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Hands Impression of GT6

Monday, May 20, 2013

Our friend Jordan from GTplanet (and VisionRacer VR3 owner) had the pleasure of being present at the GT6 announcement.  Let's see what his first impressions were.


By participating in the big Gran Turismo 6 reveal at Silverstone, I had the opportunity to be one of the first people in the world outside of Polyphony Digital to get some hands-on time with the game. It was, sadly, all too brief, but it was enough to give me a good idea of what the game’s new physics engine feels like, and to capture some of the first gameplay video footage.

Above, you’ll see a few (admittedly quite slow) laps around Silverstone’s International Circuit in one of GT6‘s new cars, the KTM X-Bow R, along with a brief replay.

So, what does Polyphony Digital’s all-new physics engine feel like? It’s hard to describe, but let’s just say I think it will be hard to go back to Gran Turismo 5 after having experiencing GT6.

With traction control disabled and ABS set to 1 (I didn’t notice SRF was “on”…ugh, sorry!), it felt difficult to be “quick” around the track. However, the car was also easier to control, as if I had a better sense of the level of grip available at each wheel and exactly what the car was doing. It felt good.

When I play an older Gran Turismo game, I notice a kind of “numbness” or “dullness” in the handling characteristics of the cars, after having become accustomed to GT5. Now, I think I will feel the same way about GT5 the next time I play it.

The audio which you hear in the video was recorded via the television’s line-out headphone jack. It’s mono (single channel) sound, and doesn’t quite represent the sound that I could hear through the TV’s speakers. Although it’s not a radical change, I did notice a rougher, more visceral texture in the engine note that was more satisfying than what’s provided in GT5.

Regardless, Polyphony Digital’s work with Yokohama and suspension company KW Automotive has no doubt paid off, and the changes were immediately apparent to me after having spent only a very short time with the new game.





 

GT6 Download Coming soon

Saturday, May 18, 2013

The PlayStation UK site confirms a demo of the game will be available to download on the PlayStation Store in July 2013.

The demo will also be used to host GT Academy 2013, which was also announced at yesterday’s “15 Years of Gran Turismo” event.

Sony BRAVIA 84-inch 4K Passive 3D HDTV

Saturday, September 08, 2012

First LG hit the market with an 84-inch 4K Ultra Definition 3D HDTV, Sony have announced the BRAVIA KD-84X9005. Sony will also release an 84-inch 4K resolution passive 3D HDTV  by the end of the year. The 4K (3840×2160 pixels) LCD HDTV from Sony will also be equipped with HDMI 1.4 interface capable of supporting the panel’s native resolution in 2D mode, but not stereo 3D mode higher than 1080p. So you’ll be getting Full HD 3D support as maximum over the HDMI 1.4 interface that will be upscaled to 4K by the TV set. The fact that the 3D is being achieved with passive 3D technology however will make it possible to use Row Interleaved output to the display to have 3D content at 3840×1080 resolution per eye in stereo 3D mode at 24, 25 or 30Hz, so no the 60Hz that some of you might expect as we are hitting the HDMI 1.4 interface bandwidth limit. 2D and 3D content at 4K resolution is still rare though.

Playstation 3D TV Euro Release in Autumn

Saturday, August 27, 2011

Sony has confirmed that its 24-inch Playstation-branded 3D TV/ monitor will be arriving in the UK and Europe this autumn. First unveiled at the Electronic Entertainment Expo (E3) 2011 back in June, the tri-dimensional display is meant to provide an accessible entry point (read: a cheaper alternative to a full-fledged 3D-capable HDTV) for 3D gaming.

Equipped with edge LED backlight and active-shutter 3D technologies, the Playstation 3D LCD monitor/ TV features the company’s proprietary “SimulView” functionality which allows two players to view two different full-screen pictures on the same screen, which is likely to contribute to a more exciting multiplayer gaming experience. To enjoy this feature both players will have to wear compatible 3D eyewear, but fret not, because Sony has thoughtfully included two pairs of 3D glasses with sets sold in the United Kingdom and Europe.



The launch price for the Sony Playstation 3D monitor in Europe is €499, while EuroGamer has clarified that the UK price will be £499 which, of course, is significantly higher than the US pricing of $499 (around £300). The 3DTV display is slated for a Q3 release according to the Japanese conglomerate.

Sony have a 24-inch PlayStation 3D Monitor

Tuesday, July 05, 2011

Can’t say I’m surprised by the fact that Sony is getting back into making smaller displays after being gone for a while from that market and of course their return will be with a PlayStation themed 3D monitor.

The 24-inch PlayStation 3D Monitor (CECH-ZED1) is expected to be released sometime in the Autumn this year with a price of $499.99 USD with a pair of 3D glasses bundled and a separate pair of active shutter glasses for it will cost you $69.99 extra (if you live in USA, probably the same amount but in Euro for Europe).

The monitor is a Full HD 3D active shutter glasses based solution intended to bring more affordable options for PS3 gamers willing to play in 3D mode as well, but not ready to go for a big and more expensive 3D HDTV.

The PlayStation 3D Monitor is going to be using HDMI 1.4 (or 1.4a more likely), but aside from support for the frame packaging method, it will also support Side by Side and Top/Bottom (Above/Below) input methods for 3D content, making it more flexible. And thanks to this extra support you may be even able to connect your Xbox 360 console to the 3D display and play in 3D with the games that support stereoscopic 3D output natively, or use another 3D-capable consumer device.

The display may be able to work with PC in 3D mode as well, but due to the limitations of the HDMI standard you will not be able to play in 1080p 3D mode with 60Hz per eye. The new active shutter 3D glasses CECH-ZEG1 are going to be rechargeable over USB, weight about 45 grams, and offer about 30 hours of gameplay on a single charge.

The PlayStation 3D Monitor (CECH-ZED1) Specifications:

Screen size: 23.5 inch
Panel type: VA
Native Resolution 1920×1080
Colors: 16.7 Million
Viewing Angle: 176 degrees / 176 degrees (Contrast over 10:1)
Color Gamut (CIE1931): 72%
Contrast Ratio: 5000:1
Response time: 4ms (GTG)
Backlight Type: Edge type, white LED
Sound output: Stereo 2ch (full range, 3W x 2, 28mm), Sub Woofer (5W, 50mm), headphones jack
Video inputs: 2x HDMI 1.4, Component Video
Other: Support IR remote control with BD remote control (CECH-ZRC1)
Power consumption: 45W (2D viewing mode), Standby mode – less than 0.2W
Weight: 5.7 kg with stand, 4.6 kg without stand
Dimensions: 650x391x207 mm WxHxD (stand included), 650x346x35 mm WxHxD (stand excluded)



More interesting with this 3D display and the new 3D active glasses is the fact that you will be able to take advantage of the screen sharing technology that was patented by Sony a while ago and that I’ve mentioned here on the blog.

This means that in specific games supporting multi-player mode you would be able to play with another person simultaneously without having to resort to split screen anymore, each of the players will be able to see a Full HD image and will not be seeing what the other player is doing. 

This of course would require both players to wear the active shutter glasses, as in this mode instead of showing you 3D image (different views for the left and right eye), the glasses are separating the image shown to the different players and you will see the same 3D image in both eyes. 

To take advantage of this additional mode however it seems that the game needs to have support for it built in and not all multi-player games will work out of the box with it, so maybe it will be supported on new titles that are yet yo become available. 

And I’m not yet sure if this first implementation will also feature separate audio for both players, but since Sony does not mention such feature at all, it is more likely that we are not going to see that implemented as a feature in this product

It is interesting to note that the LCD panel will be a VA type and not TN as currently all of the active 3D LCD solutions on the market rely on the cheaper TN panels due to their faster response time. And using VA type of LCD panel with good enough response time would mean better color reproduction and wider viewing angles. Sony did not mention anything regarding the brightness of the display so far, but if this 3D monitor offers a quality and performance similar to that of the 3D LCD panel the company uses in their VAIO 3D lineup of laptops, then it will be a great 3D product. 

The only thing that feels a bit weird about this upcoming 3D display from Sony is the design, maybe still not final, but making a monitor look like a big PlayStation just for the sake of saying it is a PlayStation product…

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