If you’re a SIM racing nut, there’s really only two legitimate options that every get mentioned: Gran Turismo and Forza. Both have their own unique feel and approach to the racing SIM ideology and are literally separated by an unsurpassed divide (Forza being Xbox only and Gran Turismo PS3 only).

Back when Gran Turismo 3 (and even 4) were brand new, all of the spit polish and eye candy couldn’t help me get past the fact that smashing into a barrier at 200+mph did absolutely nothing to the car. That’s a problem. Hence the reason Forza began to win me over. And then, talk of Gran Turismo 5 and it’s long sought after damage modeling pulled me back into a conundrum of not knowing exactly who’s “best”.

So where do we stand?

Well, damage modeling in Gran Turismo 5 will definitely add that final crucial piece of realism the franchise has been missing for many years over. But damage modeling just makes things more real, not necessarily more fun. That’s where the new track editor comes in.

Quoted by the LA Times, Shuhei Yoshida, president of SCE Worldwide Studios goes on saying:

Gran Turismo 5 will offer gamers an experience more rich, more in-depth and more exciting than they might expect – even from a series as closely identified with innovation and invention as Gran Turismo. Not only will Gran Turismo 5 deliver an even more comprehensive set of cars and courses than gamers saw with previous iterations, it will also feature new game-enhancing graphical effects such as damage, night racing and weather.

These innovations are twinned with the option to join millions of like-minded individuals globally within the Gran Turismo community and to find a driving experience to suit, whether that is taking on the Top Gear test track, chucking cars around stunt arenas, go-karting, creating and sharing your own track or intense head-to-head races. Who, where and what to drive is completely down to the individual.

Besides the fact that the Top Gear track (and Top Gear in general) is awesome, having a robust and heavily customizable track editor within GT5 will add hours upon hours of gameplay beyond the normal race, win, race, repeat formula that we’ve seen time and time again.

Of course, coming from several years of being a Forza junkie, GT5 is really going to have to impress to get me to switch over full time. I mean, Forza’s damage modeling is already fantastic, with visuals just slightly below GT levels. Again, track editor, nothing new. But, if the developers who crafted GT5 after many years of hard labor have truly put their heart and soul into it by offering a more useful and creative track editor than ever before seen, a lot of people will take notice.

Looking at it all, a question arises: Does there have to be a #1? Can’t Forza and Gran Turismo co-exist? I say yes. At least, I hope so. Each game pushes the other further and further with each release, pushing the boundaries of what a defines a racing SIM. The outcome is the best part — we gamers have a choice.

Your turn. What do your SIM racers think of the current options when comparing the latest GT and Forza? (Of course they’ll be based on previews, images, and videos as GT5 isn’t available yet in full). Let it out below.