It is time for another retro PSP review and this time the game is one that needs no introduction. Gran Turismo was single-handedly responsible for turning the racing genre on its head when it was released back on the Playstation in 1998.  It featured stunning graphics and realism that were unparalleled at the time and set the benchmark for all future Playstation racing simulation games.

As you would expect the series opener proved to be very popular and soon a sequel was in the works.  Fast forward to 2009 and Gran Turismo is still going strong yet it is only the original title that I felt really was a historical moment in gaming and I firmly believe that no other Gran Turismo game has ever come close to recreating the racing experience of the original no matter how many cars the game touts or how beautiful it looks.

Gran Turismo offers two gaming modes.  Arcade simply allows a player to pick a car and track and race and unlock extras but it is the simulation mode that earned the game its rave review scores upon release.  I still think the simulation mode of Gran Turismo is far better than 98% of the current racing games today (with the exception of maybe the Forza Motorsport series).  In this mode you pick a manufacturer from various Japanese manufacturers such as Honda, Mazda and Toyota and buy a car and compete in races to earn cash to earn more money and buy better cars.

This formula paved the way for the racing game genre for years to come and the term ‘game X is a Gran Turismo clone’ become commonplace.  Before you can enter a race you have to earn the entitlement to race by earning licenses.  Gran Turismo features three licenses.  The B license is the easiest followed by A and then International A which is the hardest.  Each license features eight challenges.

The B license tests focus on controlling the car and cornering whilst the A licenses focuses on racing with powerful cars and the International A license pits you in time trials using two of the hardest and fastest cars in the game in terms of controlling them (Dodge Viper and TVR Griffith).  Once you have completed a license (earning bronze, silver or gold according to your performance) you can then enter the races and competitions specific to that license.

To start with you have to buy a cheap second hand car for under 10,000 credits and can only enter basic races but as you progress you can perform upgrades on your car to make it faster and then use it to enter harder races.  Upgrading your car is also one of the addictive features that Gran Turismo offers as every upgrade makes the car handle differently and it really is a car lover’s dream to tinker with high performance cars to their hearts content in order to make it go just that little bit faster.

Graphically the game has aged well and still looks fresh.  Granted it does not look anything near as good as the latest Gran Turismo titles but its graphics and presentation hold a special charm in their own right.  The game features an eclectic music soundtrack from artists such as Ash, Feeder and Garbage and this helped pave the way for official licensed music to appear as game soundtracks.  The game is still fun to play on the PSP and is still as realistic as ever.  It may not feature all the cars that are present in later titles but then it does not need to because the cars it does offer are still some of the best performance cars ever created.

There are some flaws in Gran Turismo though.  In games of this nature it is often common to find a car that pretty much obliterates everything else on the track no matter what and Gran Turismo is no different.  Each car has been designed based on real telemetry of them being raced by the developers but it does not seem fair that this supercar (which is the Mitsubishi GTO) seems to be able to beat a Subaru World Rally car with a few minor upgrades.  It means that you can pretty much beat the simulation mode with one car.

But I always liked buying new cars (or old ones) and simply upgrading them.  As you buy upgrades for your chosen car you can finalise the upgrades by purchasing a racing paint job.  This is the most expensive upgrade but it decks out your car in official sponsors and such and makes it look more like a racing car.  These can even be applied to cars such as the Mazda Demio and the Subaru Legacy which are not actually meant to be racing cars as such but it is a nice touch all the same.

The car list is predominantly Japanese and it was not until the sequel that European and American manufacturers started to appear.  Gran Turismo is one game that is not short on longevity as the license tests will take you some time as will collecting all the cars and upgrading them as much as is possible.

Addictiveness is another thing that Gran Turismo has in spades thanks to its learning curve that is pitched at just the right angle so that both car aficionados and casual gamers can really get a lot out of this game.  Gran Turismo was heralded for its superb replay system upon release and this still looks fresh even for an eleven year old Playstation title.

Add to that the ability that you can play it on the PSP  and it makes an already superb racing game into something truly special.  Until Gran Turismo Portable makes an appearance this is the closest that PSP owners can get to having the Gran Turismo experience in their pocket.  This is one of the few games ever made that was given a ten out of ten rating when it was released and in my nine years as a game reviewer I have never given a game a perfect ten.

Even with Gran Turismo on PSP this is still not a perfect game for the reasons mentioned above but what it does it does superbly and it is definitely worth a look for fans of the series who want to relive fond memories or those who want to know what made the Gran Turismo series the ‘real driving simulator’ in the first place.

8 Ninja Heads ouf ot 10

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