Sony Announces Playerbase Program to Scan Fans' Faces and Put Them in PlayStation Games

Highlights

• One winner will be chosen by summer 2026 to appear in Gran Turismo 7
• Playerbase contest will be live till April 26
• Sony said it will announce more games for Playbase program in the future

Sony is putting PlayStation's biggest fans into its first-party games, starting with Gran Turismo 7. The PlayStation parent announced Playerbase, a community contest that will give PlayStation gamers a chance step into the games they play on their PS5 by getting their likeness scanned. Sony has opened Playerbase applications and plans to expand the program to more PlayStation Studios titles in the future.

Playerbase will initially support first-party racing title Gran Turismo 7, Sony confirmed in a PlayStation Blog post on Tuesday. The community initiative will be available in select markets in the Americas, Europe, Asia, South Africa, and Australia, the company said.

How to Apply to Playerbase Program

Applications for Playerbase are now live on a dedicated website. Interested fans must be at least 18 years of age and must have a PlayStation online ID in a supported region; Users with a PlayStation account in India can apply as well.

As part of the application process, users will have to share a personal story and their experience with PlayStation. Upon review, selected finalists will participate in video interviews. Finally, one fan will be chosen to be featured in Polyphony Digital's Gran Turismo 7. The winner will get to appear as an in-game character portrait in the racing title for a limited time.

The contest winner will also get to help design a custom Fantasy Logo and vehicle livery, which will be added permanently to the Showcase menu in the game, Sony said. Additionally, they will be invited to Los Angeles, USA, to be scanned by Sony.

On the Playerbase website, Sony said it will announce more PlayStation Studios games where fans will be able to appear in the "near future". The Playerbase contest started on April 7, 2026, at 7:00am PDT and ends on April 26 at 11:59pm PDT. The winner will be announced in summer 2026, Sony said. Their scanned self will appear in Gran Turismo 7 for a limited time later this year.

“The Playerbase is our way of saying thank you to the players who make PlayStation what it is today. We can't wait to meet the fans who will step into the world of PlayStation in a whole new way,” Sony said in its announcement.

Gran Turismo 7