Advice on Gran Turismo 4

This is based on Gran Turismo 4 on Playstation 2 and contains some brief tips for beginners and / or people who are struggling with the game. Gran Turismo is basically an advanced driving / racing game. It’s mainly for people who will persevere to enhance their driving skills. It’s not just a game for winning trophies, it encourages you to try different things such as enhancing your cornering skills and experimenting with the setup of your car.

If you’re starting the game from scratch (and I can’t overemphasize this) the first car you choose is really important, probably the most important choice that you will make in the game. If you choose a poor car your budget will be gone and you’ll have no way of winning the money back. I would recommend a car from the 1990s used car showrooms, preferably the Subaru Impreza. There are different types of Impreza within your budget and the exact one doesn't matter as they all have similar characteristics. The Subaru is versatile as it's suitable for both off-road and track racing and has great handling. Like real life, the cars in the second hand showroom change. If you can’t find an Impreza then a good substitute is the Mitsubishi Lancer.

One of the most common problems (esp. in mission mode) is that you can’t get round the track fast enough. The skill you need to master, to get around this problem, is being able to corner well. Braking and accelerating are important. The trick to perfecting your cornering is to practice in "time trial" mode. This allows you to concentrate purely on the driving, because you won’t have time limits or other vehicles hassling you. After this, you can transfer your skills to GT (Gran Turismo) mode, using the same car and the same track.

The next tip is a simple one but is really important. When you get the game you’ll no doubt want to start playing immediately - everyone does but at some time it pays to have a good look at the manual, you’ll always find useful information there, such as advice on vehicle setup.

In addition to the hard-copy manual, there are instructions in mission mode. They appear after you’ve selected the race but before you actually start the race. It pays to read these carefully before you the race because it's another good source for picking up hints and tips.

That's all for now. Happy racing, Alex.

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