If you love racing games, and in particular, the acclaimed Gran Tursimo series, here is a piece of news that will bring a smile across your face.

This highly anticipated installment of the Playstation-exclusive franchise may meet its fall 2010 deadline after all.

According to Jalopnik, when asked about Gran Turismo 5 at the SEMA (Specialty Equipment Market Association) Show, game creator Kazunori Yamauchi replied that: “the game disc are stamped as we speak.”

This is in contrary to earlier reports from game sites such as Eurogamer which suggested that insiders believe the game will most likely hit shelves in 2011 instead.

Originally scheduled for release in early November, the game was delayed in late October due to the team’s insistence on providing the most comprehensive racing experience ever. From early impression at E3, those lucky enough to have a chance to test out the game already commented that the amount of contents and customization is unbelievable. Kazunori is said to have wanted to hit the 1000 in-game cars milestone.

Believe it, this is actual in-game graphic~!

Rumor has it that the latest delay is not due to the development of the game, but rather Sony’s decision to move to a new BluRay format in order to counter piracy.

Sony has always maintained that the game will be released before the holiday season this year. However, given Gran Turismo’s track record, I guess they cannot blame anyone for being so skeptical. If what Kazunori said is true, then there is a high chance the game can squeeze into the December calendar. But until the actual release date is confirmed, wait… until the game actually hit shelves (they have confirmed the release date twice already haven’t they?), I will be keeping my finger crossed on this one.

That of course have not deterred retailers from listing the game as Q4 2010. In fact, retailers in Singapore will be accepting pre-orders on 4th November for 3 special Gran Turismo 5 bundles.

Here is a preview of what you can expect from Gran Turismo 5 featuring comments from F1 driver Sebastian Vettel:

The video mentioned that the car featured is the fastest machine on land and perhaps it shows from Vettel’s struggle to stay on track at the beginning.

Will we finally enjoy the greatness of Gran Tursimo 5 before the turn of the year? We will have to wait a bit longer to find out.

Source: Jalopnik, Eurogamer, Qisahn