The Six Mainline Gran Turismo Games, Ranked Worst to Best

My favorite is GT4, but I understand why 3 and 4 were close. I loved GT3 but the lack of used cars was a feature I wish wasn't missing.

The only real disagreement I have is GT6 being last...it was SO much better than 5 IMO. 5 is the only GT game that I didn't keep because pretty much the only thing I liked about it was the track maker.
 
I will never forget the first time I saw GT3 in a shop. It was a replay of Tokyo R246 and I was literally hyptonized by the graphics. Unfortunately, the game was sold out everywhere but it was by far my favorite GT after GT1 : music, tracks, fun!!!! It should be the model of every GT game in terms of feeling.
 
I would have replaced GT6 with GT5. I don't hate GT5(I don't hate any Gran Turismo actually), but I just like GT6 better.

edit:GT6 is actually my second favourite GT, out of the ones that I have played.
 
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I agree the fact that GT6 isn't ahead of 5 is the main problem with this list. It fixed almost all of 5's problems and was the game 5 should've been in the first place.

I've never understood the fascination with GT3 other than the fact the people who place it ahead of me are probably a few years younger than me. It's also the only game in the series I didn't buy the day it was released (since I didn't have a PS2 yet) so it holds very little nostalgia for me.

I'd rank them like this completely based on personal taste:

1. GT2 (my favourite track list, all of my favourite GT tracks are there and I couldn't care less about real life tracks if the fantasy tracks are that good, best car list since I love 80s and 90s JDM, most nostalgic for me)

2. GT4 (like you said, basically GT2 II on a newer machine, didn't really like the track or car list as much though and it kickstarted the world's obsession with the Nurburgring so I'll always hold that against it)

3. GT (it's impact can't be understated, since we went from Need for Speed and Ridge Racer to this. Also best soundtrack in the series bar none)

4. GT6 (could've been better, but could've been much worse)

5. GT3 (boring car list after GT2 (but still better than GT Sport's looks), annoying soundtrack, my memories of this game just seem to be draped in yellow and pink. If GT3 was the second GT game things would be much different and I might like it as much as everyone else seems to)

6. GT5 (basically just a semi-polished mess)
 
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I'm actually still playing GT4 at this moment. I recently rebought a PS2 just to play GT4 once again. And it's just as fun as I remembered. For me it's all about the collecting of cars. So GT2 is my runner-up since it has some personal favourites like the BMW 740i and 840i and the Jaguar XJR.

My top 6 would be:
1. GT4
2. GT2
3. GT3
4. GT1
5. GT6
6. GT5
 
Ranking your favourite stuff is fun, but it's all down to personal childhood/teenage years experiences of course...

I didn't even play GT3 when it came out... went straight to GT4 when i got the PS2, then i tried GT3 after a while, i thought "what the heck is this? where are the cars? the tracks? ops already finished." It's my dead LAST pick...

Mine would be more like GT4, GT2, GT6, GT1, GT5, GT3. Had some really good fun with GT6, actually i think i'll still have more fun with it than GTS...

It's like ranking best pizza toppings... i'm sure anchovy+pinneaple would be someone's #1 :lol:
 
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My favorite is GT4, but I understand why 3 and 4 were close. I loved GT3 but the lack of used cars was a feature I wish wasn't missing.

The only real disagreement I have is GT6 being last...it was SO much better than 5 IMO. 5 is the only GT game that I didn't keep because pretty much the only thing I liked about it was the track maker.

I never owned GT6 so this is just my opinion but I think the article was referring to the overall impact each game had individually. While GT6 is a much better game than GT5, it personally didn't feel like it was a big enough step compared to previous games in the franchise which is why I never picked it up after GT5 and I'm sure quite alot of people felt the same at the time.
 
That's pretty much what my list would have looked like actually. GT5 got old fast, and I tried to like GT6, but it bored me to tears. I recall revisiting GT3 within the past couple of years and found that I loved it just as much as I did when I first played it.

EDIT: It would have been very close between GT3 and GT4 for me as well though.
 
I have to disagree. GT5 was pretty much a mess. GT6 improved on many fronts, however, this is easily forgotten because it launched at a time where Forza 5 was “next gen“ already and GT kinda stucked in the past.

I have played them all, so...

6. GT 5
5. GT 3
4. GT 6
3. GT 4
2. GT 2
1. GT 1

GT 1 and 2 had the biggest impact for their time. There was nothing quite like it.
 
I felt that in a vacuum, GT6 was better over GT5. Better suspension model, more racecars, better tracks, etc. Perhaps the main thing I felt it was missing was proper endurance races, it was quite the let down to discover there would never be anything better, within career mode, than 24 minute races.

I can never get over how often both GT5 and GT6 would crash, never have I played any other games that came close to crashing nearly as much.

Back to how I felt GT6 was great in a vacuum; outside of that vacuum was Assetto Corsa and the impossible-to-play-on-controller Project Cars. While I easily put over 100hrs in to Assetto Corsa, I hardly put more than 10hrs in to Project Cars....yet I probably still got more enjoyment out of Project Cars than the majority of the 120hrs+ I put in to GT6. I didn't get in to AC and PC until late in to the game, but once I did, my PS3 started getting quite dusty.

I suppose with the bad aftertaste GT6 left in my mouth, it could be ranked last. I know with high certainty I won't be springing for GT Sport, or even a PS4 any time soon. I may very well never buy another GT game again if gameplay remains similar. It's an unfortunate reality, considering I got so much out of it in the beginning. But between finding much better games that simulate on another level, and experiencing multiple trackdays in my little 1.6 Miata, I found the GT games to be lacking in what I needed out of my racing games.

Still, I tend to only pop in GT5 for the F1 cars, or some of the tracks. I still tend to prefer GT6 over GT5, but I can sort of understand the final decision to make it last.

I was surprised GT3 ranked so highly, it seemed like GT4 was the clear winner. I only got to experience GT3 when I was very young, and even had a wheel for a short while. I enjoyed faux-go-karts, and definitely determined I already loved cars. But for some reason, the realistic and unforgiving gameplay, at a time I was still 10 or so years before even getting my license to drive, was too much. So I didn't play GT3 for long. But looking back on it, it seemed like it was missing a lot. I can't say much though, I never did buy GT4. But all the videos and reviews I watched made me think I would've loved it over GT3.
 
I provided my opinions which weighed into the article.

Will re-paste my comments here -

Have not played 1 or 2, so will not weigh in on those.

1. GT4 - Primarily due to the abundant variety of cars and tracks. The immense number and range of events in single player mode was also top notch, compared to the other releases in the franchise that I played. 24 hour races that are actually 24 hours are a bit over the top, ahead of the technology with no ability to suspend and shut down the console. The LAN mode was also cutting edge, ahead of its time even if it seemed like an afterthought. Many forum members will be able to speak to the community that encouraged, and it was ahead of the surge of internet enabled online play. But I am skewed on this. It was the game I first played with a wheel, discovered WRS, improved my abilities, came to know the community here. So it would be very difficult for any of the other titles to surpass that.

2. GT5 - First in the franchise for the modern era of gaming. It was not without its flaws, but felt more like a completed game and something the franchise wanted to stand behind, unlike GT6, which felt like an afterthought and an abrupt continuation of some part of GT5, while missing many of the best parts. The physics model took a step forward on GT5 at the end, and it felt like PD ignored all of that work and went back to where they had started on GT5. The online play and range of car and track availability actually segmented the community more than ever before. People would shoot off and do their individual thing, whether that was shuffle racing, NASCAR on Ovals, or running in dedicated GT Series. This is an area for which it feels like GT Sport may be correcting. If they do it right, they are refocusing the franchise in a direction.

3. GT3 - The physics model here was actually superior to GT4. The main reasons I do not rank it above are due to less selection of cars and tracks, and lack of available LAN play. It was the game that got me hooked on GT, so I have to put it above the worst game in the franchise.

4. GT6 - It felt like an unfinished afterthought, and even in this age of available updates, PD quickly abandoned any focus on content or improving the obvious flaws. A game that came along at the same time as the next generation of consoles, I have to agree with [another staff member's] assessment that it will sit on the shelf an collect dust as soon as the servers are shut down. It has formed a crossroads for me personally. If they don't get GT Sport right, they will have lost me as a customer and fan, I will move on to Assetto Corsa or Project Cars, and will not look back.
 
I have no idea about the standards used to put this list, but the end result makes no sense. At all.

GT5 is the best Gran Turismo game ever made, period. GT3 was nice back at the day and it had amazing new features for its time, but GT4 was a much better and comprehensive game.

But I approve canofworms.jpg. This article is obviously a clickbait.
 
That ranking of all the GT's in that article is pretty much the same as how I see it, with the exception of my top 3 being a bit different. Otherwise, I can resonate with the views all the GTP staff mentioned in that article.

Anyway Top 3:

1. GT2 - For me, this ones quite special, so it holds a special place for me. Aside from that, it had the best soundtrack (OST and licensed) of any GT game; and this is PAL I'm on about, and the car list was brilliantly varied, and huge. Even now it can be considered a massive car list, but back in '99, on PS1 it would've been simply unheard of. And generally, despite being "unfinished", and having loads of little glitches and what not (more so for those without PAL), it still managed to be presented as a brilliant game, with an extensive career mode, and other impressive details like race modifications.

2. GT3 - I loved playing GT3, and still do. It showed that less really can be more, and the "lack" of cars was made up for, in an enormous career mode, that really offered a great challenge; looking at you Yaris Cup...Yes we didn't see the return of the used dealership, or RM's, but there was more to it than that. And even to this day, graphically it holds up remarkably well for a 16 year old PS2 game, as I remember being stunned when I first saw it, thinking that it couldn't get much better :lol:.

3. GT4 - By no means "bad" compared to 3 or 2, as on a technical level you could say GT4 was the most complete of the set. I think the view of it being somewhat of a polished, re-boot/tribute to GT2 is really quite accurate. Whilst I was a bit late to the party with 4, and I didn't get to plunge as much time into it as the previous two (that will change soon, planning on playing through once and for all), I was able to see just how brilliant it was. The car list was extensive, career mode vast, track list expansive, it really seemed as if PD had honed their skills with the 4th title. Just in the end, pipped by 3 and 2.

Otherwise, my list conforms to that of the article. GT1 is 4th for me, for the same reasons as the article stated. Though I unfortunately have never owned GT1; why I don't know, but did get to go on briefly when a mate began his career mode, and from my brief play time, understand completely why it's loved so much. After all it's genesis, and it revolutionised things, to become what they are today. Hopefully I will get my hands on a copy once and for all soon, really need to experience it properly myself :D.

GT5 goes ahead of 6, simply because 6 wasn't enough of a leap above 5. Whilst there was the addition of a few new (and rather neat) features, it wasn't as complete, or simply as enjoyable as 5 was. There was more to do in 5, and the career mode was far more substantial, and I was miffed to find true Endurance races didn't make it to GT6. Besides I was blown away by GT5 when i first got it, since it was my first game on PS3, after playing GT3 and 4 up until that point, so the graphics stunned us, and in general I was thoroughly impressed.

Whilst GT6 may be bottom of the pile, I've still plunged an huge amount of time into it, like any GT title, and thanks to some great online racing I've had with mates, and other people I've met, have still kept at it. Besides, there's still fun to be had, just have to improvise ;).

Anyway, I'll shut up with my ramblings :lol:, getting all nostalgic again, with those pesky rose-tints again :P. Not that I'm complaining of course, great article 👍.
 
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Nice to see my favorite game ranked first. GT3 was a huge leap for the series in all aspects, especially graphic-wise. Comparing the progress PD made between GT2 and GT3 is mind blowing. It also by far has the best atmosphere and presentation of any GT game IMO and this is what I think is being neglected in the recent GT games. They don't try to make racing appear fun and exciting the way GT3 did, with its colorful and dynamic menus. Everything has to look sterile and "professional".

The career mode was also long and deep but what I especially loved about it is that the races progressively got longer, to the point where tire wear started being a factor and pit stops actually had a purpose outside of full on endurance races. Sadly, that doesn't happen much anymore after this game, if at all.

The game was also full of surprises. GT3 also not only introduced F1 cars to the series, but also had the biggest selection. How many people were expecting those to be in?

While GT4 did expand upon GT3's foundation, GT3 will always be a major milestone in Gran Turismo's history and I think the fact that it's still the best selling GT game to this day says a lot.
 
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