from the pages of EGM and Expert Gamer

Kazunori Yamauchi considers himself more than just a mere game producer, describing his Gran Turismo series as an ever-evolving work of art. We tend to agree, especially after some serious play time with Gran Turismo 3 A-spec. In fact, Kazunori's background as an accomplished amateur photographer and his unequalled passion for cars of all types complement each other like never before with the power of the PlayStation 2.

Yeah, we know that sounds like something Sony paid us to say, but if you have any soul at all one game of GT3 might leave you weeping. The sheer detail on all of the cars -from the sunken headlight wells to the fully rendered wheels and brake rotors- is absolutely staggering. The cars cast realtime shadows as they scream around the tracks, all the buildings are full 3D models, the glare of the sun blinds you around certain turns and casts long, dark shadows on some sections of the courses. Oh, and did we mention this is all reflected perfectly in the glossy finish of your racing machine?

But the most breathtaking part is entering a wet weather race in Special Stage 5. Sure, we've all seen moist race tracks in past driving games, but nothing has prepared you for what you'll witness in GT3. Mere screenshots don't do it justice, but the rain soaked asphalt you're navigating is actually reflecting every car, light and roadside object in sight. It's truly something to behold, especially when you consider the game is locked at 60 fps and never drops a whit ... ever. Nonetheless, there is one limitation; the game can only handle four cars on the wet track at one time. We'll chalk that up to this being the first generation of Gran Turismo on the PlayStation 2 and move on.

Of course, to go along with all the great graphics is the same tried-and-true gameplay of the original two games in the series. But Polyphony isn't resting on its laurels-there have been a slew of play improvements made as well.

Most noticeable of these is the Rally Mode. When GT2 was released in 1999 the rally racing felt like an afterthought - something players endured rather than enjoyed. GT3 has remedied that with a much larger, more authentic-feeling Rally Mode complete with huge courses tailor-made for powersliding. It even rivals some rally-specific games on the Dreamcast and PS1.

Gran Turismo 3 also features a much more robust Arcade Mode than its predecessors. There are 34 races to complete on three levels of difficulty. As usual, racers can load their own personal garages from a memory card for use in the Arcade Mode, as well as a head-to-head mode that supports up to six players using an iLink hub. Even if you don't have six PS2'S, six televisions and six copies of GT3 lying around (and who will?), it's possible to play up to six players with only three systems and televisions using split-screen.

Fans will also be pleased to hear that the interface for the Sim Mode has been simplified. Now there's only one screen to navigate rather than that irritating world map from GT2. When you decide to upgrade your car it's not a matter of remembering which manufacturer and what part of the world you bought it from. Rather, you just go to a single "Tune Shop" icon and all the parts you can buy are [aid out before you. Buying a new car is much the same, where you simply choose a region (i.e., Japan, America, Germany, etc.) from a single list and are presented with every car you can buy immediately.

But it's the true car enthusiasts who'll be able to appreciate all the other little enhancements in GT3. They mostly consist of nice touches like having to watch the oil pressure in your car throughout Sim Mode. Sooner or later the red indicator tight wit[ go on, reminding you to go to the speed shop for an oil change.

Gran Turismo 3 doesn't need any pansy meter to indicate whether or not a player is caught in the draft of another car, either. Instead, the game uses audio clues and the driver's good sense to send that message. As you draft up behind a car (which is to say entering the vacuum created behind it), your speed will increase dramatically. Now's the time to slingshot past him (read: pull out of the draft and use the extra speed for the pass). But the moment you pull out into the clean air again you'll notice the sound of the wind whipping against your front bumper and drastically slowing you down. It's probably the best drafting physics model seen in a racing game yet, and it's so subtle you can't help but be impressed. The strategy added to tracks with long straight-aways (especially the Test Course) is absolutely awesome.

So what's Sony changing for the U.S. release of the most important racing title on the PS2 -Only a few minor things. Besides the obvious English translation for the pages and pages of technical information on each car and the expected alterations to the soundtrack (GT3 has really made it. Two artists, Rae Kwon and Snoop Dogg, have recorded original songs just for the game, Lenny Kravitz has also done GT-specific mix of "Are You Gonna Go My Way."), American players might also see a slightly modified AI in some of the more difficult races. As it is right now, some of the earliest events feature one or two cars that simply can't be beaten unless you upgrade your chariot to a ridiculous degree. It slows down the entire progression of the game. Otherwise, it looks like all systems are go for the mid-July U.S. release. Look for the Review Crew's final impressions of Gran Turismo 3 next month ... now if you'll excuse us, there's racin' to be done.

-- Greg Sewart EGM Magazine www.egmmag.com

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