This cover was made using Canva and Bitmoji. The pictures were taken directly from the game by me.
Ever since I received a Playstation 3 for Christmas over 10 years ago, Gran Turismo has become one of my all-time favorite video game franchises, and even though I'd always had a preference for more arcade-like games (Need For Speed, Burnout and even Mario Kart are perfect examples of this), there was something fascinating about the way this simulator presented itself to my eyes, especially considering the growing interest I had in the world of motorsport thanks to series like The Grand Tour and the iconic Top Gear.
[Source](https://www.playstation.com/es-mx/games/gran-turismo-7/
No wonder, the game series created in the 90s by Kazunori Yamauchi was conceived as a love letter to cars, and over the years it has only evolved to provide one of the most complete experiences today when it comes to driving, although in terms of realism there are more solid alternatives.
The key? The perfect marriage between simulation and arcade, with hundreds of different vehicles and multiple game modes that reward perseverance and effort.
Perhaps this is why I had such high hopes for Gran Turismo 7, the latest foray of the Polyphony Digital franchise into Sony consoles (PS4/PS5), as well as one of the most attractive racing games in the entire industry.
And if, in superficial terms, GT 7 remains faithful to the saga, it has a variety of vehicles (and finally all have detailed interiors), the controls are still a delight both with gamepad and steering wheel, and there are overwhelming amounts of customization both aesthetically and mechanically within each car, however... It is inevitable to feel a void as we progress.
Is it bad? Not at all, apart from that it should be noted that it is a perfect game to take advantage of the beautiful dualsense: the vibrations, the adaptive triggers and the sensitivity of the analog sticks respond very well.
The problem with Gran Turismo 7 lies in its linear structure, which is far from giving us the freedom we are used to if we have tried titles like Gran Turismo 4, 5, or even the classics on Playstation 1.
Although the inclusion of new ideas such as the Gran Turismo café (which serves as a sort of unconventional story mode in which we learn about different styles of vehicles as we collect new models) is appreciated, I consider it counterproductive to limit the options the player has to complete their challenges, or failing that, the order of them.
To give a brief example, at the beginning we can only acquire one of three compact Japanese vehicles, while the other two will be obtained for free before completing story 1 of the café.
Likewise, it will not always be clear what we must do to progress within the café, and driving licenses (which in games like Gran Turismo 7 were optional) end up being mandatory.
This is not exactly something new within the franchise and Gran Turismo 6 had already experimented a bit with the implementation of these more linear elements, however, it is impossible not to think about the wasted potential, taking into account that in terms of visuals and gameplay we are looking at a beautiful game, especially when we give the Playstation 5 version a chance.
Twitter/Instagram/Letterbox: Alxxssss
I played a lot of the original Gran Turismo on the original PlayStation but I don't think I've played any of the sequels.
The sequels are pretty good although this one feels a little bit... Linear in a bad way