The best racing video games
With racing video games, there's a couple of key subgenres. The first is the driving simulator, an intense, immersive experience where every detail is considered for when you get behind the virtual wheel, while the second is the arcade-like experience, where realism is left to one side in favour of cars that drift around corners while sparks fly and use rocket boosts to make leaps over canyons.
But whether you're a wannabe Lewis Hamilton or a wannabe The Fast & The Furious star, there's some great racing games out there for a number of consoles. So, we've put together a list of the best racing games you can go play in 2017.
Forza Motorsport 7
What is it on? Xbox One, PC Developer Turn 10 Studios
Why do we love it? Neither the most intense simulation nor the somewhat silly arcade style of other racing games, Forza Motorsport 7 is a brilliantly accessible kind of realistic racing game. With a vastly improved single-player mode, especially over some other games that want to evoke a realistic feeling.
While it is a realistic driving simulator to most, it's the exaggerated one, as if the developers made everything realistic then turned it all up a notch. Cars are just slightly supercharged in all ways, and it feels great to play. It may lack the depth of some of its more serious competition, but it finally feels comfortable in its framework as a more accessible and energetic simulation.
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Mario Kart 8 Deluxe
What is it on? Nintendo Switch Developer Nintendo
Why do we love it? The gut reaction from many for Mario Kart as a series is that it's a silly party game, one for friends to just mess about with. It's true that it's great for parties, but Mario Kart 8 Deluxe really managed to improve the Mario Kart way of racing. It's responsive and clean, with fantasy tracks that are gorgeous to look at and even better to race on.
Racing doesn't have to be a serious business only for the best, and Mario Kart 8 Deluxe proves it: even when you're not in a group of friends, it's one of the most fun games you can play and lose at, simply because it's been fine-tuned to perfection.
Forza Horizon 3
What is it on? Xbox One, PC Developer Playground Games
Why do we love it? Where Forza Motorsport 7 challenges you to be the best track driver, Forza Horizon 3 puts you on the open road of Australia. It's not quite geographically accurate, and the feeling of everything being supercharged like in Forza Motorsport 7 is even more apparent, but that just makes it all the more exciting.
The heart of what Horizon is is a feast of driving that sets out to sate whatever vehicular desire you may have from minute-to-minute. It's just a little further along the line of fantasy, although it's still more Top Gear than The Fast & The Furious.
Split/Second: Velocity
What is it on? PC, Xbox 360, PS3 Developer Black Rock Studio
Why do we love it? Split/Second: Velocity (referred to as just Split/Second outside of Europe) is absurd. That's the best way to put it. It's a game where you play a contestant in a new TV show called Split/Second, where people drive cars around courses that have been built as sets specifically for this show. The catch? The courses are riddles with traps. By drifting and performing stunts, you can set off those traps and destroy your opponents.
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Want to swing a wrecking ball out over the course? Want to cause power plants to crumble onto your opponents? Want to cause a plane to crash land down the course, with cars swerving to try and avoid the massive flaming threat? It's utterly absurd and works beautifully as the action film equivalent of the racing video game genre.
Gran Turismo Sport
What is it on? PS4 Developer Polyphony Digital
Why do we love it? Colloquially referred to as GT Sport, the PS4 player's simulation game of choice pretty much has to be Gran Turismo Sport. More realistic in its simulation than something like Forza Motorsport 7, Gran Turismo Sport is the first game in the Gran Turismo series for some years, and focused the series down into just a few cars that look and perform like a dream.
It has some drawbacks, primarily that it's almost an online-only title with how much is limited when playing offline, but otherwise it's a return to form for a series that so many have missed.
Project CARS 2
What is it on? PS4, Xbox One, PC Developer Slightly Mad Studios
Why do we love it? As what might be considered Forza Motorsport's biggest competitor, Projects CARS 2 does a brilliant job of offering an alternaive for someone that wants a similar amount of accessibility without the overcharged cars. It's definitely a game made for enthusiasts rather than the casual fan, meaning you're probably best off making sure you've got the right accessories, but after that it becomes a real treat. As one of the few sim games on this list that's available across the three major platforms for racing games, it's also a choice that's applicable to most console owners.
Burnout Paradise
What is it on? Xbox One, PC, Xbox 360, PS3 Developer Criterion Software
Why do we love it? Ever since Burnout Paradise first released, Criterion have had a reputation for being the dream developer in any arcade-like racing game. It was an open-world racing game taking place in the fictional Paradise City (which you can think of as San Francisco), where cars were powerful and crashes were brutal messes of crumpling metal.
Released almost a decade ago, Burnout Paradise is still one of the best arcade racing games ever. Just set up and go, there's no waiting or complex mechanics - cars just speed off into the distance with rocket powered engines and a place to be.
Need for Speed: Hot Pursuit
What is it on? PC, PS4, Xbox 360 Developer Criterion Software
Why do we love it? Criterion were back at it again with Need for Speed: Hot Pursuit. After doing a phenomenal job with Burnout Paradise, they followed it up with further proof that they really know what they're doing with racing games. Rather than being about speeding around a city, it's about racing while the cops are after you, balancing the competition of races with the threat of police sirens.
It is, once again, evidence that you need to get on Criterion's games if you enjoy an over the top arcade racer.
Wipeout Omega Collection
What is it on? PS4 Developer XDev, Clever Beans, EPOS Game Studios
Why do we love it? A long time ago, F-Zero was considered the king of futuristic racers. The game never really made it into modern video gaming, though, and instead we have Wipeout: a series about impossibly fast flying vehicles that are speedy but fragile.
The Wipeout Omega Collection is a modern remaster of Wipeout HD, its expansion, and Wipeout 2048. It's a pretty challenging game, where bashing into walls can spell death, and precise driving at ludicrous speeds is required. It is, through, a thoroughly satisfying game where you'll go from race to race without the limitations of realism, even its aesthetic is of a gorgeous but industrial sci-fi future.
F1 2017
What is it on? PS4, Xbox One, PC Developer Codemasters
Why do we love it? Every year, Codemasters come out with a new F1 game. This year's was, by far, their best: it didn't overhaul the concept or change how we think about F1 as a sport, but it instead went deep into the minute details to make everything work perfectly. It's the perfect simulation for your average F1 fan, and, if you like your racing simulation games but haven't tried this series, it's almost certainly going to be your new favourite thing.
iRacing
What is it on? PC Developer iRacing.com Motorsport Simulations
Why do we love it? While F1 2017 is likely the best simulation for most, the most intense is iRacing. Despite having a name that is more reminiscent of an Apple product, it's an online subscription-based driving simulator that is built for the most passionate fans. It's made for those that own accessories for their PC, with force feedback steering wheels and pedals, putting players into the cockpit of cars for seasonal competition against other players.
Like real racing, you're forced to play by the rules, too, punished for any crashes against other cars and forced to compete in the same style as real-life professional racing. It is, by most accounts, the most realistic driving simulator video game.
