"GT Sport will require an internet connection for the majority of functionality"

[Tassie_tiger]

I don't think the always online is the bit that will be the major issue, it's the need for PS+ for what appears to be the majority of the gameplay side of the title.

Sony's own numbers show that 60% plus PS4 owners don't have PS+. That's a big audience that are going to either not be able to play a lot of the title or will feel annoyed that they have to pay again to do so.

Perhaps I'm missing something.
Or maybe my positive bias for the game is clouding my eyes.

But the section of the blog post in question has only 3 paragraphs, the last of which reads:
"This doesn’t mean you’ll need PlayStation Plus though. As with all PlayStation titles, PS Plus will only be needed for the online multiplayer, portions of the Arcade Mode, including limited two-player split screen, single player races on select tracks and time trials can still be played offline."

"can still be played offline" - and yet you are using the term "always online".
"PS Plus will only be needed for the online multiplayer" - and yet you suggest it will be required for "what appears to be the majority the gameplay".

Perhaps you guys know something that you can't tell us.
But it's confusing how people reading the same words can come up with two almost polar opposite versions of what's been said.

 

[PzR Slim]

Perhaps I'm missing something.
Or maybe my positive bias for the game is clouding my eyes.

But the section of the blog post in question has only 3 paragraphs, the last of which reads:
"This doesn’t mean you’ll need PlayStation Plus though. As with all PlayStation titles, PS Plus will only be needed for the online multiplayer, portions of the Arcade Mode, including limited two-player split screen, single player races on select tracks and time trials can still be played offline."

"can still be played offline" - and yet you are using the term "always online".
"PS Plus will only be needed for the online multiplayer" - and yet you suggest it will be required for "what appears to be the majority the gameplay".

Perhaps you guys know something that you can't tell us.
But it's confusing how people reading the same words can come up with two almost polar opposite versions of what's been said.

Seems to me the truth is somewhere in the middle. Portions of arcade mode, limited two-player split screen, single player races on select tracks and time trials are available offline. The question is then, which portions of arcade mode, how limited is the split screen, which select tracks?

It's typical GT, make a statement that nobody has any real idea what it means. Some clarification would be nice.

 

[Tassie_tiger]

Seems to me the truth is somewhere in the middle. Portions of arcade mode, limited two-player split screen, single player races on select tracks and time trials are available offline. The question is then, which portions of arcade mode, how limited is the split screen, which select tracks?

It's typical GT, make a statement that nobody has any real idea what it means. Some clarification would be nice.

Indeed.

The problem I'm having is picturing this scenario.
I go to a shop and purchase my physical copy.
I go home and disconnect the internet, then put in the disc.
I (presumably) get my first car, let's say a N200.
Aaaand, I can't do anything.

Until that is specifically stated by PD, or until I get to actually test that for myself (which I will, so I know what I'm posting about) and it's proven correct, I find that a difficult scenario to believe.

 

[Soundtrack]

Does Gran Turismo Sport as it stands offers enough added value to possibly become the most expensive console racer available? Full game price, required PSN+ and potentially future paid DLC? Wondering wether Sony is willing to take such a bold approach with this game. How does your E-Sport venture ends up when some participants get eventually locked up by the inflating participation fee?

With PSN+ made mandatory, free added DLC could ease the pain and make the suggested concept more appealing obviously, as would unrestricted access in Sport Mode (including spectator mode). This could also explain why only selected assets would apparently be made available offline…

An almost always on internet connection could be a hint of an extensive DRM solution working under the hood.

 

[Scaff]

Perhaps I'm missing something.
Or maybe my positive bias for the game is clouding my eyes.

But the section of the blog post in question has only 3 paragraphs, the last of which reads:
"This doesn’t mean you’ll need PlayStation Plus though. As with all PlayStation titles, PS Plus will only be needed for the online multiplayer, portions of the Arcade Mode, including limited two-player split screen, single player races on select tracks and time trials can still be played offline."

"can still be played offline" - and yet you are using the term "always online".
"PS Plus will only be needed for the online multiplayer" - and yet you suggest it will be required for "what appears to be the majority the gameplay".

Perhaps you guys know something that you can't tell us.
But it's confusing how people reading the same words can come up with two almost polar opposite versions of what's been said.

I've simply used the term always online as it was the focus of the ongoing conversation, not a unique claim I was making.

If, and it's an if, that is the case it wouldn't stand alone in that regard. It would however make it the first console racer to require it.

It's more likely to be a situation similar to Hitman, in which it may have separate progress on and off-line.

However that wasn't the point I was making or focusing on at all. The requirement for PS+ for the area PD expects people to spend most of the time was.

 

[Tassie_tiger]

I've simply used the term always online as it was the focus of the ongoing conversation, not a unique claconnection.aking.

If, and it's an if, that is the case it wouldn't stand alone in that regard. It would however make it the first console racer to require it.

It's more likely to be a situation similar to Hitman, in which it may have separate progress on and off-line.

However that wasn't the point I was making or focusing on at all. The requirement for PS+ for the area PD expects people to spend most of the time was.

Fair enough.

I'm not trying to be cheeky nor disrespectful, and if I continue down this road it will sound like I'm harping.
So I'll just say this in response, and then perhaps let it be.

I suggest the spike of conversation regarding always online was born from the news item.
"GT Sport will require an internet connection for most game modes."
Will it?
I see no evidence at this stage to make such a claim.

It's from that point forward talk of always online, won't be able to purchase cars, won't have access to Campaign, etc. began.

And regarding PS Plus, again the news article sows the seed.
"This seems to imply that players will require PS Plus for some parts of the game other than online racing — aside from the requirement for an internet connection."
Something which you seem to be backing up.
Again, will it?

The blog says:
"This doesn’t mean you’ll need PlayStation Plus though. As with all PlayStation titles, PS Plus will only be needed for the online multiplayer,"

Needing PS Plus for anything above and beyond online multiplayer is not what it suggests to me.

 

[Famine]

I suggest the spike of conversation regarding always online was born from the news item.
"GT Sport will require an internet connection for most game modes."
Will it?
I see no evidence at this stage to make such a claim.

Then please tell Sony. We didn't make that up - that title came from the Playstation blog post, as did the title of this thread, which came before we published the article:

GT Sport will require an internet connection for the majority of functionality.

Look in the second section, titled "Keeping things fair – staying connected":
https://blog.us.playstation.com/2017/09/14/gran-turismo-sport-eight-things-you-need-to-know/
https://blog.eu.playstation.com/201...t-gran-turismo-sport-before-you-start-racing/

 

[Tassie_tiger]

Then please tell Sony. We didn't make that up - that title came from the Playstation blog post, as did the title of this thread, which came before we published the article:

Look in the second section, titled "Keeping things fair – staying connected":
https://blog.us.playstation.com/2017/09/14/gran-turismo-sport-eight-things-you-need-to-know/
https://blog.eu.playstation.com/201...t-gran-turismo-sport-before-you-start-racing/

Yes, thank you.
I've read the blog post multiple times.

 

[Famine]

Yes, thank you.
I've read the blog post multiple times.

Then you'll know it's Sony's claim, not ours.

And who would have better evidence to make the claim if not the publisher of the game?

 

[AKps3]

German PS blog says 2 player splitscreen without the word limited like in the US blog.

German PS blog also says more about PS+ requirement
"This does not mean that you need a PlayStation Plus subscription. As with all other PlayStation titles, a PS Plus membership is required for online multiplayer only."
US blog
"PlayStation Plus will only be needed for online multiplayer."
Basically the same but just shorter

The part with the Arcade and Singleplayer races are the same


I hope we will get detailed infos at TGS

 

[torque99]

"Arcade & Open Lobby"

"Enjoy quick and easy race customisation.
The Arcade mode, where you can enjoy Time Trials and racing against the AI, has gotten even better. Custom races have been added, allowing you to set your own rules. And of course there is a lobby where you can race freely with online friends. You can make your own room to host races, as well as participate or spectate races hosted by other players."



I wonder if they are calling the Custom Races, Spectate & Open Lobby all under the heading 'Arcade' which needs online as they join the two together on the website.

Racing any other set up/race AI is in your own time (Offline)

http://www.gran-turismo.com/gb/products/gtsport/


More clarification needed soon, as people are cancelling over this.

 

[AKps3]

"Arcade & Open Lobby"

"Enjoy quick and easy race customisation.
The Arcade mode, where you can enjoy Time Trials and racing against the AI, has gotten even better. Custom races have been added, allowing you to set your own rules. And of course there is a lobby where you can race freely with online friends. You can make your own room to host races, as well as participate or spectate races hosted by other players."



I wonder if they are calling the Custom Races, Spectate & Open Lobby all under the heading 'Arcade' which needs online as they join the two together on the website.

Racing any other set up/race AI is in your own time (Offline)

http://www.gran-turismo.com/gb/products/gtsport/


More clarification needed soon, as people are cancelling over this.

Arcade moda and Online Lobby are seperate

 

[PhaedrusSocrate]

"Arcade & Open Lobby"

"Enjoy quick and easy race customisation.
The Arcade mode, where you can enjoy Time Trials and racing against the AI, has gotten even better. Custom races have been added, allowing you to set your own rules. And of course there is a lobby where you can race freely with online friends. You can make your own room to host races, as well as participate or spectate races hosted by other players."



I wonder if they are calling the Custom Races, Spectate & Open Lobby all under the heading 'Arcade' which needs online as they join the two together on the website.

Racing any other set up/race AI is in your own time (Offline)

http://www.gran-turismo.com/gb/products/gtsport/


More clarification needed soon, as people are cancelling over this.

So what if they are cancelling, game will still be there and they will buy it quickly when this all becomes clear to them 👍

 

[ManCity123]

I am well annoyed that the new gran tursimo requires internet because I don't have internet at home on my PS4

 

[PhaedrusSocrate]

I am well annoyed that the new gran tursimo requires internet because I don't have internet at home on my PS4

I honestly feel sorry to hear anything like that. Because how will you even download a day one patch for GTS... or for pCARS 2, you know they even forbid journalists to play pCARS 2 without D1P it is how much that game needs it to be playable!

And all other games, that UNFORTUNATLY today can't even be playable without first 3 months of patches

 

[Tired Tyres]

I honestly feel sorry to hear anything like that. Because how will you even download a day one patch for GTS... or for pCARS 2, you know they even forbid journalists to play pCARS 2 without D1P it is how much that game needs it to be playable!

And all other games, that UNFORTUNATLY today can't even be playable without first 3 months of patches

That's why not finishing the game properly before releasing it is unacceptable and has to be stopped.

 

[ManCity123]

I honestly feel sorry to hear anything like that. Because how will you even download a day one patch for GTS... or for pCARS 2, you know they even forbid journalists to play pCARS 2 without D1P it is how much that game needs it to be playable!

And all other games, that UNFORTUNATLY today can't even be playable without first 3 months of patches

What do you mean?

 

[PhaedrusSocrate]

What do you mean?

You mean you don't know what "day 1 patch" means and how all modern games are quite unfinished and hardly to be called playable without them - and not just without that first "day 1 patch" but even until many patches during first 3 or 6 months?

And that day 1 patch requiers internet, it must be downloaded and then installed into the game.

And some games never get finished, polished properly, they get abandoned before that - like Mass Effect Andromeda.

 

[Johnnypenso]

You mean you don't know what "day 1 patch" means and how all modern games are quite unfinished and hardly to be called playable without them - and not just without that first "day 1 patch" but even until many patches during first 3 or 6 months?

And that day 1 patch requiers internet, it must be downloaded and then installed into the game.

And some games never get finished, polished properly, they get abandoned before that - like Mass Effect Andromeda.

Untrue. PCars2 has been quite playable for a long time on pc with no issues that would render is hardly playable.

 

[Rallywagon]

You mean you don't know what "day 1 patch" means and how all modern games are quite unfinished and hardly to be called playable without them - and not just without that first "day 1 patch" but even until many patches during first 3 or 6 months?

And that day 1 patch requiers internet, it must be downloaded and then installed into the game.

And some games never get finished, polished properly, they get abandoned before that - like Mass Effect Andromeda.

As a PC player, I understand fully the bane of the unfinished game. I have been playing rust for years. I think you might be just a little harsh on the day 1 patch situation though. Not very many console games go out unfinished like they do on Steam. But with Steam, you know that is what you are getting into, and often you get a game cheaper during early access than you would otherwise. Also, these are typically indi studio's, not AAA titles. Console games today are not like they were in the days of SNES and Sega either. Especially online games. There are all sorts of regulations and best practices that have to be followed when hitting the internet. getting servers stood up to accommodate the surge of day one access, optimizing aspects of the game that couldn't be tested in such a large scale, etc, differences in development consoles and user consoles, changes and optimizations that have happened between the time they started publishing cd/dvd/br to the day of release. All of these things add up to the day one patch.
Most games these days aren't just programmed, put on media and left alone after that, with only occasional reversions to remove large bugs/exploits. Games these days tend to continue to evolve. Programmers keep tweaking and adding content, fix exploits and bugs as they are found. It may be that a game isnt quite finished when a game starts to go out on media (*cough* GT6). But I dont know that this is the rule. At least not for consoles.

 

[PhaedrusSocrate]

@Rallywagon Mass Effect Andromeda is in horribly un-optimised state on all platforms, and they (huge EA) will just leave it there! Well lets hope smaller teams with smaller publisher will not cut costs and run like that as well.

Like demands being placed on journalist that they must not review at any cost without D1P!!! (in fact at a cost of being banned from any further cooperation with SMS or Bandai).

 

[Rallywagon]

Like demands being placed on journalist that they must not review at any cost without D1P!!! (in fact at a cost of being banned from any further cooperation with SMS or Bandai).

I dont disagree with that concept. No one should be playing without the D1 patch. That wasnt their intent and is not the experience that one would typically experience in game. It would be like trying to do a car review with a concept car instead of the production vehicle. No one is driving the concept. Most people will not be playing without the D1 patch, so why allow them to write a review for something most people wont be playing?

 

[zzz_pt]

Like demands being placed on journalist that they must not review at any cost without D1P!!! (in fact at a cost of being banned from any further cooperation with SMS or Bandai).

I think it makes sense for a reviewer to download the most recent patch if they are gonna share an opinion about a product with the public. It doesn't make sense to review an outdated version of a game and say, for instance, there are X and Z problems with a feature, when the patch would have solved that. I think it's dishonest from a professional point of view.

If you're just a random player, sure, feel free to play the game without the D1 patch (I did that with some games).

 

[PhaedrusSocrate]

I dont disagree with that concept. No one should be playing without the D1 patch. That wasnt their intent and is not the experience that one would typically experience in game. It would be like trying to do a car review with a concept car instead of the production vehicle. No one is driving the concept. Most people will not be playing without the D1 patch, so why allow them to write a review for something most people wont be playing?

I am just pointing out the need for D1P.
And for Internet to make the game playable.

So, you've said it, in confirming how important it is to have:
- D1P
- all other patches with additional tweaks and contents
- internet, to even be able to use any patch at all.

 

[Johnnypenso]

@Rallywagon Mass Effect Andromeda is in horribly un-optimised state on all platforms, and they (huge EA) will just leave it there! Well lets hope smaller teams with smaller publisher will not cut costs and run like that as well.

Like demands being placed on journalist that they must not review at any cost without D1P!!! (in fact at a cost of being banned from any further cooperation with SMS or Bandai).

The vast, vast majority of players will never play the game without the D1P. You've made this statement many times so it's about time you explain your reasoning as to how it makes sense to review the entire game in a state that almost no one will play it in, a version most of us would call imcomplete?

 

[Rallywagon]

I am just pointing out the need for D1P.
And for Internet to make the game playable.

So, you've said it, in confirming how important it is to have:
- D1P
- all other patches with additional tweaks and contents
- internet, to even be able to use any patch at all.

To answer that, I'll refer you back to this.
Also, how would you expect a company to get a patch out? Remember the days of PSX, when you had to get game updates through special memory cards or discs in the PSM? That was the worst update method ever, why would they not utilize a utility that nearly every gamer has access too?

As a PC player, I understand fully the bane of the unfinished game. I have been playing rust for years. I think you might be just a little harsh on the day 1 patch situation though. Not very many console games go out unfinished like they do on Steam. But with Steam, you know that is what you are getting into, and often you get a game cheaper during early access than you would otherwise. Also, these are typically indi studio's, not AAA titles. Console games today are not like they were in the days of SNES and Sega either. Especially online games. There are all sorts of regulations and best practices that have to be followed when hitting the internet. getting servers stood up to accommodate the surge of day one access, optimizing aspects of the game that couldn't be tested in such a large scale, etc, differences in development consoles and user consoles, changes and optimizations that have happened between the time they started publishing cd/dvd/br to the day of release. All of these things add up to the day one patch.
Most games these days aren't just programmed, put on media and left alone after that, with only occasional reversions to remove large bugs/exploits. Games these days tend to continue to evolve. Programmers keep tweaking and adding content, fix exploits and bugs as they are found. It may be that a game isnt quite finished when a game starts to go out on media (*cough* GT6). But I dont know that this is the rule. At least not for consoles.

 

[PhaedrusSocrate]

@Rallywagon Exactly 👍

There for in case when someone says

I am well annoyed that the new gran tursimo requires internet because I don't have internet at home on my PS4

Answer is:

I honestly feel sorry to hear anything like that. Because how will you even download a day one patch for GTS... or for pCARS 2, you know they even forbid journalists to play pCARS 2 without D1P it is how much that game needs it to be playable!

And all other games, that UNFORTUNATLY today can't even be playable without first 3 months of patches

 

[Rallywagon]

It's an expense and ineffective solution for outliers. It would be very cost prohibitive to try at get constant updates out in such a fashion for what is a very small group.

 

[Lambob]

I never understood the great divide on internet required for gaming.

these people that already have internet at home, with wifi routers, that watch NetFlix and KODI, or run a PLEX server, that have GTPlanet in a browser, along with reddit and other incogneto mode related media, pausing a multiplayer Nintendo 3DS game in session, to take a bathroom break whilst reading snapchat instagram'd news bits,

ARE SUDDENLY RAISING FISTS IN ANGER ABOUT ONLINE REQUIRED FOR A VIDEOGAME

this is why I don't have faith in humanity.

 

[Ameer67]

I never understood the great divide on internet required for gaming.

these people that already have internet at home, with wifi routers, that watch NetFlix and KODI, or run a PLEX server, that have GTPlanet in a browser, along with reddit and other incogneto mode related media, pausing a multiplayer Nintendo 3DS game in session, to take a bathroom break whilst reading snapchat instagram'd news bits,

ARE SUDDENLY RAISING FISTS IN ANGER ABOUT ONLINE REQUIRED FOR A VIDEOGAME

this is why I don't have faith in humanity.

So what happens when Sony/any other game publisher decides to close the lid on the game and the servers are shut down? You can't even play what you bought a few years down the line.