Unbelievable news – Gran Turismo 7 is indeed the supreme queen of this period. Currently, the game has a user count and it is steadily increasing of two million monthly active users. This is nothing but a great month but according to the myth Kazunori Yamauchi, it is an entire phenomenon. The GT master announced that the title is in the best state ever in the Gran Turismo series. ‘The ever-increasing experience has become a great one for us and PlayStation‘. This is a sort of big claim coming directly from the person who has been close to the game ever since its origin. So it is all about—updates, PSVR2 support, eye-catching cars, and beautiful landscapes… all things encompassed in a way that they make not only the old players come back but also the new ones stay.
Two million of monthly active users. For sim-cade racing which at the start had to go through all the trouble of having an economic system that made players very unhappy and we need to be very nice about it calling it a rocky launch, this is a stark and complete turnaround for the better. This also means that Polyphony Digital has indeed heard the gamers’ cries or at least they had a very smart post-launch strategy that is still working marvelously. Constant updates, the incredible PSVR2 mode which everybody is raving about, it has and continues building a solid community but that community has always been split right down the middle.
When you look at the replies to the news, the classic gamer split is evident. The dissenters’ side is anchored by users like @RobinSmart17 who even goes as far as dubbing the racing game epic and saying ‘online races are some of the most intense in any racer.’ Conversely, we have @frankiematthies who is enjoying playing daily this month. This is the vibe that most players are not so much changed. They are in their garages tuning cars, taking photos in scapes, and just enjoying the pure car culture that GT7 offers. For many, it is simply a comfort game.
The pit lane’s opposite side comes the harshest critics. One of them is @ShanTofique who is very dismissive saying ‘nobody plays this game’ and thus it is a simulation error. This opinion is, however, very funny since it is based on the official numbers. The rivalry between the two games is becoming more and more the past. The inevitable Forza comparison springs back. @awmanlooki goes for the classic ‘FH5 is better in every way’—better graphics, customization, arcade, sim, roster… you name it. It is an eternal debate, isn’t it? Arcade-focused open-world carnival vs. the more structured, car-collecting simulator experience. No chance that a universal agreement will ever arise.
One of the more interesting aspects of conversation comes through when @kieran_30 points out the online experience of GT Sport and GT7 comparison. ‘Sport had 24-player races while GT7 allows up to 16 participants in a single race at a time. When you see other sims with 60+ cars on track, that 16 limit can feel a bit restrictive for the hardcore competitive crowd.’ So for them, Sport still might be the king of pure online racing. But what about single-player people? GT7 is ‘miles better obviously.’ It boils down to what you are after.
And you can’t ignore the discussion about PSVR2 that is like the elephant in the room. There are multiple answers to this question asking (by @Ali2022k) simply stating ‘It’s amazing on PSVR 2’ like. @Heartforever39 even claims that VR is ‘worth every cent’ which is going pretty far. This, without a doubt, is a major force—oh yes, a pun is intended!—behind the game’s renaissance. The marriage of a top PlayStation accessory, the release of which comes with one brilliant application that people would want to buy the device for, is what happens when that application is GT7. It isn’t just any headset’s system seller; it also sells the game GT7. A perfect albeit expensive synergy.
Apart from that, there is @susgbf who hints at the broader market context. Could it be that one of the reasons for GT7’s success is the ‘lack of decent racing games on the console market’? I mean, maybe? Forza Motorsport faced its own difficulties, and the sim racing console market is virtually buried behind GT7, the Forza Motorsports reboot, and then the trail leads to more demanding titles like Assetto Corsa Competizione. GT7 has come to the right place where many people find it just spot on.
And then there are the hardware guys. @TheSenninG, who mentions the Xbox as part of the broader console conversation.
