Gran Turismo 5 Spec II is the enriched version of GT5 with all integrated DLC and numerous improvements. The definitive version of GT5, more complete and better balanced. The ideal way to discover the GT masterpiece.
Your verdict
Category
Racing2 players3+
Split screen
Description
Spec II update of Gran Turismo 5 enriching Polyphony Digital's simulation with major improvements and added content. Published by Sony, released in Europe in October 2011. Includes GT5 updated with Spec II patch, B-Spec Online mode, fast install for reduced loading times, new cars, and three additional circuits.
Gran Turismo 5 - Spec II review
MAX
Art direction
★★★★★
"Iconic"
4/5
Music
★★★★★
"Excellent"
1/5
Story
★★★★★
"Anecdotal"
Almost photographic reproduction of the cars, finely chiselled circuits and a day/night cycle with dynamic weather: GT5 aims for a clinical realism of cold elegance. The Photo Travel mode showcases vehicles modelled to the millimetre. One caveat: the fleet splits between sumptuously detailed 'Premium' cars and 'Standard' cars carried over from GT4, with a markedly more dated look.
Gameplay
"Excellent"
Fun
"From the very first minutes"
Addictiveness
"Obsessive"
Refining your racing lines by the tenth, collecting hundreds of cars and climbing a demanding career sets up a quest for perfection that always calls for the next race. Earning enough to treat yourself to a new machine rewards every podium. The loading times and the rigid progression grate, but the precision of the driving and the automotive passion hold you for the long haul.
Difficulty
"Balanced"
Lifespan
"Massive"
The Spec II update further refines an already colossal simulation: hundreds of cars, dozens of circuits, licences and World Tour championships compose a career counted in seasons. Photo mode, sixteen-player multiplayer and the hunt for gold on every event feed an endless endgame. These additions cement the reputation of a title whose generosity of content still impresses.
A Spec II reissue of Gran Turismo 5, folding the accumulated updates and content into a more accomplished version at a lower price. Printed less than the original, especially in its Asian and Japanese pressings, it is a bit harder to find and targeted by fans seeking the fullest cut. Its interest lies in this enriched-version status rather than a high price.
Better with friends
An automotive simulation of exemplary rigor, where mastering lines and tuning the cars rewards patience and precision. The competition lives in tenth-of-a-second consistency, far from arcade chaos, in a technical and respectful rivalry. Local split-screen pits two demanding drivers, while the era's online depends on servers whose longevity is no longer guaranteed.
Is Gran Turismo 5 - Spec II still worth playing in 2026?
Gran Turismo 5 Spec II is the enriched version of GT5, folding in all the DLC and the many improvements brought through updates. The result is the most accomplished and best-balanced form of Polyphony's simulation masterpiece, with its colossal vehicle catalogue and its driving physics of remarkable precision. The adjustments smooth out part of the original version's structural rough edges. For anyone wanting to discover GT5 in optimal conditions, without suffering the launch flaws, this edition stands as the wisest choice.
