Top 5 Racing Game Simulator Games
Racing Game Simulator are specialized driving games that use advanced physics engines and detailed car models to create an immersive, lifelike experience. They usually require gaming PCs or consoles with compatible hardware for full functionality.
Sim racing is often used as a training tool by top-level motorsport drivers to improve vision, find reference points for braking and turn in, and work on other aspects of their driving technique.
Project CARS Rally
Project CARS Rally adds a whole new dimension to the popular series. This DLC pack is a full-on rallycross experience with short dirt tracks that feature multiple stages and a range of hazards and obstacles. Developer Slightly Mad Studios has even added some fictional rallycross cars to the mix, as well as signing up OMSE’s Mitchell deJong and Oliver Eriksson as consultants.
The driving feel is spot-on, whether you’re using a wheel or a controller. The curbs shake the wheel, and slipping off course is met with that same satisfying gravel-slinging sensation we’ve come to expect from a racing sim. The physics system is impressive too, offering that same level of depth and realism you might expect from an advanced simulator.
Taking the series to new heights, Project Cars 2 promises to be one of the most realistic and detailed racing games ever created. It boasts world-class graphics and handling, a ground-breaking dynamic time of day and weather system, deep tuning and pit stop functionality, and an enviable roster of both licensed cars and circuits. Adding in the frenetic off-road racing form of rallycross will make this one of the most immersive experiences you’ll find on the PS4, with a stellar cast of 600bhp fire-spitting machines ready to sling sideways at Lydden Hill, Daytona and DirtFish. A true must-have for any fan of motorsport.
Gran Turismo Sport
This month Gran Turismo Sport gets a little bigger with eight new cars, and the ability to purchase any car in the game using real money. The update also adds a few other small changes, arcade equipment including a number of new challenges in GT League Events and the option to view your previous rankings.
Unlike its predecessors, Gran Turismo Sport is a genuinely modern take on the driving sim, embracing stat-based CARPG elements in a way that’ll feel alien to series veterans, but still celebrating the automobile as art (and offering plenty of that art to admire in a gallery mode). It doesn’t have the old scope, of course; there are no lunar rovers or 19th century single horsepowered wagons at launch, and the number of tracks wears thin very quickly.
One thing it’s definitely got going for it is a stunning new visual engine, which has been developed in conjunction with Sony’s audio division to recreate the sound of cars in the most realistic manner possible. That’s on top of a true HDR workflow that allows the game to render lighting and colors in an entirely authentic fashion.
Another interesting addition is the ability to turn off a wide range of driving assists, so that you can focus on your racing technique without worrying about the car itself. That’s on top of a new livery editor that gives players complete freedom to design the exterior of their car, from stock cars to racers.
Need for Speed: Rivals
The Need for Speed franchise has never been better than in Rivals, which offers a mix of arcade racing and police chasing on an enormous open world map. Players take on the role of either a racer or cop and progress through a series of events that rely heavily on the open world’s mechanics to create high intensity moments.
Racers and cops can swap between the two factions at the game’s core menu which houses a huge list of vehicles, upgrades and weapons. Events range from straight up races to Interceptors where you play keep-away from a pursuing cop car. The events are structured in a way that allows them to overlap each other creating some insanely high stakes racing and chasing action.
Unlike most Need for Speed games, Rivals uses a system called AllDrive that integrates asynchronous online multiplayer into the campaign by allowing you to seamlessly join a world full of other player controlled cars. This isn’t quite as seamless as Criterion’s brilliant Hot Pursuit or Most Wanted but still a welcome addition to the franchise.
The game also features a limited number of visual modifications for your vehicle. You’re able to change paints (gloss, metallic, matte and colour shift) but there is no customisation for the rims, stripes or licence plates. This is a missed opportunity for Need for Speed but perhaps a necessary trade off given the high-intensity nature of the gameplay.
Gran Turismo 5
After years of teasing its rabid fan base with GT3 and GT HD, and two stunted, stripped down releases in the form of Prologue and the free-to-download GT Academy 2012, Gran Turismo 5 finally arrived. Having been dubbed “the ultimate automotive game” by many, it lives up to its acclaim.
A massive love letter to cars and car lovers, GT5 offers the opportunity to build an expansive garage of vehicles that you can then customize and upgrade (you can even sell off the cars you no longer want or need). This is a game of incredible depth, with more than 1,000 different cars, dozens of track variations, endless modes, beautiful visuals and mountains of options.
GT5 was a landmark release in terms of its online features, offering players the chance to compete against other players worldwide in wheel-to-wheel races, and to create, share and show off custom courses, replays, and pictures. The game was also Shooting Game Machine updated with downloadable content such as new cars, including the Porsche 911 GT3 RS and Red Bull X2010 S. Vettel, as well as additional circuits such as Spa-Francorchamps.
Four-time NASCAR champion Jeff Gordon and nine-time F1 world champion Sebastian Vettel both appear in the game as race mentors, helping to teach players the skills of slipstreaming specific to their respective disciplines. Various other personalities, such as racing journalist Tony Jardine and the voice of Shuichi Shigeno, are featured as audio voices in the game as well.
