SCEE

Sony Computer Entertainment Europe kicked off a #BestOfGT week on Monday to celebrate 15 years of the Gran Turismo series. Via the EU PlayStation Blog:

GTPlanet recently had the opportunity to sit down with Sony Computer Entertainment Europe’s President and CEO, Jim Ryan, for a round-table discussion on the business end of the Gran Turismo franchise.

The official Gran Turismo websites for Europe and North American regions will be getting a major overhaul on Wednesday, May 8th.

SCEE CEO Jim Ryan has made new comments which may support Vice President Michael Denny’s statement that Gran Turismo 6 is coming to the PlayStation 3 console.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=-Mi_xKz3WLw

I just got in from the Gran Turismo 5 launch party here in Madrid – packed with media representatives from around the world, it was a fitting way to celebrate the end of GT5’s long and dramatic development. Here’s what I learned:

A GameReactor associate in Tokyo, Gregor Wildermann, has reportedly made contact with Polyphony Digital and Kazunori Yamauchi for further clarification on Gran Turismo 5’s production status:

As reaction to Gran Turismo 5’s delay spreads around the web, one very important question remains unanswered: why? A detailed explanation will most likely never be given, but that won’t stop us from speculating. First up, Taku Imasaki (North American GT5 producer) offers a vague look at what’s been happening on the “inside” via an interview with the New York Times:

Fans are still feeling the sting from Gran Turismo 5’s postponed November release date, but hopefully we won’t have to wait too much longer to find out the game’s new date according to this tweet by Sony Computer Entertainment Europe:

Remember the threats Sony and Polyphony Digital received from Siena, Italy? They were none too happy about local flags featured in the Piazza Del Campo karting track revealed at Gamescom 2010, and began taking legal action against the two companies. Thankfully, an obvious and simple resolution was found, but it looks like Sony gets the last laugh.

The new karting track revealed in the latest GT5 demo shown off at Gamescom 2010 is now causing problems for Polyphony Digital and Sony Computer Entertainment. The track, named Piazza del Campo after the famous city square in Siena, Italy, hosts a world-renowned horse race twice a year known as the Palio di Siena (you may remember it in Quantum of Solace – ironically a Sony movie). Unfortunately, though, in Polyphony’s digital recreation of the location, they’ve (gasp!) used flags of the local contrada without permission. As reported by Corriere Fiorentino, the city is none too happy about it, and is threatening to take legal action against Sony to prevent sale and distribution of the game in Italy.

With so many of you making plans to attend the PlayStation House tour after we noticed that Gran Turismo 5 would be making an appearance, I felt this latest turn of events has warranted its own blog post. Unfortunately, in a statement to VG247, SCEE has announced that GT5’s listing on the site was a “mistake”. Sure enough, Sony has just updated the PlayStation House website, removing the racing title from the description (the old version lives on in Google’s cache, for now).

Gran Turismo 5 is about to make its public debut in UK shopping malls as it joins Sony’s ongoing “PlayStation House Tour“. As you can see in the description, the “touring games extravaganza” will give you “the chance to test out all the best titles and newest releases […] including […] GT5”. Sure enough, when GTPlanet forum user Kyaw checked out the “House” in the Birmingham Bullring, the staff on-hand confirmed a demo of the racing title will be there “soon”. Before you get too excited, keep in mind this version of the game will almost certainly be similar (if not identical) to what was playable in France last month. (Though the latest demo running at the Tokyo Motor Show including the Toyota FT-86 would certainly make for a pleasant surprise.)

All eyes of the gaming world are on Cologne, Germany, as Sony holds a massive three-hour long press conference today.  The star of the show is widely rumored to be a new “PS3 Slim”, designed to replace the PlayStation 3 at a lower price point to drive sales.  However, three hours is a terribly long time to talk about just one new device, and we’ve heard that Gran Turismo 5 news will also be coming out of the show.  Nothing is guaranteed, however, and it would be wise to not expect too much to be revealed about GT5 before GT PSP hits store shelves on October 1st.  With that said, it would certainly be a great opportunity for Sony to reveal another trailer for the game while committing to solid a release date.

Looking for a new job?  If you’ve got a background in marketing and a passion for Gran Turismo, you might want to consider applying for this position with Sony Computer Entertainment Europe: