Anybody Picking up GT4 tomorrow?

[chucka]

I wanted component video cables, but they didn't have any.

Check Gamestop. When I bought my game last night I saw a used set for $7.99. After seeing what GT4 looks like on my HD tv with out them, I ended up driving up there today and getting it. Makes a world of difference.

[ccage]

Well, my friend Sean dropped by with his copy, and we gave it a try. We did the $100k and a/b license transfer, then picked up a used '99 Skyline GTR. At first it was a bit of a dog, but after some upgrades it's starting to drive more like what we're used to with GT3.

I agree that it's a bit more sensitive. The physics upgrade really makes a difference, and it's much less forgiving with bumping and wall impacts. The car really gets loose now!

We picked up the Sunday Cup and 4WD beginner races, a couple of Pro races and one of the Japanese series. BTW, be sure and check out the Japanese series -- $7,500 a race and $35k for the series win. Good money and quick. The prize car was a full-race-prep concept 350Z, which is a rocketship.

Does anyone know how the "A-Spec Points" work? It seems to be assigning them based on how your car compares to the others more than just on the race. For example, when I won the first two Japanese series events with my near-stock Skyline, I got 94 points a race for them. With upgrades, I got 7.

I can't wait to try it with the Driving Force Pro. (It's in the garage on the "Mark 2" sim seat -- integrated TV -- that's not quite finished yet. I'm still using the DF non-pro.) Even with the non-Pro though it seemed to handle the force feedback functions much more smoothly than GT3.

Man, they really put the time in on this one.

[Treibenschnell]

... and yes... I went through A & B on my own, thank you. Got the prize cars and trophies to prove it.

You kinda guilted me into it... at first, I did the transfer and thought Hey, this is great!... but then gave in to the thought that I would be more satisfied if I completed the whole game... so luckily, I wasn't too far in and started all over again...

[trackfiend]

Oh the humanity!!! My son lost the memory card that had all of the GT3 game saved on it. Now I have to get a new card and start from scratch. ARGH!!!!

[Kestrel]

I've got mine!

My house is still a wreck from our move -- boxes everywhere, and my TV is still sitting on the floor. But I hooked up my PS2, popped in my copy of GT4, and sat awkwardly in front of the screen to play the game. No fancy cables. No HD TV. No surround sound audio. Just me hunched over a 20" TV with a PS2 controller in my hand.

I did the $100/a/b thing just to get started quickly. Had to try the Nurburgring first thing out. Then the streets of New York. Then I went through Ib licensing, just to see how tough they were (they have a few tests that involve traffic cones :) ). Then -- so that I could compare the game/sim with GT3 -- I went to Laguna Seca. All in a bone stock NB Miata I bought new for about $20k. My initial impressions:

• + The graphics are an advance over GT3, but not astonishingly so. But, I'm sure that once I do get this connected to an HD TV with better cables, the graphics will rock! Most of the spectators are still fairly 2 dimensional looking (cardboard cutouts), but some of them do move a little as you go by, and a few will even do that little "stick their head and hands out and wave at you" thing you see in WRC all the time. Nice touch of realism. And it is very cool to drive a convertible and see someone in the driver's seat! They even move their hands and tilt their head as they drive in a fairly realistic fashion (replay mode).
  
  + The choice of cars -- both to buy and to win -- is fantastic. More manufacturers. More models. Even vintage cars (dating back to very early Mercedes... you know, the ones that look like the "buggy" part of a "horse and buggy"... only without the horse ). And you can buy Used Cars from three different "Car Lots". A nice touch if you don't have much cash and need a more powerful car.
  
  + More tracks/venues. Including ice racing, which I couldn't do worth a darn . And the tracks that you'll be familiar with from GT3 have changed fairly significantly, if Laguna Seca is any judge. I mean, the layout is roughly the same of course, but the graphics and lengths of segments are different. I think I recall hearing/reading that GT3's courses were typically shortened a little from the real thing (I don't remember why)... perhaps GT4 courses are more accurate?
  
  + The physics of the cars is very different from GT3. I think it's more realistic, but I haven't driven enough cars, driven enough courses, or changed car settings enough to really know. The cars are certainly hampered a lot more by thing like hitting walls (no more skipping off the walls to get an [unrealistic] advantage), and you can really feel things like wheel hop and vertical weight transfer.
  
  - Load time between screens has increased quite a bit. I can see this becoming very annoying after a while. I guess that's the price you pay for that much additional coding being read off the disk and into the PS2's system memory...
  
  - I'm not sure I like the "Main Menu" interface. It's a "roadmap" thing with many little icons representing different things. Moving around it to find what you are looking for is kind of annoying... I think I'd just prefer a list or table.

I played for about 2 hours, and didn't save anything. Like others have said, I'll now restart the game without that first "cheat", and work though it all. While I'm sure that I can go faster with the controller, I'm not really going to start playing until I get my wheel and pedals unpacked and hooked up... I'm looking for a driving experience, not just a video game. I am very impressed with the GT4.

It's "early days" yet, but I'm guessing my PS2 and I are going to be spending some quality time together...

[sammm]

FYI...$37.99 at Fry's in todays sales flyer.