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Gran Turismo 2

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Gran Turismo 2
North American cover art
Developer(s)Polyphony Digital
Publisher(s)Sony Computer Entertainment
Producer(s)Kazunori Yamauchi
Designer(s)Kazunori Yamauchi
Takeshi Yokouchi
Hirotaka Komiyama
Tomokazu Murase
Programmer(s)Seiichi Ikiou
Takeshi Yokouchi
Composer(s)Masahiro Andoh
Isamu Ohira
SeriesGran Turismo
Platform(s)PlayStation
Release
Genre(s)Sim racing
Mode(s)Single-player, multiplayer

Gran Turismo 2 is a 1999 racing game developed by Polyphony Digital and published by Sony Computer Entertainment for the PlayStation. It is the sequel to Gran Turismo. It was well-received critically and financially, shipping 1.71 million copies in Japan, 0.02 million in Southeast Asia, 3.96 million in North America, and 3.68 million in Europe for a total of 9.37 million copies as of April 30, 2008,[2][3] and eventually becoming a Sony Greatest Hits game. The title received an average of 93% in Metacritic's aggregate.

Gameplay

Gran Turismo 2 is a racing game. The player must maneuver an automobile to compete against artificially intelligent drivers on various race tracks. The game uses two different modes: Arcade Mode and Simulation Mode (Gran Turismo Mode in PAL and Japanese versions). In the arcade mode, the player can freely choose vehicles they wish to use, and can enable damage, while the simulation mode requires the player to earn driver's licenses, pay for vehicles, and earn trophies in order to unlock new and returning courses. Gran Turismo 2 features nearly 650 automobiles and 27 racing tracks, including rally tracks.

Compared with Gran Turismo, the gameplay, physics and graphics are very similar: the only real noticeable difference in vehicle dynamics was the brakes, which became much less likely to lock up and cause the vehicle to oversteer. The major changes are the vastly expanded number of cars, tracks and races in simulation mode. Other differences include that the player can race events separately, if they do not want to enter the whole tournament. The player is no longer able to "qualify" for each race entered.

Development

The Drag Racing mode button as it would have appeared in Arcade Mode, found within the game data

After the unexpected success of Gran Turismo, lead developer Kazunori Yamauchi planned to make Gran Turismo 2 "an even better product".[5] SCEA's marketing director (Ami Blaire) had high hopes, stating "the overwhelming and continuing popularity of Gran Turismo clearly positions Gran Turismo 2 to be one of the hottest titles available for the holidays and beyond".[6] Jack Tretton (sales vice president of SCEA) had similar enthusiasm, expecting Gran Turismo 2 to "fly off the shelves faster than the original, continuing the momentum of this incredible franchise".[7]

Upon the game's release, players shortly found various errors and glitches. SCEA did not ignore the outcry, and offered a replacement if any problems occurred.[8] For example, in version 1.0 of the NTSC-U version of the game, the maximum attainable completion percentage was 98.2%. Another glitch was that no matter what, even if a player saves the game, cars can disappear from their garage.[9] A third glitch was that certain cars would appear in the wrong races. This was most significant in the 30-lap Trial Mountain endurance race, where a 680 bhp Vector M12 LM edition may appear despite a 295-horsepower entry restriction, effectively making the race nearly impossible to win.[10] The reason for the maximum completion percentage falling short is due to a planned drag racing mode that was never implemented.

The game's soundtrack features the 1998 song "My Favourite Game" by The Cardigans.[11]

Reception

Upon release, Gran Turismo 2 sold 815,430 units in Japan during its first week on sale.[25] In the United Kingdom, it sold 130,000 copies and grossed £4.3 million or $6,506,000 (equivalent to $11,500,000 in 2023) in its first weekend, surpassing The Legend of Zelda: Ocarina of Time to become the UK's fastest-selling title, and it sold about 250,000 copies in its first week.[26] It was a bestseller for two months in Japan[27] and the UK.[28] In the United States, it sold more than 1 million units within six weeks,[29] and had sold 3 million units by early 2001.[30] In total, it has sold 9.37 million copies worldwide. Official UK PlayStation Magazine listed the game as the 4th best of all time.[31] It received a "Double Platinum" sales award from the Entertainment and Leisure Software Publishers Association (ELSPA),[32] indicating sales of at least 600,000 copies in the United Kingdom.[33]

Gran Turismo 2 received critical acclaim from review aggregator Metacritic.[12]

GameSpot rated it 8.5 out of 10, recommending it to any gamer, car enthusiast or not,[20] while IGN rated the game a 9.8/10.[21] In Japan, Famitsu gave it a score of 34 out of 40.[17]

Dan Egger of Next Generation rated it four stars out of five, and stated that "The rushed production of this game botched what could have been a near perfect sequel. As it stands, Gran Turismo 2 is still the best racer ever made. Imagine what it could have been if Sony hadn't bungled the release".[22]

Gran Turismo 2 was a finalist for the D.I.C.E. Awards for 1999's "Console Racing Game of the Year", which ultimately went to Star Wars Episode I: Racer (for Nintendo 64, Dreamcast, and Game Boy Color).[34]

References

  1. ^ "Polyphony Digital Inc. - Software Title List -". Archived from the original on February 6, 2007. Retrieved December 3, 2008.
  2. ^ a b ""Gran Turismo" Series Software Title List". Polyphony Digital. April 2008. Archived from the original on February 6, 2007. Retrieved May 29, 2008.
  3. ^ a b "Gran Turismo Series Shipment Exceeds 50 Million Units Worldwide" (Press release). Sony Computer Entertainment. May 9, 2008. Archived from the original on September 16, 2008. Retrieved May 29, 2008.
  4. ^ "Cuttings: Gran Turismo 2 no show" (PDF). Edge. No. 79 (December 1999). November 24, 1999. p. 12.
  5. ^ IGN Staff (February 10, 1999). "Gran Turismo 2 Gets the Nod". IGN. Retrieved March 11, 2014.
  6. ^ IGN Staff (September 3, 1999). "Sony Stakes December 7 for Gran Turismo 2". IGN. Retrieved March 11, 2014.
  7. ^ IGN Staff (December 14, 1999). "Gran Turismo 2 Hits Stores in Two Days". IGN. Retrieved March 11, 2014.
  8. ^ IGN Staff (January 20, 2000). "Sony Answers GT2 Questions". IGN. Retrieved March 11, 2014.
  9. ^ "Gran Turismo 2 glitches before its release".
  10. ^ "Gran Turismo 2 Game Information". June 12, 2016. Retrieved February 1, 2019.
  11. ^ Fox, Matt (January 3, 2013). The Video Games Guide: 1,000+ Arcade, Console and Computer Games, 1962-2012, 2d ed. McFarland & Company. p. 129. ISBN 978-0-7864-7257-4. Retrieved April 20, 2022.
  12. ^ a b "Gran Turismo 2 for PlayStation Reviews". Metacritic. Retrieved March 11, 2014.
  13. ^ Sutyak, Jonathan. "Gran Turismo 2 – Review". AllGame. Archived from the original on November 14, 2014. Retrieved November 22, 2014.
  14. ^ Edge staff (February 2000). "Gran Turismo 2" (PDF). Edge. No. 81. pp. 74–5.
  15. ^ "Gran Turismo 2". Electronic Gaming Monthly. 2000.
  16. ^ DNM (April 14, 2000). "Gran Turismo 2 Review". Eurogamer. Retrieved March 11, 2014.
  17. ^ a b "プレイステーション – グランツーリスモ2". Famitsu. Vol. 915. June 30, 2006. p. 14.
  18. ^ Uncle Dust (1999). "Gran Turismo 2 Review for PlayStation on GamePro.com". GamePro. Archived from the original on February 7, 2005. Retrieved March 11, 2014.
  19. ^ Johnson, Sean (January 2000). "Gran Turismo 2 Review". Game Revolution. Retrieved March 11, 2014.
  20. ^ a b Taruc, Nelson (December 16, 1999). "Gran Turismo 2 Review". GameSpot. Retrieved March 11, 2014.
  21. ^ a b Rignall, Jaz (December 20, 1999). "Gran Turismo 2". IGN. Retrieved March 11, 2014.
  22. ^ a b Egger, Dan (March 2000). "Finals". Next Generation. Vol. 3, no. 3. Imagine Media. pp. 84–85.
  23. ^ "Gran Turismo 2". Official U.S. PlayStation Magazine. No. 55. February 2000.
  24. ^ "Edge Awards 2000" (PDF). Edge. No. 82 (March 2000). February 22, 2000. pp. 54–63.
  25. ^ "DataStream" (PDF). Edge. No. 81 (February 2000). January 26, 2000. p. 124.
  26. ^ Schofield, Jack (February 10, 2000). "Games watch". The Guardian. Retrieved November 27, 2021.
  27. ^ Dengeki PlayStation sales chart, March 2000, published in Official UK PlayStation Magazine issue 56
  28. ^ UK Playstation sales chart, June 2000, published in Official UK PlayStation Magazine issue 59
  29. ^ "Gran Turismo™ 3 A-spec Delivers the Most Technologically Advanced Racing Experience Exclusively on Playstation®2". Sony.com. Sony Computer Entertainment America. December 22, 2000. Retrieved November 15, 2021.
  30. ^ Frauenfelder, Mark (May 2001). "Death Match". Wired. Retrieved October 30, 2021.
  31. ^ Official UK PlayStation Magazine Desert Island Games feature, issue 108, Future Publishing, March 2004, page 61
  32. ^ "ELSPA Sales Awards: Double Platinum". Entertainment and Leisure Software Publishers Association. Archived from the original on May 20, 2009.
  33. ^ Caoili, Eric (November 26, 2008). "ELSPA: Wii Fit, Mario Kart Reach Diamond Status In UK". Gamasutra. Archived from the original on September 18, 2017.
  34. ^ "Console Racing Game of the Year". Academy of Interactive Arts & Sciences. Retrieved November 24, 2021.
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