According to a post on the PlayStation Blog, there’s a chance that Gran Turismo 7 might be a cross-generational PlayStation game, running on both PS4 and PS5 consoles.

The blog post isn’t about Gran Turismo specifically, but consists of an interview with Hermen Hulst, the head of PlayStation Studios. PlayStation Studios is the arm of Sony which manages the various development teams that create the “first-party” games, including Polyphony Digital and Gran Turismo.

In the post, Hulst talks about the challenges of recent months, and some of the titles in development across both current console generations. However there’s a specific question about PlayStation 4 which very much catches the eye:

PlayStation Blog: How does PS4 factor into PlayStation Studios’ development vision? Is it still a focus internally for future game development?

Hermen: It very much is. You can’t build a community of over 110 million PS4 owners and then just walk away from it, right? I think that’d be bad news for fans of PS4, and frankly not very good business.

Where it makes sense to develop a title for both PS4 and PS5 — for Horizon Forbidden West, the next God of War, GT7 — we’ll continue looking at that. And if PS4 owners want to play that game, then they can. If they want to go on and play the PS5 version, that game will be there for them.

That being said, it’s also very important to have showpieces for PS5, hence the development of Returnal and Ratchet that are exclusive to PS5.

The messaging behind Gran Turismo 7‘s development has been a little mixed over the past year, variously described as being developed for PlayStation and for PlayStation 5 specifically at different points. This comment from Hulst certainly seems to hint back towards the former situation.

Read more at GTPLANET

If you want to represent your country at an Olympic level for Gran Turismo, your chance is finally here. The official Olympic Virtual Series Time Trial for GT Sport starts today, and players have ten days to qualify.

There’s two stages to the Olympic competition in GT Sport. The first stage runs over the next ten days and takes the form of an Time Trial event within Sport Mode. It’s a relatively simple format, which merely requires players to set the best time they can, just like all the other Time Trial events in the game.

Players will be driving the Toyota GR Supra Racing Concept around Tokyo Expressway South Inner Loop — the one with the docks section. There’s no limit to the number of attempts you can make, so just set the best time you can. The event closes at 1459 UTC on May 23.

Olympic Virtual Series Motor Sport Event

Track: Tokyo Expressway – South Inner Loop
Car: Toyota GR Supra Racing Concept – Provided Car
Tires: Racing Hard
BOP: On
Power/Weight Limit: N/A
Settings: Fixed

The 16 best eligible times then advance to the World Final, but there’s a catch. As well as the standard regional split, there’s a limit of one participant from each eligible nation. Europe will send seven representatives, Asia will send four, South American and North and Central America will send two each, and Oceania will send one.

When the final takes place on June 6, the 16 finalists will take part in three races, all in Toyota machinery, with the last race worth double points. Although we don’t have full details on the race length, tires, or fuel/tire use, the schedule is as follows:

• Race 1 – Toyota 86 Gr.4 – Tokyo Expressway East Outer Loop
• Race 2 – Toyota GR Yaris – Sardegna Road Track B
• Race 3 – Toyota GR Supra Racing Concept Gr.3 – Dragon Trail Seaside

At the end of it all, one player will become the first Gran Turismo Sport Olympic champion. Good luck to all who enter!

The “FIA Gran Turismo Championships” 2021 Series is set to commence on April 21.

As with past seasons, the championships will consist of two separate categories: the Nations Cup, which features the top drivers from various countries and territories around the world, and the Manufacturer Series that pits auto manufacturers, including Official Partners Toyota and Mazda, against one another.

In addition to the traditional Online Series where competitors can earn points, there will be four “World Series” events in this year’s all-virtual championships, where the top players from around the world will compete. There will also be a “World Series Showdown” in August that will mark the end of the first half of the season, and of course, the “World Finals” that will determine this year’s champion. The number of participating countries and territories for this season has increased to 61, meaning that the “FIA Gran Turismo Championships” is continuing to evolve into a true global event.

Every race will be broadcast on our official “Gran Turismo TV” YouTube Channel and on “Gran Turismo Live.” Therefore, fans from around the world will be able to watch the exciting battles between the best players in the world in the comfort of their own homes.

“The FIA GT Championships” started as a motorsports competition series certified by the Fédération Internationale de l’Automobile (FIA) in 2018 and has produced many iconic battles since its inauguration. In last year’s series, not only did Japanese driver Takuma Miyazono become champion of the Nations Cup, he was also part of the winning team that took the Manufacturer Series, joined Mikail Hizal (Turkey) and Daniel Solis (USA) for Team Subaru. What sort of drama awaits the drivers in this, the fourth year of the championships? Tune and see for yourself!

For details regarding this year’s schedule and how to participate in the Championships, please refer to the ‘FIA Certified Gran Turismo Championships 2021 Series Overview’.