Gran Turismo Hits the 50 Million Mark

Sony Computer Entertainment has announced today that the Gran Turismo series has hit the 50 million mark. The list of sales for each games puts Gran Turismo 3 A-Spec in the lead, with 5 Prologue in dead last. View the press release below.

Gran Turismo(TM) Series Shipment Exceeds 50 Million Units Worldwide
Remarkable Sales Achieved In Only 10 Years And 4 Months Since The Original Gran Turismo Launched In 1997

TOKYO, May 9 /PRNewswire/ -- Sony Computer Entertainment Inc. (SCEI) announced today that the cumulative worldwide shipment of the Gran Turismo(TM) franchise, a genre-defining racing and car-life simulator available on PlayStation(R), PlayStation(R)2, and PLAYSTATION(R)3 (PS3(R)) computer entertainment systems, has exceeded 50 million units as of April 30, 2008. This remarkable sales figure was achieved in just 10 years and 4 months since the launch of the first title in the franchise - Gran Turismo, in December 1997.

The Gran Turismo franchise, from the original Gran Turismo to the latest Gran Turismo(TM) 5 Prologue, has continued to evolve alongside the PlayStation platforms. With its outstanding game play, beautiful graphics and the true to life driving feel, the franchise is recognized as the world's number one automotive game title on the PlayStation format, receiving high regard not just from game fans, but also from professional racing drivers and people in the automobile industry.

The seventh installment of the world's best-selling racing franchise, Gran Turismo 5 Prologue introduces entirely new entertainment modes by taking advantage of the broadband network, such as online head-to-head racing for up to 16 players, "GRAN TURISMO-TV"; a new in-game online channel that delivers automotive video contents from around the globe, and downloadable additional contents including new cars and courses, only possible on PS3. Gran Turismo 5 Prologue has recorded strong sales since the first launch in Japan in December, 2007, followed by North America and Europe in Spring of 2008, with more than 2 million units of cumulative shipment worldwide and contributing to the further expansion of the PS3 platform.

For all Gran Turismo fans around the world, SCEI and the developer of the Gran Turismo series -- Polyphony Digital Inc., will continue hereon to vigorously promote development of the Gran Turismo series, which can be expected to evolve even further through the PS3 platform and broadband network environment.

"Initially, Gran Turismo was an 'alternative' racing game, kind of an outsider in the genre," said Kazunori Yamauchi, Producer of Gran Turismo. "And we made it thinking that it would be okay as long as it reached out to 'the select few who would agree with us.' So this figure -- 50 million units -- is simply astounding. If you go to a game store and look for a particular package, and pay for it at the cash register, though the time may be very brief, it still takes at least 3 minutes or so. It's simply mind boggling and hard to believe that this has been repeated 50 million times all around the world in the last 10 years. I would really like to thank all the fans who have supported the Gran Turismo series over the years, for all their passion and love of the game. We'd like to continue making every effort to create cutting edge, high quality games, so that we don't disappoint anyone's expectations."

Title Release Dates in North America

Gran Turismo May 12, 1998
Gran Turismo 2 December 23, 1999
Gran Turismo 3 A-spec July 10, 2001
Gran Turismo 4 February 22, 2005
Gran Turismo 5 Prologue April 15, 2008

About Sony Computer Entertainment Inc.

Recognized as the global leader and the company responsible for the progression of consumer-based computer entertainment, Sony Computer Entertainment Inc. (SCEI) manufacturers, distributes and markets the PlayStation(R) game console, the PlayStation(R)2 computer entertainment system, the PSP(R) (PlayStation(R)Portable) handheld entertainment system and the PLAYSTATION(R)3 (PS3(R)) system. PlayStation has revolutionized home entertainment by introducing advanced 3D graphic processing, and PlayStation 2 further enhances the PlayStation legacy as the core of home networked entertainment. PSP is a new handheld entertainment system that allows users to enjoy 3D games, with high-quality full-motion video, and high-fidelity stereo audio. PS3 is an advanced computer system, incorporating the state-of-the-art Cell processor with super computer level processing power. SCEI, along with its subsidiary divisions Sony Computer Entertainment America Inc., Sony Computer Entertainment Europe Ltd., and Sony Computer Entertainment Korea Inc. develops, publishes, markets and distributes software, and manages third party licensing programs for these platforms in the respective markets worldwide. Headquartered in Tokyo, Japan, Sony Computer Entertainment Inc. is an independent business unit of the Sony Group.

PlayStation, PLAYSTATION, PS3 and the PlayStation logo are registered trademarks of Sony Computer Entertainment Inc. Gran Turismo is a registered trademark of Sony Computer Entertainment Inc. All other trademarks are property of their respective owners.

All manufacturers, cars, names, brands and associated imagery featured in this game are trademarks and/or copyrighted materials of their respective owners. All rights reserved.

Gran Turismo 5 Prologue on PlayStation Network at 12AM EST

Yes folks, Gran Turismo 5 Prologue will be racing to the PlayStation Network tonight at 12:00 AM Eastern time. The game will cost the same $39.99 that it does in retail stores (so if you want the box, go to the store). The game comes with 70 cars, a drift mode, interior dash view, and online racing with up to 16 players. It may be a demo, but it is a damn good one.

[Gran Turismo 5 Prologue Available Tonight on PLAYSTATION Store] [Kombo]

Update 12:00 AM: It Should now be live.

Damage & Community Update Coming to Gran Turismo 5 Prologue This Year

Kazunori Yamauchi, Polyphony Digital boss, revealed today, stated today that a major update is coming this year for their upcoming US release of Gran Turismo 5 Prologue. The lucky fellas in Europe already have it. The new update is promised to bring car damage along with extra community features.

[Yamuchi confirms damage and community update for GT this year]

Solving the Case Behind Mandatory Blu-Ray Installs on PlayStation 3

We all hate mandatory installations, not just because it takes up time, but it takes up valuable space on our PlayStation 3's.

Devil May Cry 4 was released with a mandatory 5GB 20-minute installation and fans were pissed. Christian Svennsson told MTVGamer that Capcom didn’t realize the issue would “blow up.” He says the company will take the response into account for future releases.

Turns out, after quizzing several developers, that the reason is Blu-Ray. It's Blu-Rays "fault" because it's different technology than a DVD, not that it's slow. The issue comes from the reading differences of DVD and Blu-Ray. DVD Drives read data at differing speeds while Blu-ray reads at one speed. That means if you add more data onto the disc, the loading times will be longer. Thats when installations were thought of.

Hopefully, this will be gone in the future.

[The Mystery Behind PlayStation 3’s Sometimes Mandatory Installations]

Gran Turismo 5 Prologue Hits Number 1 on the UK Charts

Kazunori Yamauchi's newest edition in the Gran Turismo series is selling like hot cakes in the UK, storming in at number one on the UK charts for the sales week ending March 29, 2008.

Gran Turismo 5 Prologue came on top out of games like Rainbow Six Vegas 2, Mario & Sonic at the Olympic Games, and Guitar Hero III. You can view the top ten sales below.

1. Gran Turismo 5: Prologue
2. Tom Clancy's Rainbow Six Vegas 2
3. Mario & Sonic at the Olympic Games
4. Pro Evolution Soccer 2008
5. Guitar Hero III: Legends of Rock
6. Sega Superstars Tennis
7. Call of Duty 4: Modern Warfare
8. Viking: Battle for Asgard
9. FIFA 08
10. Brain Training

[Gran Turismo 5 storms UK chart number 1]

PlayStation Home Being Advertised With Gran Turismo 5 Prologue

Recently released in Europe is Gran Turismo 5 Prologue (coming to the US on April 19, 2008). The Blu-Ray disc version of the game comes with an advertisement for the upcoming PlayStation Network social community, Home. The advertisement displays the features of Home along with some of the requirements. Great to see they are getting it out.

[Home is being advertised on flyer In side GT5 prologues disc case!]

Gran Turismo 5 Prologue Features Honda CBR 600 Reward

Well look at what we have here. Polyphony Digital has a nice surprise for experienced Gran Turismo 5 Prologue gamers who complete every event in every class. When you do that, you get this Honda CBR 600 in your garage free of charge. Talk about winning an online race.

[Honda CBR 600 in Gran Turismo 5 Prologue]

Gran Turismo 5 Prologue: Cars in Video Mode

Well, Europe should have just gotten Gran Turismo 5 Prologue by now, and we already have a new video. A user on GameTrailers made a video of all the cars in the game. If you don't want to spoil your rides, I suggest you don't watch it. Enjoy!

Gran Turismo 5 Still About a Year Away

On a new post about the Gran Turismo 5 Prologue mixtape, a commenter was wondering whether or not he should get the game depending on how long Gran Turismo 5 will take to come out. Chris Hinojosa-Miranda of SCEA responded.

"You could borrow it from someone, but that’s like licking the bowl after someone’s finished the ice cream…

Also, to further clarify, GT5 is still about a year away. You should just decide now to buy it, enjoy it, go online and race against anyone and everyone, rank number one worldwide, get the girl (or guy) and become the most popular kid in town. The end."

There you have it, we still got a year, so all you out there still undecided, you might as well pick up Prologue to tide you over.

[PS.Blog Comment #4] [Thanks Justin!]

Rumor: New Tidbits on Eight Days and The Getaway 3

In a supposed chat with one of the developers at Sony Computer Entertainment Studio Soho & London, the developer revealed some tiny information on a few anticipated titles.

• Gran Turismo 5 Prologue's London track is using assets taken from The Getaway 3.
• Designer reckons The Getaway 3 looks a little better than the Gran Turismo 5 Prologue London track, only on a bigger scale. Essentially The Getaway 3 will look similar.
• When quizzed about how this was possible, he merely stated that it's easier to manage when you don't have to worry about 60fps or 1080p.
  
• The Getaway 3 will run at 720p and 30fps.
• This time around The Getaway will focus more on crime/thriller suspense.
• Eight Days is coming along very well. First proper public showcasing of gameplay will be this summer.
  
• Eight Days will not be quite as revolutionary as some have mentioned, but will have numerous innovations.
  
• Designer reckons Eight Days looks so good, he wouldn't be surprised if it gets 10's from reviewers for visuals.
• Eight Days and Getaway 3 are visually quite different, namely in contrasting art styles.
• When asked which game of the two he thought looked better, he said he thought The Getaway 3 looked "a little bit better", but that both looked fantastic.
• He also mentioned what kind of mock scores early play tests of Eight Days had been getting. Ranging from 8.5 - 9's for gameplay and 10's for visuals. But said he wouldn't go in to much detail or blow his trumpet, as we could decide for ourselves later this year. I'll take that as a hint the game is being released later this year. But he didn't budge on the subject.

For now, we will classify this as a rumor, due to the fact we have no idea whether this user is telling the truth or not.

[NeoGAF]

Subaru's Full Motion Gran Turismo 5 Prologue Controller

This years New York Auto Show featured none other than Gran Turismo 5 Prologue. Subaru created its own sit-down controller for the game. The seat will bounce when you hit bumps and such. Now we need to get this in arcades.

[Full Motion Gran Turismo 5 Controller]

Gran Turismo 5 Prologue: Ferrari F2007 In Action

The first video of the Ferrari F2007 for Gran Turismo 5 Prologue has appeared online thanks to GTPlanet. The gameplay looks amazing on this vehicle, and I personally cannot wait to give it a spin. Watch it at the link below. Enjoy!

[EXCLUSIVE: F2007 Video]

Gran Tursimo 5 Prologue: More Ferrari F2007 Screens

Thanks to Ruliweb, we have even more screenshots of the Ferrari F2007 in Sony's upcoming Gran Turismo 5 Prologue. The verdict: they are looking better than ever. The detail on this ride is insane, and I'm loving the color. Enjoy!

Race Driver: GRID to Beat GT5 Prologue to the Finish?

At Play.com Live 2008, Codemasters made available a playable version of their upcoming racer, Race Driver: GRID. The title is expected to feature GTR racecars, American muscle cars, and Japanese drift machines. Codemasters wants to take it in a different direction than other racing games go.

“This is not a game about collecting cars or spending all of your time in the front-end tuning suspension settings or designing liveries. We want to make racing exciting again,” exclaims Ralph Fulton, Chief Game Designer.

The game sounds like it could possibly give Gran Turismo 5 (& Prologue) a run for it's money. The game will feature tracks in America, Europe, and Japan. The game will feature traffic on the streets with Japanese drifting as well. It is slated for a mid-2008 release.

[Codemasters plans to race ahead of GT5 Prologue]

Gran Turismo 5 Prologue for PSN to Weigh in at 1.9GB

Sony's upcoming downloadable Gran Tursimo 5 Prologue is going to weigh in at a hefty 1870mb when it releases on the PlayStation Network. The game is set to release on the PlayStation Network next Thursday, March 27, 2008 (at least for Europe).

[GT5 Prologue PSN download is 1.9GB]

Gran Turismo 5 Prologue Pre-Orders Reach Over a Million

Sony Computer Entertainment Europe's New Zealand Marketing Manager Dave Hine and Paul Gunn, spoke with GeekPulp about the sales figures for Gran Turismo 5 Prologue. They mentioned that the pre-orders for Gran Turismo 5 Prologue (only in the SCEE regions) have already reached over a million. Thats just Europe people.

[GT Prologue Pre-orders Reach One Million]

Play.com Live: The Sony Booth

Over at the Wembley Stadium, the Play.com Live 2008 event is going on. Sony Computer Entertainment's booth has its main focus as Gran Turismo 5 Prologue. Games like Hot Shots Golf: Out of Bounds and Echochrome were also playable. Enjoy the shots. [Thanks PSLegion!]

Gran Turismo 5 Prologue: Ferrari F2007 Screenshots

Today, Gran Turismo Korea released some new off-screen screenshots of Gran Turismo 5 Prologue today showcasing the Ferrari F2007 exterior and a bit of the interior, along with a controls screen, and the back of the box. Enjoy!

Gran Turismo 5 Tracks, Vehicles & Features Revealed

In a new press release from Sony, they reveal the tracks, vehicles, and feature for their April 2008 release that is Gran Turismo 5 Prologue. The North American version of Gran Turismo 5 Prologue will contain some additional features. These additional features includie a DriftMode, Car Tuning, two-player split screen racing and a new set of offline and online Race Events.

"This impressive vehicle lineup and the additional features that cater to North American racing fans are great compliments to Gran Turismo 5 Prologue's stunning 1080p graphics and revolutionary online features," said Scott A. Steinberg, vice president, product marketing, SCEA. "Fans are sure to be pleased with the first Gran Turismo product for sale on PLAYSTATION 3."

Players will be able to race their cars and many more around six meticulously rendered tracks, including Daytona International Speedway, London City track and a series favorite, High Speed Ring. Lets take a look at everything.

Game Modes

• Drift Mode - The player's drifting technique is measured based on drift angles, racing lines, and speeds within evaluation zones located at various turns on the course.
• In Depth Car Tuning - Players have the ability to adjust the vehicle's performance, including power, weight, tires and suspension.
• Two-player Split Screen Racing - Allows players to race head-to-head against friends and foes offline.
• New Race Events - New racing events and time trials are available for players to race both offline and online. Gran Turismo 5 Prologue supports up to 16 players racing online simultaneously.

Vehicle Roster

• Acura NSX '91
  
• Alfa Romeo 147 TI 2.0 TWIN SPARK '06
  
• Alfa Romeo Brera Sky Window 3.2 JTS Q4 '06
  
• Amuse S2000 GT1 Turbo
  
• Amuse/Opera Performance Gran Turismo 350Z RS
  
• Art Morrison Corvette'60
  
• Aston Martin DB9 Coupe '06
  
• Audi R8 4.2 FSI R tronic '07
  
• Audi TT Coupe 3.2 quattro '07
  
• Blitz Dunlop ER34 '07
  
• BMW 135i Coupe '07
  
• BMW 135tii '08
  
• BMW M3 Coupe '07
  
• BMW Z4 '03
  
• Chevrolet Corvette Z06 (C6) Tuned Car
  
• Chevrolet Corvette Z06 '06
  
• Citroen C4 Coupe 2.0VTS '06
  
• Clio Renault Sport V6 24V Tuned Car
  
• Daihatsu Copen Active Top '02
  
• Daihatsu OFC-1 '07
  
• Dodge Viper GTS
  
• Dodge Viper SRT10 Coupe
  
• Dodge Viper SRT10 Coupe Tuned Car
  
• Ferrari 512BB '76
  
• Ferrari 599 '06
  
• Ferrari F40 '92
  
• Ferrari F430 '06
  
• Ford Focus ST '06
  
• Ford GT '05
  
• Ford GT Tuned Car
  
• Ford Mustang V8 GT Coupe Premium '07
  
• Honda Integra TYPE R '04
  
• Honda NSX Type R '02
  
• Jaguar XK Coupe '06
  
• Lancia Delta HF Integrale Evoluzione '91
  
• Lexus IS F '07
  
• Lexus IS F Tuned Car
  
• Lotus Elise 111R '04
  
• Lotus Elise 111R Tuned Car
  
• Lotus Elise '96
  
• Lotus Elise Tuned Car
  
• Mazda Atenza Sport (2007 Tokyo Motor Show reference exhibit)
  
• Mazda RX-7 (FD) Special Tuned Car
  
• Mazda RX-7 Spirit R Type A (FD) '02
  
• Mazda RX-7 Spirit R Type A (FD) Tuned Car
  
• Mazda RX-8 Type S '03
  
• Mercedes-Benz SL 55 AMG '02
  
• Mine's BNR34 Skyline GT-R N1 base '06
  
• Mini Cooper-S '06
  
• Mitsubishi Lancer Evolution IX GSR '05
  
• Mitsubishi Lancer Evolution X GSR Premium Package '07
  
• Mitsubishi Lancer Evolution X GSR Tuned Car
  
• Mitsubishi Lancer Evolution IX GSR Tuned Car
  
• Nissan Fairlady Z Version S '07
  
• Nissan GT-R '07
  
• Nissan GT-R Proto '05
  
• Nissan Skyline Coupe (V36) Tuned Car
  
• Nissan Skyline Coupe 370GT Type SP '07
  
• Nissan Skyline Coupe Concept '07
  
• Nissan Skyline GT-R V-spec II Nur '02
  
• Nissan Skyline Sedan 350GT Type SP '06
  
• Peugeot 207GTI '07
  
• Peugeot 307cc Premium AVN '04
  
• RE Amemiya FD3S RX-7
  
• Renault Clio Renault Sport V6 24V '00
  
• Subaru Impreza Sedan WRX STI spec C Type RA '05
  
• Subaru Impreza WRX STI (18inch BBS Wheel Option) '07
  
• Suzuki Cappuccino '95
  
• Suzuki Cappuccino Tuned Car
  
• Suzuki Cervo SR '07
  
• Suzuki Swift Sport '07
  
• Suzuki Swift Sport Tuned Car
  
• TVR Tamora '02
  
• TVR Tuscan Speed 6 '00
  
• Volkswagen Golf GTI '01
  
• Volkswagen Golf V GTI '05
  

Europe Getting Gran Turismo & Movie Bundles

Unfortunately, two of the upcoming bundles for Europe will not be featuring Metal Gear Solid 4: Guns of the Patriots. Instead, Europe is getting a Gran Turismo 5 Prologue bundle and a Movie Pack bundle.

The Gran Turismo 5 Prologue bundle comes with a copy of the game, and the console. The Movie Pack bundle comes with three Blu-Ray disc movies: Spider-Man 3, 300, and Casino Royale. Both are to release in Europe by March 29, 2008 with a €399 price tag.

[GT5 Prologue bundle set for UK]