Today, video game publisher and developer Cygames announced it would become a sponsor at the 151st Kentucky Derby.
The race is set to take place at the Churchill Downs Racetrack on May 2 at 1:44 p.m. ET, with Cygames set to sponsor the Unbridled Sidney Stakes, a 1,100-meter (5 1/2 furlongs) Grade III race for fillies and mares aged three and older. During the event, fans can play video game demos and look at photos of some of the developers’ games.
Those demos will include Shadowverse: Worlds beyond, Granblue Fantasy Versus: Rising, and Granblue Fantasy: Relink. The most notable title will be Umamusume: Pretty Derby, a training simulation game that gained popularity in Japan.
In the game, great racehorses of the past have a chance to be reborn as horse girls. The best of these anthropomorphic racers have the chance to attend Tokyo’s Tracen Academy, hoping to gain fame and fortune as both racers and idols.
Umamusume: Pretty Derby is set to come to the West at some point, which explains why Cygames agreed to partner with the Kentucky Derby. During the event, Cygames’ logo will be featured on the starting gate, saddle towels of the contending horses, and signage at the finish line.
Fans will be able to try out demos for all of these Cygames titles in the infield from May 2 to May 3. For more information on this and other simulation titles heading West in the near future, be sure to check back to Simulation Daily.
