Gran Turismo 7 has some of the best, if not the best, real-world track recreations in gaming.
Yes, they are laser-scanned, as is de rigueur for any title that takes itself seriously in 2026.
But the way that Polyphony Digital forensically turns that data and photography into a virtual recreation is unmatched.
If you’re not convinced, then try Circuit Gilles-Villeneuve, Montreal, and note how claustrophobic the concrete-lined Turn 5 feels compared to some contemporaries. Or how you can feel the surface change mid-Turn 6 or the subtle bumps on the way down to the hairpin.
The Canadian venue is also key for another reason, too. Launched last year, alongside Abu Dhabi’s Yas Marina Circuit, it was part of a Spec III update, marking the longest post-release tail a GT game has seen.
Gran Turismo 5 received a Spec II update and some paid downloadable content. The sixth instalment also had the free Ayrton Senna Tribute alongside regular updates. Gran Turismo Sport was the spin-off; in effect, a work-in-progress build of what became the seventh numbered entry, with free updates as and when content was ready.
Kazunori Yamauchi, Gran Turismo World Series Singapore 2026
Gran Turismo 7, however, is different. Yes, monthly updates were always planned. But continued support into a third, and soon, even fourth ‘Spec’ update, approaching five years since release? No, the sales figures and monthly active player numbers have been a surprise.
“Gran Turismo 7 is still continuing to sell very well, but we had not expected this from the beginning,” said Series Producer Kazunori Yamauchi to Traxion.
“We continue to provide additional content and game modes because there is this user base that is still continuing to grow.”
Consequently, a Spec IV update is on the way soon for the title, split into two parts releasing in October and December 2026.
At the recent Singaporean round of the Gran Turismo World Series competition, Traxion was able to test the former.
Driving a 2019-specification Super Formula around the venue, Sugo International Racing Course is another to add to the list of exacting virtual versions. Everything about the venue, down, we’re told, to the Café on the circuit’s perimeter, is present and correct.
The rise coming out of the aptly named Final Corner seems steep, the brow atop completely blind. The kerbs at the S-Shape Curve chicane are suitably gigantic and best avoided. There’s just a little bit of bonus asphalt run-off at the exit of Rainbow Corner, and the surface is visually rubbered-up through the Horseback Corner braking zone.
Much like Tsukuba, there’s an additional chicane modelled, too, which is primarily for motorcycle racing and therefore not a selectable layout in GT7.
Used for the likes of Super GT and the Super Formula motorsport series, the Tohoku-based location has two obvious overtaking spots. Entering the first corner, which is immediately followed by a second 90-degree right-hander (ideal for a cutback), and into the aforementioned Horseback after a lengthy straight.
We found with the high-downforce single-seater, at least, that turns SP In and SP Out are quicker than you initially expect. Our confidence increased lap after lap.
Notably, the superlative dynamic weather and rain system is enabled, something not true of recent post-release tracks. It would be odd, given the propensity for precipitation in the region, not to have that.
“Hoping to include in Gran Turismo for a long time”
It is also slightly strange that for such a famed circuit, it’s never been in the gaming series before.
“Sugo is a track that I drove quite a bit during the development tests for the Nissan GT-R that I drove in the 2012 Nürburgring 24 hour race, and its dynamic track layout is something that I have been hoping to include in the GT series for a long time,” said Yamauchi to Traxion.
As demonstrated by the Nations Cup World Series qualifying race, Sugo should provide close Sport Mode races. Certainly, if our fleeting test is anything to go by, this is set to become another staple of the Gran Turismo franchise.
Autumn Ring has long already been one, but despite being in 1997’s inaugural instalment, it has been absent since 2013’s Gran Turismo 6.
This will change in Spec IV Part 2, something Yamauchi is looking forward to:
“The Autumn Ring has a special place in my heart as one of the first products of my imagination when I created the first Gran Turismo, and is a circuit that I have many fond memories of.
“But looking at it now, it was an extremely compact track.
“This time around, while keeping the original layout as is, it has also grown into a larger-scale international-class racing circuit that makes driving fun.”
Brief images and video clips have been teased for the reimagined venue, although this larger ‘international class’ version remains firmly under wraps.
With the final of the Gran Turismo World Series ending in Tokyo this year, 5th-6th December, we wouldn’t bet against seeing it for the first time there…
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