GT4 Racing Club

Some folks set aside time for golf, I set aside time for GT4 Racing. New for this year is a host of good friends who are like minded and to be honest, we've had some excellent racing. Now we are talking a video game here and some folks will consider that time ill-spent but I think of GT4 for the PS2 as a racing simulator and when I'm neck and with a friend at the finish line in a pair of 700hp M5 BMWs, I'm not thinking about Ms. Pac-Man or Gorf, I'm thinking about winning.

GT4 is anything but new, in fact there's an entirely new version of the game available for the PS3 - which is in my less-than-immediate future. GT4 does a bang up job of simulating the cars and the tracks, so much so that you can come to know some of the worlds greatest autos and their relative strengths and weaknesses on real tracks - depicted with a degree of reality that has no trouble with suspension of disbelief. GT4 does not fake the difference between a GT40 and a GTi.

Take it to the next level with a force feedback wheel and you'll feel the steering tighten as speeds exceed 200mph, along with suspension chatter, curbing texture, and everything else happening in your virtual front end. You can hone your skills to the unique characteristics of front, mid and rear engine drive cars... as well as master the differences between heavy high powered cars and the nimble and lightweight machines that enjoy similar horsepower to weight ratios.

So how fun is it? Fun enough to get your heart racing. It's fun when you are taking it easy and working on your lines and it's crazy fun when your competitor looses it in a turn and spins just inches from your front bumper. It's also fun when you come to realize you've mastered driving techniques that professional drivers only get to exercise like using the gas to over come understeer. It's fun when you win, it's fun when you loose, and it's fun when you practice.

I've you've ever loved cars, give GT4 a try. My guess is you already know someone with a complete set-up.