn't expecting that much brutal honesty about the A.I. and campaign mode considering GTP's pretty close relationship with PD. But, I don't think 4.5/5 stars reflects what you said about such a big part of the game; 4/5 seems more fitting.

For me GT has always been about competing against myself and improving my skill and lap times. Better AI (which they are working on) would be great but it's not integral to the GT experience for me. If I want to get my ass kicked online lobbies are just a click away.

 

[Miroku]

Excellent review! I will personally be playing the PS4 version on my PS5 just cause I don't like the Dualsense controller.

 

[commanderr]

I'm glad I gave online a chance in GT Sport because the AI and chase the rabbit format got old fast for me. I'm by no means the fastest racer but (controller with AT, but pretty fast with it) but when you have a decent skill and sr rating online gave me exactly what most offline players here want from the AI. Ofcourse you have the rammers and unsportmanlike people online in the lower divisions but I have had 20 minute long battles with clean racers that were the best experiences I ever had in racing games. The FIA championchips with qualifying and strategy during a race were absolutely fantastic expierences and I cant wait to have that with the weather and customisation options in gt7. In the end I got all the gold trophies for wins, poles etc and it felt a massive achievement.

On the other hand I can understand the disapointment about the slow ai and seemingly ignoring of the changes the offline drivers want from this game. I do play a lot of forza horizon 5 at the moment and while not perfect the ai does give me a challenge on the higher difficulty settings. But even that ai has flaws where they brake to much in certain corners where as a human you always win. But I rate fh5 as a more arcade experience so the fact that the ai in gt is still so far behind in a sim game I cant not understand.

I would say if you do buy the game do give online a try because when it clicks it's fantastic.

 

[Rotax2020]

Can we finally hide wheel in cockpit view?

 

[RodSk8Dude]

ONLY 1080p in my standard PS4? But how could I play in ONLY 1080p? That's horrible, so bad! What is this, the 32-bit era? 1080p is EXACTLY the same as resolutions back in those days, just as bad. HOW COULD ANYONE PLAY THIS GAME AT JUST 1080p? 4k is teh way to go. That's why I only play in 4k on my PC. 4k Ultra Settings 10fps for teh win baby! Because resolution is what matters here, of course. No need to know about frame rates on the base PS4. Who would care about that? We only care about resolution.

And bad AI? Well, since I'm REQUIRED to be online anyway to play the game, might as well play against other humans. Sure, my internet stopped just yesterday for some hours, unabling me to play my Game Pass games, I mean, no problem I was playing Forza 5 already, when it crashed that was a problem, but I just had to use my phone internet through bluetooth to enter the game again. I'm sure with the same technique I can flawlessly play online against a full grid of human opponents.

 

[Vyvian]

I saw this question asked earlier but it didn't seem to get a response. Will exhaust/engine modifications/turbos change the sound of the car?

 

[JoaoSilva]

I saw this question asked earlier but it didn't seem to get a response. Will exhaust/engine modifications/turbos change the sound of the car?

I think exhaust do change the sound if I recall correctly from the streams.

 

[Vyvian]

I think exhaust do change the sound if I recall correctly from the streams.

Great, thanks for answering. It's a small thing I know, but adds to the satisfaction of customising a car I find.

 

[Pearl Jam]

..

Those are good points

 

[JoaoSilva]

Great, thanks for answering. It's a small thing I know, but adds to the satisfaction of customising a car I find.

Agree, I also hope they visually change with the upgrades like in GT5/GT6.

 

[Famine]

I saw this question asked earlier but it didn't seem to get a response. Will exhaust/engine modifications/turbos change the sound of the car?

Yes.

Agree, I also hope they visually change with the upgrades like in GT5/GT6.

They do.

 

[NekoPufferPPP]

You mentioned there's no sign of endurance racing... That's really disappointing considering the 24hr cycle and weather, but I'm guessing they might put it in an update later down the line? As I recall, in GT5, the endurace races had to be completed in one sitting until an update (iirc 2.0) introduced game saves in the pits. I really want to see them again. I mean, yes it's just driving and driving for hours on end...but that's why I love it so much, and watching the sky change color shade by shade every lap is immensely immersive and enjoyable.

 

[Elitekilla29]

I know people aren't gonna like hearing this but just like what some people been saying for the longest it's like gt sport getting a spec 2.0 update. It's not a huge step from one game to the next like we usually see with gran turismo games. Only 4 returning tracks from the past, lack luster career mode, terrible AI, and lack of new features. Customization and tuning along with the livery editor is what gonna give this game longevity. Plus online obviously.

Also disappointed that there's no NASCAR, no shuffle racing, and no muti class racing. Hopefully we get those things in future updates. I'm still gonna buy the game (actually pre order the other day) but polyphony are gonna have to be on it with updates and provide a ton of new cars, tracks and features with every major update. Because if not I could see myself and plenty of others players putting the game down.