Sony Gulf FZE today announced that the PlayStation2 GT4 Challenge Grand Final will take place in Dubai at the Ibn Batuta Mall on Friday, the 27th of May 2005. The Grand Final will be the ultimate racing test for the twelve regional finalists. More than 7,000 PlayStation fans have already participated in the initial heats of the PlayStation2 GT4 Challenge held in 9 cities across the GCC last month.
The winner of the GT4 Challenge Grand Final will become a proud owner of the Nissan 350Z sports car and will also get a chance to compete in the GT4 World Championship held in June in Le Mans, France.
“The response to the Playstation2 GT4 Challenge has been nothing short of fantastic and shows the increasingly strong following that the game has in the Middle East market,” said Tim Stokes, sales & marketing director, Sony Computer Entertainment Europe. “Importantly, for this competition and for the eventual winner is that, the GT4 Challenge doesn’t stop with the Middle East finals. Following the Middle East GT4 finals this month, the Middle East champion gets the opportunity to compete with gamers from all over the world at the GT4 Challenge World Championship title in Le Mans in France. That’s a big incentive if you are a keen gamer and you love motor racing.”
The twelve finalists will be divided into four groups and will compete against each other in five different rounds on different tracks and using different cars. Unlike the format used during the heats, the competitors will now race head to head in some rounds and race against time in other rounds. At the end of five rounds the driver with the highest score from each group qualifies for the semi-final round, after which the two top drivers will then battle it out in a “winner takes all” final.
“Nissan is proud that its partnership with Sony PlayStation has been able to bring this unique challenge to the Middle East and to offer thousands of drivers the chance to win one of the most powerful sports cars available on the market: the Nissan 350Z,” said Richard Zreik, marketing manager for Nissan Middle East FZE. “Thousands of PlayStation enthusiasts have already been able to try out the Nissan 350Z during the GT4 Challenge, but one lucky winner will be driving away the real thing very soon.”
The biggest competition of its kind ever held in the Middle East, the PlayStation2 GT4 Challenge allows gaming fans and racing enthusiasts to compete on the PlayStation2 GT4 driving simulator, launched across the region last month. Featuring over 700 cars and more than 50 race tracks, including world-famous circuits such as Suzuka, the notorious Nurburgring Nordschleife and La Sarthe at Le Mans, GT4 redefines previously set standards of video gaming. The game also offers city courses in Seoul, Paris, Tokyo, New York and Monte Carlo and brings an option of power and speed drag-strips, original, dirt and snow tracks, as well as driving parks.
The Gran Turismo series has sold over 38 million copies across the world and is now one of the highest selling software series in the history of gaming. Fuelled by game designer Kazunori Yamauchi’s passion for cars, GT4 has taken producers Polyphony Digital four years to develop and is the largest video game ever made. It would take more than 120 days of playing 24-hours non-stop just to sample each car on every track for just five minutes.
Gran Turismo 4 offers gamers the ultimate ride: from the Aston Martin DB9 Coupe, the Audi Le Mans Quattro, the Nissan 350Z, the Ford GT to the Mercedes SLR McLaren, the GT4 line up is unparalleled. “Each car performs, handles, sounds and behaves exactly as it would in real life. GT4 is the closest that gamers will come to experiencing the thrill of racing today,” said Stokes.
