Gran Turismo 7 new physics
New Gran Turismo 7 update that came in, 1.31. It has new track layouts, a few cars, but Im mostly interested in this. The car physics simulation model has been adjuste. Physics. Polyphony claims the the car physics simulation model has been adjusted. When Gran Turismo 7 was launched I wasnt the biggest fan of the handling model or the forcefeedback. A year later, I think it is undeniable that the physics engine has improved. This update, and getting a Playstation 5, really made me itch to check what is improved.
Now of course all of this Im going to say next can be very well wrong, be placebo or whatever, so feel welcomed to give your opinion in the comments.
Tried a few scenarios to see what were the changes .In general I think the physics changes feel pretty good, though I have seen some criticisms going the other way. Since I havent completed some of the races, it was a good way to try a few scenarios while at the same time getting a little bit of in game credits.
So, Giulia GTam with both Sports Hard and Sports soft. I think the difference was immediate. The first impression I got was that the tyres feel more reliable in this sports built sedan. Not a full race car, but something really fast. The Sports Hard on the giulia feel easier to drive on. I dont feel the rear snapping all the time to the front even if the lateral grip isnt really that high with these tyres. Its still a difficult drive stock as the 1500 kilo are still there to dance.
Changing the suspension makes the drive better as it would be expected, more inline with the Giulia from Assetto Corsa, even if the grip release from the slip angle curve works differently and the car isnt exactly the same. The change to a sports soft compound transforms the giulia into a track-tuned focused sedan. Plenty of grip, but still lots of movement. The car continues to want to turn with the rear coming to play. Similar to Assetto Corsa, but at the same time very different.
Going to a completely different car, a Tuned Yaris GR. 4 wheel drive with very short wheel base. If I didnt like it very much last year, this time around it feels like it should. Its a gokart with bags of grip. Maybe theres a little too much grip as it definitely had significant understeer. Possibly it is the tune that needs to be modified, however, understeer has been the main criticism Ive heard about this update. One of the points mentioned in the changelog is “The calculations model of the suspension geometry has been adjusted. This will improve stability of the car orientation during braking, and traction during acceleration.”. That could very well be the reason why all the cars feel more stable in turn in and underbraking. Generally, more understeer, a safer feeling car.
A lower powered tuned car with sport hards, like the BRZ has a lot of stability. The BRZ is a stable car in really, playful at the edge. Not much difference here. Only when going over the grip of the tyre especially at corner exits, the car decides to step out. Stability has really been the name of the game here.
That stability also went to the Group3 cars. If the Audi LMS GT3 was death on wheel before, now its realiable while still being death on wheels. First thing Ive noticed was the lack of bloodlust at corner entry. Now the that death on wheels is subdued to be more a equally opportunity ass kicker under most circustances. So, more stability at corner turn in, the kerbs are still deadly with this car. Its difficult, but now manageable. So, tried on this class the Lexus. That is a car im accustomed to in Gran Turismo 7 and sport. Now that one became understeer fest. It is really, really needed to change the brake bias all the way to the rear otherwise it just wont turn in. A literal on rails experience. So at this point, at least for these 2 group 3 cars, the update has a 180 degrees experience. A more manageable grim reaper audi, and a car that was a bit on the more playful side went dull. So, likely that the stock settings need to change or further polishing is still needed
The last experience was with drifting. For the life of me I cant do it in GT7. The tyre has still a weird grip dropoff and a very specific slip angle window to keep the car doing doritos. The weird slip angle is true in circuit racing, but that you know is kept more undercontrol, It is truer in Drifting. Past that angle, the grip just drops from a cliff and no amount of countersteer or throttle resolves this. Maybe its tune, maybe its tyres maybe its Gran Turismo. All I know is that in Assetto Corsa its easier to play with the car past the limit.
So, after this quick rundown, From my experience with a few cars and scenarios, Im liking the update though still not totally 100%. There are definitely areas to be improved. The criticism of understeer is a very fair one that at least in group 3 cars is a bit too much. The road car experience for me felt pretty relatable. Id be happy to go back and forth between this and the OG Assetto Corsa, no problem. Im glad Polyphony have found at least a path to go with the improvements. Its likely that more changes, smaller ones will be in the next few updates. If the slip angle window is changed a bit to allow more playfulness past the maximum grip, feathering the drop off into something more manageable.
As it is, the road going experience with tuned cars is bang on impressive for me, extremely fun. These cars, as long as they have sport softs or below are approachable and relatable. This new update did well thus far.
