USA First Impressions?

HOLY ****! In arcade mode, at least in Time Trial. One of your options is "Quick Tune-Up". This lets you adjust horsepower + or - 20% and weight + or - 10%. Also, you turn off TSM and ASM pick transmission. Also, you can change tires. Has anyone else noticed this?
 
My First Impressions of GT4

Left hour early from work to come home and play on the evening of the 23rd.
My wife had picked it up earlier durring the day. When I got home had to wait about 10 minuets for my 10 year old son to get home. Then my wife asked me to wait until he finished his home work. Finally pop in the game and watched the introduction video, no surprise there lol ( thanks to GT planet ). Anyway proceded to race some two player arcade. Picked 2005 mustang ( forget which track ), but drove off the road at the first turn could not get the car stopped. So yes the cars drive differently. Raced a few times, noticed the screen jump/flickering and was not impressed. Also felt that the graphics was not much improved compared to GT3. There is something differnt but can not put my finger on it. One of the very first few cars I drove was the Chevelle on New York track. I was impressed with the way the car dives down while breaking.
I have now played the game for over two days, with a combined total of maybe 15 hours. I am really impressed with the number and configuration of the tracks ( great job to the makers of the game ). Even the tracks from the previuos games are improved. The tracks will take quite awhile to get good at them. I am not sure if I like the way the menus for GT mode yet. Kind of hard and takes time to find what you want. Do not like the way the races are divided up amongst continents. Seems like it will be hard to find lots of races to race a car you like in, with out redoing a particular series over and over.
Backfire to me, seems about right, although I realize some cars would probably never really ever have backfire. Rolling starts, do not really like them.
I started my game out with used RX7, raced some, tuned it up, add nice wheels, add spoiler, and bought some nitrous. The nitrous help ensure the win, when you are not familiar with the track yet. Do not planning on using it much at all on my other cars. Note: to new users if you want to transfer 100,000 from GT3 save, you need to have at least that much on your saved game. The saved game I used only had 40,000 ( I was like what the hell ) until I thought about it some. Well better get back to the track, many a great car to still to be baught and drove. Another tip : press X when it starts counting your prize cash, will make the process much faster.

HAVE A GREAT RACE DAY
 
everybody is comparing GT4 with GT3 but what about GT4P. What is the difference between GT4P and GT4???
 
After getting a little deeper into the game I’m really disappointed in the superchargers not adding as much power as a NA tune, which is not realistic at all. I am also disappointed in some cars (GNX and Eclipse GT/GST) not being able to be tuned to anywhere near the power they can have IRL.
 
More thoughts on my first few days of playing the long awaited GT4.
This game is one great game for the car lovers and GT game fans. The more I play it the more that I like it. The narrow courses in special conditions section are very good and challenging ( especially with the penalties ). I really like the fact that most of the cars come in a wide range of colors. My favorite car right now is a 98 Lotus Esprite in green of course. Have not seen any race series yet with the dreaded test track like GT3 had in almost all race series. The flickering.shuttering has almost completly gone away in my game now. The car graphics are alot less shiny then in GT3 ( which to me is a good thing ). Not having single player replay in arcade is the worst thing that I can think of about the game for now.
 
greenlightning
More thoughts on my first few days of playing the long awaited GT4.Have not seen any race series yet with the dreaded test track like GT3 had in almost all race series.
Click to expand...

Fortunately, it is far less common in GT4 than it was in GT3, and when it does appear (in Extreme Hall), you never have to do more than 3 laps on it in a single race.
 
Only North Americans with mod chips were able to import GT4P as we were totally left out of the loop from all those demos.

That is why most of us can only compare to GT3.

kikie
everybody is comparing GT4 with GT3 but what about GT4P. What is the difference between GT4P and GT4???
Click to expand...
 
GTPlanet, this post may be long, so I'll try to type as much as I can. But I have had the privledge of playing Gran Turismo 4 at an EB Games store in Webster, TX, USA (30 minutes southeast of Houston). After having played the Forza demo twice, I finally do some PS2 racing for a change. Here's my first impressions.

---PART 1/3: Racing Dynamics---
I was so excited to finally play the game. My first bit of racing included racing these new tracks: El Capitan, New York, Grand Canyon, Seoul, Cathedral Rocks, and Sears Point (sportscar course) among others. The mode available was Arcade Mode since there is usually no Memory Card in a game stand. Having said this, it was hard for me finding a car I think I'd enjoy. One of the coolest machines I've raced was the RE Ameiya Mazda RX-7. If you've played GT2 before, you may remember this machine. Racing the trucks was fun, but I don't think I'd win many races with them unless they give some "tuner loving care." I think one of my favorite tracks was El Capitan. It has a nice mix of left and right corners and seems more like a rally course. This one is easier than Trial Mountain, if you ask me. Less risky it is.

Oh, and you all talk about races being too easy? I raced with the difficulty at zero, and my highest position was 2nd... twice! Now, car control and concentration is more serious now. One mistake can ruin your whole race. Unlike Forza, no one rammed into me, making me go into the wall and out of the race. You have to brake earlier in tight corners as well as have excellent car control all the while. Speaking of car control, it's better than ever. It doesn't feel arcadish anymore. Now you have to have yourself some skill behind the wheel to do your best. Having done some go-kart racing, I know about how to control a machine at speed, then be able to corner effectively. In the car, you actually feel like you're actually in the car flooring the gas. When you hit something, the screen shakes. When you brake hard, the front end of the car dives down. Man, it was exciting!
 
---Part 2: B-Spec, Tracks, and Graphics---

I've had the chance to tinker with B-Spec mode. B-Spec Mode is made for racers who don't have a lot of racing or racing game experience, or those who just aren't racing fans and want to be GT masters. Being a college (and NFL) football fan, I kind of felt like I was coaching my team to win a national championship. I was watching my AI driver and giving him/her (because girls can race too) commands to go out and win the race. B-Spec isn't like, a spectator mode. You're still racing, just that you're not mashing down X and tapping the brakes. At one point, I actually felt like I was the crew chief or team principal, just trying to help my driver win. When I did Tokyo R246 in B-Spec, I pretended the AI driver was real by saying "It's okay. You did good, kid." It would be VERY interesting if there was USB microphone support, and you could actually talk to your driver.

This game features lovely track design. Old courses look at least 75% different from GT3 in terms of classic tracks, and newer courses have looked sweet. Rally courses have great fans that flock on the track, take a picture, and move out of the way. There were even a lot of 3D spectators watching on at once when I was racing the Grand Canyon. I loved a lot of the detail in each track, and it shows in greater detail in replays. After lots of videos seen online, I finally seen everything in its 60 FPS, all live, all real form.

Absolutely nothing looked like GT3. There's a lot of material to make even the most discriminating racing game fan find something to love, at least graphic wise.
 
---Part 3/3: Other Comments and Verdict---

The game features some pretty good music, I couldn't really hear much since I was at an EB, and everything was pretty quiet. Car sounds didn't really sound like past GTs, and I've had fun racing everything from big American and Japaense trucks to pure race cars. I've tried out the Holden Monaro CV8 as well. Some of the powerful cars didn't really seem powerful, but the sense of speed was still pretty nice. The most hardcore sense of speed in a game is in "Grand Theft Auto: San Andreas." I'd go on record saying that PD must have studied San Andreas (not to mention learn some gangsta' talk ;)). The biggest pro? This is a totally new Gran Turismo game. Don't tell me about past problems being reoccuring in GT4. This is a new beginning for the GT series. The biggest con? This is a totally new Gran Turismo game. A bit of a learning curve is required to be a GT pro. Winning races is more critical in GT4 than in past GT games. But you can bet this one is the ultimate GT so far. More concentration is needed, and you actually have to THINK through this game. Don't be embarrassed if you lose. You just need to keep trying and keep tuning. For some, it's a new challenge. For some others, it can be a pain for casual gamers.

My verdict? Get this game NOW. If you have a PS2, there's no reason not to pass this up if you want great PS2 games. We've waited so long, and the big point is that we now have it, my parents will try to buy it for me, and I just cannot wait to own and play this game to death. You're going to be hearing from me for the next few weeks and months with me and this game The only downfall would have to be the moderate learning curve for novices and veterans alike. (Verdict Score: 9.75/10)

"Now can you dig that, sucka'?" -WWE Wrestler Booker T
 
newbielives
Only North Americans with mod chips were able to import GT4P as we were totally left out of the loop from all those demos.

That is why most of us can only compare to GT3.
Click to expand...

Oh, right, I forgot, sorry about that for reminding you guys that you didn't get GT4P
 
Interesting signature, newbielives. 👍

To add some extra commentary, I had a lot of people look over me at the PS2 stand gazing at GT4. I was kind of living it up with the crowd, telling people about it and stuff. Heck, one of the guys at the EB was talking about charging me for playing, since I was so hooked! Thankfully, I had no C-notes or coins to shell out for playing too long. I let others play, of course. I wasn't rude. It was nice to see the new Ford Mustang and the Holden CV8 in the game, and I'd like to personally welcome all the new car brands to the GT series. It is an honor for you to join the party. I'll be racing your autos to victory. I'm probably not going to race all of them with the Autosave deal, though. I'll have to get used to the new system and buy only cars I think I'll be able to succeed with. I'll surely have some fun with the trucks. With some of those rear-wheel drive ones, I'm not sure I want to take them off-road.

As I noted earlier, all that was available was Arcade Mode, so I didn't get down to the nitty gritty of Gran Turismo Mode. Until I get GT4, I will get to appreciate just how much this game has changed since GT3. I'm sure when I get GT4, I'll continually improve my game in Gran Turismo 4. GT4 is much different from past GTs. That's why I came up with that Sound Off on "Aren't We Forgetting Something?" There's new physics, the Human Element, enhanced graphics, many tracks, many features... hell. I can go all day about this. Everything is completely different from GT3. One of the most welcomed track modifications is adding an extra wall when racing Special Stage Route 5. You know there's that extra highway leading to the Clubman version of that track, now I think that's all walled up now.
 
My first impression....outstanding! I hate that it took so long for them to get it to us though. The game play is more challenging to me. The license tests as always are aggravating. Crappy cars on tricky tracks. But it is supposed to be a challenge. The cars look great. Huge selection. I love the addition of all of the LMP's. The "flicker" problem that has so many people bent out of shape isn't an issue to me. I only notice the numbers on the timer doing it as you approach the start. After that it's either gone or I'm too busy driving to notice it.

The only things I don't care for are the coffee breaks and follow-the-leader license tests. The coffee breaks are just stupid tests that just break your rythym. And the follow-the-leader ones seem harder to me than just driving on an open course. I wish I could make the Pace Car go away like you can the ghost car on the other tests.

Overall though, A+.
 
I've been mostly unemployed for the last couple months, so my only choice so far has been to rent GT4 instead of buy it. Unfortunately I had to wait a whole extra month to find it in at Blockbuster. But I think it was still well worth the wait.

First I tried the arcade mode, to get a quick feel. I tried the Ford Ka, Dodge Charger, Pontiac GTO (the new Holden Monaro-based one), and Lexus GS300 on Motorland, Autumn Ring, and El Capitan. One thing that caught me by surprise, when setting the options, was it didn't seem to want to let me set the accelerator and brake to the right analog stick like I'm used to from previous games. But once I got in the game I found it still works, so if anyone else still hasn't had a chance to play it yet, don't worry.

As for the cars themselves, the Ka is pretty slow as one would expect, and has a hard time getting above 5000 RPM, but still seems more fun to drive than a car of this class would have been in GT3 (or possibly even 2, due to the slower frame rate). The Charger is as fast and handles as "loosely" as one would expect for a car of that era. The new GTO feels about as fast but much more composed, as does the Lexus. I found that the so-called "GS300" has a turbo on it, which the real American version of the car doesn't, but I guess the Japanese version does. I don't think they should be giving these cars their American names unless the specs are based on the American versions... Just like in GT2 where the Nissan Silvias were renamed "240SX" even though they didn't have the 2.4 liter engine of the American version.

I noticed the physics puts more emphasis on front/rear weight transfer than it did in GT3, and contrary to reports I've previously heard, it is not impossible to make the car oversteer, even in the tiny front-wheel-drive Ford. (I wonder if some of them forgot to turn off TCS/ASM) I found it is certainly not impossible to drive the cars effectively with the Dual Shock 2 controller. It does take noticably more finesse than in GT3, 2, or probably even 1, but I still found it far more forgiving than PC-based simulations such as Grand Prix Legends, Racer, and Live For Speed. Which in my opinion it should be, on a console game designed for a wider audience who on average don't consider it as much of a "hobby" that they can justify the cost of constantly "investing" in bulky specialized hardware for (although it's good that the option is there for those of us with more time and money to spend).

Later I finally tried simulation mode, and finally decided on a white 1989 Mitsubishi Galant VR4 to start out with. I found the car handles nicely enough, but the stock gears are spaced too widely to keep the 2.0 liter turbo engine in its powerband. So my first upgrade will probably be the transmission. I played around on the Gymkhana course first, and was looking forward to seeing some cool footage (and taking cool photos) of me tearing around like crazy knocking over cones, only to find it won't let me watch or save a replay of the Gymkhana. I then tried the first Sunday Cup race, on Autumn Ring Mini, and placed third.

I'll try to post more details after I've had a chance to try it out more.
 
O.K. I have had this for about a month and am now at 70%.This game was worth the wait.I have figured out the rallie part down pat.Just 4 more races and it will be complete.The cars don't seem to be random when you win a series over again but maybe it is just the way my luck is.The music part is not my favorite part and I have it muted.I rather have just the sound of the cars instead.The graphics are something to behold.Now I do notice a blurring sometimes during night races but it clears up after the start of the race.The braking points are more important this time around and the cars respond to adjustment alot more than in GT3.now I'm looking forward to dig depper into the game to find out more of the secrets.
 

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