Kazunori Yamauchi, the legendary creator of the Gran Turismo racing simulator series for PlayStation, talked recently with RedBull.com at the Geneva Motor Show in Switzerland.
Yamauchi stressed that gaming deserves to be considered "a true sport" and Polyphony Digital intends to be at the forefront of this shift with Gran Turismo Sport.
And we are excited to partner for this official FIA world championship because gaming deserves that. It's a true sport, it deserves to be treated like a true motorsport and we want to be at the forefront of that.
In case you don't know it yet, one of the big features of GT Sport is that there will be two FIA-certified Gran Turismo Championships. Here's a blurb from the official website of the game:
The first is the “Nations Cup,” where players around the world represent their home country in the series. The other is the “Manufacturer Fan Cup,” in which players select their favourite auto maker and represent them in the series. And the fun isn't restricted only to the one doing the driving, you can root for your favourite driver, country or manufacturer through live race broadcasts.
And the champions of both series will be recognised at the annual FIA prize giving ceremony alongside real life motorsport champions. This will be a historic moment when a video game becomes a part of official motorsport.
Of course, not everyone will be able to compete at that level, but you will be able to root for your favorite driver, country or manufacturer thanks to GT Sport Live. The official races, due in the weekends, will be broadcasted in "real TV-like format, with spot-on track cameras and even live commentary".
GT Sport recently entered the closed beta phase. We've reported on the stunning gameplay videos and animated images (GIFs) shared by those lucky testers already able to play the game; there's still no release date, but it's a safe bet that we'll know it at E3 2017.
How do you feel about Yamauchi's words? Do you agree that gaming should be considered a sport? Let us know below.
About the author: With over two decades of experience in gaming journalism, Alessio Palumbo has led the gaming vertical at Wccftech since August 2015. He started working at a young age for Italian websites like Everyeye.it, Gamestar.it, Nextgame.it, and Multiplayer.it before kickstarting the indie English-language publication Worlds Factory as its founder and Editor in Chief. In the last decade, he has coordinated the overall output of Wccftech's gaming section, managed PR relations, assigned reviews, produced daily news coverage, edited gaming content as needed, and delivered game reviews. Arguably, his trademark content is the long series of exclusive developer interviews that have been cited by Wikipedia and by the biggest news media and gaming publications. His passion for technology also makes him knowledgeable when it comes to gaming hardware and tech. His favorite genres include RPGs, MMORPGs, and action/adventure games.
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