GTR 2

So, that extra contentwe mentioned. What is it? Beyond the '04 season's cars and tracks (it was too late to model '05), you get all the cars and tracks from the 2003 season, plus the frequently wonderful circuits from GT Legends.

The various alternate layouts for each place are there to be won as well - everything outside the '04 season, basically, awaits as reward for success in the Driving School. Totally new are lovingly GPS-mapped courses at Valencia, Dubai and China's new Zuhai circuit.

Above: Tracks look a whole lot better this time, and it makes a surprising difference

If you played the original GTR and took the sidestep into Legends, the progression to this sequel will be clear. True, it's evolution rather than revolution, but it's gathering considerable content as it goes, and all the while refining SimBin's expertise with physics, modelling, handling and sheer playability.

While Legends actually debuted the new 'fixed' tyre physics, the difference between that game's bendy-chassised, cheese-tyred cars and these stiff, overbraked missiles is palpable. So even if the heritage is clear, it's obvious from the driving seat that the feel - thanks to that insane dedication to authenticity - is entirely a thing of itself. And a thing very much worth waiting for.