Gran Turismo 7 Has a "Really High Number of Active Users", Says Kazunori Yamauchi

[Keef]

The new weekly races mode has made me a bit more active. Adding that mode struck me at first as a bandain to bolster active users and it's working, although it's also a useful quality of life change. I find it hard to believe that they would truly need to bolster user counts at this point but it's plausible, especially with Forza and the incredible number of Xbox users willing to spend money on low-quality games.

 

[redhed17]

I doubt we would ever see any claimed numbers, never mind actual independently verified numbers (which I assume do not exist), to back up claims such these. Going from 100 to 200 (for example) would be doubling the numbers, but not very impressive.
Seikenfreak wrote something similar just as I was about to post.

It would of course be very interesting to see total games sold vs active players, and active players vs online racers. I think that would be some very interesting numbers! Never happen of course.

GT7 has been the version I have played the least, and that is from version 1. I found GT Sport had more longevity for me, which has been very disappointing. I keep hoping for something amazing to transform it, the Spec II update was meh for me. Fingers crossed though for the future. This is my last version of GT, so hoping to get something to entice me to us it even more.

 

[d25bev]

You'd have even more if you bought it to PC.

 

[Lomic]

These statements mean practically nothing.

Sure, but for people less knowledgeable, they might seem impressive.

 

[NJ72]

Or AFAIK script?

Erm... That acronym isn't the right one 😂

 

[BangsMcCoy]

I am a statistic. It increased my activity within the game. For the better part of 2023 I was only logging in for anywhere between 1-2.5hrs once a month immediately following a content update. Since Spec II released I now log in for about an hour once a week to complete the weekly challenges and build my bank back up so I can keep buying the new cars, tuning parts and engine swaps as they release.

 

[BlackedoutRX7LM]

Definitely more people doing the ranked time trials the last few rounds

 

[Ande3200]

The game has been in top 20-30 most sold games even this year, for many of the months, so its clear thats its going pretty well,

 

[A_Higher_Place]

The game has been in top 20-30 most sold games even this year, for many of the months, so its clear thats its going pretty well,

I am willing to bet the felt impact of buying the game in it's current state is much more positive than buying it on release too. That game was a skeleton of what we have now.

 

[FlightSpeed_]

With the spec II update (as well as a few other implementations added up from before) to me it demonstrates that PD made at least an effort to listen and improve players overall satisfaction with the game and that's what brought me back, as well as my son and same for friends along. (combined with the subpar new FM)

That said, it's not really surprising that we've seen player numbers increased in such a way. The result is a mix of conjecture and as well as GT making some proper changes, some updates and additions.

There's been an improvement, a step in the right direction and people have responded positively by coming back.
BUT now to keep players in the game they will have to sustain the effort over time and on a regular basis by keeping on doing what has worked to bring people back lately...

I really really REALLY hope Sony and PD will have learned something from this.

To me the increased TT prize from a few months back, the fact that there are two at a time, that they are up for 2 weeks is positive and encourages me to play. The new weekly challenges along with the reward prizes are a nice recognition that help restore a better balance to the game/user feeling in regards to payouts vs time invested. I really appreciate the added license tests as well. Improved quick races and many other general additions or improvements. All the latest GT bonus campaigns, the new Christmas one are nice incentives too that show appreciation for players.

Not to say there aren't still things to fix and there ate still a few things that look like an unfinished game, but at least the user experience has been much better lately. I just wish that they didn't make the bonus races only temporary, as well as the weekly challenges that cannot be replayed once they're done. We still need way more new races and regular new track additions at least 4-6 per year.

That being said spec II should serve as a new starting point and to keep players in the game they should keep adding to it with updates much like Forza Horizon does because that's what retains players over time: many exciting new cars monthly, more races, bonus prizes, encouraging payouts so you can afford the cars or win them by completing season races, keep on adding new tracks and challenges.

 

[Boxster]

Erm... That acronym isn't the right one 😂

I stand corrected.
Note to self: don't post in foreign language when tired

 

[brockie]

People will be racing on this thing for years, I’ll be racing on sport and 7 until they shut down, gotta be loads of people doing the same, I’d hope

 

[Famine]

Erm... That acronym isn't the right one 😂

Well... not as far as you know anyway...

 

[PorscheHD]

Bring It to pc and hé can get allot more

 

[Beezer215]

Spec II came out, it was to some like getting a whole new game.

Oh no. Oh gosh no. That's going to be a no for me.

 

[sswishbone]

He is not going to say numbers have dropped is he?

 

[Pizzapants]

This just in: GT7 doing great, says guy in charge of GT7.

 

[Nielsen]

Another contributing factor is that physical copies are consistently displayed on many store shelves to this day, and it’s clearly in ongoing demand.

 

[MisterWaffles]

I've barely been able to play the past few months since I've been so busy, but I'm not surprised Gran Turismo has a very high amount of active users.

Forza might have been threatening to GT's playerbase when it was coming out, but as we all know now that game was a bit of a paper tiger, and although both games have their issues I think GT7 is still the more solid foundation between the two. Forza barely even works there's so many bugs and glitches. Plus the whole hiding cars that were in the game at launch from players to put back in as seasonal content later is pretty scummy imo. GT7's dealership rotation kind of sucks too but at least you can still buy the cars (if you've scrounged up enough capital to afford them).

Also Turn 10 lying about the game being built from the ground-up to build pre-release hype was pretty unethical too.

So, I feel like a large portion of GT7's playerbase that also games on PC didn't really make the jump to Forza when that came around due to the issues, plus the Spec 2.0 update was strategically timed in order to take some attention away from Forza's launch (even if that update wasn't even that substantial and kind of disappointing itself).

I'm happy GT7 has a good and healthy playerbase, but as a community we are not eating well these past years.

 

[FlightSpeed_]

I've barely been able to play the past few months since I've been so busy, but I'm not surprised Gran Turismo has a very high amount of active users.

Forza might have been threatening to GT's playerbase when it was coming out, but as we all know now that game was a bit of a paper tiger, and although both games have their issues I think GT7 is still the more solid foundation between the two. Forza barely even works there's so many bugs and glitches. Plus the whole hiding cars that were in the game at launch from players to put back in as seasonal content later is pretty scummy imo. GT7's dealership rotation kind of sucks too but at least you can still buy the cars (if you've scrounged up enough capital to afford them).

So, I feel like a large portion of GT7's playerbase that also games on PC didn't really make the jump to Forza when that came around due to the issues, plus the Spec 2.0 update was strategically timed in order to take some attention away from Forza's launch (even if that update wasn't even that substantial and kind of disappointing itself).

I'm happy GT7 has a good and healthy playerbase, but as a community we are not eating well these past years.

I agree that, amongst other aspects, the used car dealer rotation would need alot more attention in the coming updates with way way more variety along with some more recent cars that are definitely still lacking to the game.

 

[hawkeyez]

Throw in a lot more tracks, increase payout for racing sport and online lobbies, let us share tunes and gift cars and keep updating with cars people want in the game and you’ll see the activity increase. When a game is a grind, the grind gets old and people lose interest. Never see the light at the end of the tunnel. Suddenly there’s hope for everyone (I didn’t do the abarth exploit) and you see people returning so they can finally afford some cars and tune them.

I spent half an hour today copying tunes a friend sent to try out on Sunday. In Project Cars 2 that would have taken me 2 minutes for all four cars. Or less!

I‘m glad more people are or were playing the game but I suspect it’s not because suddenly Lake Louise was added. Each update I’m sure it increases. But I’ve got a friend that entirely gave up on the game. He enjoys it, but he also doesn’t have the time to progress through. I’m sure he’s not the only one. I rarely race single player anymore. The weekly’s bring me back to that but when I see mostly parts and low reward I ask myself if I should even bother.

 

[Auditore]

I ain't saying Kaz is a liar but it's fascinating how different PD operates compared to other Sony studios.For years PD doesn't have to show how much their games sell and Kaz himself shows up sometimes to say "hey we did well,moving on" and sony is fine with that.
Which is guess it means he's telling the truth but the cageyness always caught me off guard

 

[ScottPuss20]

I'm not surprised that there was a temporary upswing in player numbers after the Spec 2.0 update. However, once I had my fun with the new cars, I ditched the game and went back to Forza Motorsport. For me, it's the better game because the online multiplayer has more races to choose from and a rotating track roster, so you never do the same race twice. In GT7, you're stuck with the same 3 every week and it just gets really boring. All the extra events are useless to me because you can earn 2 million credits in an hour (sometimes less!) with the time trials, and it's a lot less stressful. MOREOVER, if I really want to just drive something, I can do that in Forza without having the buy the car and waste my hard earned cash! In order for GT7 to keep my attention, it needs to add more new content that isn't seen anywhere else. However I don't mean Vision GT's because they suck and are totally uninspired.

 

[SnakeOfBacon]

Keep your eyes peeled for more fun and mysterious statements from our favourite fun and mysterious game producer, Yamauchi-sensei! Here's your 2024 bingo card:

Gran Turismo 8 will be released in the future	The physics program is very complex	Gran Turismo 7 has been very successful
Sophy is learning more all the time	We have many cars and track models in development (which I can't tell you about)	Hundreds of thousands of polygons
Our weather simulation simulates the atmosphere	We have a long history with Toyota and Nissan	We have more updates planned

 

[tankuroded]

We have a long history with Toyota and Nissan

inb4 Nissan (re)gains Manufacturers Cup immunity.

 

[Bojador]

Maybe it's time for daily race D 😉

 

[Revengel]

Oh no. Oh gosh no. That's going to be a no for me.

Understood.

For me - after getting a PSVR2 - Spec II was the most transformative experience I've had with GT7. Between the new license tests, dashboard, weekly races, etc. I felt there was a whole new thing to explore.

But that's for me. Others likely feel the same while still others feel differently.

And that's OK people.

I ain't saying Kaz is a liar but it's fascinating how different PD operates compared to other Sony studios.For years PD doesn't have to show how much their games sell and Kaz himself shows up sometimes to say "hey we did well,moving on" and sony is fine with that.
Which is guess it means he's telling the truth but the cageyness always caught me off guard

I'd qualify this to say they have not stated so publicly. I'm very sure there is an extremely accurate tracking of PDs success - or lack thereof - within Sony.

 

[Auditore]

sure there is an extremely accurate tracking of PDs success - or lack thereof - within Sony.

sure.I'm just surprised by the. level of autonomy Kaz has inside PS.It also has to be taken into account how smart PD is with the money they spend,they are a AAA studio but they seem to be on the smaller side.

 

[Lomic]

sure.I'm just surprised by the. level of autonomy Kaz has inside PS

GT(7) is a console seller. I'd still be on PS4 if it was not for GT7.

 

[sonnyboychris]

That being said spec II should serve as a new starting point and to keep players in the game they should keep adding to it with updates much like Forza Horizon does because that's what retains players over time: many exciting new cars monthly, more races, bonus prizes, encouraging payouts so you can afford the cars or win them by completing season races, keep on adding new tracks and challenges.

Yeah, I agree with this. I didn't view spec II as the perfection of GT7 as many have. It's truly what GT7 SOULD HAVE BEEN AT LAUNCH.

As you stated there's tons more for them to improve upon and I'm feeling more optimistic than I have in the past that it'll happen.