Gran Turismo (series)
Sim racing franchise known for realism and licensed vehicles.
Last updated
Gran Turismo is a series of sim racing video games developed by Polyphony Digital for PlayStation systems, intended to emulate the appearance and performance of a large selection of licensed vehicles.[1] The series is recognized for its realistic graphics, a substantial collection of licensed automobiles, and precise emulation of driving physics.[2]
Making and release
The series' origins trace back to 1992, when Kazunori Yamauchi started developing the original Gran Turismo with a team named Polys Entertainment that began with five people.[3] After the success of the team's other arcade racing games, Sony accepted the idea, and the first Gran Turismo was released for the PlayStation in Japan in 1997.[4] Sony turned down Kazunori Yamauchi's initial proposal for a realistic racing simulator, but his development group persisted with the project as a secondary effort.[3] Four subsequent titles appeared on the PlayStation 2, with Gran Turismo 3: A-Spec arriving in 2001.[5]
Gran Turismo 4 Prologue came out in 2003, and Polyphony Digital states that "The Real Driving Simulator" has been the series' subtitle ever since the original Gran Turismo.[6] Online multiplayer functionality has been part of the series ever since Gran Turismo 5 Prologue debuted on the PS3 in 2007.[7]
What the cited sources add
A MotorTrend article from 2025 reports that Dunlop was named the official tire partner of Gran Turismo 7 and the Gran Turismo World Series, with the partnership kicking off at Round 2 of the 2025 series in Berlin.[8] The FIA announced in 2023 that Gran Turismo 7 would be used as the platform for the Olympic Esports Series 2023 Motor Sport Event, with finals held at the first-ever Olympic Esports Week in Singapore from June 22-25.[9] A 2013 Jalopnik article states that GT Academy winners were denied entry to the British GT Championship because they were considered too skilled for the pro driver/gentleman driver setup.[10] The Gran Turismo World Series, described as representing the future of motorsports, begins with Online Qualifiers open to all challengers, followed by live events across the globe.[11]
A MotorTrend article from 2013 details the "Vision Gran Turismo" initiative, where multiple automotive manufacturers created exclusive virtual concept cars for Gran Turismo 6 to celebrate the franchise's 15-year anniversary.[12]
References
- Wikipedia, "Gran Turismo (series)" (CC BY-SA 4.0), which cites: "Discover Gran Turismo", PlayStation (original not read by us) en.wikipedia.org
- Wikipedia, "Gran Turismo (series)" (CC BY-SA 4.0), which cites: "The complete history of Gran Turismo", USA Today, 2022-03-10; Reilly, "How Gran Turismo Changed Racing Games Forever", IGN, 2022-05-03; Hill, "Gran Turismo Prima's Official Strategy Guide", Prima, 1998, p. 2–3; "Retrospective: Gran Turismo", Eurogamer.net, 2010-11-28; Hill, "Gran Turismo Prima's Official Strategy Guide", Prima, 1998, p. 2–3; Winding, "Gran Turismo 2: Prima's Official Strategy Guide", Prima Games, 1999, p. 2–28; "'Gran Turismo' retrospective", Digital Spy, 2013-02-23; "Retrospective: Gran Turismo", Eurogamer.net, en.wikipedia.org
- Wikipedia, "Gran Turismo (series)" (CC BY-SA 4.0), which cites: "The complete history of Gran Turismo", USA Today, 2022-03-10; Reilly, "How Gran Turismo Changed Racing Games Forever", IGN, 2022-05-03; Takahashi, "Gran Turismo's creator takes a fifth stab at a perfect racing game", VentureBeat, 14 January 2010; "The complete history of Gran Turismo", USA Today, 2022-03-10; Evans, "Kazunori Yamauchi Reveals Gran Turismo's Original Working Title was "Sim Racing"", GTPlanet, 2023-07-08 (original not read by us) en.wikipedia.org
- Wikipedia, "Gran Turismo (series)" (CC BY-SA 4.0), which cites: Reilly, "How Gran Turismo Changed Racing Games Forever", IGN, 2022-05-03; "The complete history of Gran Turismo", USA Today, 2022-03-10; Reilly, "How Gran Turismo Changed Racing Games Forever", IGN, 2022-05-03; Reilly, "How Gran Turismo Changed Racing Games Forever", IGN, 2022-05-03; "The complete history of Gran Turismo", USA Today, 2022-03-10; Reilly, "How Gran Turismo Changed Racing Games Forever", IGN, 2022-05-03; Reilly, "How Gran Turismo Changed Racing Games Forever", IGN, 2022-05-03; "The complete history of Gran Turismo", en.wikipedia.org
- Wikipedia, "Gran Turismo (series)" (CC BY-SA 4.0), which cites: "The complete history of Gran Turismo", USA Today, 2022-03-10 (original not read by us) en.wikipedia.org
- Wikipedia, "Gran Turismo (series)" (CC BY-SA 4.0), which cites: "Gran Turismo 7", gran-turismo.com (original not read by us) en.wikipedia.org
- Wikipedia, "Gran Turismo (series)" (CC BY-SA 4.0), which cites: "Latest Gran Turismo 5 Features Revealed at Gamescom 2010 (3/6)", gran-turismo.com (original not read by us) en.wikipedia.org
- "Gran Turismo 7 Gets Real: Dunlop Tires Power the GT World Series and Your Next Lap", MotorTrend, 2025-09-21. facts only, no text reused. motortrend.com
- "The FIA to partner with IOC and Gran Turismo on Olympic Esports Series 2023 Motor Sport Event", Federation Internationale de l'Automobile, 2023-03-01. facts only, no text reused. fia.com
- George, "Expert Gran Turismo Drivers Can't Race In Real Life Because They're Too Fast", Jalopnik, 9 February 2013. facts only, no text reused. jalopnik.com
- "The 'Gran Turismo World Series'", gran-turismo.com. facts only, no text reused. gran-turismo.com
- "Gran Turismo 6: Concept Car Collaboration with Automakers", MotorTrend, 26 August 2013. facts only, no text reused. motortrend.com
Each numbered sentence above was checked against the source it cites before publication. Sentences citing Wikipedia adapt text from the English Wikipedia article Gran Turismo (series) (contributors), used under CC BY-SA 4.0; this entry is available under the same licence. Other sources were used for facts only; no text or images are copied from them.
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Sources
Compiled from Wikipedia and the sources listed below. Text from Wikipedia is available under CC BY-SA 4.0; this entry is adapted from it.
- Wikipedia: Gran Turismo (series) (CC BY-SA 4.0).
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