Gran Turismo 7 update 1.19 has landed. Don’t let the small 1.3-GB file size deceive you: this is a hefty update.
As confirmed by Polyphony yesterday, update 1.19 adds three new cars: the Porsche 918 Spyder '13, Nissan Skyline Super Silhouette, and Maserati A6GCS/53 Spyder, representing Europe, Japan, and Europe respectively.
As well as new cars, menus books, and events, update 1.19 adds a host of new game features and quality of life improvements that are easy to overlook. Here are five things you may have missed in Gran Turismo 7 update 1.19.
Race Shop
GT7’s navigation system is clunky, to say the least. Accessing basic options often requires sifting through a myriad of menus.
Before update 1.19, if you wanted to change your tyres before starting a race, you had to quit back to the main hub, visit the GT Auto Shop, fit the right tyres, and restart the race event. Now, you can change your tyres, and buy power restrictors and ballast before a race by visiting the new Race Shop in the Quick Race menu.
You'll still need to manually equip your new tyres in the settings, though.
The Race Shop is also accessible in online lobbies and Meeting Place quick menus. In Sport Mode, you can access the Race Shop from the Race Details menu.
Save online lobby settings
GT7 was criticised at launch for its lack of online lobby settings. Until recently, online race hosts couldn’t even change the track without restarting the session. It’s one of the reasons why the FIA paused its partnership with Gran Turismo.
Mercifully, Polyphony added lobby settings options in update 1.17. Update 1.19 adds a new option to save lobby settings. This is a very welcome addition for players who regularly host online multiplayer races. Up to 50 lobby settings can be saved.
New Scapes
For virtual photographers, update 1.19 adds two new locations for Scapes. One of them is set on the island of Shikoku, Japan, but the real highlight is the novel Tomica Town location based on the Japanese Tomica toy car line.
Now you can place your garage cars in a virtual Tomica town surrounded by tiny diecast cars. It's a peculiar addition, but we'd expect nothing less from Polyphony.
Force feedback changes
One of GT7’s recent updates sparked fury when it nerfed force feedback for racing wheels for safety reasons. Since then, the force feedback has been fixed. Update 1.19 makes further changes to the force feedback on Logitech G923 racing wheels.
According to the patch notes, the maximum steering rotation has changed for players using a Logitech G923 wheel. Reaching the maximum rotation limit “now produces a natural level of feedback.” The maximum level of rotation changes depending on the car.
New Museums
As well as guiding players progressing through the campaign, the GT Café helps players learn about key cars in automotive history. Alternatively, you can learn about the history of manufacturers such as Ferrari and Lamborghini in GT7’s virtual Museums. Surprisingly, some major manufacturers such as Ford still don’t have a museum in GT7.
Update 1.19 adds new Brand Central Museums for Tesla in the Americas section and Radical in the Europe section.
Tesla is credited for starting the electric car revolution in the 21st century, while Radical Motorsports manufactures track-only race cars in the UK such as the lightweight SR3.