Gran Turismo, Forza, and a third challenger? Yes. Dual Pixels has gotten word, in significant detail, that Nintendo is working on their killer app simulation racer for Wii U that is designed to put GT and Forza on their heels. Having dominated the kart/arcade racing market with Mario Kart, Nintendo is shifting their focus. Their newest project, which our source (who has insight of Nintendo developments) refers to as "Concept Grand Prix", is in development by
Lucid Games made up of ex-Developers of Bizarre Creations (Fur Fighters, Project Gotham Racing, Blur).
Concept Grand Prix is expected to provide extremely realistic physics, with controls and gameplay similar to Project Gotham. Players will begin their careers working for R&D Division, one of many fictional automobile manufacturers and concept design providers in the game. The title features a deep car customization element which allows you to build cars from scratch based on concepts provided by car manufacturers such as R&D Division. Using Wii U's tablet, players can customize everything from the vehicles individual spark plugs to curing plastics on the exterior finish. Once a player finishes their first vehicle, they'll be put through R&D Tests, which has been directly compared to Gran Turismo's licensing system.
Both Gran Turismo and Forza their latest additions to the series have a strong community focus, something Lucid Games has acknowledged. Concept Grand Prix will be a community centric game that embraces the car enthusiasts it will attract. Nintendo is hoping CGP inspires real life manufacturers to pursue designs produced by the game's community, and they may even host a contest to promote the title.
CGP 's online multiplayer will add longevity to the title by providing monthly challenges many of which will require you to design cars to pass downloadable R&D Tests. Online races will accommodate 12-players simultaneously; you will earn points by creating cars and racing them for your company.
Concept Grand Prix's motive is clear; Forza and Gran Turismo are the definitive racers of their respective consoles. However, GT and Forza offer real life prestigious car manufactures with long legacies in automobile engineering, and it's looking like CGP will not. Perhaps the hassles of pursing licensing from dozens of car manufacturers for vehicles influenced Nintendo to take a renegade approach in delivering a new high profile racer.
Dual Pixels' source has told us to expect a Concept Grand Prix announcement at or leading up to E3 2012.