It's official: Porsche is coming to Gran Turismo Sport

We've waited two decades to see Porsche in Gran Turismo, and with the upcoming Gran Turismo Sport title it will finally happen.

The official Russian PlayStation Twitter account tweeted about Porsche's inclusion alongside the news that the game is opening up for beta testing this weekend, and the news was subsequently confirmed by the official Spanish PlayStation Twitter profile.

So far, we know of the existence of just one Porsche set to make its appearance in the game: the 991 GT3 RS. The initial batch of images show the car both on track and beautifully rendered in the game's photo mode, also giving us a glimpse of the interior.

So why has it taken so long to get the official Porsche license? The answer is Electronic Arts, which held an exclusive license for the cars until 2016. Some non-EA titles did include the cars - one or two Forza titles in particular - but generally, gamers had to opt for titles like Need For Speed to get their Porsche fix.

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Or, in the case of Gran Turismo, settle for RUF versions, which slipped through the net by virtue of RUF being a manufacturer in its own right. GT Sport is expected to include around 140 cars initially - fewer than both GT5 and GT6's "premium" car count, though this should rise over time with downloadable content.

Sony has also released details of three new tracks making their debut appearance in GT Sport. A new oval circuit - Blue Moon Bay - joins twisting coastal circuit Dragontail Seaside and rally course Sardegna Windmills. Real-world circuits like La Sarthe and the Nurburgring have already been confirmed, alongside classic GT courses and a selection of other first-time appearances.

There is still no set release date for Gran Turismo Sport, which will only be available on the PlayStation 4, but it's currently pencilled in for "late 2017" - so hopefully it will drop before Christmas.

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