Gran Turismo 7 is a fantastic showcase of what the PS5 can do and a triumphant return to form for developer Polyphony Digital’s long-running racing sim series. But before you get behind the wheel and set a new hot lap on Tsukuba Circuit, we’ve found five Gran Turismo 7 settings that you’ll definitely want to change.

From adjusting audio options to simple quality of life changes, these tweaks all add up to make the game even more enjoyable than it already is. And you never know: there might be a few settings here that you weren’t aware of, so take a look at our top suggestions below and give them a try the next time you hit the track.

5. Turn off the opening cinematic

Gran Turismo 7’s opening cinematic is a beautifully choreographed work of art that needs to be seen at least once. However, it's over seven minutes long.

Thankfully, there is a way to stop it from playing every time you start the game – handy if you’re tired of pressing Circle to skip it.

To turn off GT7’s opening cinematic, head to the game’s options by pressing the start button when you’re on the main map screen. In the Global menu setting, you should see a tile called ‘Opening Movie’, click on it and toggle the ‘Play Opening Movie’ to off. It’s as easy as that.

4. Change the cockpit view

If you’re a fan of the cockpit view, which lets you see the gorgeous, unique interiors of each vehicle, there’s an option to adjust the default setting that’s well worth tinkering with – especially if you’re using a racing wheel or even the DualSense’s motion control options .

During a race, press start and go to Settings > Display Settings. Scroll to the bottom and you should ‘Adjust Cockpit View’ and ‘Adjust Chase View’. Click on ‘Adjust Cockpit View’, and you’ll see options to adjust the Height, Depth, Orientation, and Wobbling type. If you want a slightly wider FOV, set the Height and Depth to 5. If you want to see the whole dash and race using a wheel, change the orientation from ‘Default’ to ‘Offset’. It’s recommended to move into a position where the on-screen steering wheel is directly in front of you when using this setting.

Finally, there's the Wobbling type. Wobbling type 2 makes what happens in the cockpit feel more realistic when driving. For example, the screen will shake and wobble more when driving over the bumps in the Tokyo Expressway and give you a better sense of a car's suspension. Feel free to experiment with this setting, as Wobbling Type 2 might be a bit much for some.

3. Choose the right assist settings

This may seem like an obvious one, but choosing the right difficulty is paramount to your enjoyment in Gran Turismo 7. If you’re new to sim racers, you’ll want to make good use of the game’s driving assists, such as showing the braking areas and racing line or turning on auto-braking. It’s also wise to lower the AI of your opponents, to begin with; you might wind up chasing shadows on some of the more complex tracks like Laguna Seca or the colossal Nürburgring if the AI difficulty is set too high, which is never fun for first-time drivers.

As your ability improves (we recommend completing the game’s many license tests if you really want to understand the fundamentals of driving in GT7), you can adjust your assist settings accordingly. You can toggle which assists you feel are most useful to you while removing the ones that you no longer require. There’s no shame in driving with assists on as GT7 won’t reduce the amount of credits you earn when using them, but your goal should be to remove as many aids as possible if you really want to experience the simulation side of the game that Gran Turismo 7 really encapsulates.

2. Adjust the audio settings

When the rain’s hammering down during the final lap of a championship race, Gran Turismo 7’s 3D audio is a real treat for the ears, especially if you’re using cockpit view. Unfortunately, though, there’s a curious bug right now that defaults the game’s audio to 7.1 every time you restart the game. That’s fine if you’re using a capable home cinema system, but for headphones users, you’ll want to change it to two-channel stereo audio asap.

Head to the game’s options by pressing the start button and click on the ‘Sound Volume’ tile. Scroll all the way down until you see ‘Audio Output Mode’ and change it to ‘2ch Stereo’. You should notice a clear difference during races if the audio sounded muddy or a bit overwhelming before.

You can also make other tweaks to GT7’s audio here, like increasing the noise of tire squeal or your opponents’ engine noise if you want to hear the threat of your car spinning out or a competitor approaching more easily. Have a play around to see what sounds best to you.

1. Turn up the vibration setting

The PS5 DualSense controller really comes alive in Gran Turismo 7 and lets you feel every inch of the track as though you’re sitting directly in the driver’s seat. Luckily, there’s a way to make things feel even better: turn up the vibration intensity.

In the options menu, hit R1 to switch to the ‘Controllers’ menu. Click on ‘Vibration function’ and scroll down to ‘Vibration Strength’. The default setting is 100, but you can actually bump it up to 150, meaning every kickback when you change gear will feel all the more realistic. Give it a go if you’ve found yourself wishing for a little more oomph from the DualSense’s excellent haptic feedback. It’s totally worth it.

Interested in playing Gran Turismo 7? Check out the best deals in your area below.

Apple TV Plus offers first look at Argylle, the Henry Cavill and Dua Lipa spy thriller

Apple has given us a first look at blockbuster spy movie Argylle as part of its Apple March event .

The tech giant previewed its plans for the year ahead in new products, and, as part of the presentation, it gave us a sneak peek at four of its forthcoming original movies.

Argylle is adapted from author Ellie Conway's as-yet unpublished novel and boasts a very starry cast with Henry Cavill, Sam Rockwell, Bryce Dallas Howard, Bryan Cranston, Catherine O'Hara, John Cena, Samuel L. Jackson, Ariana DeBose, Rob Delaney all starring, as well as singer Dua Lipa in her acting debut.

Matthew Vaughn, creator of Kingsman and director of Kick-Ass and X-Men: First Class directs, marking his debut working away from cinema.

Argylle follows a world-class spy who finds himself suffering from amnesia. Before he can recover his memory, he is tricked into believing he is a best-selling spy novelist.

Then, when his memories and lethal skills do return, he swears revenge against the Division, the shadowy organization he used to work for.

You can get a first look at Argylle as well as the rest of Apple's 2022 movie slate at the start of the presentation that we've embedded below for you:

What else did Apple show off?

Apple also showed a first look at Spirited, the modern musical re-imagining of Charles Dickens' classic Christmas ghost story A Christmas Carol. Ryan Reynolds will play Ebeneezer Scrooge, with Will Ferrell and Octavia Spencer also in key roles.

There's also Luck, an animated adventure with Simon Pegg, Whoopi Goldberg, Flula Borg, Jane Fonda and Eva Noblezada providing the voices.

Luck follows Sam Greenfield, the unluckiest person in the world. When she discovers the never-before-seen Land of Luck, Sam must unite with the magical creatures there to turn her luck around.

We also got a glimpse at Cha Cha Real Smooth, the comedy-drama Apple picked up at Sundance. This one stars Dakota Johnson, Cooper Raiff, Vanessa Burghardt and Leslie Mann. It'll tell the story of a man who works as a bar mitzvah party host, who comes to strike up a friendship with a young woman and her teenage daughter.

Additionally, we got a brief look at The Greatest Beer Run Ever, which puts together Zac Efron, Russell Crowe and Bill Murray. It's based on the book of the same name by Joanna Molloy and John "Chickie" Donohue.

It'll track the journey of Efron's Donohue, who, after a wager, leaves New York in 1967 to bring beer to his childhood buddies in the Army while they are fighting in Vietnam.

Finally, we saw a few seconds of Raymond and Ray, which brings together Ewan McGregor and Ethan Hawke. It's a comedy-drama which shows two half brothers reuniting at the funeral of their father, whom they both had a bad relationship with..

Make sure you follow our Apple March Event live blog to ensure you don't miss any breaking news from today's huge event.

My trusty old Sony headphones convinced me to ditch my gaming headset for PS4

I've been sinking a little too much time into Elden Ring recently - the first PS4 game I've really found myself getting stuck into since I built my first PC last year. But this renewed interest in my aging console has given me a habit that fans of gaming headsets might hate.

You see, I don't have a TV or even a projector - I connect my PS4 to my PC monitor (which only has one HDMI slot, so I have to do a lot of unplugging when switching between the computer and console).

It doesn't have a built-in speaker and I live with people so I'm not going to use a soundbar or external speakers - no, I'm a headset man for now.

And despite having a nice fancy gaming headset with chunky cans, bright LEDs and easy volume toggles - basically, all the bells and whistles - I've found myself preferring to use my rather old Sony WH-1000XM3 headphones instead.

Yep, instead of using the fancy Logitech headset that is literally designed for gaming, I've been doing my Elden Ring stints in my older wireless headphones that have been through the wars so much, that I literally have to use sticky tape to hold them together.

I'm not even using them wirelessly. I'm hearing the sounds of all those dragons and spells and weird shiny beetles by plugging the headphones into my controller via 3.5mm jacks. But I think I've got some good reasons.

Are gaming headsets designed for comfort? No.

There's no question that my gaming headset has some good gaming features, but that comes at a price - or, more accurately, a weight.

The headset is a chunky thing. It's heavy and the pads are huge, which makes me feel like my face has two giant suction cups on it. One of the novelty helmets in Elden Ring is called the Pumpkin Helm, and it's a huge metal sphere basically. Well, when wearing my headset, I feel like I'm wearing that.

When I'm chilling and exploring The Lands Between (and by that I mean, running around on my horse in areas that are way above my level, smacking enemies with my sword, doing no damage and running away, like a mischievous child) I want to feel relaxed. If I've got a giant headset on, weighing me down and squeezing my head, I'm always conscious of this accessory.

That's not the case with the Sony WH-1000XM3 though. It's soft and light, and feels as much like a comfy beanie as a pair of headphones. I can relax a lot more when I'm wearing these airy cans.

After using a few gaming headsets in my time, I get the distinct impression that they're not built for comfort - or beauty contests for that matter, though I'm alone in my room, not on a catwalk, so that's excusable.

Pairing is annoying

One big factor with my headset situation is that my gaming headset is paired with my computer - and by 'paired' I don't mean 'plugged into', but connected with an unbreakable bond.

That bond isn't unbreakable in that 'it can't be broken' but rather 'I absolutely refuse to break it'. That's because I've found the headset quite a nightmare to pair with my computer. If I disconnect the thing, I'm scared that I'll never get it working again.

And that's because of all the extra features that come with the headset - I had to install extra software that lets the thing work on my computer and change my computer settings to get the optimal performance from it. I also have a program that lets me change the color of the cans. I don't even understand why, I can't see the thing when it's on my head!

That's the cost of loads of fancy extras and add-ons, I suppose.

I once made the mistake of disconnecting the headphones and the computer almost had a meltdown. It wanted to go through the entire installation process again, seemingly not recognizing that I did it all already.

That's not an issue with my Sony WH-1000XM3. Because I'm using it alongside an audio cable, I can just jam the end of the wire in any 3.5mm-sized hole and instantly get audio.

That means I can also use the Sony cans as my normal headphones, or for other devices, and jump straight from these gadgets to my PS4 in an instant.

The audio difference is minimal

Despite the aesthetic discrepancy, I'd be willing to use the gaming headset if I thought it brought much extra. But I don't feel it does.

I should clarify that I'm not the biggest audiophile in the world. When I'm listening to music, watching a film, or playing a game, I can easily ignore the audio quality from my headphones to focus on the artistic, tonal, or atmospheric quality instead. In other words, if I listen to an absolutely banging tune on rubbish headphones, I won't care.

Because of this, the Sony headphones and the gaming headset feel basically the same to me. They both play the music, the sounds, the dialog, and all that, and I just can't tell the difference between them.

Their similarities are exacerbated by a gaming experience I had when I was younger. When GTA V first came out, and I was a teenager living at home, I used to play it on the tiny, cheap 24-inch TV in my bedroom with rubbish wired headphones.

Then one day when the house was empty, I took my PS3 downstairs and plugged it into the living room TV. I was struck by one huge audio difference - on this larger TV, I could hear a sound I couldn't before.

This sound was all the background audio - distant chatter, the honking of horns a few streets over, the tired growl of busy roads. In short, the kind of sounds a normal city makes when you stop to listen (but whoever really does).

I'd never heard this kind of audio mix before in a video game, and it created a more engrossing atmosphere than possibly any other part of the game, or most other games I'd tried. It was this audio extra that really transported me from leafy suburban Bristol to bricky suburban Los Santos.

To bring this rambling tale home, that jump from my trashy audio setup to an incredible one really improved my experience with the game and I'm glad I made it (well, until I got kicked off the big TV and was relegated back to my background-sound-less one).

However, the switch between my roughly equal Sony cans and gaming headset brought no such leaps in true tangible immersion, so I don't feel that audio quality is an important metric in my decision.

TechRadar's audio experts could sit down with the WH-1000XM3 and my Logitech headset, and definitively tell me which had better bass, treble, mid, and other features. But as the difference won't bring me any actual immersion benefits, I'll stick with the ones that are comfortable and easy to pair.

I know some people put huge stock in their gaming hardware, and my confession here may draw some eye-rolls. But for the gamers who don't have cutting-edge this and that, I'd recommend just using your normal headphones for games instead of buying fancy ones.