After a surprise announcement and a swirl of speculation regarding its contents, the first-ever paid DLC expansion for Gran Turismo 7, the Power Pack, is finally upon us. Priced at $29.99/€29.99/£24.99, this PlayStation 5 exclusive expansion is a significant departure from the free monthly updates Polyphony Digital has provided since launch.
With promises of Sophy 3.0 AI, a new event structure, and tuned cars, the question on everyone’s mind is simple: Does it justify the price tag?
GTPlanet’s lead video producer Chaz Draycott has been putting in the laps to find out. Here are our first impressions of the Power Pack.
Accessing the New World
Before you can dive into the new content, there are a few prerequisites. As previously detailed, this is a PS5-exclusive add-on. You will also need to have completed Menu Book 9 (Championship: Tokyo Highway Parade).
Once installed and unlocked, a new icon appears on the World Map: a three-mast sailing ship located at the jetty in the lower-left corner.
Clicking this transports you to a completely new UI that feels distinct from the rest of the game. It resembles a skill tree from an RPG or the campaign menu of an F1 game, featuring a web of 50 events and 37 rewards.
The Structure: A Real Race Weekend
The most immediate change the Power Pack brings is the format of the racing. Gone are the rolling starts where you chase a “rabbit” from 40 seconds back: the Power Pack introduces a proper Practice, Qualifying, and Race structure.
- Practice: You have up to an hour (though you can end it early) to learn the track and the car. You’ll be sharing the track with other cars, and “Sarah,” your race engineer, offers tips.
- Qualifying: This is where the pressure mounts. You are on track with rivals, meaning traffic can be an issue. You must set a hot lap to determine your grid slot.
- The Race: A standing grid start based on your qualifying time.
Crucially, there are no “Retry” buttons in the pause menu during a race. If you make a mistake, you can’t just restart the race; you have to restart the entire event from the beginning. This adds a layer of tension rarely felt in modern racing games. As Chaz noted during his play-through, “I can’t put into words the amount of concentration that entire race meeting has just taken… That alone is just… Wow.”
The “Sophy 3.0” Experience
Power Pack touts a Sophy 3.0 update, described as the most realistic AI behavior yet. Based on early testing, this is not marketing fluff. The AI is genuinely fast, aggressive, and human-like.
In a Civic race at Tokyo Expressway, Chaz found himself in a three-wide battle into Turn 1. The AI drivers — sporting the names of GT World Series champions like Igor Fraga and Takuma Miyazono — don’t just rubber-band; they defend lines, use slipstreams effectively, and capitalize on your mistakes.
Over longer races, like the 12-lap battle at Tsukuba, blue flags and lapped traffic play a massive role. The AI can get held up, but so can you. Even for a seasoned driver, winning isn’t guaranteed. Chaz managed tough 2nd place finishes in his first two outings, noting, “the Power Pack is no joke. It really does ramp it up a level.”
The Cars: Tuned to Perfection
This pack also includes six new tuned variants of existing cars. These aren’t just livery swaps; they have unique handling characteristics and modifications not possible in the standard tuning shop.
Two standouts from the early hours:
- Toyota AE86 Levin D-Tuned: A high-revving, slidey monster. It requires precise throttle control to keep the momentum up without spinning the rear tires.
- Honda Civic Race ’90s: A lesson in momentum management. You have to fight understeer and commit to corners flat-out to keep up with the AI.
Some events allow you to choose between a “Fast”, “Mid”, or “Slow” car, with higher credit multipliers for choosing the slower machinery. Speaking of credits, the races have an entry fee (e.g., 300-500 credits), but the payouts could be substantial. Chaz earned roughly 43,000 credits for a 2nd place finish in an early race.
Initial Verdict
The Gran Turismo 7 Power Pack appears to be exactly what hardcore fans have been asking for: structure and challenge.
It moves away from the chase-the-rabbit gameplay of the base game and offers a condensed, intense motorsport experience. The combination of qualifying pressure, no restarts, and fierce AI makes every lap matter.
With 50 events to clear, including endurance races and multiple branching paths (Historic, GT1, American Muscle, Nurburgring, etc.), there is a lot of content here. The included 5,000,000 credit boost also helps softens the blow of the $29.99 price point.
We will be diving deeper into the endurance events and the mysterious rewards over the coming days.
Are you picking up the Power Pack? Head to the comments and let us know!
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