Yeah, that’s right, forget all that microtransaction nonsense we laughed about a few months ago, Sony has now decided that their flagship driving title Gran Turismo HD will be free of charge for gamers hooked up to the PlayStation Store. I know, weird to hear good news from Sony, huh?
Right now, it looks as if this has only been announced for Japan, but surely U.S. fans won’t be left in the dark. So why is this happening anyway? Well they’ve decided to sort of bag the original concept and concentrate more on Gran Turismo 5. 1UP explains:
Well, today SCE and Polyphony Digital have announced that Gran Turismo HD Concept–note the name change–will be made available as a free download at the PlayStation Store, starting from December 24. The real driving simulator will be available to download for a limited period, and will feature a choice of ten cars and two layouts on a single course. There will be two modes of play included–Time Attack and Drift Trial mode. The demo will also have a Network Ranking feature, presumably for the Time Attack mode.
Running up to the release of Gran Turismo 5, the “online car life simulator”, it’s possible a number of other concept releases will be released, but nothing is set in stone right now, including the release date of the finished game. But it’s clear Kazunori Yamauchi and team are pouring their focus into the final game, rather than a cut-down preview. Still, it’s free–surely PS3 owners around the world are rejoicing at the prospect of getting behind the wheel of the latest iteration in the 46 million-selling series. The download is currently only announced for Japan, but it’s likely to follow in the US soon.
Yay for free stuff! Especially for those that just shelled out $600+ for the console.
