Gran Turismo PSP

On this day in 2009, the Gran Turismo franchise officially made its first foray onto something other than Sony’s home console.

Our forum user John Parry just picked up on a small update in the US PSN Store – there’s now a free “car pack” available for Gran Turismo PSP that includes the following exotics:

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=6yNzGg8kTGo

After a few weeks of waiting, Ad-Hoc Party is finally available, for free, to everyone around the world! Watch the video after the jump to see a quick demonstration with Gran Turismo PSP, then head on over to the new “official” GTPlanet lobby to start racing: World G1, Lobby 1. If you’re in the mood for a quick event but the lobby is quiet, leave a note in our official GT PSP online racing forum thread to organize a quick game. Enjoy!

Remember that Gran Turismo PSP commercial, featuring a Corvette ZR-1 with Rhys Millen and Tanner Foust? (No, not that terrible Japanese spot!) While we wait for the next round of GT5 news, you might enjoy this behind-the-scenes look at how the clip was put together. Even if you didn’t like the commercial, you’re on the wrong website if you don’t enjoy watching this collection of cars pushing it around legendary Laguna Seca. See the video after the jump…

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=sm_ztAoCdas

Unfortunately, most “journalists” who get the chance to interview Kazunori Yamauchi are largely clueless about the current state of the franchise. As a result, they ask the same questions to which the answers don’t really matter, delivered with the same rabid, impatient schoolboy mentality that seems to plague many people on the Internet these days. Needless to say, while this interview method can provide some sensational headlines, it does nothing to connect with the man or the company behind Gran Turismo. That’s what makes this interview with Xavier Ocampo, Japanese correspondent at MeriStation, so incredibly refreshing and insightful.

If you’ve played Gran Turismo PSP, the thought of hooking up a steering wheel to the little handheld console has probably crossed your mind. The only problem, of course, is that the PSP isn’t compatible with any wheel on the market – or so we thought. GTPlanet user tingri discovered the above clip created by YouTuber RacerS2, who’s done the impossible with a hacked PSP and a collection of other software programs. Although he doesn’t provide a tutorial on how to get this working yourself, you might want to consider the one big caveat before taking on a project like this: GT PSP doesn’t support analog gas or brake controls, so it’s all or nothing when you press the pedals.

Gran Turismo PSP launched with an interesting and new incentive: a free, bonus car depending on where you pre-ordered the game or if you download it via the PSN Store. However, users in our forum have reported everything from receiving incorrect cars, invalid codes, to not receiving a code at all! Fortunately, your cries have been heard, with Sony issuing an apology to affected customers along with a promise to get everything straightened out.