Driving Simulations I

Unfortunately my level isn't quite high enough for me to write reviews for these individually. Those will come at some point I'm sure. However, that doesn't mean I can't write comparative entries for these games in hopes that it either helps people or is at leastmildly interesting to other gamers. This is the first in a series of three posts. I intend to do a post on Gran Turismo and Forza and another post on Forza and Project Gotham Racing. Well, if I can get get my hands on Forza....

I'd like to preface the substantive portion of this post by stating an alternative theory to comparing these two games: GT4 and PGR3 are two wildly different types of simulation and cannot be compared blow-to-blow in terms of their features because they are simply because the angle which each game spins on racing achieves totally different ends.

I believe this was done on purpose by the folks that made the PGR series for two reasons:
1) Gran Turismo 4 (and previous titles in the series, for that matter) allowed for near-complete modification of most of the vehicles in the game, including gear ratios, camber, caster, and toe, among other things. In addition, Gran Turismo 4 allowed for the purchasing of individual parts for further customization. This sort of customization doesn't appeal to everybody. In some cases, depending on how each person played the game, modifications would have to be made in order to win certain races. This doesn't appeal to everybody, especially if you know little-to-nothing about more complex things such as gear ratios. PGR developers understood this and removed most of the customization options, requiring drivers by buy vehicles which are tailored to their needs rather than allowing players to purchase the best car in the game and modifying it to be unbeatable. That is, you could by the F50 GT, but if you aren't talented enough to wheel it, then no matter how good the car is, its impossible to win. In Gran Turismo, I would constantly race with people who simply had a superior car which could just steamroll through the tracks. As long as they didn't hit the wall, they would win. PGR developers thus deliberately eliminated customization to even the field, so-to-speak. The lack of a customization element differentiates the games from one another significantly enough to make them incomparable.

2) Gran Turismo doesn't reward you for showing off your driving skills, no matter how intricate or spectacular your driving is. Instead, Gran Turismo offers their challenging license tests which, if you do well enough, unlocks new races and some new cars. However, these were required to advance further in the game. Project Gotham Racing, on the other hand, allowed players merely to win a certain number of series to advance in the game and used the Kudos system as both a means by which to unlock concept and special cars (none of which were required to beat the game) and as a means of competition. Driving finesse was given a concrete number. The higher your Kudos, the more breathtaking your driving was, The implementation of the Kudos system thus shifts the attention away from traditional, tight racing lines and allows for a new, creative means of getting around the race track which greatly changes the complexion of the driving simulation experience offered by the PGR series. That isn't to say that you can't or shouldn't drive using traditional lines in PGR3, especially in multiplayer where there are some very talented drivers who have found very quick ways around the racetracks. I am merely suggesting that in PGR, there is more than one way around the track. That makes it radically different than Gran Turismo.

Given these two points, it would seem almost unfair to compare Gran Turismo with Project Gotham Racing. They are simply two different entities. On a basic level, they are the same because you drive around in circles and try to be first to the finish line. However, getting down to the specifics, Gran Turismo aims to be a pure driving simulator focused on technical ability and tuning while PGR3 appeals to a different audience, appealing to both street and technical driving talent without the need for tuning, in addition to providing the opportunity to fuse the two talents.

To sum it up, it's like comparing the Olive Garden with an A&W Long John Silver's. Everyone loves Italian food and everybody loves root beer and hamburgers, but you cannot compare the two because their aims (past feeding people, once again this is on a basic level) are totally different.