There has been a lot of press regarding the new Gran Turismo 3 A-Spec , slated for release this Spring for the PlayStation 2, and after playing my preview copy I am here to testify that this game is one of the few truly worthy of all the hype. There are several criteria for a good racing game and Gran Turismo 3 A-Spec meets or exceeds every one of them. Control is always a key factor, as is realistic physics and car handling. The first time I took my shiny Ford Mustang for a spin I was amazed at the control. The cars turn, brake, accelerate, and respond just like their real-life counterparts.
Graphics are simply stunning.
Even though there are fewer cars, each is built from 5,000 polygons vs. the 300 polygons used in last year s version. As you can imagine, this makes for some very smooth and detailed cars. Scenery is reflected in real-time off the cars instead of using the static reflection maps as in previous games. The resolution has been increased, and there is good use of the anti-aliasing to keep things looking silky smooth at 60fps. Each of the cars has been re-recorded to take advantage of the digital sound quality of the PS2.