Gran Turismo 5 Prologue: Spec II (Farewell, ABS!)

Jordan Greer · Mar 25, 2008

With a less than one day to go before the official launch of GT5 Prologue in Europe, Sony hits us with another new surprise in the form of a last-minute update to the game’s software. Going by the official name of Gran Turismo 5 Prologue: Spec II, it’s made a few significant changes to the features we were already anticipating in the PAL and North American releases. Many thanks, once again, to amar212 for bringing us all up to speed on all the changes! Here’s a quick summary:

ABS Can Be Completely Disabled

As pointed out by Amar in his latest thread, the Anti-lock Braking System (ABS) system can now be completely disabled. This represents a significant step forward in the physics of the Gran Turismo series, and fulfills a long-time wish of many dedicated players. By adjusting the ABS settings in the new Quick Tune menu, the tires can become “locked” under heavy braking to make the game considerably more challenging.

35 Online Race Events

Although Spec II does not yet introduce private races (don’t fret – they are still coming), PAL players will now be able to race participate in 35 different online events divided between time trials and live races. Time trials are now limited only by a car’s “Performance Points”, making for a much more diverse combination of opportunities to set your own fast laps.

See the rest of the updates here in Amar’s latest revision of his PAL Hands-On guide…

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GT5 Prologue Gets New Lease on Life (Until September)

Jordan Greer · Mar 25, 2008· 49 Comments

As you may recall, today (June 30, 2011) was supposedly the last for GT5 Prologue’s online services. For unknown and unexplained reasons, Polyphony Digital has announced the service’s end-of-life has now been delayed (yes, there’s a lot of jokes to be made there) to September 30, 2011.

End of Life for GT5 Prologue, Servers Close June 30th

Jordan Greer · Mar 25, 2008· 44 Comments

On their Japanese website, Polyphony Digital has formally announced they’ll be pulling the plug on GT5 Prologue’s servers June 30th of this year. The game had a very good run, selling over 5 million copies since its release in Japan back in December of 2007.

Secret Menu Reveals More Tracks in GT5 Prologue

Jordan Greer · Mar 25, 2008· 74 Comments

Just when you thought you’d explored every nook and cranny of GT5 Prologue and finally laid the game to rest, it’s back from the dead with one more surprise up its sleeve: a super-secret “Special” menu. As revealed by @Mathieulh on Twitter, the Special menu gives you access to lots of hidden features. Notably, it shows several more tracks in the game such as the Nurburgring Nordschleife, Circuit de la Sarthe, and Tsukuba (though they can’t actually be selected). You can make all the cars available, create a race and specify the make and model of each of your opponents, tinker with visible menu options, and more.

US Gov. Builds “Green Racing” Features into GT5 Prologue

Jordan Greer · Mar 25, 2008· 95 Comments

Programmers from the U.S. Department of Energy, the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency, and the Society of Automotive Engineers have found an interesting way to build “green racing” features on top of Gran Turismo 5: Prologue. Apparently, the system works by sitting between the steering wheel and the PlayStation 3, watching and recording controller inputs.

GT5 Prologue Rankings App for iPhone/Android

Jordan Greer · Mar 25, 2008· 79 Comments

GTPlanet user Calcifer has been hard at work developing a unique application for the iPhone/iPod Touch and Android platforms: it lets you view the latest top 100 times posted to the GT5 Prologue in-game leader boards! This provides a quick way to check rankings without having to shuffle through Prologue’s menus, or just look at the status of your own hot laps regardless of where you are. The app is available for free on both the iTunes App Store (direct link here) and the Android Marketplace (QR code available here) – or just search the applications for “gran turismo” and you should find it quickly on either platform.

Could Gran Turismo’s Future be in ‘3D’?

Jordan Greer · Mar 25, 2008· 31 Comments

According to a report by VideoGamesZone.de, Gran Turismo 5* is at Berlin’s IFA trade show…in 3D. The news comes off Sony’s press conference at the show, focusing on their consumer electronics products. The theme of IFA seems to echo what all the big players first started promoting at CES last January: 3D movies and games.

GT5 Prologue’s Motion Simulator at GamesCom

Jordan Greer · Mar 25, 2008· 29 Comments

If you’ve seen lots of pictures and videos from the show floor at last week’s GamesCom convention, you probably noticed this full-size, Audi TT motion simulator running what appears to be a special version of Gran Turismo 5: Prologue. While this isn’t the first time we’ve seen a motion simulator hooked up to a copy of GT (indeed, this same Audi was brought to the Leipzig Games Convention last year), you can only imagine how badly manufactures of consumer-grade “motion seats” would love to interface their own products with future GT titles…

GT5 Prologue Sells Nearly 4 Million Copies

Jordan Greer · Mar 25, 2008· 40 Comments

As you may know, Polyphony Digital publishes the sales figures of each Gran Turismo game on their website, and they just updated the numbers for Gran Turismo 5: Prologue. In the last four months (going by the numbers from May), the game has sold approximately 700,000 copies, bringing the total to nearly 4,000,000. No doubt, the Greatest Hits price drop helped drive retail sales, despite the fact that prices // continue to fall on eBay. Regardless, this is an impressive milestone for a “small” game – and one which will, no doubt, pour fuel on the the fire of the endless GT / Forza debate…

The Ultimate GT5 Prologue Walkthrough

Jordan Greer · Mar 25, 2008· 22 Comments

With the quickly falling price of GT5 Prologue continuing to drive sales of the little game, many folks who have been holding off are finally picking it up. Despite its small size, however, it still manages in-depth gameplay – the intricacies of which can be daunting for even experienced players. To help out, GTPlanet user Conquerer put together this impressive, comprehensive walkthrough that leaves no stone unturned.