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“. 

A new feature will appeal to all the Gran Turismo shutterbugs, named “Photo Stream”.  This feature allows you to share your finest images, anonymously, with the entire Gran Turismo community through an as-yet unpublished URL:

With the coming Gran Turismo 5 update planned for March 2012, we will be starting a new service on gran-turismo.com worldwide, called “Gran Turismo 5 Photo Stream”.

In GT5 Photo Stream, photographs taken in the photo mode of Gran Turismo 5 and set to “Share” will be shown in a list on a webpage, and be made possible to view by anyone.

The photographs will continue to change periodically, the online ID’s of the photographer will NOT be shown or made public, and there is no evaluation system or the like for the photographs. This is a service which simply introduces what kinds of photographs are being taken in Gran Turismo 5 by players around the world.

Polyphony Digital has released a new version of their popular Gran Turismo 5 racing title.

This month’s update focuses very much on bug fixing and other improvements, including better online performance and improved support for Thrustmaster’s T500 RS steering wheel.

Changelog

• Improved the performance of online races to provide a better racing experience. However, please note that using voice chat with 12 or more players can reduce screen refresh intervals.
• Reduced wobbling of the screen when using the Chase view (The Chase view is when the car is viewed from the rear during races and replays, selected by using the SELECT button).
• Electric cars (opponent cars and your cars in B-Spec) will now pit-in automatically to recharge the battery.
• Reduced the amount of steering pull when using force feedback steering wheel controllers in banks on courses such as the Special Stage Route X Oval.
• When driving formula cars using the Logitech steering wheel controllers, the initial force feedback amount has been lessened and adjusted to make it easier to drive in a straight line.

A couple of days ago, we reported that the new Acura NXS concept video featured some tracks that we had never seen before in Gran Turimso 5. Now, we have full details on the next batch of GT5 DLC, which includes some new cars and a new track.

 Car Pack 3 will sell for $5.99 and includes:

Gran Turismo 5 has release yet ANOTHER update, this time version 2.02. It’s simply amazing to me how often Polyphony Digital continues to improve upon their racing megahit. Details can be found below! 

Major Changes and New Features 

 - Wheels can now be changed on Standard cars. 

- Downloadable contents can now be shared by multiple users with the Family Upgrade. (See Polyphony’s complete FAQ for more details.) 

- Cars purchased through DLC will now appear in the Car Dealerships. You can purchase additional versions of the same vehicles within the game using earned race credits.

- A copy button has been added to the lower left of the settings screen. A settings sheet saved in either A/B/C can now be copied to A, B or C. Gifts

- Toyota 86 GT ’12 will be available to all players who install the 2.02 update.

- Free coupons have been added that allow you to wash cars, change oil, overhaul your engine, or restore chassis rigidity in GT Auto. 10 coupons will be distributed for free to each of those who have downloaded the 2.02 update.

- The Gran Turismo Racing Kart 125 SPL. and five New Car Refresh cards will be provided to customers purchasing any DLC packs released in October 2011. The New Car Refresh can be used from the Special Coupons option in the items list, and will return your car to its brand new condition (before breaking-in the car’s engine). Equipped parts and current paint on the car will not be affected by this card.

FVA’s Ferrari F10 on the Nürburgring Grand Prix Circuit alongside the same car in Gran Turismo 5.  Brought to you by MotoGamesTV.

As someone who plays Gran Turismo 5 at least once per day, I can assure all you dear readers that the recent Spec 2.0 update has made significant changes to the game; so much so that I would feel comfortable calling it a whole new game. Along with DLC, GT5 doesn’t even resemble the game that launched in November of last year. 

Those who already own the game can obviously download the updates and DLC from their PS3, but those who don’t own the game and are thinking of the giving GT5 a whirl might want to check this out.

U.S. Gran Turismo producer Taku Imasaki shared an interesting statistic about the game’s recent batch of new content, which included Spa Francorchamps and 15 new cars. As of November 3rd, two weeks and two days since its European release, it had received over 1 million downloads.

It's that time of the month again as Polyphony Digital has added new Time/Drift trials and updated their Online Dealership. Here are the details: 

Time Trial No. 22 

- 345HP Eiger Nordwand K-Trail Time Trial: This is a time trial on the Eiger Nordwand K-Trail for cars with 345HP or less using dirt tires. Cars can be tuned to 345HP and 1200kg. 

- 295HP European Non-Racecar / Eiger Nordwand Short Course Time Trial: This is a time trial on the Eiger Nordwand Short Course for European non-racecars with 295HP or less. Cars can be tuned to 295HP and 1200kg. Tire selection is limited to sports/medium or less. 

 Drift Trial No. 22 

- Cape Ring Drift Trial (any car, comfort soft tires or less) 

- London City Reverse (any car, comfort soft tires or less)

New Online Dealership Cars:  

Honda 1300 Coupe 9 S '70

Peugeot 106 S16 '03

Nissan BLUEBIRD 1600 Deluxe (510) '69

Peugeot 206 CC '01

It looks like Polyphony Digital never stops ticking! A few days after releasing their first batch of DLC and just a few mere weeks after the game changing Spec 2.0 update, the folks behind Gran Turismo 5 are at it again, perfect and tweaking their game. Here's what you can expect to see in the new Spec 2.01 update: 

[Major changes/new features]- Compatibility of Kart Space I/II with cars other than racing Karts It is now possible to race on Kart Space I/II of the DLC in cars other than racing Karts in online races and in the Free Run of Practice. (In the one make races of the Arcade mode and Practice, the courses are still limited to racing Karts.) 

- Expanded the car restrictions in the Online Lounge It is now possible to simultaneously set [Car Restrictions], [Performance Points], [Power], and [Models] in regulation settings. ( [Vehicle Tuning] must be set to [Unrestricted] and [Car Restrictions] must be set to something other than [Select from Garage].) 

[Other Improvements] - In the Open Lobby, it is no longer possible to vote to kick out the person who created the room. (If the player leaves the room after creating it then comes back, they are then subject to the vote.) 

- Adjusted the force of the steering wheel returning to center after a race when using the “Guillemot T500RS”. 

- Improved the steering model when driving racing Karts with the DUALSHOCK®3 Wireless Controller, to prevent overly spinning out. 

[Correction of Known Issues] - Corrected an issue where the BGM would stop playing when returning from the Lounge to the Open Lobby. 

- Corrected an issue where if further engine tuning was performed on a car that already had engine tuning, the engine tune field would become incorrect when changing setting sheets. 

- Corrected a discrepancy in the numerical figures in the setting sheets. 

- Corrected an issue where wheels and horns would become different in every setting sheet change. 

- Corrected an issue where the removal of aerodynamic parts and wings would not be implemented when changing setting sheets.