GT5 Prologue priced: ¥4,980 on Blu-ray and ¥4,500 download
by Christopher Grant 
{ Sep 21st 2007 at 2:25PM }
Click to enlarge
Tucked away, quietly, within the pages of Sony's TGS press catalog, is the final pricing for the Japanese release of Gran Turismo 5 Prologue. Now scheduled for December 13 (as indicated by Famitsu earlier this week) the game is listed as ¥4,980 ($43.10) on Blu-ray and ¥4,500 ($38.95) for the downloadable variant. Though the game features many of the functions of the full product – scheduled for a 2008 release – it's still considered to be a sampling, in part intended to "keep people aware [Polyphony Digital is] still around" (as told to us by the game's designer, Kazunori Yamauchi). We're not sure if this price will extend to the European and North American releases of GT5 Prologue, but we've asked Sony for clarification.
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Reader Comments (Page 1 of 2)
Bidoof Protection Military @ Sep 21st 2007 2:29PM
Yay, a savings of $5 when there's no manufacturing costs!
And $40 for a game that is just a "sample?" I can't remember, but were previous Prologues so pricey when not even the full game?
Zootittles @ Sep 21st 2007 2:44PM
This is living!
Anonim @ Sep 21st 2007 7:52PM
This is living. Live is bit@h. Get used to it.
Bidoof Protection Military @ Sep 21st 2007 8:04PM
Dude, you can say "bitch" here, ya know. You can pretty much curse all you want. They don't censor replies.
And you meant to say "life is a bitch." :P
Mr. P @ Sep 21st 2007 9:34PM
It's pretty fucking ridiculous, indeed. I planned to buy it until hearing the price. It'll probably be lower in the US, but there's no way I'll ever pay $30 for a glorified demo, as much as I love Gran Turismo.
Anonim @ Sep 21st 2007 10:28PM
Actually I was trying to parody line from "Long kiss goodnight" : "Life is pain. Get used to it"
john @ Sep 21st 2007 2:32PM
So we spend 40dollars on a glorified demo and then 60 dollars on the full game. WTF is up with that that. I mean sure i got GTHD just because it was free but who hasn't downloaded that.
Fernando Rocker (NDF - Water Ring) @ Sep 21st 2007 2:36PM
Its the cost of having the lowest instal base.
losttoys @ Sep 21st 2007 2:44PM
There will be a demo of Prologue in Ocotober which will cost you nothing. Prologue is for the people who want a miniature GT5 now.
Exo @ Sep 21st 2007 2:36PM
No way am I ever buying a GT game again.
GRANTED @ Sep 21st 2007 2:49PM
that would make sense since it would require purchasing a ps3
vidGuy @ Sep 21st 2007 2:38PM
So have they released any information on car and track downloads and prices? Last I heard it would cost about USD$400 to buy all of the cars for the final game.
Cyrix_0 @ Sep 21st 2007 2:44PM
Gran Turismo has Prologues, this is another one, the previous one was also priced at around $40.
Stop ya whining if you not getting it then STFU....
Taken from PS3FANBOY.COM
"GT5 Prologue really is a full game, with over three dozen cars, five tracks and online play with up to 16 people. Also just announced was a cool new feature called GT TV, where gamers can download auto-enthusiast TV programs along the lines of Top Gear. According to PS3 Only, the programs will also be tailored for different regions -- so Japanese, American, and European gamers will all get localized content."
FINALLY Gran Turismo ONLINE PLAY VS 15 others for the Very First TIME!!!...
vidGuy @ Sep 21st 2007 2:55PM
Somehow I don't think ~40 cars and 5 tracks cuts it as a "full game" anymore.
Slaziman @ Sep 21st 2007 3:25PM
If we are going to call that a full game then let's go ahead and call Bomberman Live a full game as well shall we? ^.-
Oreo @ Sep 21st 2007 2:42PM
Why would always spend $40 for a demo?
Is it possible for Sony to get dumber? They are like a disease, spreading their ignorance to anyone who makes a PS3 game.
FrankTheCrank @ Sep 21st 2007 4:28PM
Dude...I would. Hell's yeah.
We're talking Gran Turismo....not some half ass racer.
But I will always buy the media, so if I need to sell it...I have the option.
Jitty @ Sep 21st 2007 8:03PM
Listen up you ignorant idiots. Its not just a freaking demo! It has many tracks, many cars and an online racing mode. It's half a game. It has a lot more than a demo but not nearly how much the full GT5 will have. It's basically for GT5 lovers. Who want a piece a little while before the actual GT5 comes out. $39 is very reasonable!
losttoys @ Sep 21st 2007 2:42PM
Fernando -
You do realize that the Prologue series has been around since the PS2 (GT3, GT4), right? This has nothing to do with "lowest install base".
0ldb0y @ Sep 21st 2007 2:43PM
Wow, and you thought you were being milked by DLC add-ons.
Evolution:
Screenshots-->Trailers-->Free demos-->Buy to try
Somehow, that progression looks off...
ThornedVenom @ Sep 21st 2007 6:00PM
That is a very sad reality. Very observant.
Next step, pay for internet gaming access, pay for electrical input for your game console, pay for disc-reading capabilities for your console, etc.....
Jake @ Sep 21st 2007 2:56PM
Prologues are nothing new to the series. I still think it is lame. You just have to be strong and wait for the actual game. Don't reward them for taking advantage of fans of the series.
The Surf n' Turf of consoles. This is living. ;)
tcc3 @ Sep 21st 2007 2:56PM
Wow, Polyphony Digital is the best demo manufacturer ever!
The True Gamer @ Sep 21st 2007 3:05PM
And you Sony fanboys whine about paying $50 a year for an online service. At least we don't have to pay for demos.
donker @ Sep 21st 2007 3:41PM
I have to agree with you. It's fanboy taken to the extreme when anyone criticizes the $50 that people pay for live. I myself don't subscribe but only because I am not a big online gamer. Late 30's and don't get alot of playing time anymore. However if I was back in my 20's this would be one of the best purchases I would be able to make. Less than $5 per month for a whole months worth of fun. Sony's crappy service had to be free because its crap. Home will be free only because it will be saturated with advertising. Meanwhile they justify paying $100 for one full game. Sad.
Egster @ Sep 21st 2007 3:08PM
Prologue is not a demo!
40 cars, 5 tracks, 16 player online racing goodness in 1080p @ 60 fps will provide me with hours of fun. Definately beats having to wait untill Christmas 2008 for GT5 to arrive.
You can't get everything for free.
donker @ Sep 21st 2007 3:22PM
Well then your stupid. I don't care what they call it but they finish half a game. Charge you 2/3 price. Finish the game and charge you full price and you don't see anything wrong with that. Just because they have done it before doesn't make it right. They are milking their customer base making the losers who buy both fork out over $100 for one game. Sounds pretty stupid to me but then again it seems pretty stupid to pay $150 for a Master Chief Helmet that probably costs less than $2 to injection mould in some sweat shop in Mongolia.
Snukadaman @ Sep 21st 2007 3:23PM
sorry prologue is a "taste" of whats too come...from playing games for awhile now i conclude thats a demo...no matter how you spin it its not the whole games...the whole game comes later..which makes this a demo.
Slaziman @ Sep 21st 2007 3:26PM
You mean like FIVE FULL TRACKS? Jesus, someone get the defibrillator!
Noshino @ Sep 21st 2007 4:00PM
Isn't that what is acutally happening with the 360? where the games are being half-assed and sold at FULL PRICE and then they sell the COMPLETE game for PC? and off the top of my head, the first game that comes to my mind that does this is Gears of War...
Egster @ Sep 21st 2007 4:39PM
So people spend 40 dollar now and 60 dollar at the end of next year for a game that will provide countless hours of fun are stupid? I thought those people were called gamers. My bad.
Slaziman @ Sep 21st 2007 6:16PM
Gears came on the PC with bonus content because it was released a year later, not because it was half assed on the 360.
megaStryke @ Sep 21st 2007 3:09PM
Wasn't this supposed to be free?
megaStryke @ Sep 21st 2007 3:15PM
http://www.psu.com/Gran-Turismo-5-Prologue-will-be-free-News--a1105-p0.php
http://www.gamernode.com/News/3892-Gran-Turismo-5-Prologue-will-be-free/index.html
Yes... yes it WAS supposed to be free. I dunno, but $40 seems like quite a ways away from free.
Bidoof Protection Military @ Sep 21st 2007 4:03PM
MegaStryke gets a heart for doing research, Sony takes massive damage for changing their mind.
Egster @ Sep 21st 2007 4:43PM
Not really any proof. I saw the same fud posted on IGN. Where is a direct link/quote?
Night Elve @ Sep 21st 2007 3:17PM
Exactly! Prologue is not a DEMO at all. Geez
Akamaru @ Sep 21st 2007 3:29PM
PROLOGUES WERE NEVER FREE. They are a separate part of the game. Like an expansion pack only you don't need the full game to play it. This has been around since the PS2 so It's nothing new.
Why are people too stupid to understand that (the blogger who posted this included)? Gaming didn't start with the Xbox.
megaStryke @ Sep 21st 2007 3:30PM
Please check the links I posted above stating that GT5 Prologue was SUPPOSED to be free.
megaStryke @ Sep 21st 2007 3:29PM
After doing some searching, I have discovered that Europeans will get a free demo of GT5 Prologue:
http://www.gran-turismo.com/en/news/d1188.html
In other words, a demo of a demo.
jsn @ Sep 21st 2007 3:33PM
yes, grab those ankles SDF'ers. If you're not used to it by now, you will be eventually....
Vidikron (FU) @ Sep 21st 2007 3:39PM
But, of course, Nintendo selling Wii Sports as a full stand-alone game in Japan is OK? Right?
megaStryke @ Sep 21st 2007 3:57PM
Then again, the Wii in Japan IS cheaper than it is in the States.
Price of Japanese Wii: ¥25,000 = about US $213
Price of Japanese Wii Sports: ¥4800 = about US $40
Price of combo: around US $253
In the US, the Wii with pack-in is $250. Sounds fair to me.
Crrash @ Sep 21st 2007 3:58PM
thats alright because it is the finished game, they arent going to add anything to it
Vidikron (FU) @ Sep 21st 2007 4:01PM
@megaStryke
That's exactly my point. We ARE paying for it too. Wii Sports is nothing more than a demo itself and we are all paying for it one way or another. People in glass houses and all that...
megaStryke @ Sep 21st 2007 4:10PM
A demo of what? Wii Sports: Extreme? Unless there is a "full" version of Wii Sports done the pipeline, it's a full game, whether you think it is "complete" or not.
Vidikron (FU) @ Sep 21st 2007 4:20PM
It's a tech demo. Spin it however want, you're still throwing rocks from a glass house.
megaStryke @ Sep 21st 2007 4:22PM
And Lair is a tech demo.
Vidikron (FU) @ Sep 21st 2007 4:24PM
Wow.... you're clever.
megaStryke @ Sep 21st 2007 4:26PM
Well, if you want to stretch the truth then I will too.