GT3 on PS2, A way to Test-Drive without leaving your living Room

BUCKLE UP

When the intro kicks in you know you just bought something special:

A car is diligently worked on, tires are changed, gas is poured in, we are sent through the engine as the pistons start moving: fire erupts. A car pulls out of the garage, its real, but only its not...this is amazing.

GT3 and Twisted Metal Black have quickly renewed my faith in Playstation 2, and if you lost yours as well these games will do the same.

With the release of Gran Turismo on Sony Playstation driving enthusiasts had reached a new zen, and for the first time nearly every car known to man was accessible to them, anywhere to a Volkswagon Beetle to an Mclaren F1.

And as groundbreaking as GT and GT2 were for driving games, Gran Turismo 3: A-spec may be one of the most earth-shattering products ever developed.

WHY?

Best looking graphics I've seen ever (when you select your cars its as if you are on the showroom floor at your local dealer).

Best gameplay ever (every car responds differently, and for the ones that I've driven and also played with they seem identical, the amount of research put into this game must have been amazing).

The sound? Let's just say if you got stereo surround you may think your standing on the middle of a raceway.

SO lets think about that, the most impressive graphics, gameplay, and sound I've ever seen in a video game? Could you possibly still wonder why the gaming universe has never seen anything like this before? I think the box alone will make this definitive point to you.

BACK OF THE BOX CORRECTLY READS
Gran Turismo 3: A-spec

Obsessively technical. Meticulously refined. Viciously fast. A fervant arcade mode with blinding speeds. A passionately customizable simulation mode. You've never seen anything this suped-up.

-Photo realistic graphics blur the line between game and reality.

-Precise calculated physics designed according to each car's real-life specifications.

-Star-studded soundtrack featuring original songs and remixes.

-Opponent racers come to life with "Emotion" physics.

All of the world's top manufacturers:

ACURA, ALFA ROMEO, ASTON MARTIN, AUDI, BMW, CHEVROLET, CHRYSLER, CITROEN, DAIHATSU, DODGE, FIAT, FORD, GILLET, HONDA, JAGUAR, LANCIA, LISTER, LOTUS, MAZDA, MERCEDES-BENZ, MINI, MITSUBISHI, NISSAN, OPEL, PAGANI, PANOZ, PEUGEOT, RENAULT, RUF, SHELBY, SUBARU, SUZUKI, TRICKFORD, TOMMYKAIRA, TOYOTA, TVR, VOLKSWAGON, AND MORE.

THE DRIVE OF YOUR LIFE

The thing that sets GT3 aside is not the pretty graphics or ear piercing sound, it is GAMEPLAY, and REPLAY VALUE. Never will you come into contact with a game that will keep you involved in it as much as GT3.

The most obvious time-consumer is Simulation Mode. Here is where the heart of the game is. You start off with 18,000 to purchase a car. Since there are 150 to choose from (all real-world cars might I add) you can spend a lot of time choosing, although 18,000 wont get you much.

You begin racing amateur tournaments, when you start winning money you can either make the car you currently own better or begin saving for a bigger and better car (some are as much as a million so you got to save a lot). When you get a new car you have the option to either sell the car you currently own, or keep it in your garage.

You have a certain amount of challenged to meet. Your work on these challenges will get you various licenses to prove your worth. You need higher class licenses to make it to the big money tours, and you need a license in general to purchase a vehicle. The whole process of making it all the way in GT3 simulation mode is about as dedicated and difficult journey as video-games can get. Stick with it and the rewards you'll receive and joy you'll get can be endless. Yet it is something you will have to work hard at to make it to the top.

The options are never ending, and when you look at the different car companies and the cars they sell, and that car (for example the Aston Martin, my dream car) rotates in front of you on the TV screen in photo-realistic color, your jaw may drop and you may wonder if the real thing will be quite as impressive.

And for all you wide-screen TV owners out there, in a option that is fast growing GT3 offers 16:9 ratio, which is absolutely JAWDROPPING (as if it wasn't before).

Theres also arcade mode, for those of you who don't have the time to build your way through Simulation mode. You can race all the classes in Arcade, and you have a fair amount of cars to choose from. This is also where you have two player mode. The game slows down a bit in frame-rates with two playing at one time, but the graphics are still astounding.

You race anywhere from NASCAR style tracks for the speedsters, streetracing for your BMWs (yes Captain Bob you can race Beamers!), and Rally style vehicles for the off-roader in you.

This game has all that and a bag of chips.

SOUNDTRACK...WOAH:
Want some music to go with your driving that just rocks? Check out a few artist highlights on GT3's soundtrack:

The Cult
Goldfinger
Jimi Hendrix
Judas Priest
Lenny Kravitz
Methods of Mayhem
Motley Crue
Papa Roach
Powerman 5000
Raekwon
Snoop Dogg
and MORE!

Anyways I gotta get back to playing, and I think most gamers know this is a game they just got to get, and hopefully by now most non-gamers know that this is a game they have to see to believe. I can actually see video-game unenthusiasts converting for this work of art.

The options and gameplay of this game make it a must buy for anyone. If you are a racing fan who doesn't play much video-games, this is a reason enough for you to atleast rent a PS2 and check it out. If you are a racing video-game fan who doesn't own a PS2, this is more than enough of a reason for you to purchase the system (WHAT ARE YOU WAITING FOR). If your a PS2 owner, even if you don't like racing, get this game...its the way everything should be made...

...the best of the best...

...THE ULTIMATE DRIVING EXPERIENCE...

ENJOY YOUR LIFE
JUSTIN WAY