Sony confirmed on Friday afternoon (November 12, 2010) that the latest chapter in their Gran Turismo 5 franchise will ship on November 24, 2010. Last month, Sony raised hackles amongst the racing game literati by announcing a delay of the game from November 3, 2010. The official press release follows:

New Release Date Announced for Gran Turismo 5
Last Updated : Nov 12, 2010

   Sony Computer Entertainment today confirmed that Gran Turismo® 5 will go on sale throughout North America on Wednesday, November 24.

   “Gran Turismo 5 is an ambitious project, with challenges and complexities which have made it our version of the Apollo Space Program!” commented Kazunori Yamauchi, President of Polyphony Digital Inc. “When we created the original Gran Turismo back in 1997, we wanted to set a completely new precedent for the racing genre. With the technological leap onto PlayStation 3, our objective with Gran Turismo 5 was to create another great revolution which would not only satisfy our own high expectations, but would meet or even exceed the anticipation of the fans. Satisfying the loyal Gran Turismo followers is at the heart of all of our efforts, which is why it was such a difficult decision to delay the release of the game, and one which we did not take lightly. I can only apologize to everyone for making you wait so long, and I hope that when you try out the wealth of driving experiences available in Gran Turismo 5, you will not be disappointed.”

   Gran Turismo 5 features an impressive line-up of over 1,000 cars, including the Lamborghini Murciélago LP 670-4 SuperVeloce, the Lexus LFA and the McLaren MP4-12C. In addition, the game also features select NASCAR® cars and tracks, along with kart racing, for the first time ever. Other features include the all-new Course Maker, dynamic weather, robust online and community features, and much, much more.

   Both the standard and Collector's Editions will be available on November 24.