Kyle Patrick

Gran Turismo first showed up in racers’ PlayStations way back in 1997. Over the almost 19 years since, there have been tracks that have fallen by the wayside, but few of Polyphony’s original creations have achieved the level of prominence that Complex String enjoys. 15 years young, its one and only appearance was in Gran Turismo 3, as far and away the longest track in the game at that point (and a precursor for the even longer Nordschleife in GT4).

Ford versus Chevy. Ferrari versus McLaren. Sony versus Microsoft. Some grudge matches seem almost as old as time itself, with console gamers being all too familiar with the third matchup. Exclusive titles on each console are only one aspect of the tough choice gamers face when picking a system: the number of friends on PSN or Xbox Live matters too, since players are restricted to those ecosystems. That might not be the case for much longer, however.

You’d be excused for calling the beginning of 2016 a rough start for most of the previous GT Academy grads. While veterans like Ordonez, Mardenborough, and Heitkotter all had their positions announced by Nissan in February – joined by recent grads like Matt Simmons – an alarming number of winners were notable for their absence. Gaetan Paletou and Wolfgang Reip were just two of the drivers that found themselves without a seat in the new year.

Call time-out on the chocolate egg hunt (or the hiding of them): it’s Track of the Week voting time! Last week’s winner was Maple Valley Raceway of Forza fame, and while you won’t find a track from that franchise this week, you’ll certainly find a bounty of variety amongst the options.

With winter in its final throes – especially here in Toronto, complete with freezing rain as I type this – things are heating up all along the automotive landscape, both in the real world and digitally. While Assetto Corsa’s console release was delayed, the folks at Kunos Simulazioni continue to work tirelessly on their title in preparation for the next big update (v1.5), with the first of three blog updates dedicated to the latest version going live earlier today. Like most big projects, the real work starts at home.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=NjkfOY5vNXM

We’ve crossed over into another franchise for this week’s Track of the Week. Welcome to Maple Valley Raceway, coming to us courtesy of GTP user GTvsForza!

Big news out of Melbourne earlier this week: in the run-up to the 2016 F1 season, Red Bull Racing and Aston Martin announced a long-term partnership that will not only see the winged logo of Gaydon adorn the RB12’s of Ricciardo and Kvyat, but the two companies collaborating on a road car. Not just any road car, either: Adrian Newey, Red Bull’s CTO (and designer of 10 World Championship F1 cars), will be working closely with Aston designer Marek Reichman on a range-topping hypercar.

It’s that time again! Members of the community have done their inner track designer proud and come up another sixteen ribbons of tarmac. Ranging from race track replicas, fantasy circuits, point-to-points, to even tracks borrowed from other franchises, there’s something for everyone.

Sony took the opportunity to lay out more details for its virtual reality headset at the Game Developers Conference earlier today. While the fall release date is later than originally planned, prospective buyers will be happy to see that PS VR undercuts rivals from both Oculus and HTC… though not by as much as you’d think (more on that in a bit). Pricing for the following territories was announced:

“Where is the S14?” While that particular refrain will no doubt echo on in the face of this month’s FM6 DLC, the Meguiar’s Car Pack does at least address one of the most-requested vehicles, with Ferrari’s turbocharged, 661bhp 488 GTB finding its way into the game. The berlinetta is arguably overshadowed by other additions, as this pack drills into the history books to present cars that are making their racing game debuts.

Following on from the Nismo mention of the program last week, GT Academy held a press event yesterday in Egypt. Taking place at the Autovrooom track in Cairo (Facebook link if you have a particularly strong interest in the Sunny and/or Juke), few details were released, though GTPlanet member (and 2015 GTA North African champion) sems4arsenal was present. Much as the case was last year, expect some changes to the format…

It wasn’t all sunshine and smiles in Florida this past weekend. After a solid season opener the week before in Texas, Heitkotter and teammate JD Davison faced stiff competition on the tight street circuit of a cloudy St. Petersburg. While outright victory would evade the GT-R’s in Florida, the two drivers made points progress nonetheless, including a podium finish.

You have spoken! Last week’s Whitetail Raceway was chosen by our community, and that’s been followed up by another group decision with today’s TOTW induction: Sierra Speedway.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ycaV3-_uha0

Gran Turismo Sport was first revealed almost four and a half months ago. Since then, Polyphony have remained tight-lipped on the PS4’s first Gran Turismo title, though morsels have slipped off the table to keep the fanbase hungry for new information. Shortly after the unveiling, Sony Europe CEO Jim Ryan announced his confidence in the game hitting its 2016 release target.

March has already been a busy month for numerous racing titles. Unwilling to simply idle along, the folks at Evolution have loosened the taps on the drip-feed of information for this month’s Driveclub update.

The Pirelli World Challenge season got underway this past weekend, bringing more success for GT Academy grads and Nissan’s 2016 motorsports teams. Bryan Heitkotter was bumped up to the top GT class in the PWC mid-season last year, where he ended the series in a respectable 10th place. For 2016 however, Bryan started on an equal footing against other professional drivers, and wasted no time establishing himself as a contender with an award-winning drive in Texas on Saturday.

Here we go! It’s the start of a new approach for Track of the Week here at GTPlanet. We saw 16 entries last week by our community, which then went to a vote a few days ago. As decided by his peers, WRS regular Whitetail has secured the title this week, with his eponymously-named Whitetail Raceway.

For the full effect, you’ll want to read that title in your best Jan Brady voice.