Meet the RaceDepartment Member With Over 100 Million YouTube Views in the Past 6 Months

Himura 01.jpg
RaceDepartment member Himura88 has a YouTube channel based mostly around Assetto Corsa that has amassed a staggering 125 million views.

When we think of the bigger YouTube personalities from the world of sim racing, most of us think of names like Jimmy Broadbent, Jardier, and Chris Haye. But there is another personality that has burst onto the sim racing scene in recent months that is poised to become the most popular sim racing content creator ever by the end of this year.

HimuraGaming started a YouTube channel 4 years ago and gained a solid following with his clips of car and motorbike sims. By the middle of December, 2020, the channel had over 100 subscribers and 70,000 channel views. Both figures are impressive, but insignificant next to what was about to happen to the channel in the next month.

By the second week of January, both the channel’s subscribers and viewer count had doubled, and by February both figures had increased 100-fold (~11,000 subscribers and ~8,000,000 channel views) versus December.

And the staggering progress and success of the channel hasn’t ceased in the months since. For those who may not be familiar with YouTube metrics and how these numbers compare to other popular channels, here are some points of reference:
  • Jimmy Broadbent is undoubtedly the biggest YouTube personality in sim racing, but in the last six months alone, HimuraGaming has gained 65% of Jimmy’s all-time video views
  • Many popular sim racing influencers gain 1,000 to 2,000 subscribers per month; HimuraGaming is meeting that mark each day
  • Over six million people watched videos from HimuraGaming on August 10th, which is equivalent to the viewership over many years for many of other top sim racing YouTubers
For those that aren’t familiar with Himura’s work, the newer videos are short clips of exotic sports cars, mostly recorded in Assetto Corsa. There are no voice overs or fancy edits, either. I reached out to Himura88, and here was the take on the success of the channel:

“So, my channel had like 1000 subscribers it was my second channel and one day I wanted to make a vid on Nordschleife with Nismo Boss Gt-R 1500Hp. I was a little fast and I jumped, and then the idea came to make a vid.”


Humble beginnings, to be sure. But things of course got even more intense for the channel after that.

“The video blew up everywhere... on Tik Tok I got like 50 mil views on that vid or something like that. On Facebook 30 mil and so on. And I gained a lot of subs and this is how it started”

The most popular comments on HimuraGaming’s videos share a theme of the videos looking realistic, and in some cases indistinguishable from real-life car footage. Thanks to some excellent graphics mods and 4k footage, the videos look extremely impressive.

So congratulations to Himura88 on the channel’s success, and we wish you all the best in the future of the channel. If you’re not yet subscribed, check out HimuraGaming on YouTube and check out his library of videos here on his RD profile page.

If you are a content creator yourself make sure to let the world know by adding your creations to /videos here.
About author
Mike Smith
I have been obsessed with sim racing and racing games since the 1980's. My first taste of live auto racing was in 1988, and I couldn't get enough ever since. Lead writer for RaceDepartment, and owner of SimRacing604 and its YouTube channel. Favourite sims include Assetto Corsa Competizione, Assetto Corsa, rFactor 2, Automobilista 2, DiRT Rally 2 - On Twitter as @simracing604

Comments

Impressive. In todays society views, likes and following is everything. But what good does it bring ?
Sometimes it’s just about entertainment. There’s a good YouTube channel about influencers embarrassing themselves in public by chasing views and interest clout.

this isn’t that though. This is just some cool sim action.

interesting point you make though. Have a peaceful weekend. :)
 
What ripped bro ? I buy my mods from rss, vrc etc lol, what sites of ripped content ?personaly i reported when someone uploaded rss ! What sites and stuff ?
I’m not accusing you of ripping anything, you are free to download / purchase any mods you find.
But the content you showcase on your YouTube feed is ripped from a variety of games, that’s undeniable. The article RD wrote about you, is… again, in my opinion.. unethical, given their strong stance on this sort of material uploaded to this site.
 
I’m not accusing you of ripping anything, you are free to download / purchase any mods you find.
But the content you showcase on your YouTube feed is ripped from a variety of games, that’s undeniable. The article RD wrote about you, is… again, in my opinion.. unethical, given their strong stance on this sort of material uploaded to this site.
Well finally explain to me, so now i can understand ... how should i know ? What is ripped and what not ? Don t tell me even paid mods are ripped ... i have no idea, youtube is full of those cars videos etc.How can i ripped em from modders etc :))) i just download them or pay them.
 
Well finally explain to me, so now i can understand ... how should i know ? What is ripped and what not ? Don t tell me even paid mods are ripped ... i have no idea, youtube is full of those cars videos etc.How can i ripped em from modders etc :))) i just download them or pay them.
95% of content that’s hosted on Facebook groups is ripped. GT Planet is also known for mods that aren’t scratch made. Assetto “Disney” land and similar named sites, the same can be said.

And one final hint, is the file hosting site. Share-whatever.com, media-whatever.com, etc.

Race Department* is the go to place for free mods, or RSS, VRC, URD, etc for paid mods.

*although RD polices the Assetto Corsa section constantly, the less busy sections of the forum is cluttered with rips.
 
Haters gonna hate hate hate hate hate...

But seriously, I think this is a cool story, and congrats to Himura! Hopefully you can enjoy the outcome. This makes me want to actually go work on my YT ideas.
Everybody got his opinion and i respect them, i honestly didn t know about this ripped stuff and Jhonr777 made me understand what those guys meant. I didn t understand what i ripped or what is going on... but i respect them, but i think is good also to explain.
 
Haters gonna hate hate hate hate hate...

But seriously, I think this is a cool story, and congrats to Himura! Hopefully you can enjoy the outcome. This makes me want to actually go work on my YT ideas.
No hating from me, even said I was happy with the attention he’s receiving, so no need to instigate any further…

All I wish is for someone this popular to showcase original community content, which I think is going to happen given Himura’s positive replies :thumbsup:
 
Hey, I don't particularly care if it's ripped or not, but it is a bit funny for RD to celebrate someone benefitting over it. Shows how out of touch journos and "influencers" are.
 
No hating from me, even said I was happy with the attention he’s receiving, so no need to instigate any further…

All I wish is for someone this popular to showcase original community content, which I think is going to happen given Himura’s positive replies :thumbsup:
I always put racedepartment site in description, csp patreon site of the creator etc, i must i admit i didn t know of this ripped mods and is my bad
 
I always put racedepartment site in description, csp patreon site of the creator etc, i must i admit i didn t know of this ripped mods and is my bad
One of my biggest pet peeves with sim racing influencers on YouTube, guys like Jarno… is them using content, like Gunnar’s Goodwood Festival track without a simple mention of where it’s from, or a shout out to the creator.

Description is full of links to their Instagram, Facebook, onlyfans… but not a link to the mod.

You do the opposite and we really appreciate it :thumbsup:
 
Congratulations on your success @Himura88

I'm 33, but to be honest I really don't 'get' what's happening with entertainment these days, it seems everything is geared towards 5 second videos for people with no attention span. There's instagram for making others feel bad about their own lives, then there's TikTok which is mostly for 10 year old girls and people who like to look at 10 year old girls, and Onlyfans, where young women have learnt that they can get by in life selling photos of their bits to weird men. I'm not sure any of it really benefits mankind but hey, maybe I'm just an old relic...? :D
 
Congratulations on your success @Himura88

I'm 33, but to be honest I really don't 'get' what's happening with entertainment these days, it seems everything is geared towards 5 second videos for people with no attention span. There's instagram for making others feel bad about their own lives, then there's TikTok which is mostly for 10 year old girls and people who like to look at 10 year old girls, and Onlyfans, where young women have learnt that they can get by in life selling photos of their bits to weird men. I'm not sure any of it really benefits mankind but hey, maybe I'm just an old relic...? :D
I have a hunch that its easier to put ads into a 5 or 10 second video than a 15 minute one. It may be why they are promoted more than others. More ads, more revenue for YT and the Google machine. Less bandwidth.. .etc. It's a money making machine, nothing more.
 
I have a hunch that its easier to put ads into a 5 or 10 second video than a 15 minute one. It may be why they are promoted more than others. More ads, more revenue for YT and the Google machine. Less bandwidth.. .etc. It's a money making machine, nothing more.
you can t put ads on tiktok insta or youtube shorts, also youtube shorts IS NOT monetized :) you don t gain money from yt shorts, tik tok vids or insta reels
 
When I saw the thumbnail, I hoped someone had finally made a Bugatti Bolide that isn't yet another CSR2 rip... I guess back to waiting I go.
 
What ripped bro ? I buy my mods from rss, vrc etc lol, what sites of ripped content ?personaly i reported when someone uploaded rss ! What sites and stuff ?
I like the videos - driving and compiling skills in one man is rare. But could you add in the video description apart from your "template" text and links one sentence with the names of the authors who helped you make each video. I enjoyed watching you drive in some traffic layouts and am sure other authors are happy to see their work lives on but give credit where it's possible.

Cheers!
 

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Mike Smith
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