I am a big fan of car racing games for the consoles so I can get a chance to drive all of those cars I see on programs like Top Gear and in the movies but having already completely fallen for Forza 4 on the XBOX360 I decided it was time to give the PS3 flagship racing game a chance but did it live upto my hopes or expectations?

Positives:

- A roster of over 1000 cars which have been created in loving detail allows gamers a great level of replayability and variety.

- Each car has its own characteristics and so you will need to learn to get a feel for the car and work with it to ensure you are getting the best results possible.

- Vehicles are placed in categories which enables you to challenge yourself against other cars of a similar standard with ease.

- Race in a variety of locations with the game featuring over 20 courses to race on and a number of variations to ensure this game has longevity.

- Realistic damage throughout the game allows for gamers to get a true feeling of depth and an immersive experience.

- Well thought out camera angles enable gamers to have a simple to learn and enjoyable racing game.


Negatives:

- If you have player Forza 4 on the XBOX360 then for me the control system in Gran Turismo 5 is nowhere near as good and actually feels disappointingly disconnected. If you are turning the car then it for me is overly responsive and the cars turn too sharply.

- The graphics in this game are very good but if you are comparing this to its XBOX360 challenger then it falls short of the standards set by Forza 4.

- Ridiculous install times mean that when starting the game for the first time you are going to need to allow a good 2 hours to allow the game to install and all of the online updates to download and install. You will also be offered to insall the tracks to your console hard drive to enable for quicker load times which you can do but it will mean you are taking even longer on your first outings on each track.

- If you are looking to simply play a racing game then this is not for you as you need to setup a racing driver, take part in licensing to gain experience points and more after the inititial installation has taken all of its time which makes this a very frustrating experience so you will need a lot of patience.


Overall for me this is a very disappointing experience as the install times and mucking around before even being able to get in a car and drive in a race is simply too much hassle and makes for a frustratingly delayed start to a game which PS3 pushes as a flagship of its range of games (for me you want a flagship which shows how quick and easy your console is to use). The control system and graphics just aren't up to the standards set by Forza 4 but if you have never played Forza 4 and only have a PS3 then this is still a decent enough racing game to keep you entertained for a while if you are prepared to be patient with all of the installing you need to go through before racing. For me an ok offering which I probably would have played a little without already owning Forza 4 but I will simply never use this over Forza.