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Gran Turismo 7: Best Tips For Beginners
Getting started in the racing simulation Gran Turismo 7 for the PS5 and PS4 can be tricky. Here are the best tips and tricks to get stuck-in within the first few hours.
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The scope of Gran Turismo 7, the latest iteration of the legendary racing game series, is gigantic. It's packing over 420 cars, almost 100 tracks and a playing time of well over 50 hours. As the storied franchise returns to its single-player career roots, completing it will take well over 50 hours. Where should you start? In this Gran Turismo 7 guide, we’ll point you in the right direction to get the most out of GT7 in its early stages.
01
Start with the Gran Turismo Café menus
The Cafés are your path to unlocking cars and tracks
© Sony Interactive Entertainment
The biggest change to the Gran Turismo 7 formula comes with the “Gran Turismo Café”, which serves as the game’s main progression system. Here you’ll be tasked to complete various activities from races to adding cars to your collection within the restrictions of that menu. (Ex. Japanese Compact Cars)
The only way to experience everything the game has to offer like multiplayer, unlocking all tracks and tuning is by completing the menus. This should be your main focus for the first few hours of the game. Keep going back to Luca at the Café to progress, until you’ve unlocked all the features the game has to offer.
How many menus are in the Gran Turismo Café? There are a total of 39 menu books (with more being added in free updates). Upon completing these menus, you’ll be shown the end credits, but the campaign is far from over.
How long is the Gran Turismo 7 campaign? Menus can take anywhere from a few minutes to half-an-hour. For example, in some cases a menu will require you to install a wing on your car while others are multi-race championships. If 100% completion is what you’re after, expect something in the 30-60 hour range depending on how badly you want those gold trophies.
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02
Get your licenses
Licenses are mandatory for championships
© Sony Interactive Entertainment
As your Gran Turismo 7 career progresses, you'll need the unlockable licenses to participate in single-player championships. Make sure you get the national B and at least the national A license as soon as possible so you are ready for those events.
If you want, you can work through all five license categories before tackling the Gran Turismo Café. Completing a license category rewards you with a new vehicle, with an additional vehicle being rewarded for acquiring a gold trophy on all ten tests in that category. These extra cars will prove useful throughout your career and could save you some in-game credits down the line.
03
Don’t get hung up on getting “All Golds”
Getting gold can get pretty tough from the international licenses onwards.
© Sony Interactive Entertainment
To acquire a license in Gran Turismo 7, the minimum requirement for the respective tests is only a bronze medal. Newcomers to the racing game genre should be able to bag these bronze trophies without too much trouble (maybe with the exception of S-10..) and seasoned veterans should breeze through the bronze requirements without breaking a sweat.
Getting “all golds” on a license will give you an extra reward car, but the father you progress the tougher those requirements get. You can always come back to these licenses to grind for golds, just worry about completing them for now.
04
Use the Demonstration videos
A test or course demo is helpful if you’re stuck on a license test.
© Sony Interactive Entertainment
Every license test in Gran Turismo 7 comes with a demonstration, a reference video for the player. Within that demonstration, the AI driver completes the gold requirement usually with ease. If you’re stuck grinding golds or just need a bit of extra help, take a look at the demo video. You can also use this as a ghost within the tests to follow or chase the AI in real-time. (Normally your best time will be shown as a ghost)
To do this, go to the "Settings" menu item in the sub-menu of a license test and then select the vehicle from the demonstration under "Ghost settings".
05
Don’t Buy Cars Early On
Tempting as it may be: Don't buy cars in the first few hours
© Sony Interactive Entertainment
To buy new cars from the expansive 420-vehicle roster, you’ll need credits. Credits are hard to come by in the early game, especially Gr.3 and Vision GT cars which could exceed a million credits or more.
To save money, double-check if you have any eligible cars from your garage before going off to buy a new car for a specific event. If you are completing the menus, you should always have a suitable vehicle up your sleeve. Most reward cars you receive from the license tests and menus can be used across multiple events as well, saving you money.
06
Performance Points Tuning
When previewing tuning parts you can preview their effects
© Sony Interactive Entertainment
Many of Gran Turismo 7’s career mode races will have a “PP requirement”. PP, or performance points, are just that: the performance points of the vehicle. This value can be increased or decreased with tuning parts and car setup. For example, an event later on is the European Championship which requires you to enter with a car that has 600pp or more.
Head to your garage then to the tuning to raise the PP value to enter those races. Try and upgrade your car with balance in mind. Too much focus on power and your vehicle won’t fare so well in the corners. Too much focus on grip and you’ll be left in the dust on the straights. Raising the PP of your car could extend its usefulness with multiple events as well!
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07
Use Wings
Wings or “spoilers”. can be found in GT Auto
© Sony Interactive Entertainment
While the majority of tuning parts are located in the tuning shop, there are still other ways to make your car faster. Options like bumpers and wings can be found in GT Auto with more cosmetic options like wheels and vehicle liveries.
While in GT Auto, navigate to the Vehicle Customization tab. While there, you’ll find the option to put a front bumper or rear wing. Once you have a wing installed you can adjust your car setup to have more or less downforce. This is especially helpful in rain races or when you’re driving a car that’s a little tail happy like an American muscle car. The added downforce should help you tame these beasts easier.
08
Buy rain tires
Be sure to buy intermediates or rain tires
© Sony Interactive Entertainment
Gran Turismo 7 relies on a dynamic weather simulation, meaning if the skies choose to open during your race you could find yourself on a wet track rather quickly. The opposite is true as well, tracks trying out over time if the rain has left the circuit.
There’s nothing worse than being caught in the rain on slick or sport tires. Once you have the “Extreme” category unlocked in the tuning shop, invest in either intermediate of full-wet tires to be ready for the changing weather conditions. “Inters” are usually better for a moderately damp track with changing track conditions, with full wets being better suited to a track surface bombarded with heavy rain.
In career mode, you can’t really tell if a particular event has the risk of rain. If the preview image shows grey skies, it might not hurt to pack a set of rain tires. Be warned, though. Dynamic weather is dynamic throughout each attempt. If you start a race on a wet tire, then have to restart, this doesn’t necessarily mean the rain will return exactly the same way in the second attempt.
09
Experiment with Traction Control
You can adjust the traction control during the race
© Sony Interactive Entertainment
Traction control, or TCS, is the only driving aid that allows you to adjust its intensity during a race. It has an enormous impact on the handling and cornering behavior of your vehicle.
If you turn it off or set it to a lower value like 1 or 2, you can accelerate out of corners harder and quicker which may give you an edge in the tougher license tests. However, without TCS, the tires will spin much easier when putting on the power. If you feel confident in your throttle control, you will be faster without traction control. Don’t be afraid to adjust it depending on the car, track or conditions to suit your needs.
10
Complete the Track Masteries
Practice each track and earn some credits on the way
© Sony Interactive Entertainment
To familiarize yourself with the 34 tracks and 97 layouts within Gran Turismo 7 you can learn the courses in Track Mastery mode. Navigate to the World Tracks category on the map and you can select all the courses that you have already unlocked from the Café.
In the center of the screen you'll find events that take place at that location. At the bottom, however, you'll see a small menu that offers you additional options - including drift or single races and track mastery.
Here you can either learn the individual sectors of a course to work up to the 1-lap-attack, a timed lap around that track.. This mode helps you familiarize yourself with a circuit you might be having trouble with. Completing these track masteries also nets you a good chunk of credits.
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11
Gran Turismo 7 Tuning Tips
It’s possible to get buried in car setup. Beginners just need the basics.
© Sony Interactive Entertainment
When choosing the right tuning parts, you should not just blindly install everything the catalogue has to offer. Not all performance parts will necessarily improve your vehicle. Here are a few general tuning tips for beginners:
- Read through the description of each part. These provide clues as to what they do
- Don't just install parts that improve engine performance. Also upgrade handling and brakes. Balance is key.
- Weight reduction, suspension and brake pads are inexpensive ways to improve handling quickly and easily
- Sport tires (or racing slicks) provide more grip. The softer the tire compound, the more grip it will have. The harder the tire, the longer it will last. Medium tires are a great option if you can only afford one tire compound.
- Newcomers, who are not yet familiar with car setups, should leave manually adjustable suspension and a manual gearbox alone for the time being. It’s very easy to make something worse when you are trying to make it better.
- If you’re broke, focus on weight reduction, brakes and horsepower to start.
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