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If you want to know just how embedded Gran Turismo has become in the automotive world, take a walk through the grounds of Goodwood during the annual Festival of Speed. To the left of the hillclimb that winds its way up through Lord March's grounds are the vintage cars and the well-aged thoroughbreds, so many of which have starred in Polyphony's series; pristine machines, plucked straight from childhood daydreams and presented for all to pore over. There sits the very Jaguar XJR-9 that in 1988 famously put an end to a long era of Porsche supremacy at Le Mans, while next to it is the glorious Sauber C9 that won the following year's event, glowing in its gunmetal glory. And there's the Minolta Toyota 88C-V, Gran Turismo's infamous cheat car that's perfect for grinding out credits or, here in Sussex on a hot Friday afternoon, simply fawning over.
To the right of the climb, where car manufacturers erect mini-showrooms on the fields, PlayStation 3 pods are set up that send this year's models up Gran Turismo 6's own take on the hill, while Aston Martin and Nissan have new concept cars created in collaboration with developer Polyphony featured on their stands. Ever since the first wave of Gran Turismo games helped popularise the Nissan Skyline in the west, turning it from an import curio to an everyday object of desire, car companies have cottoned on in increasing number the power of the game as a marketing tool. Now it seems to be a part of every manufacturer's strategy, from Ford to Aston Martin to Mercedes.
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