Prologue gets a lot of things wrong. Flaky AI that needs a script to keep it on its toes. Screen tearing. Poor online. The fictional tracks have walls which you can bounce around without losing momentum if you are that way inclined. But the handling is near flawless. Driving on the raggedy edge hasn’t been this convincing since GPL. It’s the first racer since that old PC racer where I’ve struggled to maintain pace consistently over a three lap race, instead spinning out after one or two perfect on the limit laps. That’s a good thing. That’s realism. GT5 has that in spades. Punishingly so. Take the new GTR and push it to the limits on Suzuka to see what I mean.

Even that old school – start at the back and make your way to the front in three laps – gameplay is a good thing. Yes it masks the lacking AI, but it adds a challenge that requires you to, in most cases, push your car to the limit whilst avoiding slower traffic in the hope of making the top three at the end of the last lap. Forza races tend to be over after the first few corners so this alleged backwards step in GT5 suits me just fine. Do I want more? Of course, and I hope that over the next year the team find the time to deliver it. They need to take a long hard look at what Forza does right if they want to offer a compelling and complete package. For now though, GT5P is about as good as driving gets – virtually. Before the end of the year, DP has promised GT5P updates which will provide a realistic damage model to curb the wall riders, and a more complete online experience.