Courses

This is a sub-page of Proto:Gran Turismo 2/August 30, 1999 Demo Build.

Files for a total of 47 courses are present in this build of GT2. Additions mostly consist of license test segments and other miscellaneous test tracks, but some proper circuits appear for the first time here too.

Six tracks remain unchanged from the July 29 build.

Returning Gran Turismo Courses#

In addition to Special Stage Route 5, five tracks first featured in the original GT appear in this build.

Max Speed Attack (maxspeed)#

The max speed test variant of Test Course is presentable here, but clearly unpolished. Technical aspects such as A.I. and cinematic cameras match the final product for the most part. In terms of aesthetics, the pit lane is open but does not feature any modeled garage, much like the original Gran Turismo course.

Its biggest issues at this point are disappearing and popping polygons observed during both the race and replays, as well as improper lighting configuration that renders transparent areas of the car's texture black.

Course ID: $A
In-game label: Test Course

Autumn Ring Mini (mini)#

The short layout of Autumn Ring is in an advanced stage already, as no obvious glitches or big differences from the final product can be observed. While its pit lane is blocked off, collision data and pit work logic are present.

Course ID: $B
In-game label: autumnring_mini

Trial Mountain Circuit (mountain)#

GT2's version of Trial Mountain is in good shape at this stage, with functional A.I. and mostly final cinematic cameras. Its only hiccups are minor issues with lighting in tunnels and forest sections (which result in texture transparency turning to black), missing "Bolland" sign graphics and disappearing car polygons in a short section after the start/finish line.

Course ID: $D
In-game label: Trial Mountain

Grand Valley East Section (short)#

The short layout of Grand Valley Speedway is in a presentable state for the most part, with minor differences in terms of texture shading and a single missing cinematic camera. A.I. is functional and, while its pit lane is modeled, it is blocked off and contains no collision data or pit work logic.

Similarly to Grindelwald in the July 29 demo, it suffers from a notable hiccup where parts of its building graphics overwrite those of the player car in VRAM.

Course ID: $1A
In-game label: grand_vally_east^(sic)

Deep Forest Raceway (test_in2)#

Deep Forest is perfectly functional — A.I., pit work logic and cinematic cameras are set up — but it suffers from improper lighting configuration through most of the circuit, rendering transparent areas of the car black. Certain tree sprites are visibly miscolored and black lines can be observed in the road textures used throughout the course.

Course ID: $25
In-game label: Deep Forest

Cut Courses#

Five more entirely deleted courses are first found in this demo. They would receive little to no updates throughout the available demos, while light work continued on the previously introduced tahiti_d.

Dirt Test 1 (dirt_test1)#

This is a competent dirt track surrounded by tire walls. No scenery is present, A.I. is not implemented, collision data is a bit wonky — an invisible barrier is present next to the start/finish line and it's fairly easy to break out of the course — and, while cinematic cameras are set up, they only cover the first lap and are sometimes obstructed by walls.

Course ID: $3
In-game label: L_dirt_test1

Dirt Test 2 (dirt_test2)#

This course is substantially longer than dirt_test1 and is surrounded by vegetation, in a similar vein to the Smokey Mountain tracks. There's not much else going for it however, as no A.I. or cinematic cameras are set up, its grid is awkwardly placed and invisible barriers plague the entire circuit.

Course ID: $4
In-game label: L_dirt_test2

Dirt Test 3 (dirt_test3)#

This is a mostly flat course with a couple small jumps, some gently banked corners and a bridge. Like dirt_test1, no scenery is present and, while cinematic cameras are not set up, a basic A.I. line is.

Grid spots 2 through 6 are placed out of bounds and attempting to break into the track results in the player losing control of the car, so a code to start on the first slot is required to drive on this course.

Course ID: $5
In-game label: L_dirt_test3

Indi (indi)#

In a similar vein to monte and Super Speedway, an unlicensed rendition of the prestigious Indianapolis Motor Speedway oval course was considered for inclusion in GT2. What remains of it in this build is in fairly good shape aesthetically, with a significant number of trackside cosmetics already in place and even modeled tunnels, but it's still visibly early. A pit lane is modeled but blocked off and devoid of collision data, A.I. is not implemented and a single cinematic camera — placed in the center of the course — is present. Collision data of the main straight area is not great, so breaking out of it and into the pit lane is trivial.

While its files were eventually deleted from the crsobj directory, its unique skybox — indisky — was not, and is left unused in the final game.

A licensed version of IMS would eventually appear in Gran Turismo 5 and 6.

Although the track lighting and sky suggests that it would have been a nighttime track, the track is considered to be a daytime track by the game.

Course ID: $8
In-game label: indi

Alternate Trial Mountain Circuit (mountain_V)#

This variant of Trial Mountain is mostly the same as its regular counterpart, with key differences being an alternate pit lane entrance, certain cinematic cameras and the lack of trackside advertising boards. Pit lane logic is not implemented and the course suffers from the same lighting issues as mountain.

Course ID: $E
In-game label: Trial Mountain

Old Tahiti Dirt Route 3 (tahiti_d)#

TDR3 is mostly the same as in the July 29 build, with the most notable difference being the shading of grassy hills and advertising signs.

Course ID: $1D
In-game label: Tour de tahiti (Safari crouse)^(sic)

New to Series#

Work on various new courses continues, with five additional layouts being added to the set that would make it to retail versions of GT2.

Grindelwald (grindel)#

While many of the issues observed in the previous demo have been addressed, this iteration of Grindelwald still is visibly rough. Many of its textures have been made darker or replaced, trackside decoration has been added/updated, invisible barriers were taken care of and geometry gaps were fixed (and a rather big hole appeared in another section of the course... oops).

Its skybox was altered to remove the colored strips and off-model Sun, and its sprites are no longer loaded on top of car textures.

Course ID: $6
In-game label: Grindelwald

Laguna Seca Raceway (laguna)#

Laguna Seca saw some minor updates since the last build. The road textures were made a bit warmer, the pit lane roads look dirtier than before, some advertising banner textures were updated or replaced and some trackside decoration (especially in the paddock) was added, replaced or moved around.

Its cinematic camera setup appears to have undergone a partial rework: it resembles the finished version more now, but only covers the first two laps.

Course ID: $9
In-game label: Laguna seca

Apricot Hill Speedway (new_parmaS)#

This course is in a notably incomplete state here. Scenery is nonexistent — a few advertisement signs are all that serve as decoration — and track geometry is entirely missing at two points of the circuit, forcing the player to break through an invisible barrier in order to complete a lap. Despite its shortcomings, basic A.I. logic is present.

Course ID: $F
In-game label: parma2

Smokey Mountain South (nn_dirt_2)#

This version of SMS is much closer to the finished product than tahiti_test_short, but still contains minor differences in terms of terrain elevation. Cosmetically, it differs to an extent in terms of tree and dirt textures, and lacks trackside decoration such as advertisement signs and sector markers. A.I. is implemented here as well and, although cinematic cameras are set up, only a few match the final setup.

Similarly to the max speed test track, car polygons disappear and pop out at a section shortly past the start/finish line. mskyX is used as the skybox here, whereas the final product uses mskyX_2.

Course ID: $10
In-game label: no name dirt 2

Green Forest Roadway (nn_dirt_3)#

GFR is very close to final layout and cosmetics-wise, with its few differences being the absence of advertisement boards and checkpoint indicators, as well as a small section of grass being replaced with dirty grass near the end of sector 3. Cinematic cameras match the final setup for the most part and A.I. is very limited, being able to drive poorly to the first bridge.

Course ID: $11
In-game label: no name dirt 3

Smokey Mountain North (no_name_dirt)#

Not a whole lot has been changed about SMN since the last demo, with the most notable updates being a new dirt surface and a new setup of cinematic cameras (with only a few angles matching the final iteration). mskyX_2 replaces mskyX as the track's skybox.

Course ID: $12
In-game label: no name dirt

Midfield Raceway (parma)#

Work on Midfield progressed a fair bit since late July: most textures have been updated to their final versions, most missing decoration, signage and curbing has been added, proper lighting has been implemented in the tunnels and a full set of cinematic cameras is now present. The cameras in laps 1 and 3 are very close to final, while lap 2 is quite different.

parma_sky has been updated as well and made a bit less... blue. Also, the hot air balloons are gone. Bummer.

Course ID: $13
In-game label: Parmanent

Rome Circuit Full Course (roma)#

Rome already was in great shape in the July 29 demo, so not a whole changed here. The most notable modification is in the building block shortly past the track's second checkpoint, on the way back to the Colosseum.

Course ID: $15
In-game label: Roma

Rome-Night (roma_night)#

Rome-Night is in a somewhat rough state here. While the layout is complete, everything else is not — the road surface lacks details like crosswalks, there's a disturbing lack of scenery past turn 2, run-off areas are much wider here and the pit lane barely resembles the final version. Similarly to indi, a single cinematic camera is set, and while functional A.I. is not present, pit work logic is to an extent, though it is triggered at the pit lane's exit. The track is also considered as a daytime track by the game.

This version of the track, much like the final product, uses romadark_sky as its skybox. Files for an earlier romadsky are left unused and survive in retail builds of GT2.

Course ID: $16
In-game label: roma_night

Rome Short Course (roma_short)#

The short layout of Rome Circuit is very similar to its final version already, except it notably is set at dusk. As with the full course, cinematic cameras are set for the first two laps only, and like the night track its pit work logic is inexplicably triggered at the pit lane's exit, resulting in the A.I. controlling the car at a limited speed until just a bit after the second checkpoint.

This iteration of the course uses roma_sh as its skybox. Files associated with that, as well as the earlier and unused roma_sh_sky, can still be found in the final product, which uses the regular Rome Circuit skybox (roma_sky) instead.

Course ID: $17
In-game label: roma_short

Seattle Short Course (seatt_s)#

Seattle Short is half-finished, quite literally. Aside from what is shared with the full layout, most scenery is missing, no cinematic cameras are set and the pit lane entrance is nonexistent. Some elements such as shadows are present however, and the A.I. is capable of completing laps around the course.

Course ID: $18
In-game label: Seattle short

Seattle Circuit Full Course (seattle)#

Seattle received minor updates since the last demo, with minute changes to texture work and the addition of garages in the pit lane.

Both the full and short courses have sea_ha_c assigned as their skybox in this build. This is the third of four versions left unused in the retail game, which uses sea_ha_e instead.

Course ID: $19
In-game label: Seattle

Super Speedway (speed)#

This speedway is much more fleshed out than in the previous build, and resembles the final version quite a bit now. It still contains multiple differences, such as vegetation in place of advertising and additional grandstands in turn 1, as well as texture differences of varying notability. A.I. is implemented, cinematic cameras are present but have little in common with the final product and, while the pit lane is modeled, it is blocked off and devoid of collision data.

Course ID: $1B
In-game label: Super speedway

Red Rock Valley Speedway (sprint2)#

RRV is virtually unchanged, with its only noticeable modification being a lighting configuration that breaks car texture transparency. However, another important aspect of it was altered: the skybox. While the July 29 build of GT2 paired the course with tl_skyG, this build assigns it cloudtest which, as the name implies, demonstrates the effects of certain settings on the cloud sprite by placing four clouds next to an enormous sign with mathematical expressions.

cloudtest would eventually receive a cleanup and continue to be used as the track's skybox, while tl_skyG was relegated to being assigned to the unused dart_test2 circuit. Another RRV skybox, tl_skyG2, was conceived at one point and left unused in both this build and the final product.

Course ID: $1C
In-game label: sprint2

Tahiti Road (tahiti_t)#

Tahiti Road received some minor polishing in the form of new fence signage and advertisement banners, as well as dirty tarmac at points. The first grid spot is no longer placed after the start/finish line, A.I. is now capable of completing laps around the course and some of the cinematic cameras have been changed — the game will still crash at certain points of the circuit however.

Course ID: $1E
In-game label: Tour de tahiti (Beach side)

License Test Segments#

Preliminary versions of some license test track segments are present in this build, in spite of work on that game mode not starting yet. Only the basic layout of each section is present — every track is flat, most appear to share the same few textures, no A.I. or cinematic cameras are set up and speedsky is assigned as their skybox.

Forcing the player car to start on grid slot 1 is required to drive on tracks $24, $27, $28, $29, $2B, $2D and $2E.

30-Meter Circle Track (circle30)#

The short circle track is as barebones as it could possibly be at this stage, with no start/finish signage and no trackside decoration.

Course ID: $0
In-game label: L_circle30

80-Meter Circle Track (circle80)#

This one is pretty much the same deal as its 30-meter sibling in terms of differences to its final counterpart.

Course ID: $1
In-game label: L_circle80

20-Meter Slalom (test_20a)#

For the most part, this course is the same as what was superseded by test_20 and left unused in the final game. The only difference is that the tire wall is further down the road as the straight is longer.

Course ID: $24
In-game label: L_test_20a

J-turn (test_j1)#

This is an early version of the segment used in the game's two "Advanced Cornering: J-turn" license tests (IC-1 and IC-2). Curiously, no collision data is present at the end of the road, allowing the player to drive into the void.

Course ID: $27
In-game label: L_test_j1

L-turn 1 (test_l1)#

This is a prototype of the unused L-turn segment found in the final game.

Course ID: $28
In-game label: L_test_l1

L-turn 2 (test_l2)#

As in the final GT2, this is effectively the reverse variant of test_l1 and an early iteration of the segment used in two "Intermediate Cornering" license tests (A-5 and A-6).

Course ID: $29
In-game label: L_test_l2

test_s#

This segment consists of three S-turns. It suffers from two issues: a gap in the course's geometry that results in an invisible wall right in the middle of the second turn, and faulty collision data at the end with potential of crashing the game if the player approaches it.

Course ID: $2A
In-game label: L_test_s

S-turn 1 (test_s1)#

This segment, going by its filename, is an early version of the one used in the two "Basics of Cornering: S-turn" tests (B-9 and B-10). While the finished version features only one turn, this attempt is more or less a softer test_s sans geometry issues.

Course ID: $2B
In-game label: L_test_s1

U-turn left (test_ul1)#

This is an old version of the U-turn segment used in two "Basics of Cornering" tests (B-6 and B-7). The straights are longer here and, interestingly, the tire wall at the end actually hides a second turn, which can be broken into to complete laps around the course.

Course ID: $2C
In-game label: L_test_ul1

Multiple Corners 3 (test_w1)#

This one is a prototype of the segment used by license test IB-5. While the final version contains two left corners, this variant features one left and one right corner.

Course ID: $2D
In-game label: L_test_w1

Multiple Corners 4 (test_w2)#

An early version of the segment used in license test IB-7.

Course ID: $2E
In-game label: L_test_w2

Test Tracks#

dart_test2#

This is the short, twisty track that remains unused with zero changes in the final product.

Course ID: $2
In-game label: L_dart_test2

test#

This is an even shorter course with a couple esses here and there.

Grid slot 1 is required to drive on it.

Course ID: $22
In-game label: L_test1

test2#

This test track is fairly more substantial in terms of layout than test, and even features some light elevation changes. Its geometry, however, appears to be comically downsized, making it narrower and more difficult to drive on.

Grid slot 1 is required to drive on it.

Course ID: $23
In-game label: L_test2

test_j#

This is a quite interesting "course": a very long straight with two "ramps" place next to each other. It does not work in any of the demo builds as-is, but retail versions surprisingly have no issues with it.

Its start/finish sign textures differ slightly from the license test segments, and it appears to have visual issues when paired with its default skybox — speedsky.

Course ID: $26
In-game label: L_test_j