MY VIEW
Games: 'Gran Turismo 4'

By Jeremy Castillo
Special to The Advertiser

The Verdict: THE RATINGS 5 — Outstanding: Add it to your collection now. A must-have. 4 — Great: Buy it or rent it — definitely play it. 3 — Good: Worth playing despite some flaws. 2 — Fair: Unless you're a fan of the license or series, don't bother. 1 — Poor: You'd have more fun playing Pong.

Console: PlayStation 2

Developer/publisher: Polyphony Digital/SCEA

Genre: Racing

Number of players: 1

ESRB: E

Premise: Enter races, win prize money, upgrade your cars and buy new ones.

Game play: The "Gran Turismo" series redefined the racing genre with realistic physics, international racetracks and a massive collection of vehicles from international companies.

For its fourth installment, the developers went back in time for its car roster. Not only are there present-day models from manufacturers from around the world, there's a big collection of older cars such as the 1960s muscle cars, mid-'90s turbo machines and even cars dating back to the beginning of the automobile era, such as the Ford Model T.

Series veterans know that the cars aren't the only appeal of "Gran Turismo." The race courses are an equal part of the eye candy, and GT4 has tracks from around the world, including Hong Kong, Fuji Speedway and Yosemite National Park.

Crowd interaction is a new addition to the series. Fans will run up as close to the track as they can to take your picture from the bleachers when you approach, or as far away as possible if you're turning a corner on a dirt track.

Much of the game's foundation has been left untouched. There are still two modes (Gran Turismo and Arcade) and the cars are still fully customizable. GT4 brings back the old tradition of the license tests to be passed before advancing to more prestigious races and brings in online and LAN capabilities for gamers to show off their wheels.

One thing fans of the series will notice as they play GT mode is that the interface has been greatly improved, allowing faster navigation of the menus and inventory of your cars. This makes finding your choice car a breeze.

There aren't any bad things to note because, as indicated above, the great majority of GT4 was taken from GT3 and tweaked. Depending on which side of the fence you're on, this is either great or very bad.

My take: "Gran Turismo 4" is one of the best racing games I've ever played for the PS2. "Gran Turismo" has always been on the top tier of the racing-genre hierarchy and GT4 continues the legacy in excellent form.

Jeremy Castillo is a student at Windward Community College.

Have a game or CD you want to review? Reach Island Life deputy editor Dave Dondoneau at ddondoneau@honoluluadvertiser.com.

UPCOMING VIDEO GAME RELEASES
Dates are tentative.

Playstation 2

• May 3: "Enthusia Professional Racing"
• May 4: "Star Wars Episode III: Revenge of the Sith"
• May 9: "In The Groove"
• May 10: "Haunting Ground"; "Cold Winter"; "Wild Arms: Alter Code F"
• May 15: "Metal Slug 4 & 5"
• May 17: "Outlaw Volleyball Remixed"; "Outlaw Tennis"

Xbox

• May 3: "Forza Motorsport"; "Pariah"
• May 4: "Star Wars Episode III: Revenge of the Sith"
• May 15: "Virtual Pool: Tournament Edition"
• May 17: "Outlaw Tennis"; "Sid Meier's Pirates!"; "Delta Force: Black Hawk Down"
• May 23: "Madagascar"

PlayStation Portable

• May 2: "Reign of Fire UMD"; "Hero UMD"; "National Treasure UMD"
• May 3: "Hot Shots Golf: Open Tee"
• May 9: "Midnight Club 3: DUB Edition"
• May 10: "Smartbomb"
• May 17: "MVP Baseball"
• May 19: "Action Replay PSP"

Gamecube

• May 9: "Donkey Konga 2"; "Donkey Konga 2 with DK Bongos"
• May 23: "Madagascar"
• May 31: "Digimon World 4"

Gameboy Advance

• May 1: "Killer 3D Pool"; "Scrabble Blast"; "Pac-Man Pinball Advance"
• May 2: "Monster Trucks / Quad Desert Fury Double Pack"; "Golden Nugget Casino / Texas Hold 'em Double Pack"; "Cartoon Network Block Party / Cartoon Network Speedway Double Pack"
• May 4: "Star Wars Episode III: Revenge of the Sith"; "Action Replay DS/GBA"

Nintendo DS

• May 2: "Egg Monster Hero DS"; "Dynasty Warriors DS"; "Mobile Suit Gundam Seed DS"
• May 3: "Puyo Pop Fever"
• May 4: "Star Wars Episode III: Revenge of the Sith"
• May 10: "Need For Speed Underground 2"

List provided by Toys n' Joys, with shops in Kaimuki (735- 4546) and Westridge Shopping Center (487-8697) in Pearlridge. See www.toysnjoys.com.