Gran Turismo 7 is one of Sony's biggest upcoming exclusives, bringing the racing sim franchise to the PlayStation 5 for the very first time. From Sony's very first trailer for Gran Turismo 7, fans knew that it would offer some of the most impressive visuals on next-gen consoles yet. But it seems that early trailer was at least somewhat of an overpromise. Gran Turismo creator Kazunori Yamauchi has since clarified that Gran Turismo 7 will not feature ray tracing technology during gameplay.

That first trailer for Gran Turismo 7 likely stands out strongly in fans' minds. In a trailer, we see a beautiful Porsche 917 with light dynamically reflected off its body. The sides of the trailer rise with mirrored reflections showing the Porsche 917 from multiple angles. It's a gorgeous example of what ray tracing can add to a game, particularly for racing simulation titles like Gran Turismo 7 where vehicle fidelity is a priority to players. That's apparently not a priority for Gran Turismo 7's gameplay, however.

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Speaking with Japan's Game Watch outlet, Yamauchi confirms that there are only limited ways that ray tracing is used in Gran Turismo 7. Ray tracing can be applied to Gran Turismo 7's replay clips and within the game's garage where players can stage their vehicles for viewing. In other words, ray tracing is used only in a very limited capacity, in situations where the PS5 isn't dealing with gameplay processing.

While Yamauchi doesn't explicitly state why this is, it's obvious. Ray tracing requires a significant amount of processing power and that's a valuable resource in the middle of gameplay. All Yamauchi does say is that adding ray tracing while training would be "really difficult." Polyphony Digital has clearly chosen to prioritize using the PS5's resources for other aspects of gameplay and visual fidelity, as exciting as ray tracing is.

The confirmation that ray tracing won't be utilized in Gran Turismo 7's gameplay is likely to disappoint some fans who hoped for the opposite. After all, ray tracing was an oft-mentioned feature ahead of the arrival of next-gen consoles, and Gran Turismo 7's announcement trailer, in particular, teased ray tracing. Despite that, it seems the PS5 may not have been as ready for ray tracing as marketing may have wanted us to believe.

Ultimately, ray tracing may never be as everpresent in video games, regardless of platform, as many would like. Developers will always be able to find something else to prioritize over the resources ray tracing requires. It would be amazing for Gran Turismo 7 gameplay to have ray tracing, but it's certain to be a better game overall without it as Polyphony Digital instead raises the game's resolution and frame rate.

Gran Turismo 7 releases March 4, 2022, on PS4 and PS5.

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Source: Game Watch