Senna TV, a channel dedicated to all things Ayrton-related, was in Japan recently to interview Polyphony head Kazunori Yamauchi. While talk naturally revolves around the legendary F1 driver, eagle-eyed Gran Turismo fans are treated to a few brief glimpses into Gran Turismo Sport, including our first look at future hardware in action.
Yamauchi starts the interview by recounting his earliest memories of Senna, watching the beginnings of an F1 career that would eventually result in three championship titles and 41 race wins. He was even at Suzuka during Senna’s victory there in 1991, and was fascinated by the Brazilian’s innate throttle control.
It’s these experiences — as well as that dominant Donington performance in 1993 — that Kazunori says shaped his views on motorsports, which eventually lead to the creation of the Gran Turismo series. This is a narrative we’ve heard before, when Kazunori talked about Senna’s influence leading up to GT6’s release, and of course that game received a sizeable update specifically focusing on letting players relive the early periods of Senna’s career.
What is new is the confirmation that Senna will be making an appearance in GT Sport. First spotted by community member Saidur_Ali, it isn’t immediately clear in what way Senna and his legacy will be present. Could it involve the wholesale migration of the GT6 content, or will it be more limited to things like the revived Museum feature? Time, as ever, will tell.
As mentioned in the title, the interview also shows off Thrustmaster’s mysterious direct-drive wheel. While the TV’s behind Yamauchi and host Rodrigo França show off GT6 during most of the run-time, the video is bookended with glimpses of GT Sport. Both of the men get to use the new wheel, but unfortunately, we’re offered no thoughts on it. It’s nonetheless encouraging to see it up and running.
In a strange twist, the video also seems to (inadvertently) showcase another game, namely Assetto Corsa. When asked which of Senna’s Formula 1 cars he’d most like to try, Yamauchi’s answer is the dominant MP4/4, the car that took Senna and Prost to 15 wins in 16 races.
The image that pops up is actually taken from an Assetto Corsa mod on PC, as spotted by community member RaY29rus. An interesting choice, especially considering it showed up officially in erstwhile competitor Forza Motorsport’s eBay Motors Car Pack a year ago.
Here’s hoping an official update on the wheel — as well as more info on Senna’s inclusion in GT Sport — is coming soon. Head to our GT Sport forums for more discussion on the video.
Special thanks to community member wprpalmeida for first bringing the video to our attention!
See more articles on Ayrton Senna, Kazunori Yamauchi, Steering Wheels, and Thrustmaster.
Whoa I expected the wheel to be bigger. It looks super tiny!
That view is crap. In car, we race for in car view!
I hope this wheel is trusted than T300…
that motion-rig to the right tho….
Will the MP4/4 be in GT sport this time round as it wasn’t in 6? Also for the karting bit they should’ve at least added in some real kart tracks that was in brazil and the others that he raced at it would’ve been better campaign.
This may be a very good wheel but I agree with @Logiforce.
Even if this is technically direct drive, this does not mean it will really be comparable with an OSW.
Doesn’t mean it won’t either. Also, as below, how does one judge the strength of a wheel by watching a video in which you have no idea how the wheel is set up, what strength of FFB is being used, or anything about the game it’s being used with.
You are right @Johnnypenso, we cannot really make an opinion with just this footage. This being said, if you have already seen an OSW or a Bodnar wheel IRL, it seems that this Thrustmaster wheel will be something different… and this is not abnormal considering the price of those wheels.
It would be a little far fetched to expect a Bodnar strength wheel in what is presumably a mass produced wheel priced for wide distribution. Realistically it’ll likely be a motor of similar strength to the T300 or T500 but with the increased responsiveness of the direct drive mechanism. That would be more than enough for me for one as I’ve tried a very strong direct drive wheel and wasn’t a big fan.
I must say that going through the Senna content in GT6 was the first time I saw what kind of person Ayrton was. I was deeply impressed with his attitude. It also showed that the way I feel about most people in F1 is well founded. It also allowed me to see a glimmer of hope for it if someone can do well in it who detests the attitudes.
I was and am deeply impressed with his life. I’m so glad that I was able to learn of it through GT. I sure wouldn’t have dreamed of spending any time learning of F1 any other way.
If you ever get a chance, watch “Senna”. Better yet, seek it out.
Can I be honest? I see a little of Ayrton Senna’s attitude back in Max Verstappen. Hence he gets shafted by the other drivers now as well after that last action where he closed the gap on Kimi Raikkonen. Max is the driver that goes for the gap that exists, and in Senna’s eyes that would make him a racing driver. ;)
@LogiForce, Max is undoubtedly a talented driver but he is too impatient and petulant at times. Yeah, he goes for the gap that exists but will the car fit? Not always. To finish first, first you have to finish. He’s great to watch but some of his blocking moves, on Kimi and that late move on Hamilton at Suzuka where pretty close to race ending. Kudos to his opponents for avoiding him.
@another_jakhole
You are absolutely right about ‘Senna’. I really only ever get emotional when I hit myself in the thumb with a hammer in the garage, but ‘Senna’ nearly brought out a bit of eye-water. It’s amazing.
@GrumpyGrumps Exactly right. It hit me hard.
Assetto Corsa trolling GTSport…lol. At 7:11 he says karts will be in the game for those interested.
GT trolling Assetto’s sales.
^GTSport isn’t out yet. We don’t how it will perform.
It helps that PD have had 15+ years to build a brand.
Is it me or does the wheel look weaker than a CSWv2?
How can you tell how weak or strong a wheel is vs. another by watching a YT video?
…and not knowing anything about the settings used in the video?
@Johnnypenso Is your reading comprehension failing you? I am saying that it looks and not that it is, because looks can be deceiving… and of course settings can be lowered.
How can you see the level of force a wheel is outputting on a YT video?
Come on Johnny… are you are sim racing driver or not? Hitting curbs and going off track sends plenty of force through the FFB signal and since a human only has limited strength to stop unexpected forces you can estimate the rough force levels output by a wheel.
Knowing how strong my CSWv2 can be the current output of this direct drive Thrustmaster wheel looks to me to definitely be lower. Which doesn’t say anything about the FFB settings or even the maximum capabilities of this direct drive wheel. We’ll need to wait for reviews to get knowledge of that.
Yea… no. You cant really observe restistance.
But you can tho’…
@Isho Define “really observe”? I did say that you can estimate, which is another word for guessing. Which is something you can do through observing. I mean, even Leonardo Da Vinci could observe the nature around him perfectly like that. That maybe you personally are not capable of such observational skills is another matter, but it can be done.
The lack of logic around here amazes me sometimes. No one has any idea of the state of the game, level of FFB setup for the demonstration, the wheel settings, the FFB provided by the game generally etc. In other words you know absolutely nothing about the potential strength or lack thereof, of this wheel, based on a video in which no comments are made by the person using the wheel.
@Johnnypenso Go back to school and work on your reading comprehension of the English language, please. You are putting words in my mouth, I never claimed that I knew anything about its potential. Plus I even mentioned that “looks can be deceiving”, but even a common English phrase like that went over your head it seems. If you don’t even know the meaning of “Don’t judge a book by its cover”, which the other phrase also referred to, than please brush up on this area as well.
So it’s not a matter of lack of logic, but a lack of being able to read what others have written before you that amazes me in this case.
Like I said… it just looks weak in comparison, but there are way too many variables to know what the wheel is capable of.