One Gran Turismo 5: Signature Edition player will get his hands on a Mercedes-Benz SLS AMG
Sony has made many lofty, almost boisterous claims, most of which can be based on its Sony PlayStation Console. With the tagline, ‘it only does...everything,’ most people wrote it off as just another catchy marketing gimmick.
Then again, how many other video game consoles, or in fact anything else, do you know where one could, not only enter Mercedes-Benz’s prestigious and exclusive driving school. The Mercedes-Benz AMG driving school is not for the faint of heart, as David Coulthard,
driver for the Mercedes Formula One team, will be the first to testify to.
How is any of this possible is a question one might ask? The answer is Gran Turismo 5, commonly known as one the most realistic driving simulation experiences in the virtual world, and its various competitions.
Players had the opportunity to get free tickets to watch the World Drift Championships, including front row seats and a ride with one of the drivers on the track, during the days of Gran Turismo 5: Prologue. All they had to do was set the fastest time across
on lap of a specified track in the game. The player with the fastest time won the prize, simple.
After that, there was the Gran Turismo Academy, which let players train with the Nissan Team. The winner would than be rewarded with a place on that team to take part in the 24 hour race. While getting behind the wheel of a Nissan GT-R would have been enough
for 99% of people, the other one percent being show offs, Sony actually went through on their promise.
The GT Academy was so successful that it came back for a second season. Things have not stopped there, as in the latest competition Sony, in partnership with Polyphony Digital and Mercedes-Benz, will let the winner walk away with his own SLS AMG.
The final two legs of the competition are scheduled to take place on the 11thand 12th of July, where the course is said to have been designed by David Coulthard himself. Only one of the 15 finalists will walk away with keys to the beast
of a car.
Able to accelerate to a speed 100km/h from a dead start in 3.8 seconds, the 6.2 litre, 571 hp monster is the type of car that people put wallpapers up of and drool over.
The final 15 contestants were given a copy of Gran Turismo 5, which they were only allowed to use in B-Spec mode. The mode does not allow players to drive the car themselves, but rather to take the role of a director as he tells his AI controlled driver
to speed up, overtake, slow down or maintain pace.
Taking place in Austria at the Red Bull Ring, for the final one can expect a truly tense and engaging set of challenges that will push the contestants to the limit.
Yet, it seems almost unreal when one realises where all of this began; any person who purchased the Signature Edition of Gran Turismo 5, was automatically entered into the competition.
So maybe Sony’s claim of the PlayStation being able to do ‘everything’ has more truth to it than one would assume at first glance. PlayStation: It only does...dream cars.
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