Bridging the Real and Virtual Worlds

Same parts as the real car, but different, attractive and interesting. I hope both will be exciting.

lycoI was thinking about doing the PCCJ Virtual Race because I thought, "Why not?"I want to be a bridge between real racers and virtual racers.I thought, "I'm not going to be able to do that.

Real and virtual are completely different things," but I wonder if that is the end of the story.

Real racers have a "You're just a gamer, you can't actually get in a real car and drive it, can you?Some people may think, "I don't know. GT Sport players on the other hand have "Real racers are not like us...I have a feeling that "I'm not a good person...".

It's not like the two sides just snap out of it there.I hope to create a place where people can genuinely share the fun and excitement of car racing with each other and learn about the fun and appeal of both the real and virtual worlds.I thought it was a good idea.

To this end, we wanted to create a place for communication and to connect with each other. We planned and implemented the PCCJ Virtual Race to serve as a bridge between the two.

And as it turned out, it was very good for both parties.

lycoYes. As I mentioned earlier, we received the design data for the actual car from PCCJ drivers and created it... in a series of steps.I didn't know what GT Sport was.Some drivers, who are "GTSport players", have found out about it and are happy to have their own car, and some GTSport players have won by driving actual cars.... They are happy to have their own car....

Then, on social networking sites, real racers told me, "I bought a GT too!We also received responses such as

Conversely, some GTsport players have been known to say, "What kind of race is the PCCJ race?"What kind of players are out there?"What company sponsors this logo?Some of them were interested in studying such things as

It may have been a small effort, but I was very happy to think that I was able to build a bridge between virtual racers and real racers.

Sugawara (field of sparsely growing cogon grassland, esp. in Nagano Prefecture)Rico.Not too dyed in the wool, real or virtual.That's right. I think we are able to do this because we are not biased one way or the other.

Also...you are good at relying on others. For example, I think you're good at using me (laughs).

lycoI had a tearful discussion with Sugawara-kun the other day.

Sugawara (field of sparsely growing cogon grassland, esp. in Nagano Prefecture)I was just giving my opinion without hesitation, but he cried... I told him not to cry (laughs).

lycoI got so passionate about it that I thought, "It's not dignified for an older person to cry," but I got too passionate and cried as a result (laughs).

Hot...I think this kind of initiative may also play a role in the shift away from cars.

Sugawara (field of sparsely growing cogon grassland, esp. in Nagano Prefecture)Yes, I think the GT Sport will be a great advertisement for the younger generation who will be buying cars in the future. You said.I want to drive this car in the future."Let's make some money and buy this car.It's a good opportunity to think, "What's the point of this?

lycoMr. Yamauchi, who is well known as the producer of GT, said, "People used to think that PlayStation was just a game console.Now, it could be the savior of the auto industry.You said, "I think you are exactly right.

GT Players, Future of MC

Finally, can you tell us about your future plans?

lyco： ： TheIt's really thanks to human connections that this is unfolding now.I believe that the e-sports industry is a very important one. Especially, Mr. Matsuoka of Porsche Japan is very important. There are not many people in any industry who are so supportive of e-sports and what young people want to do.

I am truly grateful.

In Japan today, "young people are turning away from cars" and "car culture is declining," but as GT's Mr. Yamauchi said.The GT will be one of the keys to solving Japan's problems and boosting the car culture.It is.

That is why, from the "GT Sport Broadcasting Station," we would like to work on projects that can further boost GT Sport from our own sources.

Now what I'd like to do is toPCCJ Virtual Race Series for Next SeasonIt's a very exciting time to be a part of it. Since it will be conducted online, there will be bugs along the way, one of the players will not be able to enter, and so on, but I would like to learn that as we go along.

Sugawara (field of sparsely growing cogon grassland, esp. in Nagano Prefecture)I...have made many new connections with many people this year, and I hope to have many more good encounters next year.

Now I want to be the best in the world at the World Tour.

I have finished in second place so far, but I still want to be in first place. I have participated in five World Tour events this year, and I have seen firsthand that the level is getting higher and higher, so I need to work even harder if I want to be as successful next year.

I have always been a competitive person, but even so, I used to say, "I'm not a good loser.Third place was good enough. I'm happy to be on the podium.I thought, "I'm not going to be able to do that.

But when the result is third place, it gets a certain amount of attention immediately after the competition, but after two or three months from then, most people forget that third place exists.

It was then that I thought.

I knew that people were not interested in anyone but the winner. That's why you have to win," he said.

In fact, theWe won the GT Sport Porsche Esports Racing Japan championship in Season 1, which is the reason why we have a good relationship with Porsche Japan now and this channel started.And so it is.

lycoI would like to continue to work with everyone to come up with various projects and make the event more exciting. In the future, it would be wonderful if I could MC a GT Sport event and Sugawara-kun could race there.

Rico Otsuka and Tatsuya Sugawara, thank you for taking time out of your busy schedules for this interview. I was surprised to hear that Gran Turismo has become so influential in changing the automotive industry on such a large scale.
This interview made me strongly feel that "the power of youth can change the world. Thank you very much!