Gamer to racer: Gran Turismo HQ
From playing GT at home, we travel to the company’s headquarters in Tokyo. And more. . .
From home to a game to a racetrack, that’s the dream portrayed in the Gran Turismo movie. And last month, that’s exactly what we did. From a PS5 at home in NZ, to racing an MX-5 in Japan, we did the triple play of Gran Turismo game, GT movie and GT-sponsored racecar, with a VIP visit to the Gran Turismo headquarters in Tokyo.
Celebrating 25 years, Gran Turismo has become one of Sony’s biggest game titles, an all-time hero and racing simulator institution for its creator, Polyphony Digital, and president Kazunori Yamauchi.
Running longer in parallel, Mazda has been holding a yearly celebration of the MX-5 since its launch in 1989, called the Mazda Festa and Party Race, headlined by a four-hour eco-endurance race in cars Mazda builds and loans to media outlets once a year, to race around Tsukuba Circuit, 90 minutes north of Tokyo. Up to five drivers are in each team, an allowance for one pro driver, and as the only international team, titled “NHKxGTxDrivenxC!”. Our drivers comprised team principal and Nurburgring 24 Hour racer Peter Lyon, Philippines MX-5 Spec Series champ Juha Turalba, GT staffers Kazuki Yamada (also Japan GT champion) and Shuhei Sakamoto, and me, editor, Dean Evans, 2023 MX-5 series champ.
Asa Gran Turismo racer since the original GT in 1998, with a trophy from the Aussie launch event to prove it, thanks to Sony PlayStation NZ and Logitech, I’d been practising on my simulator cockpit on Gran Turismo 7 ,ona
PS5, with a Logitech G923 wheel, for more than three months in the Mazda MX-5 1.5-litre that’s sold in the virtual Mazda showroom.
The unique part is that the laps aren’t flat out, but instead require a lower rev limit, one higher gear in corners and a lot of lifting and coasting, all to conserve fuel;
1m:15s lap times was our target, despite the car being capable of
1m:10s. Oh, training also included three to four actual gym visits per week doing actual cardio work, and shaving 10kg.
Given our schedule included a special VIP visit to Gran Turismo
7 HQ, I thought it appropriate to watch the movie first. My minireview was that the less you know about racing, the game and GT Academy, the better it was. Two stars for me, thanks to the cringe factor and “that’s not how it happened” moments, but four stars for the objective enjoyment. It offers insight into the game and competition and how a gamer can very effectively transfer into a reallife car and do very well.
In a secret location, in a discrete Tokyo building, the lift doors open to the Polyphony Digital, home of Gran Turismo 7. We’re here to spend a few hours refining our driving. It’s an ethereal place, with a large, open area, huge screens, even a bar and menu, a la the game, drinks and mandatory vending machines, trophies and awards, and even a locker room with a track map for each cubby.
Before we start, creator Kazunori Yamauchi greets us, wishes us good luck and tells us to go one better than last year’s second place finish! No pressure, then. We spend half a day driving around Tsukuba on a very special version of Gran Turismo 7 that allows us to tailor our driving style for fuel use, with a score given for each lap relating to lap times and fuel use. After we each do near 100 laps, we’re each doing consistent
1m:14-15s lap times while hitting our fuel targets.
Game on, so to speak!