We all thought the video series had finished, but yet another ‘Behind The Scenes’ trailer for Gran Turismo 7 has just been released, and it contains several new details.
Let’s jump in, with game producer Kazunori Yamauchi to see what the ‘Powered by PS5’ video holds.
Daytona International Speedway Road Course
Daaaayyytoooonaaaaaa. In previous ‘Behind The Scenes’ Gran Turismo 7 videos, the neon flashes across the screen have been hints at new circuits.
The same applies to this new one, with the lines suggesting the Daytona International Speedway Road Course. If this image below is anything to go by, this includes the chicane used by NASCAR in 2020 and 2021, coming out of the oval Turn 4, in-between that and the start-finish line.
Of course, this isn’t a brand-new reveal in some ways. Cast your minds back to the initial Gran Turismo 7 trailer, shown during the PS5’s launch, and on the map of the world, Daytona is right there as an icon too. It’s just that was the Speedway, this is the Road Course.
A ‘used’ Alsace – Village circuit
The French fictional circuit, Alsace – Village, was a new addition to the game series in 2017’s GT Sport. There’s no surprise that it returns in Gran Turismo 7, as in theory every single GT Sport venue will, but not the asphalt and surrounding details have more ‘life’ to them.
The grass that surrounds the track edges now features tufts, and the circuit surface featured warn-in rubber and less fresh track markings. It’s as if the circuit is now five years old, which it is. Very ‘Polyphony’.
Mercedes-Benz S Baker Tourer ‘29
Gran Turismo is heavily focussed on the history of the automobile, and will often eschew a new SUV for a classic car that has prominence.
None more so than the Mercedes-Benz S Baker Tourer from 1929, featuring a 6.8-liter supercharged straight-six engine. It was a literal race car converted for road use.
This particular vehicle won Best of Show at 2017 Pebble Beach Concours d’Elegance, an event that Gran Turismo has a partnership with.
It can now rain at Suzuka
While we know that Gran Turismo 7 will feature dynamic weather – a significant step forward for the franchise – it is yet to be confirmed if this is on every venue.
In this latest video, we are treated to an onboard shot at Suzuka in the rain, as a Jaguar XJR-9 ’88 struggles for traction.
These go alongside Tsukuba and Circuit de la Sarthe from previous GT7 trailers and Tokyo Expressway, Red Bull Ring and Spa-Francorchamps in GT Sport to offer wet weather.
The removal of ‘N’ and Gr.X car categories
We’ve known for a long time now that Performance Points (PP) will return to Gran Turismo 7, last seen in the sixth numbered instalment. These are attributed to each car and relate to the vehicle’s overall prowess.
In Gran Turismo Sport, while PP was absent, categories appeared. N100 to N1000 for road cars, and Gr.4, Gr.3, Gr.1 and Gr.B for race cars using a Balance of Performance system.
Now, thanks to this car selection menu image, we can see the categories for race cars will return in combination with PP, but the N100-N1000 categories are seemingly eliminated.
Goodbye Gr.X too, which was a ‘catch all’ category, including Vision GT concepts and electric vehicles. This made these vehicles less likely to be used online in the previous game as each entrant must have identical cars, otherwise the races were an uneven mess.
On the face of it, this feels like a positive step, as rock up to an N400 race in a Porsche 911 GT3 RS and GT Sport players knew they were going to be in the quickest car. The PP system should allow for lobby hosts to cap more precise capability for hopefully more even road-car races.
Also of particular note, the Mercedes-Benz CLK-LM ‘98 is in the Gr.2 category, making it the first car seen in this category not used in Japan’s Super GT championship.
Ray tracing in Scapes
To reiterate, ray tracing will be evident in Gran Turismo 7 the Scapes photography mode, analagous to Forza Horizon 5’s Forzavista area. Not much to say about this at present as it’s not entirely clear if the footage in the trailer actually makes use of this feature or not.
That’s about it for this trailer – but we are on high alert for any future Gran Turismo 7 news as we approach the 4th March 2022 release date for PS4 and PS5.
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