Gran Turismo 7's latest update is now live, bringing a swathe of new content and fixing one particularly egregious gameplay element.
Gran Turismo 7 patch 1.25 adds a generous handful of new cars, events and single-player Menu Book objectives, packing even more content into PS5's premier racing sim. But a notable change to how car damage is calculated has me particularly surprised and hugely relieved.
The full patch notes (opens in new tab) feature a section lower down named ‘Physics Simulation Model' and one point under this reads: “The conditions for mechanical damage occurring from a collision or contact if Mechanical Damage is set to Light or Heavy in the Race Settings have been changed. As a result, cars are now less likely to sustain damage after hitting a track wall or other obstacles.”
Essentially, this means your car is less likely to suffer damage if, say, you accidentally scrape a barrier, or if a badly behaved driver decides to rear-end you instead of overtaking. Hopefully, this change will help Gran Turismo 7's cars feel at least a little more durable than a wet paper towel.
Reinforce my ride
I'm always happy to see new content get added to GT7, especially when it's content like events or Menu Books fresh from the Café. And I feel like the update couldn't have come at a better time, especially as we're starting to see discounts for Gran Turismo 7 25th Anniversary Edition.
But I'd long stopped frequenting the game's online Sport mode when the game's damage model was changed to feeling a lot looser than it was at launch.
Previously, like a soccer player, even minor bumps and scrapes had a tendency to have your car begging for a trip to A&E. Damage temporarily causes your car to handle sub-optimally, like veering in one direction or hampering its top speed. I assume that's still going to be the case, but it sounds like it'll be a lot harder to get your car in that state as a result of the new patch.
And that's great news. Despite developer Polyphony Digital's best efforts, some not-so-well-meaning drivers do manage to slip through to the higher tiers of Sport mode's ranking system. And in such a highly competitive environment, even a slight malfunction with your vehicle can send you hurtling seconds behind the rest of the pack.
At least now it seems like such issues have been minimized somewhat. Now if the developer could only fine-tune its overly strict penalty system, then I think GT7's online lobbies will be in a very good place for the months ahead. At least until Forza Motorsport steps up to the plate next year.
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