Over the course of any console's lifespan, there are only a handful of games that can be described as "the most anticipated titles." The Gran Turismo series is one of those titles – a highly regarded car racing simulator that prides itself on pinpoint accuracy and obsessive compulsive attention to detail. Polyphony Digital knows what kind of horsepower the PS3 stacking under the hood and has made a highly-tuned game if the preview build Sony recently sent to us is any indication.

In anticipation for the complete GT5 game, Sony is dishing out the fifth installment in tiny doses before PlayStation 3 owners pig out on the main course. First was the surprise GT:HD Concept on PSN and now all attention is as focused as a laser on GT5 Prologue. And rightfully so: there is so much to enjoy with Prologue. Prologue looks and plays just like you would expect a GT game to play. The menus are easy to navigate, and the music fills the room with soft ambient tunes.


GT5 Prologue

You are given enough credits to buy a semi-respectable car to race in the C class events. Going to the dealership is like walking through a high-end car showroom. You can imagine all kinds of makes and models behind each new door, ranging from the most practical to the most exotic rides. The car models are so highly detailed and pristine you'll have a hard time believing that the cars are in a video game and not a TV commercial. A good deal of your time will be spent browsing the impressive selection of fine automobiles.

Navigating the menus and options in GT5 is easy and intuitive. Getting into racing events is easy, provided you have the right cars to compete with. Before each race, you have the option to change a long list of options, allowing you to custom fit a racing experience for newbies as well as the most battle-hardened veterans. Want to change the physics? It can be accomplished with the tap of a button for a more authentic driving experience.


GT5 Prologue

Once the green light flashes, you get to hear and see the full symphony in concert on a variety of exciting tracks. Via the cockpit view, Prologue will demonstrate how no expense was spared with the attention to detail. The dashboards are perfect recreations of their real-life counterparts, and things like the speedometer and tachometer are fully functional and accurate. There are more user-friendly options like driving line indicators that adjust to how close you are and how fast you are going, but races always remain competitive as the AI does a good job at keeping up without being cheap. If racing the computer isn't you style, there are more modes to wet your appetite. Most notable is the two-player split-screen, which will pit you and a friend against each other and the online mode (which was unavailable in the preview build of Prologue).

Playing Prologue, the most difficult part of our job was finding something that didn't work well or shouldn't have been included in the racer. The first thing that was noticeable was the billboard trees that littered the landscape outside the tracks. Also, if you are expecting to see collision damage then you will be disappointed yet again. Sadly, there will never be a dent or scratch after a close turn from dirty racing tricks. As clean as the rest of the visuals are, the lack of destruction seems more like a design choice by the developer than an oversight.


GT5 Prologue

Above all, Prologue stays classy, something rarely mentioned when it comes to describing a video game. All the menus are clean, the visuals set the standard for future racing games and the gameplay is more refined than ever. There is not a single game-breaking problem we could unearth or find hidden under an unpolished floor mat because Polyphony Digital has gone over this game with a fine tooth comb, ensuring that the expected Gran Turismo "class" is delivered.

What we played was only a preview build, but from all indications, it was a very complete build and most of the features we encountered will only receive a small amount of tweaking before final release. Once we get our hands on the online component, we'll be able to definitively say how good Prologue is as a complete package. Look for our review in the coming weeks.