TuneGT

TuneGT Forum is back up!

admin — Fri, 09 Sep 2011 16:49:32 +0000

testing

New GT5 Time & Drift Trials, OCD, & Maintenance Schedule

admin — Thu, 08 Sep 2011 08:11:07 +0000

A batch of new Time and Drift Trials have gone live in Gran Turismo 5, along with a revised Online Car Dealership that highlights Mercedes-Benz.

Grand Valley Speedway hosts the first Time Trial for Japanese cars weighing no less than 1200kg, and Circuito de Madrid Mini hosts the second for front-wheel drive cars weighing no less than 800kg. The Drift Trials are held at the Daytona Road Course and Cote d’Azur. As of writing, though, there are no new Seasonal Events.

Polyphony Digital has also revised the GT5 online service update schedule they originally published last month. The game’s online features will now be unavailable during the following maintenance periods:

September 9, 2011, between 10:00AM and 6:00PM EST (convert to your time zone)
September 15, 2011, between 10:00AM and 6:00PM EST (convert to your time zone)

Thanks to all of you who sent this in so quickly!

GT5 Photomode image by ceiling_fan.

GTP Photomode Competitions: Week 41 Round-up!

admin — Thu, 08 Sep 2011 00:17:08 +0000

Back to school, back to school – the days are getting shorter and the mercury’s dropping, but things are heating up in the Photomode sub-forum this month, as the Photomode Tournament makes its return. That means every week for these little overviews, coverage of the Tournament will take the top spot, and then the usual weekly competitions will be found directly underneath it. Here we go…

The second “season” of the Tournament is upon us! For those who aren’t aware, the Tournament follows a traditional knockout style. There are two classes, based on our common editing rules in the weekly competitions: PMC (no editing), and 2.0 (Advanced editing). At the beginning of the season, [b]Nicknamealguem[/b] provides the schedule, which conveniently is located below:

September, 1st – Qualifying Round;
September, 11th – Qualifying Poll;
September, 15th – 1st Round;
September, 19th – 1st Round Poll;
September, 22nd – 2nd Round;
September, 26th – 2nd Round Poll;
September, 29th – Semi-final Round;
October, 3rd – Semi-final Poll;
October, 6th – Final/Bronze Round;
October, 10th – Final Poll.

Before the season starts (and during the qualifier), users are encouraged to submit potential theme ideas for the season in this thread here. The Qualifier theme this season is Doin’ It, Solo, with no limitations on car/track combo other than the image must only showcase a single car. The Tournament Qualifier works anonymously; we can’t stress this enough people – do not use any identifying features for your entry! This even extends to your entry’s image and link URL’s; it can’t hint at your username, or any username really, to avoid potential favouritism in what comes next week: the Qualifier poll. After submitting your entry to Nick via a forum Private Message, all entries will be entered into a four day, multiple choice poll. The Top 16 from both PMC and 2.0 are then placed on a typical knockout-style setup, pairing members off against one another using the afore-mentioned theme suggestions.

Eventually, only two people are left standing – the PMC winner, and the 2.0. They will win… well, we can’t give that away quite yet, but you can’t win if you don’t enter… so get those submissions in before September 11! Now, onto our weekly competitions, now into their 41st week in the case of the PMC and 2.0…

Last Week’s Winner: 725

This Week’s Theme: 725 wins again, and at this rate is going to need another shelf in the trophy cabinet. His theme this week? Colours! It’s essentially an open theme, the only requirement is that either your car, or the shot in general, be colourful. Easy enough, right? So how come you haven’t entered yet? Jump to the thread now!

This Week’s Poll: Last week’s double-headed DTM vs JGTC theme provided lots of entries, and as it was an H2H week, you’ll have to vote twice. That’s right, vote for your favourite DTM shot over here, then, when you’re done, vote for the JGTC shot you think should win. Tomorrow evening, the winners from both threads will be entered in a 48-hour against one another, to determine the overall winner. Don’t forget to come vote for that too, as the overall winner gets a Level 23 ticket!

Last Week’s Winner: SMfan

This Week’s Theme: A favourite of many people, BMW provides some of the most entertaining cars to drive in GT5. SMfan would like to see them, either driving or posing, for this week’s Bayerische Motoren Werke theme. So take that blue-and-white roundel out and snap some shots! Jump to the thread now!

This Week’s Poll: It’s not just about the cars in GT5; it’s about The Fan(s). That was the theme last week, and the goal was to get both the car in a shot, and other people besides the driver. There’s 15 images to vote for – which do you think should win the Level 23 ticket? Jump to the thread now!

Last Week’s Winner: rpanico14

This Week’s Theme: Who doesn’t love (or love to hate) the Bugatti Veyron? That’s the subject car this week in CCCL, and the location? High Speed Ring, as rpanico14 provides us with Hunting The Horizon. As it’s a 2.0 edit week, there’s already pages upon pages of great entries, some even making you question if the Veyron really is a Standard model. Join in on the fun: Jump to the thread now!

This Week’s Poll: We were in Spain last week, with Lexus’ snarling IS-F, for Madrid Madness. The road car and the inner-city circuit worked well together, judging by the quality of the pictures in the poll, so now it’s your turn to do your thing and vote. Jump to the thread now!

Last Week’s Winner: chromatic9

This Week’s Theme: Quick, what’s one of the most-requested tracks for the GT series? Did you answer Circuit de Spa-Francorchamps? Good for you, you’ve guessed this week’s Photoshop theme! Get an image of Spa (either from real life or another game) and blend it with something from GT. Chromatic9′s looking to see these two finally together, even if it is with the trickery of Photoshop (but we can still hope for a proper pairing in GT6!). Jump to the thread now!

This Week’s Poll: Ahh, back on schedule! Last week’s theme was Dream Garages, and we’ve now got four images for people to vote on. Which best represents the theme this time? Jump to the thread now!

…

All sound a bit complicated? Read this thread for an explanation on how to get your images off your PS3 and onto a computer, and read over the individual rules in each competition’s thread. If you’re further stuck, feel free to Private Message me (click here). Start snapping those digital shutters!

GT Academy USA Reality Show Gets SPEED TV Air Date

admin — Wed, 07 Sep 2011 18:58:31 +0000

When it was first announced that GT Academy would be coming to the United States, it was also mentioned that the competition would air as a reality show on SPEED TV in the fall of 2011, with host Kristen Adams. Now, we finally have air dates for the program according to SPEED TV’s website:

Tuesday, September 20, 2011 @ 10:00PM ET
Wednesday, September 21, 2011 @ 1:00AM ET
Wednesday, September 21, 2011 @ 10:00AM ET
Tuesday, September 27, 2011 @ 10:00PM ET
Wednesday, September 28, 2011 @ 1:00AM ET

Mark your calendars and set your DVRs! Thanks to Dan for the tip.

Mercedes’ GT5 Live Race Video Recap and Photos

admin — Tue, 06 Sep 2011 19:19:19 +0000

www.youtube.com/watch?v=fVgBFBNyxS0

In case you missed the live stream of the Mercedes Live Race yesterday, here’s a video recap of what went down at what turned out to be an enjoyable event to watch.

David Coulthard eventually came on top against the live racers who were not able to best his real-world lap time of 1:16.32. That time quickly fell, though, once the corresponding Seasonal Event went live in Gran Turismo 5. There was initially confusion over the Seasonal Event’s availability in North America, though I am now happy to confirm it is available in all regions. Head on over to our GT5 Seasonal Events forum for more discussion.

Let’s hope the success of the event inspires Mercedes and other automotive manufacturers to use Gran Turismo as a creative and interactive marketing platform. Congratulations once again to Jason Birt, winner of the trip to the 2011 F1 Brazilian Grand Prix, and all who took part!

Mercedes Live Race in Gran Turismo 5, Live Video Stream (Coulthard Wins!)

admin — Mon, 05 Sep 2011 16:54:35 +0000

The live stream has finished. Video highlights will be available shortly.
If you’re having any trouble viewing the stream, view the alternate feed here.

The Mercedes-Benz Live Race is almost here, and GTPlanet is proud to be an official streaming video partner for the event! The live broadcast begins at 3:00PM in the UK and will be hosted by popular F1 television commentator Martin Brundle.

As you’ve probably heard by now, the premise of the Live Race is simple: former F1 driver David Coulthard is going head-to-head against a select group of Gran Turismo 5 gamers in the same car, on the Top Gear Test Track, at the same time.

I’m happy to report that many of the contest finalists are from GTPlanet – user “thefraggle” is live-blogging the entire event here in our forums, offering a unique perspective of the competition.

At stake for the fastest gamer is a 5-star trip to the 2011 Formula One Brazilian Grand Prix, and for David, his reputation! Meanwhile, Europeans will be able to take a shot at David’s live lap times in a special GT5 Seasonal Event.

Keep an eye on the video player above for the start of the broadcast, or visit DCLiveRace.co.uk for a back-up stream. Good luck to everyone!

UPDATE: The event went off without a hitch and was great fun to watch. David Coulthard set an early hot lap of 1:16.32, besting the fastest gamer Jason Birt by half a second! Here’s the final results:

David Coulthard: 1:16.32
Jason Birt: 1:16.86 (+0.548)
Rob Woodhouse: 1:17.53 (+1.214)
Andy Sawley 1:17.88 (+1.564)
Jamie Lunn 1:18.73 (+2.411)
John Morshead 1:19.27 (+2.955)
Keith Brown 1:19.90 (+3.587)

Highlights from the day’s events will be available soon in cased you missed anything. Thanks to all of you who tuned in for the live stream, and congratulations to David and Jason!

Mercedes Live Race in Gran Turismo 5, Live Video Stream

admin — Mon, 05 Sep 2011 01:08:14 +0000

Live video broadcast will appear in the box above, starting at 3:00PM in the UK (10:00AM EST in the US).
Convert this to your local time zone here.

At stake for the fastest gamer is a 5-star trip to the 2011 Formula One Brazilian Grand Prix, and for David, his reputation! Afterwards, all of us will be able to take a shot at David’s lap times in a special GT5 Seasonal Event for fun.

Keep an eye on the video player above for the start of the broadcast, or visit DCLiveRace.co.uk for a back-up, iOS compatible stream. Good luck to everyone!

Minor Gran Turismo 5 Update 1.12 Now Available

admin — Sat, 03 Sep 2011 06:58:41 +0000

In a surprise move, Polyphony Digital has released a new GT5 update less than one week after 1.11 brought a batch of bug fixes and a Jeff Gordon driving suit.

Update v1.12 continues with the bug-fixing theme, though the only documented change is a correction to a glitch with the Limited Slip Differential controller for FF cars. As such, this update is very light, weighing in at only 13MB. Thanks to all of you who sent this in so quickly!

GT5 Photomode image by NBDESIGNZ.

Gran Turismo 5 Online Maintenance Schedule Released

admin — Sat, 03 Sep 2011 01:41:54 +0000

Polyphony Digital has taken an unusual – though certainly welcome – opportunity to announce scheduled downtime for Gran Turismo 5‘s online services through mid-September. While it is not clear what, if anything, these maintenance periods will bring with them in the form of software updates, it’s worth noting the release of new GT5 versions have frequently been released after network downtime.

Here’s the schedule, though actual start and end times may vary:

August 23, 2011, 10:00-16:00 EST
August 29, 2011, 22:00-23:00 EST
September 6, 2011, 10:00-18:00 EST
September 13, 2011, 10:00-18:00 EST

Kazunori Yamauchi has already confirmed we’ll be receiving a “lean” late August update, so it is reasonable to assume it will become available after one of this month’s maintenance windows. Thanks to Blake for the tip!

GT5 Photomode image by andrea.

Special GT5 NASCAR Seasonal Event Coming August 29th

admin — Fri, 02 Sep 2011 23:04:01 +0000

Polyphony Digital has, curiously, announced a special “NASCAR-themed online racing event” to be held in GT5‘s Seasonal Events next Monday, August 29th at approximately 8:00PM PST. Though specifics remain sparse, they have confirmed a unique prize for the event will be available in the form of Jeff Gordon’s 2010 driving suit and helmet. Kazunori Yamauchi has also commented on the event via Twitter.

This is the first time a GT5 Seasonal Event has been announced in advance, so it will be interesting to see if anything makes it particularly notable other than the unique prize. The starting time of the event also roughly coincides with a period of scheduled maintenance for GT5‘s online services.

Thanks to Blake for the tip!