All GT7 SPEC II November Update Features, Explained

Coming hot off the heels of the new Forza Motorsport is Gran Turismo 7’s November Update. This isn’t your usual GT7 update though, as it’s arguably an overhaul of the year-old game. So, let’s dig into all the new features included in GT7’s SPEC II November Update.

GT7 SPEC II Update 1.40

In addition to Polyphony Digital’s update notes on their website, there’s a trailer that goes through the various new features and items. The SPEC II 1.40 update was released on Nov. 2, and brings several notable additions and changes to the game’s core systems.

All New Tracks Added to GT7

Lake Louise is the new track included in the update, and it has three variations; each with their own reverse tracks.

• Lake Louise Long Track
• Lake Louise Long Track Reverse
• Lake Louise Short Track
• Lake Louise Short Track Reverse
• Lake Louise Tri-Oval
• Lake Louise Tri-Oval Reverse

This is a brand new rally racetrack, but with a cool twist. This fictional Canadian track features snow terrain, which is a first for Gran Turismo 7, and the update also includes snow tires specifically for this track’s unique terrain. Racing fans have wondered how the advanced graphics and physics of PlayStation’s premiere driving simulator would handle snow terrain, and now we’ll finally get to see it in all its glory.

All New Cars Coming to GT7 via November 2023 Update

Included in the update are seven new cars, including the highly anticipated Lexus LFA (finally!).

• Dodge Charger R/T 426 Hemi ’68 (Legendary Dealership Only) – 158,000 Credits
• Dodge Challenger SRT Demon ’18 – 200,000 Credits
• Lexus LFA ’10 – 1,500,000 Credits
• Mercedes-Benz 190 E 2.5-16 Evolution II ’91 (Legendary Dealership Only) – 300,000 Credits
• NISMO 400R ’95 (Legendary Dealership Only) – 1,800,000 Credits
• Porsche 911 GT3 RS (992) ’22 – 340,000 Credits
• Tesla Model 3 Performance ’23 – 55,000 Credits

The 1968 Charger is a favorite among muscle car enthusiasts, so that should be a great addition. Likewise, the Challenger Demon has been highly demanded by fans, especially since GT7 had no modern Challengers until this update.

The Lexus LFA is often cited as the best-sounding car of all time and is one of the most highly requested cars by GT7 fans, so it’ll be great to sound it off in lobbies.

The Mercedes-Benz 190 E, NISMO 400R, and Porsche 911 GT3 RS are also huge additions to the game that have been highly asked for since GT7’s launch. The Tesla Model 3 is the only mediocre car included in this update, especially since EVs have been pretty useless in GT7.

GT7 World Circuits Overhaul, Explained

The patch notes merely put this under “new events”, but the changes and additions made to the single-player World Circuits are transformative. Let’s go through all the changes and new additions.

First, a new event directory feature is being added, which allows better formatting and searching across GT7’s World Circuits mode. The events can now be organized like the old games were, by event type instead of merely by track. In addition, there’s now a handy progress bar for each set of events.

In addition to an overhauled formatting to World Circuits, there’s also a new Weekly Challenges feature that awards prizes for “clearing all of the races in the section.” Rewarding sets of events in the World Circuits pavilion through different weekly challenges is a good addition that finally helps address GT7’s disappointing single-player.

In addition, the patch notes state that, “In Spec II, five standard and two expert level races will be added.” This means there are seven new events in the World Circuits pavilion.

Thankfully, reward payouts have been increased as per the Spec II Update. Now, payouts are scaled to your Collector Level and Circuit Experience completion. If you’ve been playing the game for a long time as I have, you can expect to finally earn what you deserve and be able to afford those overpriced cars.

Players will also get to race against Sophy AI within World Circuits, yet still have the option to race against the ordinary AI. More on Sophy AI later.

What Are Master License Events? Explained

Licenses have been a legendary feature of the Gran Turismo franchise since Gran Turismo 4, and now we get a huge update on GT7’s normal License events.

Master License is a new expert-level series that adds a whopping 50 new license events to the game. The base game has 50 license events, so that’ll make for a total 100 license events in GT7 after this update.

GT7 Meeting Place Overhaul, Explained

The Meeting Place feature in GT7 was pretty bland, so this overhaul is welcome. Originally, Meeting Place just consisted of a lobby of players on one of the game’s tracks. There was no dedicated racing or events; just a mode to chill out and chat about each other’s cars.

Now, we get a fresh new mode entirely. Meeting Place is now called “Paddocks”, and has its own dedicated parking lot with new features specifically for showing off one’s car to online players.

How Does the Update Change the GT7 Dashboard? Explained

The Dashboard functions as your main progress menu in GT7. The Profile menus aren’t going anywhere, so we still have all our original statistics and driving marathon graphs.

Here’s what the new Dashboard looks like, as per the SPEC II Update.

There’s a lot more detail and relevant info included in this menu, such as Gold/Silver/Bronze progress indicators for each mode.

GT Sophy AI, Explained

And of course, there’s the big AI update to GT7.

GT Sophy has been in the works since before GT7’s release and is marketed as the most intelligent AI featured in any racing game. GT7 players got a small test back a few months, and it really does behave realistically in a way few other racing AI programs could hope to match. The AI even uses emojis depending on what’s happening on the racetrack.

The Sophy AI will be incorporated into certain Quick Race single-player circuits. It’s a shame the Cafe Menu races and various other events won’t feature Sophy, but at least it’s finally a permanent fixture in the single-player. Polyphony Digital has stated that over 70% of the cars in the game are compatible with the AI though, so it’s worth noting that the new AI isn’t yet ready to handle certain vehicles.

Here are all the tracks currently featuring the GT Sophy AI races:

• Laguna Seca
• Grand Valley Highway 1
• Road Atlanta
• 24H Le Mans
• Spa Francorchamps
• Deep Forest Raceway
• Red Bull Ring
• Suzuka Circuit
• Tsukuba Circuit

All Miscellaneous Changes Made Through GT7 SPEC II Update

The update also adds three new Cafe Menus. Every update since release has included a couple of new Cafe Menus, so this isn’t too surprising. Still, it should provide some good rewards if you have the vehicles to complete them.

• [Extra Menu No. 31] Collection: Road-Going Racers (Collector Level 30 and above)
• [Extra Menu No. 32] Collection: Lexus (Collector Level 34 and above)
• [Extra Menu No. 33] Collection: Red Bull X Series (Collector Level 49 and above)

Four-player split screen is being added to the update, but it’s a PS5 exclusive. There’s also new Scapes set at the Polyphony Digital HQ as well as shutter speed improvements, so photographers have some cool new content to look forward to as well.

In addition to all this, a whole new cinematic intro movie is being added to the SPEC II update. This will most likely delete the original cinematic from the game entirely, or it could archive it in the options.

This update overhauls much of GT7’s single-player content. Enhanced AI, robust formatting improvements, and tons of new events and weekly challenges make single-player much more enticing. But does this update do enough to challenge Forza Motorsport‘s successful release? Who knows; but it’ll definitely attract old and new players who are stuck on PlayStation.

For now though, that’s everything you need to know about the GT7 November SPEC II Update and what it does. Check back here on Twinfinite for all the latest guides and news in the gaming world, and check out the relevant articles down below for even more on Sony’s flagship racing franchise.