- 1,847
This is the interview part of the book. If you find an error/ambiguity etc, contact me.
Without being trapped in the mould of racing games, over the years the GT series has apperared like an asteroid. Control, graphics, system... these qualilites have been refined so much as none of their rivals and imitators have come close. The makers, who allow no compromise, have done something big again, with many new features. What is the essence of the new Gran Turismo? We asked producer Mr. Kazunori Yamauchi.
> In GT4, it is reported that the evolved simulation engine allows a diferent control feel. Can you explain this?
Basically it's much easier to drive. Anyone who owns the Prologue version should compare them. The driving control should be more accurate.
> Is there a type of car which makes this difference most obvious?
I think using a racing car with a mild power would make it easy to tell. The feel of the car exiting the corner with respect to the angle of the steering wheel is much more natural.
> In addition, it has been said that in this version there are going to be additional modes to the well known "GT mode" and "arcade mode". What was the reason behind this?
I thought of the idea of "B spec mode" when GT3 was in development. When I was watching cool replay scenes, watching them over and over, I thought, "This must be where the fun of GT lies". Not just driving cars but looking at them, or taking pictures of them can give you satisfaction. So, I decided to make a GT where the player does not need to actually drive the car to get through the game. Actually I wanted to release "GT3 B spec" after "GT3 A spec" was out, but I got too busy in making it. In "A spec", the evolution from GT2 were in terms of ordinary racing game features such as control, graphics and AI (artificial Intelligence of the computer controlled cars), but in "B spec" the game is more like an RPG or simulation game. However, in terms of ordering it's OK, as you need good AI and control to get such a game to work. By evolving the AI in steps, big things can be conquered. Eventually I want to make the AI think like a human being, but at the moment this is only about 5% done. The other 95% is still an undiscovered field. Therefore GT is all about walking this path of evolution. Putting the effort in to make the controls realistic, and with this realistic control, you want the cars to be controlled by near human AI. With this done, you can finally say, "the path to take is visible".
> So such a feeling was behind the idea of "B spec mode".
Yes. It was an idea big enough to change the game from the root, so it was tough to keep quiet about it for 3 and a half years. I like that kind of play-style. Getting into a trance-like state talking to a 1/60 second race car, or saying "hey, I somehow won", buying part from your hard earned cash.
> Having said that, making a racing game without driving must have been quite a big decision for you. Were there areas which made you think twice about?
Of course, I was worried at how much everyone would accept it. But when I announced the idea, the people whom I got the most vivid response was from the distribution people, who are closest to the users themselves. "Adding the B spec mode makes it much more playable" or "I used to play it but gave up. I might start again with this new system" were some of the comments. I was quite happy to hear them, but couldn't help asking myself "how were they thinking before?". The new "B spec mode" is our answer to the beginner players out there.
> Another new feature is the "Photo Mode". What is the idea behind this?
Being in "GT", everything had to be be "real", so it had to be advanced enough so that even a pro photographer would be satisfied. There is an amateur mode and a pro mode, and can be changed between them. The amateur mode has auto-focus and can facus automatically on the cars, without much effort. All the features are labelled simply and can be used by anyone. In contrast, the pro mode has realistic focusing and can be set manually. Now that digital cameras are common, I think this new mode will be fun to people who have just got into photography.
> Also, what is the "Photo Drive" like, where you can take photos from your own replays?
In the "Photo Mode" are stages where you can take photos of scenes which are already set up, called "Photo Travel" and also there is a "Photo Drive" which lets you take photos of your own replays. They are similar, but "Photo Drive" is more like taking photographs of racing cars going by, like a professional photographer.
> By the way, I heard the PSP version of "GT Mobile" is in development...
Yep. However, we are currently putting in all our efforts for GT4 development. We played GT2 and GT4 on a PSP experimentally, to see which is more suited to the hardware. We found that the level of graphics had to be GT4 quality, as the LCD was too clear for the graphic quality of GT2. I got the feeling it was going to get a lot harder, but at the same time relieved as we do not want to make a game similar to ones we have already done for the PS.
> The PSP has network capability. What do you think of that?
Of course, the link with the to-be-released GT4 online version is possible. But I think the strength of the PSP is the fact that it is portable. I want friends to get together with their PSPs and GT, and have fun communicating offline rather than online. I think this will make a difference in the lifefstyle surrounding GT.
By Natsuki "OOSACKER" Hasegawa
Pre Release Special Interview:
"GT" opens the gate to a a new generation of "GT"
"GT" opens the gate to a a new generation of "GT"
Without being trapped in the mould of racing games, over the years the GT series has apperared like an asteroid. Control, graphics, system... these qualilites have been refined so much as none of their rivals and imitators have come close. The makers, who allow no compromise, have done something big again, with many new features. What is the essence of the new Gran Turismo? We asked producer Mr. Kazunori Yamauchi.
"The B Spec mode is my biggest biggest answer."
-Yamauchi
Profile: Kazunori Yamauchi
President of Polyphony Digital and producer of the GT series. In the past has been involved in the development of "Motortoon Grand Prix" series and "Omegaboost". In order to meet the company's "excessive qualitiy" motto, he is working very hard. Is also a motor-journalist, and a selecting member for the Japan Car of the Year award.
-Yamauchi
Profile: Kazunori Yamauchi
President of Polyphony Digital and producer of the GT series. In the past has been involved in the development of "Motortoon Grand Prix" series and "Omegaboost". In order to meet the company's "excessive qualitiy" motto, he is working very hard. Is also a motor-journalist, and a selecting member for the Japan Car of the Year award.
> In GT4, it is reported that the evolved simulation engine allows a diferent control feel. Can you explain this?
Basically it's much easier to drive. Anyone who owns the Prologue version should compare them. The driving control should be more accurate.
> Is there a type of car which makes this difference most obvious?
I think using a racing car with a mild power would make it easy to tell. The feel of the car exiting the corner with respect to the angle of the steering wheel is much more natural.
> In addition, it has been said that in this version there are going to be additional modes to the well known "GT mode" and "arcade mode". What was the reason behind this?
I thought of the idea of "B spec mode" when GT3 was in development. When I was watching cool replay scenes, watching them over and over, I thought, "This must be where the fun of GT lies". Not just driving cars but looking at them, or taking pictures of them can give you satisfaction. So, I decided to make a GT where the player does not need to actually drive the car to get through the game. Actually I wanted to release "GT3 B spec" after "GT3 A spec" was out, but I got too busy in making it. In "A spec", the evolution from GT2 were in terms of ordinary racing game features such as control, graphics and AI (artificial Intelligence of the computer controlled cars), but in "B spec" the game is more like an RPG or simulation game. However, in terms of ordering it's OK, as you need good AI and control to get such a game to work. By evolving the AI in steps, big things can be conquered. Eventually I want to make the AI think like a human being, but at the moment this is only about 5% done. The other 95% is still an undiscovered field. Therefore GT is all about walking this path of evolution. Putting the effort in to make the controls realistic, and with this realistic control, you want the cars to be controlled by near human AI. With this done, you can finally say, "the path to take is visible".
> So such a feeling was behind the idea of "B spec mode".
Yes. It was an idea big enough to change the game from the root, so it was tough to keep quiet about it for 3 and a half years. I like that kind of play-style. Getting into a trance-like state talking to a 1/60 second race car, or saying "hey, I somehow won", buying part from your hard earned cash.
> Having said that, making a racing game without driving must have been quite a big decision for you. Were there areas which made you think twice about?
Of course, I was worried at how much everyone would accept it. But when I announced the idea, the people whom I got the most vivid response was from the distribution people, who are closest to the users themselves. "Adding the B spec mode makes it much more playable" or "I used to play it but gave up. I might start again with this new system" were some of the comments. I was quite happy to hear them, but couldn't help asking myself "how were they thinking before?". The new "B spec mode" is our answer to the beginner players out there.
> Another new feature is the "Photo Mode". What is the idea behind this?
Being in "GT", everything had to be be "real", so it had to be advanced enough so that even a pro photographer would be satisfied. There is an amateur mode and a pro mode, and can be changed between them. The amateur mode has auto-focus and can facus automatically on the cars, without much effort. All the features are labelled simply and can be used by anyone. In contrast, the pro mode has realistic focusing and can be set manually. Now that digital cameras are common, I think this new mode will be fun to people who have just got into photography.
> Also, what is the "Photo Drive" like, where you can take photos from your own replays?
In the "Photo Mode" are stages where you can take photos of scenes which are already set up, called "Photo Travel" and also there is a "Photo Drive" which lets you take photos of your own replays. They are similar, but "Photo Drive" is more like taking photographs of racing cars going by, like a professional photographer.
> By the way, I heard the PSP version of "GT Mobile" is in development...
Yep. However, we are currently putting in all our efforts for GT4 development. We played GT2 and GT4 on a PSP experimentally, to see which is more suited to the hardware. We found that the level of graphics had to be GT4 quality, as the LCD was too clear for the graphic quality of GT2. I got the feeling it was going to get a lot harder, but at the same time relieved as we do not want to make a game similar to ones we have already done for the PS.
> The PSP has network capability. What do you think of that?
Of course, the link with the to-be-released GT4 online version is possible. But I think the strength of the PSP is the fact that it is portable. I want friends to get together with their PSPs and GT, and have fun communicating offline rather than online. I think this will make a difference in the lifefstyle surrounding GT.
By Natsuki "OOSACKER" Hasegawa
Meow! (='.'=)
