The VisionRacer Blog

GT Academy Available as Free Game Download

Friday, April 27, 2012

Penrose Tackie, European Brand Manager for GT5, has confirmed the schedule for GT Academy 2012 and there’s been a couple of small changes…

GT Academy this year, like the first GT Academy, features a first qualifying round that takes the format of a standalone, downloadable pack. The pack is free to download from PSN, starting on May 1st and doesn’t require Gran Turismo 5 in order to play it. The pack features exclusive content and challenges that “should be a lot of fun whether you’ve played Gran Turismo before or whether you are coming to the game as a complete newbie“. 


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Nissan GT Academy 2012 Starts May 1st

Sunday, April 22, 2012

Nissan has officially announced the next edition of their hugely-successful Nissan GT Academy in co-operation with Sony, the 2012 edition of the competition is due to start on May 1st.

Held since 2008, the GT Academy’s aim is to find talent in the virtual racing community and help them get a real racing career started. The success of the program has exceeded everyone’s expectations as all past GT Academy winners have become successful in racing with 2008 winner Lucas Ordonez even becoming 2011 International Le Mans Cup LMP2 champion.

Following a successful spin-off for American users, Nissan is now branching out the competition further as Germany and Russia get a dedicated GT Academy while other European countries remain in the main competition. With three regional competitions and one European one, GT Academy 2012 will see four winners that will enjoy the main prize – A drive in the 2013 Dubai 24 Hours race next January that will hopefully just be their first step in a long racing career.

Traditionally, the GT Academy starts out as an online time-trial competition to find the quickest racers, the GT Academy software will be available on the PlayStation Network starting May 1st. Ownership of Gran Turismo 5 is not required, everyone with a PlayStation 3 living in one of the participating countries is invited to give it their best shot. The online events will be held until June 24, the quickest drivers emerging from there will be challenged in a series of real-life meetings to further prove their skills.

To give you an idea what the participants experience there, Nissan has released a little video trailer you can watch below.
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GT Academy Winners Score Dubai Podium Finish

Friday, January 27, 2012

For the first time since the start of the Nissan GT Academy programme in 2008, Nissan entered an all-gamer car in the 2012 Dubai 24 Hours, pairing up four winners of the GT Academy competition.

While GT Academy winners previously were assisted by experienced racing hands, this time the GT Academy guys were on their own and the experiment very well paid off as the GT Academy winners finished in an impressive 3rd in class, 26th overall.

The #100 Nissan 370Z was driven by the winner of the first GT Academy Lucas Ordonez, who was joined by 2010 winner Jordan Tresson and 2011 winners Jann Mardenborough (GT Academy Europe) & Bryan Heitkotter (GT Academy North America).

The GT Academy Nissan qualified 4th and ended up on the podium after 24h grueling hours of racing despite hitting a bunch of problems on the way, including brake issues & power problems caused by a blocked air filter. A great performance by the drivers and trouble for some of their opponents helped the team to a rewarding finish, much to the delight of the drivers.

“That was without doubt the weekend of my life,” said Mardenborough. “The only thing that compares to it is winning GT Academy last June. It feels like pure joy. This is just the first step for me and now I hope that my performance in Dubai can take me further.”

“I’m so pleased that we got a good result in our first international 24 hour race,” added Bryan Heitkotter. “We’ve worked hard during the last six months to get to this point and I would say to anyone who wants this as much as I did that you can reach your goals if you focus on them and work hard.”

“This is a great moment,” said Ordoñez. “We have really proved that GT Academy works as to get four gamers to a podium finish at this race is amazing. I am very impressed with my new team mates who have only been racing for six months. They came here and were fast, consistent and didn’t make any mistakes.”

“It was pretty tough in the car and 24 hours is a long time to have to hold it all together,” said second GT Academy winner, Jordan Tresson. “If any of us had made just one slip at any point during the race it could have been game over for us. I want to say well done to Jann and Bryan who were still bedroom gamers just one year ago.”

The GT Academy car did not just have on-track success, the gamer car provide to be very popular at the event as well with plenty of photographers & camera crews following every stop of the car and MotorsTV & Radio Le Mans devoting a big part of their race coverage to the team.

But the GT Academy is not just making a splash in terms of exposure, the concept also manages to give its winners a solid foundation for a racing career. While Mardenborough & Heitkotter are just at the start of their way up, Lucas Ordonez has smoothly progressed through the ranks, clinching the LMP2 title in the Intercontinental Le Mans Cup last year. For 2012, Tresson will join the Spaniard in the prototype ranks, giving another GT Academy winner the chance to shine on one of motorsport’s biggest stages.
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Sim Racer Wins Nissan US GT Academy 2011

Wednesday, June 15, 2011

Bryan Heitkotter from California has won the first-ever United States edition of Nissan’s & Sony’s GT Academy competition, edging out 50.000 competitors to clinch a real-life drive in the 2012 Dubai 24 Hours race.

Even though the competition used Gran Turismo 5, a true sim racer edged out the console crowd as Bryan is an active member of Champion Motorsports, showing once more how much driving talent can be found in the sim community.

The 30-year old American will now be making his way to the United Kingdom for a summer full of training to get ready for the Dubai 24hrs next January. This might very well be the start of a successful career for Bryan who was recently laid-off as a delivery driver as the GT Academy has kick-started successful careers before. Lucas Ordonez, winner of the maiden GT Academy, will be participating in the Le Mans 24 Hours race next weekend, driving an LMP2 class prototype.

Below is a short video feature on Bryan who’ll be another driver to represent the virtual driving community in a high-profile motorsports event. Congrats on the amazing accomplishment and good luck in Dubai Byran
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GT Academy Returns to Europe on March 4th

Saturday, March 12, 2011

First mentioned at GT5’s Madrid launch party, the next round of the European GT Academy has been officially announced! The online time trials kick off Friday, March 4 and will continue through Sunday, April 17th. Players from 10 different countries, grouped by “territories”, will be eligible to participate:

  • UK & Ireland
  • France & Switzerland
  • Germany & Austria
  • Spain & Portugal
  • Italy
  • Netherlands

The top 20 drivers from each territory will move on to their own regional finals. Only the top two drivers at each final will move on to the final stage: “Race Camp”, which once again will be held at Silverstone. The winner from Race Camp will then compete in the next Dubai 24 Hour International race, to be held January 2012.
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GT Academy Returns to Europe on March 4th

Sunday, February 20, 2011
The next round of the European GT Academy has been officially announced! The online time trials kick off Friday, March 4 and will continue through Sunday, April 17th. Players from 10 different countries, grouped by “territories”, will be eligible to participate:

  • UK & Ireland
  • France & Switzerland
  • Germany & Austria
  • Spain & Portugal
  • Italy
  • Netherlands

The top 20 drivers from each territory will move on to their own regional finals. Only the top two drivers at each final will move on to the final stage: “Race Camp”, which once again will be held at Silverstone. The winner from Race Camp will then compete in the next Dubai 24 Hour International race, to be held January 2012.

Along with the winner of this year’s GT Academy USA and previous EU winners Lucas Ordonez and Jordan Tresson, Nissan may be able -- for the first time -- to field an entire team of GT Academy drivers for the race!
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GT Academy USA Round 2 Cancelled

Sunday, February 13, 2011
SCEA has just announced the cancellation of Round 2 in GT Academy USA, due to more abuse and “wall-banging” on Rome and Madrid. All participants who qualified for Round 2 will be automatically moving on to Round 3. The start of round 3, previously scheduled to begin on February 14th, is now “subject to change” pending the next GT5 update, which has been confirmed to introduce more sophisticated corner-cutting and wall-banging detection mechanisms to “prevent this type of inappropriate driving”.

Though some with fast times at Rome and Madrid will be least pleased with this outcome, it is a wise decision to uphold the integrity of GT Academy while absolving SCEA from making subjective decisions about individual disqualifications. 

The awkward nature of the Rome and Madrid city courses were also particularly unsuited for such an important time-trial competition.

Players world-wide will now benefit from more reliable collision and corner-cutting detection, providing greater integrity in GT5’s online races and ensuring such a fiasco does not happen again when GT Academy returns to Europe.
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SCEA Resolves GT Academy USA Round 2 Corner-Cutting With New Track

Sunday, February 06, 2011
Sony and Polyphony Digital have, acted quickly to resolve the issues with corner-cutting in round 2 of GT Academy USA. All times for the Indianapolis Road Course have been removed, and the track has been replaced with a new custom-built circuit known as “Eifel 102A”. As with Indy, the  Nür (R34) is the only available car. The round will still end at its regularly scheduled time (February 6th at midnight, EST).




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US GT Academy Launched

Saturday, December 11, 2010
Sony Computer Entertainment America and Polyphony Digital Inc., in collaboration with Nissan North America, introduce GT Academy, a ground-breaking competition which will give one lucky person the opportunity of a lifetime to become a professional race driver.

GT Academy will challenge gamers and racing fans alike across the U.S. to compete in a series of online time trials in Gran Turismo 5 using pre-selected Nissan vehicles. As the competition progresses, thousands of hopefuls will be narrowed down to the top 32 finalists, who will compete in the live national finals for a coveted spot in the top 16. The top 16 will compete in a grueling boot camp, where their strength, stamina, mental agility, and driving skills will be pushed to the limits and beyond. 
 		On top of pure talent, it will take a lot of drive, passion and dedication to prove to the judges who really has what it takes to become a professional race car driver. One winner will start down the path of intense training to become a pro, and ultimately, compete in a real race as part of a professional racing team, which will also be documented in a reality show on SPEED channel.

Registration for GT Academy is currently open. Click HERE to register now. Learn more about the program by reading the FAQ. See here for complete rules. Follow GT Academy on Facebook for the latest news updates and information.
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GT Academy USA

Friday, November 19, 2010

Sony Computer Entertainment America LLC (SCEA) and Polyphony Digital Inc., in collaboration with Nissan North America, announced today the opportunity of a lifetime for gaming and racing enthusiasts — the debut of the GT Academy in the U.S. Starting December 20th, fans can compete in Gran Turismo® 5 exclusively on the PlayStation®3 (PS3™) for a chance to make dreams of becoming a race driver with a professional team a reality. Registration for the GT Academy competition begins on December 6th, and fans who think they have what it takes can find more information about the program at: http://us.gran-turismo.com/.

GT Academy will challenge gamers and racing fans alike across the U.S. to compete in a series of online time trials in pre-selected Nissan vehicles in Gran Turismo 5. All participants will earn free digital content just for playing, as well as have an opportunity to win prizes for winning regional time trials. The top 32 virtual racers in the country will be invited to compete in the live national finals event in March 2011 to become one of 16 GT Academy finalists. The 16 finalists will compete against each other in a series of challenges, including behind the wheel of real Nissan race cars, for a chance to become a professional race car driver as the GT Academy winner for the U.S. The winner will have the opportunity to train with elite race car drivers at international tracks and race as part of a professional team.

Available only on PS3 on November 24, 2010, Gran Turismo 5 features realistic driving physics and graphics that set new standards in the Gran Turismo franchise. Gran Turismo 5 will deliver the most realistic and comprehensive racing experience available, including more than 1,000 licensed cars, a Course Maker, and a robust online racing community. Additionally, Gran Turismo 5 integrates stereoscopic 3D technology, bringing a new layer of realism to racing fans.

“With the upcoming launch of Gran Turismo 5, it’s a very exciting time to team with Nissan to announce GT Academy,” said Scott A. Steinberg, VP of Product Marketing, SCEA. “With the realistic racing experience that only Gran Turismo 5 provides, GT Academy will identify someone who truly has the skills to become a pro race car driver, providing the chance of a lifetime to win the ultimate prize.”

“This is a great opportunity for Nissan to bring GT Academy to the U.S. and support the launch of Gran Turismo 5″ said Jon Brancheau, Vice President Marketing, Nissan. “Gran Turismo 5 provides an amazingly realistic racing experience and we’re taking that to the next level by putting 16 finalists behind the wheel of a Nissan race car with the chance to become a race driver with a professional team. Nissan vehicles are known for innovation and performance, so this is a perfect way to demonstrate and deliver on that promise.”

The competitors’ road to victory will be documented in a multi-episode reality show airing exclusively on SPEED channel and the PlayStation®Network in 2011. The reality show series will start filming in March 2011 from the GT Academy finals through training as a pro race driver.

The overall competition will run as follows:

Phase One

Racing enthusiasts will put their racing and gaming skills to the test as they compete in various regional online ladders playing Gran Turismo 5 on PlayStation®Network. Finalists will then participate in a live head-to-head competition.

Phase Two

16 lucky finalists emerge from the live event and go behind the wheel of real cars, including the Nissan 370Z and GT-R, at a comprehensive GT Academy ‘boot camp’. The ‘boot camp’ will be featured as part of a multi-episode reality show to air on SPEED.

Phase Three

The 2011 U.S. Winner will train to become a professional driver in preparation for competing as part of a professional team at a major race event.

For full terms and conditions and more information about GT Academy please visit: http://us.gran-turismo.com/us/

http://us.gran-turismo.com/us/news/d5319.html

Edit: A full list of rules has been released on the 2011 GT Academy portion of the official site and, sorry Canadians, but it’s only for “legal U.S. residents who are 18 years of age or older as of December 6, 2010.”.


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