We Take A New Gran Turismo 5 Demo For a Spin at 2010 CES

With Ford displaying its new MyFord Touch system and Kia its UVO infotainment system, cars becoming are increasingly tied to the Consumer Electronics Show in Las Vegas. So it’s not entirely surprising that Sony, along with publisher Polyphony Digital, trotted out yet another demo version of its long-delayed Gran Turismo 5 video game. From our first impressions, it appears the game will be worth the (extremely) long wait…

If you’re wondering, we’ve spent plenty of time racing around some of the world’s most famous circuits in Xbox’s recently released Forza Motorsport 3, also known as GT5′s biggest adversary. We’ve liked its available 407 vehicles and 22 tracks so much that we’ve installed a dedicated racing simulator at MT HQ for spirited time trials. But after a first-impression run of a unique CES-exclusive demo version of GT5, it’s our best guess that the already heated rivalry is about to get that much hotter. We’re not even about to compare the two just yet, so many apologies to those who expected such here.

Yes, unfortunately we still fiddled with a demo version, but Sony PlayStation reps on hand assured us that the actual production game will perform just as this does, maybe even better, they hinted. The graphics are simply stunning and surprisingly quick to render. The minutest of details can be picked out with great clarity, from individual blades of grass to an interior’s every button, switch and carbon fiber weave. This is especially the case when viewed on the brand’s newest lineup of massive HDTVs. Each display donned the newest PlayStation GT5 force feedback wheel complete with pedals and the aforementioned snazzy leather Recaro bucket.

Only 12 cars — including the Toyota FT-86 Concept, ARTA Honda NSX JGTC, Tom’s Lexus SC430 JGTC, Amuse Ericsson Nissan 380RS Superleggera Z33, Mercedes-Benz SLS AMG, Ferrari 458, Lamborghini Gallardo LP550-2 Valentino Balboni, HKS Mitsubishi Lancer, Subaru WRX WRC, Suzuki Swift WRC, Ford Focus WRC, and Nissan GT-R SpecV — on four tracks (Fuji Speedway, Indianapolis 500 Road Course, Nurburgring Nordschleife, and a fictional Tokyo city streets track) were available for play in a terse ‘Event’ mode.

Quite frankly, we were a bit frustrated with the demo, thanks to it gently fading to the menu screen during each of our races after only two laps in. Still, we still managed to be mesmerized, content, and giddy as any prepubescent technophile on their birthday. Load times are faster than Forza 3, but remember that this is a demo and official comparisons are impossible until we see the finished product.

In essence, what we’re trying to say here is that we’ll have to reserve our ultimate judgment until the game hits store shelves and is dropped off at our mailbox sometime next year. So far, so good, you could safely say. No ETA was given, but we’ll try to wrangle a timeframe (and reasons why it’s so late) from the GranTurismo godfather and Polyphony Digital founder himself, Kazunori Yamauchi, when we meet later this week.

On an equally enticing note, around the corner from the regular GT5 demo displays was a single screen with four pairs of what appeared to be wraparound sunglasses. As stylish as they were, we soon surmised they were 3D glasses setup for a prototype 3D GT5 edition — don’t worry, there were other colors besides hot pink. Like the popular Avatar flick and other movies as of late, 3D is on track to be the next phase in video gaming. Sounds good to us.

-Nate Martinez