Gran Turismo Could Have Failed—Until Yoshida Intervened and Changed Everything

Shuhei Yoshida, former head of Sony’s Worldwide Studios, revealed that he helped steer Gran Turismo away from overly punishing realism, saving the franchise before it even began.

Gran Turismo is a PlayStation icon, praised for its authentic driving simulation and massive fanbase of car lovers. But its fate could’ve been completely different—according to Shuhei Yoshida, who claims he helped shape the first game when Kazunori Yamauchi leaned too heavily into pure simulation. In a PlayStation Inside interview, Yoshida shared a little-known story from his early days at Sony, which may have saved the series from becoming a niche failure.

“Let me tell you about a ‘success’ of mine that no one really knows,” Yoshida said. “Back during the PlayStation 1 era, Yamauchi was working on the first Gran Turismo. The game box read ‘realistic driving simulator,’ and as a producer—not a game designer—I got to try an early prototype. Honestly, it was way too realistic. Yamauchi was dead serious about the simulation part.”

“The handling system was so advanced it was borderline unplayable,” Yoshida continued. “Yamauchi didn’t initially accept my critique, so he organized a playtest with thirty players. Just as I expected, every single one crashed at the first turn. I was sitting in the back of the room, and Yamauchi looked at me and said I was right. That was when he adjusted the balance and softened the simulation. The result was the Gran Turismo that became a PS1 legend.”

Reflecting on that moment, Yoshida added: “I like to believe I helped rescue Gran Turismo’s future and contributed, even a little, to its success.”

“Remakes and remasters aren’t born from nostalgia,” says Yoshida

Besides that anecdote, Yoshida also addressed current industry trends. He pointed to escalating development costs as a major issue that drives up prices across games and consoles. On the subject of remakes and remasters, Yoshida dismissed the notion that they’re made out of sentimental reasons: “They’re not about nostalgia—they exist to generate extra revenue to help fund the creation of new gaming experiences.”

Source: 3djuegos