The latest update for Gran Turismo 7 is here, bringing in loads of new content and fixing one particularly glaring element of gameplay.
Gran Turismo 7 Patch 1.25 adds a handful of new cars, events and objectives from the single-player menu book, packing even more content into the ultimate PS5 racing simulator. But the noticeable change in how car damage is calculated surprised me in particular and was a huge relief.
The full patch notes (opens in a new tab) it has a section below titled “Physics Simulation Model” and one point below it reads “The conditions for mechanical damage from 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 be damaged when hitting the track wall or other obstacles.”
Basically, this means your car is less likely to be damaged if, say, you accidentally brush against a barrier, or if a misbehaving driver decides to rear-end you instead of overtaking. Hopefully this change will make the cars in Gran Turismo 7 at least a little more durable than a wet paper towel.
Strengthen my ride
I’m always happy when new content is added to GT7, especially when it’s content like events or menu books straight from the coffee shop. And I feel like the update couldn’t have come at a better time, especially as we’re starting to see discounts on Gran Turismo 7 25th Anniversary Edition.
But I stopped visiting the sports mode of the online game a long time ago when the damage model in the game was changed to be much looser than it was at the beginning.
Previously, as with soccer players, even minor bumps and scrapes would make your car beg for a visit to the emergency room. The damage temporarily causes the car to handle less than optimally, such as turning in one direction or limiting the top speed. I assume that will still be the case, but it looks like the new patch will make it much harder to get the car to that state.
And that’s great news. Despite developer Polyphony Digital’s best efforts, some not-so-well-meaning drivers manage to make it to the higher tiers of the Sport Mode ranking system. And in such a highly competitive environment, even a minor vehicle breakdown can leave you a few seconds behind the rest of the field.
At least now it seems that such problems have been somewhat minimized. Now, if the developer could just fine-tune their overly harsh penalty system, I think the GT7 online lobby will be in a very good place for the coming months. At least until Forza Motorsport rises to the occasion next year.