Gran Turismo Sport to Feature Livery Editor, “Scapes” for Photo Mode Enthusiasts

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A livery editor? In Gran Turismo? Yes!

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A fresh start has seemingly been the operative phrase for GT Sport, as we now know that the next entry in the franchise will host a roster of cars built entirely anew, doing away with the controversial ‘standard’ cars of the previous generation, all while introducing some new competent machinery.

The good news continues, managing to keep one’s jaw firmly dropped. One of the biggest reveals during the announcement – and there’s plenty to discuss all around – is a feature that has been requested by the community for years on end, and it finally makes it debut in GT Sport: a livery editor.

While most of the livery editor’s functionality has yet to be fully revealed, you will be able manipulate basic shapes and apply decals, customize existing liveries or recreate those from other racecars, and be able share the completed designs with others.

While a feature as oft-requested as this one is certain to define the franchise moving forward, one such feature that has already defined the franchise, and the genre as a whole to a reasonable extent – Photo Mode – has received a major overhaul that will no doubt put a smile on the faces of enthusiasts.

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Arizona’s Monument Valley, one of the over 1,000 Photo Spots you’ll be able to explore this November.

Photo Mode has evolved into what Kazunori refers to as “Scapes,” a powerful and game-changing next generation version of the tool themed around travel. The feature allows players to take their favourite cars to any one of the over 1,000 Photo Spot stages and insert them into a photo. These photos contain detailed lighting and spatial information, allowing for an unprecedented level of photo customization.

As should be expected, you’ll be able to freely move and position the car around the selected space. Even better, this time around there are no limitations on the number of cars that can be grouped into a single photo, provided the space allows it. An interesting new feature has also been added allowing you to add light sources into the photograph. This directly combats a problem many a GTPhotographer has experienced, which ultimately leads to post-processing efforts. Polyphony: 1; Photoshop; 0.

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If the watermark weren’t there you’d mistake this for a stock photo.

Scapes is shaping up to be yet another genre-defining chapter in video game photography, and will certainly endear itself to those looking to pick up a virtual camera. All photos can be output up to 4K resolution like Gran Turismo 5 and 6 before it, which is sure to spice things up even further. Stay tuned to GTPlanet for even more GTS news as the big London event continues!

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Comments (45)

  1. ss3

    I was disappointed with the car count but this is amazing, but in my opinion it doesn’t make up for it,
    But still completely amazing

  2. grog

    I have to say I completely lost track of the fact that this is just GT Sport and not a full fledged game. I was kind of disappointed with the car count till I remembered what GT Sport is. I cant wait to try out the photo mode, oh and maybe drive a bit too.

    I’m gonna hold out till the PS4.5 comes out, or was that just a rumor?

    1. Griffith500

      A beefier PS4 is definitely in the offing, supposedly for 4k output, but I’d be surprised if it isn’t linked to VR in some way. So it’ll be out around the same time, I’d say.

    2. SZRT Ice

      I have a strong feeling PS4 Neo will be focusing on increasing frame rate while maintaining 1080p res and all the other visuals wizardry. I hear it’s not powerful enough for 4K gaming, but should allow 4K video playback.

    3. Griffith500

      My phone can do 4k gaming. Sure, it won’t look pretty, but still… And yes, obviously 4k compatibility is primarily for pre-made media. Someone’s got to make a 4k game, though. No reason not to.

  3. Tenacious D

    Along with learning how powerful the Livery Editor is going to be, my other question is, can we share liveries? Oh yes! Every car can be liveried! And all those Photo Mode locations?? This is going to be a very nice Gran Turismo Thanksgiving. Thank you Kazunori-sensei, and all at Polyphony!

  4. RodolphoPNeto

    Cool, all really impressive. Very personal opinion here – even though i understand and respect these things, and i’m definitely buying the game, i’m not into photomode, neither playing with a million people all over the world ALL THE TIME although i know this is the main focus of the game (all games nowadays, apparently). So i’m really hoping the cars, the sound, the physics and the AI/carrer mode are interesting too and just a second/third priority.

  5. SavageEvil

    One has to wonder if there will be after release DLC to include more cars and courses, will the course creator be making an in game return, will there be another numbered Gt release post GT Sport? I have a feeling that Gt Sport might be the new name ditching the numbering nomenclature since once you go past 5 it starts to look sort of long in the tooth.
    A nicely detailed livery editor looks to be quite competent even down to wheels and wings/windshields. I just want to know will 2 player split screen still be available, I can see tandem drifting coming back here and there. Still no word on dynamic weather and day shift, but one can hope it is part of the package built from the ground up for all courses. A nice explanation about the whole race for manufacturer thing would be welcomed as well, how does it work and will you be able to do so for multiple manufacturer with one save of are you going to have to create multiple driver profiles?

    1. Tenacious D

      I fully expect that numbered Gran Turismos will continue indefinitely. We could be in a new phase though, as with Forza, where numbered main games are interspersed with named in-between offerings. I could sure live with that, so no more waiting four or five years for a new racing experience. Now the question is, will there be two numbered games per console? Or one main numbered GT, and named inbetweeners to spice things up?

    1. johnandbuddy

      This is exactly what I was thinking. They look too good to be actually renders right!?!?!

      Well look at the Street, Crosswalk one. Look at the pole in front and to the right of the TTS. See the headlight reflecting in the pole? Now look at the same location without the cars. No light reflection!!!! so that **** is really rendered!!! I don’t know if they all are or not but that one is. And if they have the option of having light sources move than I would wager that they are all rendered if not the lights would start really messing with the photos. Really amazing that they look that good!!! Man I am so freaking PUMPED!!!!!!

  6. suzq044

    I like both of these – now I just need a PS4. lol
    The Monument valley space makes me wonder if there will be a return of Grand Canyon or something like it.

    1. Tenacious D

      I was wondering that myself. When I was going through my GT4 videos, the Grand Canyon races were still jaw dropping to me.

  7. Johnnypenso

    Let’s face it, the scapes are a brilliant addition to the franchise and a stroke of genius on Kaz/PD’s part. I’m not into photography at all and I’m mighty impressed by this. I’m sure it’ll move a lot of units too.

  8. leeislee

    HDR maps basically. A photo panorama or photo sphere that adjusts the lighting and reflections on the 3D model. I hope there is more to it than that.

    From what I’ve seen here the photos look great but I’ll reserve my full judgement until I have the game. :)

  9. KOUKI507

    So after 10 years they finally decided to bring back the livery editor function that we loved so much in GT1 and GT2! It was so cool to see the car that you bought from the used car dealership transformed into a race beast and help you fill your bank account! I am being nostalgic I know..

    1. SZRT Ice

      GT1 & GT2 didn’t have livery editors. You could “Race Modify” your vehicle into a preset bodykit and livery (some vehicles having up to 3 livery selections, I believe), and that was it. GT5 & GT6 had race modified vehicles, but they were barren of liveries, & only paintable.

      GT-S will have a livery editor that allows you to place the logos, sponsors, liveries and shapes, where ever you want to. You can resize, skew, rotate, and expand them. I have yet to see the ability to color, layer, adjust opacity, invert (negative), flip, mirror, or use alphanumericals.

      I’m definitely looking forward to more info. Especially considering the smaller vehicle roster.

    2. Johnnypenso

      Do you have a link to the livery editor description? I missed most of yesterday and it sounds like it’s fully functioning so I’d like to see it.

    3. SZRT Ice

      They’ve lacked to go into detail. All you have is the brief depiction in the gameplay reveal trailer and the vague commentary from the stream yesterday.

    4. Griffith500

      The trailer showed scaling, flipping, rotating etc. of premade decals; the logos shown in a grid are all labeled “user decal”, whatever that means (I’m hoping for a decal editor). There is also a layer system, based on text on buttons seen in the footage, but it is not demonstrated.

      It’s clearly based on the methods PD use themselves to build the liveries, as I suspected it would be.

    5. SZRT Ice

      @Griffith Right. At current, my concern is whether we’ll be able to create our own layers, combine layers and create our own logos & packages, and color and shape our own liveries. Or will we be only allowed to reshape and resize the presets they give us? The “Save As” icon on-screen gives me hope of the former.

  10. Griffith500

    Losing the standards isn’t good news for me.

    The Scapes are interesting, but no replacement for the photo locations from before. The light probes are clearly problematic, because it leads to inaccuracies of the lighting on the cars depending on where they’re placed. The shots look much better taken from fully modeled locations, of which I see there are at least a couple, where the lighting is sampled from the geometry directly and so has no such spatial aberration.

    The livery editor looks excellent, but no surprise to me. ;)

    I have high hopes for the museum.

    1. Kyle Patrick

      I don’t know if I’d call the livery editor “excellent” quite yet, if only because they haven’t shown all of it. If there’s no way to recolour items (from a colour wheel, not paint chips!), nor an easy way to group layers together and copy them to create custom logos, then that’ll be a big hit, IMO.

      On the plus side, all of the GUI’s have looked fantastic so far, livery editor included.

    2. Tenacious D

      Well, this isn’t GT7 so I’m expecting either that the Standards return, in some sort of improved form, or PD is hard at work reworking them, the prime ones at least, into Premium cars. Which would certainly work for me. Being able to race the Alfa Romeo 155, Opel Calibra and Astra, and Mercedes Benz 190 Evo in Premium glory would make me darn happy. As well as the beloved Ford GT LMGT II, Lamborghini NOMAD Diablo GT, all those 350Zs… so many Standards in GT6 I can’t keep my hands off of.

      As for the Livery Editor, anything above templates or fixed liveries is definitely a good thing in my book. Like Kyle, I’m hoping for something bodacious, but we’ll see on that. My other question on that is, are they shareable? And woo, yes they are! Racing teams confirmed! Hopefully… ;D

    3. Griffith500

      The fact that it has a livery editor first and foremost is excellent. We should be able to work around any shortcomings to achieve flexibility never seen in the series yet. To expect it to be everything you hope for in its first outing would not be advisable.

      Colour pickers are useless for real paint, though – fine for solid colours, not for multi-layered paint or multi-component paint. At least, I’ve never seen a colour picker that does that justice.

      In that respect, a combination of “chips” and pickers would be ideal. I’d personally love a proper paint mixing station and the ability to lay down different coloured layers. PD at least claim to be modeling the rendering of the paint based on layers, but it’s unclear exactly what that means for any flexibility. And it’s also unadvisable to expect that.

    4. SZRT Ice

      Completely agree with just about everything you said.

      Would have been great to do a liveried up Tommy Kaira ZZII, GTO Twin Turbo, Cadillac Cien, etc. I hope we see these cars return in the future (as premium upgrades, of course). More concerning is the track count however. 130+ tracks with 19 cars would bring more entertainment and replay value than having it the other way around imo. Track count is far more important than the other way around, at least to me it is.

  11. African Kat

    awesome leap with photomode, truly looks amazing. livery editor also adds new depth to the title, truly hope they somehow have the same success with sound, i think its vital to rescue the sinking ship

    1. SZRT Ice

      I fail to understand how Kazunori isn’t on top of this??? In racing (even in Rally), the primary thing heard is the ENGINE & EXHAUST. Intake, blow off, turbo, all follow. AND THEN the tires can be heard feintly.

      So why are the tires the most predominant sound in GT? Even drift videos don’t have tires as loud and vehicles as muted as in GT. The only time tires squeal IRL as they do in GT, is during wheel lock (usually before a crash), or accident aversion). They had Evolution Studious in their palms and decided to go with Turn 10 instead? I really don’t get them…

    2. Tenacious D

      Tires are the main element in knowing how well a car is taking a turn.

      One thing to consider is that there are sliders for the different aspects of sound in GT6, and yes, I have tires up all the way. We may get the ability to customize these sound elements in GT Sport. If it matters to you, I’d suggest lobbying for it in the forum.

    3. SZRT Ice

      Rumble, wheel response, throttle sound/feedback, etc. should give plenty of indication of traction. Tires aren’t always going to give you audible feedback. Actually, they can go mute during hydroplaning and understeer (I know from experience unfortunately), they definitely 1don’t squeal and smoke at every minimal loss in traction as they do in games. Excessive smoke being another issue, as wheel spin does not always result in blinding plumes of smoke either. They need to tone these two things down a bit. Seriously…

  12. Cole Morgan

    I’m so happy that some of the photo mode locations are in New Zealand. Such a beautiful country :D

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