Forza Motorsport 7: AMG GT R vs. COTA

While in a middle of a hangover from last week's USGP held at the Circuit of the Americas as well as the one where the world's fastest man is riding shotgun with the AMG GT R round the track, that moment gave me the inspiration to drive the Mercedes-AMG GT R round COTA just like what happened last weekend in the Texas-based F1 circuit.



Wait, what? AMG GT R? In COTA? Again? Didn't I done that before in that other game? Okay, you got me fair and square. I once tried driving that car on the said track on P******t C**S 2 just to get a glimpse of what it feels like driving Mercedes-AMG's beast of Green Hell on the venue of the F1 USGP. With Forza 7 featured the same car and the same track, it won't be long until I see the difference when I put the same car on the same track using two different racing games. So much for being a racing genius, eh?



Anyway, the Mercedes-AMG GT R delivers the motorsports knowhow from the AMG GT3 racing machine to the track while delivering some road-legal manners as an everyday sportscar.

It uses a specifically-tuned version of the AMG 4.0L V8 BiTurbo engine producing 585HP of power and 700Nm of torque while mated to a 7-speed AMG SPEEDSHIFT MCT. It does 0-100kph in 3.6 seconds and onwards to 318kph.

The AMG GT R features a new aerodynamics profile in the underbody that when engaged in RACE mode, it sucks the car onto the road and reduces the front-axle lift by around 40kg at 25kph. Other noteworthy features of the AMG GT R includes the active air management system, AMG coil-over suspension, active rear-wheel steering, AMG TRACTION CONTROL, rear-axle LSD, and speed-sensitive sports steering.



That other day, I tried that other racing game to get the feeling of what is like driving the AMG GT R round COTA. Now with Forza 7, let's see if there is a difference between the two games when it comes to driving the same car on the same track, regardless of my driving style.



After a lap round COTA, the Mercedes-AMG GT R did it in 2:25.908, although not as fast as what a German industrialist would attempt in his spare time, there is of course one scientific conclusion we can all agree with.

Truth is, it doesn't matter which car you're driving at or which track you're on. It all depends on the games themselves. Forza 7 delivers a much customizable driving feel and when set to SIMULATION, it wants to give drivers a more realistic feel but on that other game I tried the other day, that true-to-life driving physics really sets the men apart from the boys when it comes to get a sense on how a car like this handles. Although not a very professional opinion as such, it really is a lesson I can really learn from these two games because by putting the same car on the same track, the difference between the two games are slightly profound but for me, they're much harder to match the reality of driving.

GT SPORT: Renaissance du mythe

It's time to introduce one of the cars that are certified "Gran Turismo exclusive" in the new GT SPORT video game on the PlayStation4 and one of these certified "Gran Turismo exclusive" cars is none other than Peugeot's return to the hot hatch battle, the 208 GTi.



Yes, really, this is the new Peugeot 208 GTi, a grand return to form from a company that is stuck making dreary boxes for too long. In other words, for the first time, a Peugeot that can really make your heart pulse. By reviving the GTi nameplate as seen from the mythical 205 GTi, the 208 GTi tries draw some inspirations from a legendary hot hatch in terms of driving characteristics and by a margin of a doubt, it is.



It's light, it's easy to drive, and in this all new "208 GTi by PEUGEOT SPORT", it's surprisingly very spritey indeed. The pre-facelifted 208 GTi has a 1.6L THP engine that produces 200PS of power output. This facelifted version has 208PS of power, 8 more than the old one, and 300Nm of torque. This results to a 0-100kph time of 6.5 seconds, .5 seconds quicker than the old 208 GTi, while retaining its 230kph of top speed.

Apart from that, the 208 GTi by PEUGEOT SPORT draws some cues from the limited-edition 208 GTi 30th Anniversary special variant such as the Torsen limited slip differential, recalibrated ESP and traction control that you can have it on or off on the go, redefined suspension geometry for lower centre of gravity, recalibrated steering, and new damper settings and spring rates, resulting to a hot hatch that is proven to be better than the best and for Gran Turismo fans, this is good news because if you have many things to hate about a hundred thousand or a million dollar supercar or an overpowered muscle car, consider this hot hatch one of the many things you'll love about GT SPORT.

So go on then, get giddy, you know you wanted to drive this hot Peugeot. Even I always wanted to drive a hot Pug like the 208. It's time to demonstrate just how much you'll love about the 208 GTi on a drive round Tokyo. Let's do this.



Impressed? I bet you are because with cars like these, there's no doubt you would definitely want to come back playing GT SPORT for some GT-exclusive rides like the 208 GTi.



Always wanted to say this but here goes, ahem, the Peugeot 208 GTi - A GRAN TURISMO EXCLUSIVE CAR.

Mirai no Bokura wa Shitteru yo

The long awaited second series of the Love Live! Sunshine!! sees the Aqours heroes in a middle of a all or nothing situation when they heard that their school, the Uranohoshi Girls High, is about to get merged with another school and shutting its doors for good. With the upcoming Lovelive complicating their schedules, the Aqours heroes will give everything they got to save their school and their reputation as school idols, no matter what lays ahead to them.

In honor of the second series, the new opening theme song has arrived and those who witnessed the beginning are rewarded with it.

Mirai no Bokura wa Shitteru yo

This new opening theme song is just one of the many reasons why we love listening to some Aqours songs for our free time, in fact, we even got our chance to play with it on the Love Live! School Idol Festival app game from EASY to EXPERT (or MASTER if it's here). Now that the full version of the second series' opening song is here, it's definitely worth the wait.

Be sure to keep watching the second series of the Love Live! Sunshine!! TV series to see what's next for the girls!

TRACK LISTINGS:

01. 未来の僕らは知ってるよ

02. 君の瞳を巡る冒険

03. 未来の僕らは知ってるよ(Off Vocal)

04. 君の瞳を巡る冒険(Off Vocal)

Project CARS 2: AMG GT R vs. COTA

For today's Project CARS 2 session, time to take the spin with the ultimate AMG track monster in one of America's most demanding racetracks in history, so demanding, it even hosted the USGP of the Formula One championship. I'm talking about driving the AMG GT R round the Circuit of the Americas.



Of course, you might ask that I have been awoken from the moment when you saw the AMG GT R driving round COTA before the USGP race started last weekend, with the world's fastest man riding shotgun, and that moment of seeing the beast of the Green Hell going around the Texas-based racetrack gave me the idea to do my thing here on Project CARS 2.



The AMG GT R is a high-performance variant of the AMG GT sportscar that uses an specifically tuned version of the AMG 4.0L V8 BiTurbo engine that produces 585HP of power and 700Nm of torque while mated to a 7-speed AMG SPEEDSHIFT MCT. It does 0-100kph in 3.6 seconds and a top speed of 318kph.

Apart from the speed it delivers, the GT R features a new active aerodynamics profile hidden underneath the body and when in RACE mode, the aerodynamics produces a Venturi effect, sucking the car onto the road and reduces the front-axle lift by around 40 kilograms at 250 km/h. It even has an active air management system which lets the louvers control the airflow, the AMG coil-over suspension that was suitable for track duty, active rear-wheel steering, AMG TRACTION CONTROL that isolates the grip on the driven wheels and does not affect the stabilisation provided by the ESP, rear-axle limited-slip differential, and speed-sensitive sports steering.



Listening to that crisp V8 exhaust note, despite the turbochargers, the GT R really is all bark and all bite and with all that motorsports knowhow deployed to this car, the GT R is an extreme track toy in its own right, although in the case of aggressive driving scenarios, best to watch out for any anomalies the GT R possess, like for instance, in the event of sliding, it feels like the steering's offline, making it difficult to regain grip through the corners during oversteering. Trust me, it happened to me but if you are experienced enough to ride this ride, you can do things no one else can in an AMG GT R. It may feel dynamic but the more you're driving it, the more you're having fun with it.

Well, with easier said than done, I made a little clip of driving the AMG GT R round COTA GP in a typical Mercedes-AMG test driver kind of way, just to have the sense of what is like driving it in an American Formula 1 circuit located in the Lone Star state.





Well, (chuckle) not the best I can do with it but it goes to show that even though the AMG GT R has some of the motorsport pedigree derived from the AMG GT3 racing machine, in an event of aggressive driving situations, you need to tread carefully or you'll be stuck sliding with the steering wheel offline while trying to regain grip. Still, I had fun driving AMG's latest offering round Circuit of the Americas.

THREATS FROM NORTH KOREA: South Korea and China's defense ministers meet

The defense ministers of South Korea and China held their first bilateral talks in nearly in two years, taking a meaningful step toward re-establishing relations chilled by a standoff over the deployment of the THAAD missile defense system in South Korea.

South Korean Defense Minister Song Young-moo met with his Chinese counterpart Chang Wanquan for about half an hour in the Philippines on the margin of a regional security forum, ASEAN Defense Ministers' Meeting-Plus.

But he did not elaborate what was discussed in the talks, citing a deal with China to keep related information classified.

Another official pointed out that such meeting between the two nations is meaningful in itself, as it represents both sides' desire to improve ties despite the THAAD issue.

South Korea and China are major trade partners with massive cultural exchanges. China's cooperation is crucial in resolving the North Korea nuclear issue.

Source: Arirang News

Let's Do The News! (October 25, 2017)

- The Norwegian Government named a new special envoy to the peace process between the Philippine government and the National Democratic Front of the Philippines. The Oslo-based Idun Tvedt is the new facilitator of the Philippine government and the communist movement's armed-wing's peace talks.

- President Rodrigo Duterte will once again visit Japan this month for a three-day working visit ahead of two regional summits.

- US President Donald Trump will be visiting Manila on November 12 and 13 but will leave before the East Asia Summit, a key regional meeting involving leaders of over a dozen countries.

- Presidential Communications Secretary Martin Andanar made a sexual reference against members of the European Union weeks ahead of the expected arrival of world leaders in the Philippines for the ASEAN meeting. He spoke in front of the Filipino community in Britain, Andanar, inspired by his superior's tirade against the EU, criticizes the EU's lack of credibility which triggered Brexit last year.

- Congress is debating a bill that would extend US President Donald Trump's power to spy on American citizens for six years without needed safeguards against abuse. However, a bipartisan group of lawmakers strongly oppose the so-called Section 702 extension. On an unrelated note; a new bipartisan bill in Congress called the HONEST Ads Act will modernize disclosure laws for online political ads and help bolster the integrity of the election. The bill will improve transparency rules by recruiting big social media and online advertising sites to disclose who is paying for the ads, who is being targeted, and how much the ads cost.

- Mazda unveiled the Kai Concept and the Vision Coupe Concept at this week's Tokyo Motor Show, showcasing the future of their design philosophy.

Mazda Vision Coupe Concept

Mazda Kai Concept

- Nissan unveiled the IMx Concept at the Tokyo Motor Show, which showcases full capabilities of ProPILOT and 600km of driving range in one full charge.

Nissan IMx Concept

- The Subaru VIZIV Performance Concept has been unveiled at the Tokyo Motor Show, previewing the next generation of Subaru's high performance sports saloon with cutting-edge driving assist features.

Subaru VIZIV Performance Concept

- Mitsubishi unveiled the e-Evolution Concept which illustrates the strategic direction of a renewed MMC brand that incorporates the strengths of SUV, EV, and the ability to integrate new systems for a connected mobility customer experience.

Mitsubishi e-Evolution Concept

- The Honda Sports EV Concept was unveiled at the Tokyo Motor Show

Honda Sports EV Concept

- Toyota showcases the Lexus LS+ Concept at the Tokyo Motor Show, previewing the next generation of Lexus design.

Lexus LS+ Concept

- To prepare for the Yo-Kai Watch Shadowside film, hitting theaters this December, Bandai releases the toy replica of the one as seen in the film, called the Yo-Kai Watch Ogre. On sale this early December, the DX Yo-Kai Watch Ogre comes with the Fudou Lightning Sword that you can insert it to the watch. It comes with different sound and lighting effects every time you twist it.

DX Yo-Kai Watch Ogre
and Fudou Lightning Sword

TTFN!!!

THREATS FROM NORTH KOREA: UN adds 32 items of prohibited goods for North Korea

A UN committee has added 32 items that have both civilian and military uses to a list prohibited goods and technologies banned from sale or transfer to North Korea.

The committee that monitors sanctions against North Korea said in a report to the Security Council circulated Monday that the additions range from boxes that can be used to carry radioactive materials to continuous cooling systems, flash X-ray machines and seismic detection equipment.

A resolution adopted unanimously by the Security Council on September 11 imposed new sanctions North Korea for its nuclear and ballistic missile tests and asked the sanctions committee to come up with new designations of so-called dual-use items.

Other banned items include particle accelerators, "software for neutronic calculations," concentrated forms of nitric acid, equipment to detect, monitor and measure radiation, and "radiation-hardened television cameras."

Source: Associated Press