It's amazing how this site continues to be popular even as GT3's lifecycle as a game is getting inevitably closer to the end. GTVault still averages 150k-200k hits a month. While the stream of setups has tapered off slowly, there are now enough setups for you drifters, 1000m dragsters, and everything in between to keep everyone busy. Kudos to all the top tuners, especially the ones who take time to fine tune every aspect of their vehicle for everyone else's benefit.

On a personal level, I must say I haven't played GT3 consistently since last July. In programming GTVault during the 4th quarter of 2001, I spent a ton of time testing limits in the game to the point that every time I turned my PS2 on it seemed almost clinical rather than fun. For whatever reason, I've never regained my desire to pursue GT3 any further. It is mostly due to the fact that I am an avid PC gamer and will continue to do the majority of my gaming on a PC for the forseeable future. IMO, PC gaming is the most enveloping experience you can come across from both the technological and depth of play standpoints.

Some of you may disagree, but this is coming from a guy that grew up playing the old PONG machines, Atari 2600 / 5200 / 7800, ColecoVision, Intellivision, Odyssey (can you believe that thing ran on BATTERIES?) and everything in between. I also gamed on just about every computer system available from the late 70's on, like the TI 99/4A, Commodore VIC20 / 64 / Amiga, Atari 400 / 800 / 1200XL / 520ST / 1040ST (anyone remember Silent Service?), Apple II, and of course x86 based PCs. Hell, I remember I used to get this Atari programmer magazine in the mail that had a bunch of game code in the back sometimes.... in Assembly Language! I'd sit there for hours punching in code and, damnit if you got one bit wrong the whole thing would bomb on you. Now you can just download the latest PC / Xbox / PS2 game, and with minimal effort, pirate all day long. Where's the fun in that? I see punching in a copious amount of gibberish for a week only to play a Breakout clone as a much more rewarding experience!

But back to my original point. PC gaming has and will always be the frontrunner to consoles in terms of technology and immersive gameplay. I can replace my AGP card in my PC to keep the graphics platform up to date, whereas consoles have never taken this much of a modular approach. In fact, almost every major console add-on that I can remember bombed in the worst way. Anyone remember that shitty little robot or running pad that came with the old NES? How about Sega CD? N64DD? Some of them were borne of really great ideas, but the market remains primarily the same. Once console gamers blow their wad on the console itself, it's games (and maybe some controllers and memory cards) from there on out. The PS2 runs on a 300Mhz chip! It's only two years old and already I can buy a computer that is literally 10x the raw clock speed. Granted, the graphics and memory pipelines in the PS2 are tuned specifically for gaming, but so is my PC.

It is because of this lack of modularity and the continued failed attempts to get the console market to adopt this philosophy that you see the disparity between PC and console games today. Sure you can play some of the newer games in progressive HD mode, but you still can't touch 1600x1200 @ 100Hz refresh rate. While technology in consoles may always be a step behind, console adoption by PC gamers is about to take a big upswing with integrated broadband access.

XBox gamers are discovering how much fun it is to play online with a high speed connection - something PC gamers have enjoyed for almost four years now. Sony has their little Ethernet add-in, so it's only going to blow up from there. This new connectivity brings with it many benefits as well as some possible el crapo side effects. PC gamers, while they might enjoy the best technology, have to put up with games released before they were thoroughly play tested. Buggy games and constant patches are a way of life for PC gamers. Historically, console gamers have never had an outlet with which to obtain downloaded patches. Trust me, this factor has saved console gamers from a good deal of the "Let's shove this piece of crap out the door yesterday!" approach to game development. If a buggy console game came out, you just put it down and played another. Sorry folks, those days are numbered, thanks to M$ and their ingenious Xbox with integrated hard drive!

But, the positive effects of online broadband only play are enormous! Think about playing a game much more advanced than GT3... only it's entirely online! The PS2 has limited networking capabilities if you want to fork out the $$$ for Firewire cables and a hub. I've played this way a number of times, and if I could play this way all the time, I'd be playing GT3 right now instead of SimCity 4 or UT2003. Who knows, maybe Sony will code in a way to trade cars/setups for the new installment of GT. I guess that would render a site like GTVault somewhat useless, eh? While the console industry will probably never see as much modularity as the PC industry, the face of gaming is changing forever -- all thanks to us dedicated PC gamers!

I know I got long winded with this, but if you made it this far without having to take a piss or wanting to beat me senseless then I'd like to know what you think about the PC vs. Console gaming cultures. Kerr

As I type this, my computers are the only electronics I have left to unhook before I move across town. I moved a year ago and it seems like I just got unpacked. It turns out I can't get DSL for 7 business days after my phone line is hooked up so I'm going to be out of commission for awhile. Any of you tuners using broadband know that going back to dial-up, even for a short time, is about as appealing as whacking off your left nut. So, I'll just do without for awhile while I hook all my other stuff up.

Happy Holidays--
Kerr

Hi folks, I just implemented a new feature on the site called Race Events. I've looked at the offerings of many other sites, and while some may have fancy pictures of cars and such, they don't offer anything nearly as comprehensive as this.

I have cross referenced all events and their associated details with tracks and cars. You can access all of the following information with just a couple mouse clicks:

• Full 1st - 6th place winnings and/or Grand Prize details for each event
• Information on all restrictions that may be placed on an event INCLUDING restrictions to racing specific cars
• Detailed race information including track, number of laps, race length and total event length
• And of course, Prize cars associated with each event

I hope those of you who are looking for event info find this new tool helpful. Take a look and let me know what you think.

Coming Soon: The most comprehensive information on the cars in GT3 available on the web.

Later - Kerr

I just remembered that GTVault is one year old today. The site, in form, has changed a lot since I started, but the basic premise is the same as it was when I went online one year ago. We now have quite a collection of setups, of which there are quite a few excellent ones to choose from.

I may have some pretty significant changes and additions coming to the site soon. One idea isn't so original but another one is, so I'll keep you posted when/if these things come to fruition.

Take it easy-
Kerr

Hey folks, as you may have noticed I haven't been making many updates to the site lately. This is namely because I've been too busy to do much gaming, and when I have been gaming it's been on UT2003, Dungeon Siege, D2 or Need for Speed: Hot Pursuit 2. Anyway, the site pretty much runs on the members activity to begin with. Another main reason I've been holding off on doing anything is because I kept waiting for GT Concept to come out so I'd have a new game to build another section of the site around. I was curious so I got to reading today and found some reviews on the PAL version of GT Concept. Firstly, when the hell is this game coming out in the States? It turns out that Concept is pretty much just an arcade game with little to no tuning capabilities built in.

Someone correct me if I'm wrong, but that's pretty much what I gather from the following two reviews:

Totalgames.net review
Gamesdomain.com review

I don't know about you guys, but this looks pretty disappointing for true fans of the GT series. I've always looked to the GT series when I wanted to play a game that required a little more skill than the typical arcade racer. I can think of quite a few PC based racing sims that are much harder than the GT series, but on consoles the GT series has been the only real choice for people wanting a little sim-like challenge. I guess we'll all have to bide our time for the next 'real' installment of Gran Turismo, eh?

I don't know about you guys but I think PD should've left the arcade games to the likes of EA. It will be interesting to see how this latest installment fares in the units sold category. What do you think?

Kerr

My girlfriend got free passes to the Richard Petty Driving Experience out at the Kansas Speedway. Normally it costs $100 but she got them for free through her job - very cool. So we went out there this morning and stood around for a couple hours, then suited up and rode three laps at ~160mph. Let me tell you, if you ever have the chance to do this don't pass it up. The lateral G forces were like nothing else I've felt in a wheeled vehicle. The sound of the engine was incredible - loud but not deafeningly so. The cars are much louder when you're stading outside 5 feet from the exhaust. It's hard to explain in words the rush I experienced - it was definitely a great time!

I took a few pics while we were out there:

The guy everyone hates
A pack of cars waiting to roll
Three cars out on the track

Oh yeah, you can pay $250 if you want to actually drive a stock car around the track for 8 laps. It sounds like a ton of fun, but I don't know if I'd want to part with that much $$$ for 8 laps. Hell, it would've cost us $33 a lap had we not received comp tickets.

I've noticed it's been pretty stagnant around here lately. This happened a few months ago and then traffic just blew up. I'm curious to see what happens this time because the traffic on this site is very in line with how popular GT3 is at any given time. blah blah blah I'm rambling...

Kerr

My roommate is thinking about getting a new car and he's wavering between the new Mustang Cobra that's coming out (390bhp) and the F150 Lightning. I personally think he should get the Lightning - you can't beat a badass truck IMO. What do you guys think?

What's up guys? I got a wild hair this weekend and decided to change the look here at the vault. I was getting tired of the green style and wanted to make the logo a little less prominent. Let me know what you think!

I went over to my old roommate Chad's house the other night. Another friend Damon sold Chad his old computer so we all three got together for some gaming. Chad had an XBox and Project Gotham Racing (good game - try it if you haven't). We only had 2 controllers so we played winner stays loser sits out style. All the cars were unlocked so naturally we picked the fastest like the Ferrari F50 and the Porsche Carrera GT.

Even though we were picking like cars, my friends were getting their asses trounced. So Chad comes up with this handicap plan: Each time I win a race, I have to downgrade my car one notch until both Chad and Damon beat me using whatever car they want. I should point out here that the slowest car Chad or Damon ever used was the Carrera GT. There are around 30 cars in the game, so we started joking that I would get down to fhe Ford Focus Cosworth before they would beat me. The cars I was relegated to racing were getting so slow that I had to get a good start and ram my opponent's ass and spin him out. Then I just raced a clean race hoping he wouldn't catch up. Around an hour and a half and 18 cars later Chad & Damon both finally beat me while I was racing, guess what, the Focus. It was racing at it's finest.

Anyone else seen anything this pathetic before? To their credit, I'm sure they could both kick my ass in the football game of their choosing. But, I would say I'd beat them if they were using a little league team and I were using a Super Bowl winning team.

Hey folks, if anyone is into OLR, there is a new series starting over at Scalded Dog Racing called the Nations Cup. You can get there by clicking the Scalded Dog Racing link at the right, or here is a direct link to the series.

Thanks fo GarethS for letting me know about the new series.