In our overview we present a selection of the best racing games for PC, PS4, Xbox One and Nintendo Switch. The list is long and has something for every car fan. You decide whether you want to drift through gravel and mud in Dirt Rally, explore a huge open world in Forza Horizon 3 or jet for the best lap times in Project Cars 2.
For fun party evenings, the fun racer Mario Kart 8 is recommended for Nintendo Switch or Wii U. The WipEout Omega Collection is more futuristic; Crunchy challenges await in the arcade racer Trackmania Turbo.
Of course, racing simulations are also included in the list of top racing games for PS4 and Co. Also included are Forza Motorsport 7, Gran Turismo Sport and F1 2017. So you see: fans of car games get a lot of food for consoles or PC.
By the way: Our favorites only contain racing games that are state of the art. We have sorted the top 10 by PC Games rating. Need for Speed: Underground may be one of the greatest racing games, but the tuning racer has been around for a few years, which is why we deliberately avoid it here.
Best racing Simulation Game : FORZA HORIZON 7
Forza Motorsport 7 – one of the best racing games 2020 on the market. Like hardly any other current racing simulation, Forza 7 manages the difficult balancing act between realism and ease of entry. If you are looking for a realistic racing simulation, Project Cars 2 is sure to have more fun, but Forza 7 is much more motivating for beginners. Among other things, this is due to the exciting career mode and the Drivatar technology, which ensures that the AI opponents adapt to your driving style. With more than 600 vehicles that can be hunted over 32 routes with numerous variations, Forza Motorsport 7 also scores in terms of scope.
While at Project Cars 2 you have to activate all driving aids to avoid turning into the gravel bed in the first corner, Forza 7 goes the opposite way: If you like it realistic, you can use the options of all aids such as ABS , Brake and steering assistants get rid of it and it becomes extremely demanding.
This applies especially to PS monsters like F1 cars or Le Mans prototypes. Spectacular dream cars are now available much earlier thanks to the revised career – the Forza Driver’s Cup. Gone are the days when it took an eternity to sit in interesting cars.
Best Car racing game for realism game fans : PROJECT CARS 2
Project Cars 2 is a good choice for those who place great value on physically correct cornering in their virtual car races. The campaign is only very rudimentary, but you can measure yourself in numerous different racing classes. Whether you ride the Nordschleife with supercars or let your opponents swallow dust in rallycross is up to you. 170 vehicles and 50 routes promise long-term fun.
The different weather settings are particularly noteworthy and hence make it one of the best racing games. There are not many racing games that hit every imaginable weather against the windshield from sunshine to snowstorm.
The racing options leave nothing to be desired. Whether the time of day or night, the number of laps or the duration after which the race ends – everything can be adjusted. From the current date to the course of time and the weather, you determine what you should ultimately expect in the race. This also applies to the weather in Project Cars 2: the range of options offers brilliant sunshine, fog and rain, and even heavy snowstorms.
Even changeable weather is possible, you can fill up to four slots with different weather conditions. If, on the other hand, you want to drive with surprising weather, there is a suitable random option.
There is almost nothing to complain about in the presentation and hence make it one of the best racing games. Graphically, the game belongs to the racing game elite and especially the new dynamic weather and light effects look beautiful and make the races a lot more interesting than before.
A Grand Prix starts in the dry and can develop into a water battle in the thunderstorm of thunderstorms right up to the finish line. The changing conditions demand driving and also look dazzling. Spray behind the cars robs the view, windshield wipers work, puddles that arise affect driving behavior. Even the drops of water on the virtual camera lens break the light in the correct color to match the car paint – strong.
Forza Horizon 3 : Best Open World Car Game
While Forza Motorsport 7, one of the best racing games, has already impressed us as a beginner-friendly racing simulation, Forza Horizon 3 serves the genre of open-world racers excellently. Whether on the beach, in the desert, in the jungle or in the big city: virtual Australia offers the perfect backdrop for action-packed car races. Around 450 vehicles are available, which you can customize according to your individual ideas.
The great graphics and breathtaking game world make Forza Horizon 3 one of the most beautiful racing games. Horizon 3 does not come close to the realism of Forza Motorsport 7, but we don’t expect that from an open-world racer. Those looking for fast-paced car races and an open game world are well served with the Australia adventure.
A spectacular driving style – regardless of whether at events or during a free ride through the area – is rewarded: Ability and experience points for drifts, near collisions, driving in slipstream, jumps and destruction are constantly awarded to her in the best Tony Hawk’s Pro Skater -Extended manner to long combos with multipliers.
In addition, your driving style is analyzed and then appears to other players as Drivatar – this is how the other drivers in the game world are called, who are also based on the driving data of other players. So aimless cruising and exploring the surrounding area, as well as driving back and forth between events and tasks, simply put you in a good mood even after hours, and you quickly forget the time and the actual destination for pure driving pleasure.
Dirt 4 : One of the best racing games for rally simulation in the market
Dirt 4 and Dirt Rally have a close head-to-head race and both are one of the best racing games. Dirt Rally is the clear winner in terms of realism, but Dirt 4 has its very own qualities. The fourth part of the rally series offers significantly more content and is therefore the more varied racing game. Genre beginners and occasional racers should therefore prefer Dirt 4 rather than the tough simulation spin-off. Which dirt you choose is up to you. You will definitely get one of the best racing games.
A new dirt appeared three and a half years later. One obviously became aware that the series had moved too far from its roots, and with the Spin-Off Dirt Rally presented a pure-bred simulation that delighted with its outstanding driving experience.
But the high level of difficulty and the long induction period associated with it, of course, deterred a large part of the target group that had been built up with dirt 1 to 3. Dirt 4 should now unite both worlds. If you like it more arcadic, you should get your money’s worth as well as simulation fans. A goal that many racing game developers have set themselves and failed because of this, but Dirt 4 actually manages this balancing act.
F1 2019 : The racing Game for Formula One fan
As in previous years, F1 2019 from Codemasters never throws you into the cold water. Players who have never climbed into the virtual cockpit of a Formula 1 racing car will be explained the top class of racing with all its facets and rules.
So, for example, if someone does not know what the “Drag Reduction System” (DRS) is all about, the system is quickly explained in the tutorial in a short video. The player then knows that it is the rear wing that can be folded up and used to tickle additional speed out of his racing car in the DRS zones. All kinds of aids can also be activated when driving.
If you are looking for realistic driving settings, you can also deactivate all aids. Then you should be prepared for hard-to-control cars and locking wheels and a certain knowledge of the route is essential. Then we strongly recommend you to play with a steering wheel. for best experience of the one of the best racing games. With a controller or even the keyboard, the controls are quite imprecise in the face of such difficult racing settings. We had to experience this firsthand at the Monaco street circuit. There we kissed the guardrail again and again and scraped our car.
Gran Tourismo Sport : The game with god-tier graphics
One of the best racing games for PS4: Gran Turismo Sport could disappoint some serial fans in terms of scope. While around 1,200 vehicles were still available from the predecessor, there are now only 162 and the career also no longer offers as many opportunities as usual. With Gran Turismo Sport, developer Polyphony Digital is making a fresh start to its popular racing game series.
Instead of relying on a gigantic fleet of vehicles and an extensive single player experience, the online multiplayer is now more in focus than ever. Once on the racetrack, the game offers the usual quality that has made the Gran Turismo brand so great. If you don’t mind the comparatively poor scope, Gran Turismo Sport gives you a visually impressive racing simulation with excellent gameplay.
Racing games about to be released
F1 2020
Some things are very special in 2020, while others promise us the normality that many long for. For us players, for example, these are annual full price updates in the field of sports games. They do not have a particularly good reputation among the players, but often the annual offshoots are actually good games.
We were allowed to allude to F1 2020 in a digital press event and report in this preview which innovations are coming to fans and why F1 2020 could be the perfect start for newcomers. In addition to our own impressions, the large amount of information from Codemasters also promises a top-class F1 offshoot. F1 2020 could not only be one of the best F1 parts ever, but also one of the best racing games!
In addition to FIFA, Madden and NBA, a new F1 game by the British racing Apart from the career and my team mode, there are also new tracks that fans can look forward to. The two new racetracks, the Hanoi Circuit (Vietnam) and the Circuit Zandvoort (Netherlands) already promise a lot of racing action in the first corners. The Grand Prix in Vietnam offers a total of 22 curves, the highlight of the street circuit is a 1.5 kilometer long straight – the third longest in the F1 calendar!
The route manages to convince in no time and is already one of our favorites on the calendar! The Dutch Grand Prix, on the other hand, is not a completely new circuit and F1 fans of the old days should definitely remember the course.
The last official race was held in 1982, now the high-speed track is finally making a comeback. What is particularly great about the Circuit Zandvoort is that the route is not very forgiving. Some places are very narrow and those who fly off quickly land in the wall. As usual, Codemasters did a good job on both routes. F1 2020 of course offers all official Formula 1 tracks, drivers and teams.
Another great innovation is a dynamic driver market, which we have long wanted from the F1 games. A career, whether as a driver or team leader, goes ten years. Drivers who simply do not deliver or who are too old for F1 leave the paddock completely or dismount to Formula 2.
In contrast, drivers in the sub-class always have the opportunity to upgrade to Formula 1. This promises a much more realistic implementation of the premier class and turns into a unique experience every year. The AI also feels a bit more realistic than it was in F1 2019.
Ride 4
This year, Ride 4, one of the best racing games, a new part of motorcycle simulation by developer Milestone, will be released. Publisher Koch Media announced this with a first trailer for the game. The title for PlayStation 4, Xbox One and PC (Steam) will be released on October 8, 2020. Fans can look forward to many innovations for the simulation. We have included the trailer below.
Among other things, the Milestone team has completely revised the career mode in Ride 4. Here, racers will now face various challenges on the world’s racetracks. The new endurance mode is also intended to put even experienced players to the test. Well-known elements such as pit stops or dynamic weather are of course also part of Ride 4.
So this concludes the list of the one of the best racing games for almost all platforms. Follow our site for more such “TOP GAMES“
