Today’s fast paced life demands instant results.  The popularity of food stuff laced with labels ‘quick’ and ‘easy’ are enticing enough for people to purchase—even at the expense of taste and cholesterol levels.  The same story goes for just about any other aspect of life: professional, personal, even down to the intimate.  If you need convincing, ask yourself this: when was the last time you relished the fact that your food came up fifteen minutes too early?  When was the last time you actually conversed with your dinner partner in a topic other than the restaurant’s slow service?  But let’s not look at the negatives here.  There are some good effects brought about by the instamatic lifestyle, and on that note, I have to agree—especially after finishing a lap of the Nurburgring Nordschleife circuit in a Mercedes-Benz SL65 AMG, barely edging past a SLR McLaren.

Welcome to the world of the instant professional racer, brought to you by Gran Turismo 4—the latest installment of the world’s most famous and convincing driving simulator for Sony’s Playstation 2 gaming console.  With new competition from other software makers, developers Polyphony Digital and Sony Computer Entertainment went the extra mile to make sure that GT4 would be received better than its lackluster GT3 A-Spec predecessor.  Everything in GT4 is painstakingly detailed: the lush virtual environment, the hundreds of cars, the minute reflections—it all comes alive as you race down the start/finish straight at 300 km/h. The opening movie alone is worth the almost 4,000 peso admission price as you watch some select cars like the Nissan Skyline GT-R (R34), BMW M5 and Audi R8 Le Mans gun down different circuits to the tune of Van Halen’s “Panama”.  The 1980’s driving music aside, what really makes GT4 shine above any other game is the experience.

And what an experience it is, with the more than 650 cars in the game physically accurate down to their behavior during acceleration, cornering and braking.  The programming team, headed by the talented and young Kazunori Yamaochi spent at least two years traversing four continents so that they could actually sample and digitally each car (or real-life race track).  They certainly are the envy of motoring enthusiasts and journalists alike as they punished cars around a test track way ahead of their public debuts.  Cars such as the new BMW 330i (E90), the V10-powered M5, Volkswagen Golf GTi (Mk. V) and 2006 Mitsubishi Eclipse actually debuted (or will debut) simultaneously with the release of the game.  The usual slew of Japanese brands is here including several tuner cars from HKS, Spoon and Tom’s.  Regular sports sedans, hot hatches and sleek coupes aside, GT4 contains exotica from Aston Martin (including the DB9), Pagani, Saleen and Ruf, naming just a few.  Conspicuously absent, but not missed are Ferrari and Porsche—whose licensing rights proved to be too expensive.  Those nostalgic with be happy to know that there are more classics in GT4 than any of its predecessors.  Among those that have made it to the list include the Chevrolet Corvette Stingray, Dodge Charger 440 R/T, Jaguar E-Type and even the Mercedes-Benz 300SL.  More recent cult classics such as the Mitsubishi Galant VR-4, Subaru Impreza STi-22B and the Toyota Sprinter Trueno have made the cut as well.

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