Gran Turismo 4 is in a racing class of its own, and other games can only try to match the realism that it has.
The best quality of the game is how realistic it is. One part of how real it is, are how real the graphics look. Gran Turismo 4 probably has the best graphics for any PS2 game. There are over 650 cars in this game and all of them look like they do in real life. The decals, the rims that the cars have, and the logo match what they are in real life and noticeably add to the realism of the cars. The fact that there is no car damage takes away from realism because if a car crashes it will be damaged. To go along with the great looking cars, the trucks look great also. The scenery and buildings look real and you can even read the advertisements on the signs and billboards. The cars interact with the tracks well too. When you drive off of the road, the dirt and sand flies up equivalent to where and how fast you are driving off of the road. There are even small details such as you being able to see tire tracks on the worn out corners. The shadows caused by buildings, trees, and other various signs show up perfectly as you pass along. Even the sun’s positioning causes glares and the other light effects from the street lights make the whole race seem like it should in real life. The people in the game are the only things that do not look up to par with everything else. The fans interact by going onto the road to take pictures (and there is more of them for the more important races which is cool), but they do not look really good. When you drive a convertible there also is a driver who moves to the movements you control, but the driver does not look good either. Even though the people in the game do not look good, they really are not too noticeable and serve only a minor role because it is a racing game. The graphics in this game are spectacular and every detail makes the races almost seem as if you were driving.
There are several modes in the game, but the Gran Turismo mode is really the only mode that you want to play. When you start your career everything is more interesting. You start off with limited money and you have to manage it because it is a large factor. The races are also very close and you can be more aggressive and bump opposing cars around to pass them. This excitement that is in some of those beginning races seems to wear off though when you later in the game, when you can just make your car better than the rest. Upgrading your car is important and is also easy for people who do not know much about cars. There is a description of all of the upgrades and the only time you have to do something other than buying the upgrades is when you are at the customize screen for customizable upgrades. You can also remove upgrades at this screen and change tires for the special condition races. There are only a couple things that can be done to change the appearance of the cars though. The two main things are that you can buy wings or buy new rims for your car. There also is a carwash to make your car cleaner, but this is pointless.
Besides from looking cool, the main screen of the Gran Turismo mode helps you navigate around your racing world. There are many different races and other objectives to get done. To be able to do all of these races you have to complete the infamous license tests. The tests may seem like a pain, but if you are new to the series they will teach you how to play the game. Even if you are not new to the series the tests will improve your skill and give you a better feel for the different tracks and cars. Because there are so many cars and tracks, each with there own feel, you have to practice to get used to the differences of each of them. The license tests are the main way to get a feel for the game, but are difficult and can become frustrating because if you mess up one time or finish a split-second late you have to do them over.
There are some basic races which are grouped by the type of engine, car’s type, and there are even trucks in these races. These races are the main races, but they only take up a small portion of the races. Besides the regular races there are many different types of races. There are special condition events, which test your driving in dirt, snow, rain, and small roads. These are fun, but if you hit your opponent or a wall your car slows down for five seconds and can cause you to lose the race. The driving missions are pretty much the same, but have a twist or an obstacle to overcome in them. Both of these are fun challenges that are different than the regular races. The other non-typical races are the endurance races. This is where you are glad there is a new b-spec mode. The b-spec mode is where you have someone else do the races for you. By starting them off (your b-spec driver) with the smaller races you can build up their skills and switch in and out of the mode to complete the long endurance races. In the b-spec mode you can also speed up the race to three times as fast as the normal speed to get races done faster. There are disadvantages to the new mode if you do not know how to manage your driver though. Sometimes they will skip pit stops when they need them, and that can cost you on a longer track.
On the main screen you can navigate between different car companies of different countries, and there are some used and historic car show rooms. In the used and historic car show rooms the cars correspond with the day that you are on in your career, and some cars only show up on certain days so you have to pay attention if you want a certain car. For some of the car companies there are one-make races, but they are very easy if you upgrade your car to make it better than the rest. Some of the choices for these races are confusing because some big name companies are left out while some lesser known companies have one-make races. The countries are also clumped into American, European, and Japanese races, which are just like the rest of the races.
The other new part of the game is the photo mode. You can take pictures of your cars in various locations. This sounds pointless and is pointless. To sum the positives of the Gran Turismo mode is that it is very deep, fun, and challenging. On the flip side of it, the length can make the game drawn out and boring at certain times (the reason why my description of the mode is so long). If you can overcome those negatives though, this game can last you a long time and makes it well worth your money.
The only other mode worth playing at all is against your friends in the versus mode. This is worthless though if none of your friends can play the game because it is too hard (or if you don’t have any friends).
For this game there was supposed to be an online mode. A solid online mode could have added a nice multi-player element to the game, but there is a lot in this game to do which can make the absence not so big of a deal.
A change in the gameplay is that you can either use the regular X button for gas and Square button for brake, or now the right analog stick for both of them. This new addition feels good at first and a lot smoother, but because the analog sticks are so close to each other it gets uncomfortable after only a little while. This game is very difficult to get used to compared to many racing games out now. You have to brake more, time out turns, and use other tighter controlling to be able to succeed at the game.
The sound of this game has its positives and negatives. Some of the music tracks are fast paced and get you into the racing mood, but most of them are almost the opposite. The in- game racing sound effects are the best part of the sound though. The revving of the engines is different for every car, the screeching of the tires, and other sounds make the races sound realistic.
The fact that this game is so realistic can be a turn-off to many people. Many people like flash, and this game can seem boring to them. If you are a fan of the series though, or just like realistic car simulation, Gran Turismo 4 is a must buy.