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GamingPC GamesRacing

What are the best PC simulation-style racing games?

20

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Considered

497

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Recs.

Feb 4, 2024

Last
Updated

20 Games Considered

Best PC simulation-style racing games	Price	Steam Rating	Genre
88 Assetto Corsa	19,99€	Very Positive	Racing
-- Gran Turismo Sport	$59.99	-	Racing
73 iRacing.com	-	Mostly Positive	Racing / Simulation
-- Project Cars	-	Very Positive	Racing
-- Project CARS 2	$59.99	Mostly Positive	Racing Simulator

Assetto Corsa

Top Pro

Mods, mods, mods

One of the best features of Assetto Corsa is its mod support. The unlimited variety mods bring for car and track selection is already astounding and will only get better with time. See More

Top Con

Poor driving physics

ToughHades's Experience

the engine sounds are god awful See More

Specs

Steam Rating:Very Positive

Controller Support:Partial

Top Pro

Partially supports VR

While missing some components like screen overlay Assetto Corsa is not fully playable while using VR, though it is still a coll concept to toy around with. See More

Top Con

Single player is a bit lackluster

The single player mode for Assetto Corsa has all the expected components for a racing game, earning medals in one tier of racing to advance to the next, but still all in all feels a bit thin. Being that the official release is only 1.0 hopefully there will be more added to the game in the future. See More

TranquilPhrike's Experience

Horrible car physics that make you feel like you're driving a boat, bucking over the waves in the sea. Assetto Corsa Competizione is the successor and said actually be playable as a sim. See More

Top Pro

Supports 900 degree rotation of gaming wheel

Assetto Corsa supports gaming wheels and 900 degree rotation while using them. What is even more enjoyable is that the cockpit view animates 1:1 with the rotations of the players gaming wheel while used. See More

Gran Turismo Sport

Specs

Co-Op:Single / Multi Player

iRacing.com

Top Pro

Unlimited replayability

Once the subscription is paid there is no set path for the user. Everything is open to the player meaning they can choose what to do and where to go. This makes for a completely open-ended title that allows for a fresh experience anytime the player wants. See More

Top Con

Expensive as it requires a subscription plus additional costs

iRacing requires a subscription that starts at $6/mo. as well as has costs for extra cars and tracks. Overall an expensive game to play for those that want to experience all of the content on offer. See More

MagicalSeshat's Experience

Subscriptions are evil and antiquated, find a business model that fits this century. See More

Specs

Steam Rating:Mostly Positive

Genre:Racing / Simulation

Controller Support:Full

Top Pro

Unique community rules

There is an actual sanctioning body for the game called FIRST that keeps players in line making for a non toxic community that behaves professionally. If a player races aggressively or continually breaks the rules of the rod their license will receive infractions that will soon label that person as one to stay away from. See More

Top Con

Not the excellent physics everyone claims

FascinatingVainamoinen's Experience

Best online racing sim. No other race sim has the quantity and quality of people driving in all kinds of different categories like, Mazda Mx-5 to F1 and all thats in between and also of course the Ovals, NASCAR etc. The behavior of the drivers is the best you can get. No comparison there. Cons are that it is gonna suck all your dollars, euro's out of your bank account because you'l gonna have to buy a lot of tracks and cars plus a subscription. Also because they still run it on the 2004(+-) engine. So if you run it on one screen. No problem but if you wanna go VR or tripple screens you have to have a pretty good pc system. I played Projects cars, Assetto Corsa, RF2 and all of those games has there good things but the online racing is almost always very bad. And that's what racing is all about for me. Beating a real life sim racer! See More

Top Con

Difficult to play with a gamepad

The controls for the game are very precise and in being so is best played with a driving wheel with petals and a shifter. Trying to play with a gamepad does work but will really inhibit the players controls especially if they are competing in online races. See More

TranquilPhrike's Experience

Expensive and it manages to make a Mazda Miata a horribly difficult car to drive. I've driven Miatas on track and they are the easiest car in the world to drive quickly. However, with iRacing, the car becomes a beast that suddenly bites you for no apparent reason. Get the car sideways and it will continue to rotate, which is exceedingly unrealistic as the real Miata can be drifted around so easily, a child could make it happen. If I'm paying this much for a game, it better behave like a real car! See More

Project Cars

Top Pro

Finely tuned AI

Users can set what kind of AI they will be racing against each race, allowing you to make the game easier or harder if you wish. See More

Top Con

Horrible optimization for AMD

For those that use and AMD CPU or GPU the performance is way below sub optimal with AMD performance at half of what Nvidia and Intel chips are seeing. See More

TranquilPhrike's Experience

PC1 is quite fun with a subtle arcade feel to the car's physics. It isn't trying to be a full-on sim, so this is forgivable since it is just straight fun. PC2 is more sim-oriented and quite enjoyable. See More

Specs

Steam Rating:Very Positive

Controller Support:Partial

Top Pro

No VR sickness

Since the player and the character are stationary with the vehicle creating a frame of reference, much of the issues with motion sickness are avoided. See More

Top Con

AI can vary wildly

Even though the player can preset the AI before a race, the AI can still behave in strange manners, some drivers being really aggressive while others too passive. It is a strange mix that can make for some uneven racing. See More

Top Pro

Fine tune AI

Users can set what kind of AI they will be racing against per each race, making for a way to make the game easy or difficult depending on mood. See More

Top Con

Non moddable

You can't add new cars or tracks. See More

Top Pro

Graphics

Very beautiful graphics. See More

Top Con

Menus don't work on Occulus

Users are unable to control the menu in Occulus as the menus do not show, some workarounds are to close one eye to see if you can see a menu or use a tool to broadcast the Occulus image to ones monitor. Either way this can be a frustrating experience and needs to be worked out. See More

Top Pro

Simple VR setup

The game auto-detects Oculus Rift, making setup a breeze. See More

Top Con

Buggy gameplay

Even though the game is fully released and out of early access it is still filled with bugs and balancing issues. From strange physics to graphics that flicker the game has the appearance of a rushed product that was not ready for release. See More

Top Pro

Accessible to non sim players

While Project Cars is a hardcore racing sim the game still stays accessible through easy to understand design. See More

Project CARS 2

Top Pro

Great selection of cars and tracks

With over 130 tracks and 180 cars to choose from, there's a great deal of variety that gives the game a lot of replay value for both single-player and multiplayer races. Open wheels, dozens of vintage cars, popular road cars such as a handful of Porsche and Lamborghini models, and tons more are all on offer, along with a near-endless combination of customizable tracks for single-player races and rule sets for AI opponents. See More

Top Con

Need to learn about the world of custom FFB, but once you do, there are some great improvements

FerventHachiman's Experience

Clutch pedal does not function as a sim should. There is no transmission damage when you do not use the clutch. Developers refuse to fix this. See More

Specs

Steam Rating:Mostly Positive

Genre:Racing Simulator

Top Pro

Gorgeous visuals and dynamic weather

Project CARS 2 shows off every glare of sunlight over each car, the droplets of rain over the windshield in the middle of a downpour, and the flurry of snow rushing across the field as you navigate through a blizzard. Each car is recreated with painstaking detail, and the movement of the player character's hands as they rumble in-time with the wheel or shift around to change gears looks life-like. See More

Top Con

AI can be really dodgy

The AI uses a simplified tire model, so they are not affected by temps and water on track. See More

Top Pro

Finely-tuned controls with a peripheral wheel

Playing with a peripheral wheel will be the superior choice for racing game vets, and Project CARS 2 is a great choice for anyone who wants an immersive driving experience. The wheel is smooth and responsive, with rumble feedback picking up each bump in the road, the grip loosens in chaos each time you lose control of the vehicle, and it quickly tightens up once you regain control. Controlling races with the gamepad naturally isn't as responsive as the wheel, but it's still a fine way to feel the thrill of the game's speed and fluidity. See More

Top Con

Clutch pedal issues

Clutch does not simulate as it should. Stick to Assetto Corsa. See More

Top Pro

Fantastic UI and fast loading

Top Con

Difficult for new racing players

While there are some tools to help ease new racing players into the game, like an engineer that will help suggest how to tune your cars based on your preferences, Project Cars 2 can otherwise be a daunting experience. There are an overwhelming amount of cars, tracks, and customization options. The optional lines along the tracks for beginners to follow will sometimes lead players off track or into frustrating, hard-to-pull-off turns, souring the learning experience. See More

Top Pro

Amazing sound design

Listening to every sound of the exhaust and engine from the driver's seat is exciting, making you feel like you're right behind the wheel. Other cars jetting by, the sharp noise of the wheels burning rubber on tight turns, and the clicking motion of the player character manually changing gears are all at their best, making Project CARS 2 a standout game of the genre in terms of realism. See More

RaceRoom Racing Experience

Top Pro

One of the best bang for the buck bargains in sim Racing

DreamerHeryshaf's Experience

The game is free to try and then the entry cost remains low because you can select only those cars and tracks that you want to drive. Access to the full assets of the game is priced just over $100 but here are often discount sales. Physics are fantastic and among the best. Sound is the best in the genre. Graphics are behind titles like Project Cars and other titles but rating it as a Sim I would put it closer to iRacing than the prettier games. It does not have a huge population so finding online pick up races is not as easy and some titles but there are quality leagues with organized races and the AI is adjustable so you can have to pretty challenging games in single player. The game is fully VR compatible. See More

Top Pro

Free to play

It is Free-To-Play in Steam, and additional content can be bought. See More

VersatileBabaYaga's Experience

Great GT3 class and TCR class cars. DEcent selection of tracks but light on NA tracks. See More

Top Pro

New cars and tracks are added regularly

TranquilPhrike's Experience

Since their last big physics update, this game is LOTS better from a driving experience. You can play cheaply, or spend a ton of money and get all the features and cars. See More

Top Pro

Great selection of cars and tracks

DignifiedKusuh's Experience

ongelooflijk goed See More

Top Pro

One of the best sounding sims

Top Pro

Good value alternative to iRacing

In terms of ranked races it is second only to iRacing. See More

Top Pro

Frequent pdates make the game better and better

Raceroom updates its content to the current standards and adds new features very often. See More

Assetto Corsa Competizione

Top Con

Not moddable

You can only add skins for your car. Can't add new drivers, maps or cars. See More

Top Pro

The most realistic physics of current sims

The most detailed, accurate sim in physics, models and locations of ALL current sims available. tyre, air - altitude, density and temperature , weather, handling, and FFB. How do we know, because the REAL WORLD DRIVERS say ACC is the real deal. See More

WorthyAhPeku's Experience

I was hoping you can add mods in this title, but no. You can't See More

Specs

Steam Rating:Very Positive

Co-Op:Online PvP

Top Con

No peer to peer or self hosting Multiplayer

CleverEpimetheus's Experience

Fun and easy to learn. I love it. See More

Top Con

Bad physics and force feedback

rFactor 2

Top Con

Stupid business model

You have to buy everything that is running on an online race to participate even if you don't want and will never drive all that cars. See More

Top Pro

Great physics and ffb feel

Just awesome with the new Nordschleife Tracks. They made great depth rendering. See More

DashingAntheia's Experience

Sim driver with SC2 and HE Ult pedals ... rfactor 2 (best) automobilista (2nd), AC (3rd) See More

Specs

Steam Rating:Very Positive

Co-Op:Local/Online

Controller Support:Partial

Top Con

Large learning curve

The options in the game and what is provided with mods can be daunting to a new user and will take a bit of time to get comfortable with and fully figured out, though it can be worth it. See More

Top Pro

Acceptable graphics

With a few newer sim racing titles going more for high end graphics the sim racing genre has seen a rise in bettering the graphics all around. Luckily the graphics in rFactor 2 are pretty good with the highest end not being able to be taken advantage of by just anyone with a middle road graphics card. While not as great as some of the more recent titles, it is competitive. See More

Forza Motorsport 7

Top Pro

Outstanding visuals

Forza 7 looks simply amazing. From the very detailed car models that closely resemble their real world counterparts, to the excellent lighting, reflections, and weather effects that bring life to its game world. To even the beautiful environments that make you feel like you're on a leisure trip. There's simply so much to look at and it's a joy for the eyes. See More

Top Con

Overly aggressive AI can be annoying

Unlike most racing games where the AI drives carefully and avoids contact with other cars, the AI in Forza 7 will constantly ram into your car, even on the lowest aggression settings. This can cause you to lose control and spin out quite often, giving the races a feel more similar to riding bumper cars, rather than a race in a professional setting. It's especially ridiculous in races with a high number of racers (10+), where the first turn in a race is "kill or be killed." See More

ResourcefulGyges's Experience

The lag time between turning the steering wheel (Logitech) and the car responding is very annoying. Also, trying to locate a track and set up driving can be very annoying. I finally had to search on the internet how to locate different tracks. Better instructions and easier user interface would be appreciated. I primarily use it to learn new tracks and improve my driving on the tracks I actually drive. See More

Specs

Top Pro

Astonishing variety of cars

Forza 7 has massive roster of 700 cars, from various popular car brands around the world, including Aston Martin, BMW, Mitsubishi, and many more. Among the list are regular cars, sports cars, muscle cars, NASCARS, F1 cars, and even semi trucks. The selection is so great, you'll almost definitely find a car that matches your style. See More

Top Con

Lag time between steering wheel input and car responding

The lag time between turning the steering wheel (Logitech) and the car responding is very annoying. See More

Top Pro

Solid racing gameplay

It's really enjoyable to just drive a car in Forza 7, which is achieved by two main factors. First, the steering/controls are very good, so whether you're taking a sharp turn, passing a slight bend, or just picking up speed on a straight, it just feels nice. Second, there's an excellent sense of speed whether you're going fast or slow. From the slight nuances in your car's sound as you change gear, to the way the environments start to blur as you drive at high speeds, it really feels like you're driving a car, giving you excellent immersion. Forza 7 won't disappoint most racing fans and even players new to the genre. See More

Top Con

Most popular Toyota cars have been excluded

Even though Forza 7 has 700 cars, popular Toyota models like AE86, Celica, and even Supra, have been excluded due to licensing issues. This can be a deal breaker for Toyota enthusiasts. See More

Top Con

Lack of grip

We all know that grip is one of the most important stuff in racing. Since forza has chose to go down the drifting path in terms of grip you can often feel lack of grip without having your vehicle awd or having a ton of downforce. See More

Top Con

Every Gran Turismo players will hate you

MotoGP 17

Top Pro

Racing is fun and the controls are responsive

In MotoGP 17, you'll race at full speed to push ahead of the pack of other motorcycles, using the game's tight controls to your advantage to make narrow turns before accelerating again. Keeping that balance between speed and strategic slowdowns is exhilarating when you manage to pull it off and win race after race. You'll get to feel the weight of the motorcycle in your hands through the controller. The vibrations mimic the engine and your wheels grinding against the asphalt of the tracks, making you feel like your hands are right on the handles of your motorcycle. The smooth, responsive controls help to make sure that every race is all about your skills as the player, so you won't have to worry about laggy button inputs when going for difficult turns. No music plays during races, but listening to the buzzing of your motorcycle's engine is addicting and doesn't get old. See More

Top Con

Overall presentation is barren and soulless

The game has overused, repetitive animations,and lifeless movement from crowd NPCs during matches. Overall there's a general emptiness in the environments. There's a lack of emotion and soul in MotoGP 17, making the game feel unfinished and unpolished. It's not a pleasing game to look at, and it might break immersion for you if you're looking for something that's more realistic and lively. See More

Specs

Steam Rating:Mostly Positive

Top Pro

Fun experimentation with the team manager simulator

MotoGP 17's managerial mode gives you control over a team's resources to lead your riders to the World Championship. It has some interesting features that have potential for more additions in future games in the series. Working behind-the-scenes, you'll invest resources into improving your riders' skills, like with nutrition programs and athletic training. As your team wins more races, you'll gain more visibility and have a better selections of paid sponsors to choose from, earning you more money. As you earn more money, you'll be able to afford faster motorcycles, making your team even better. All of these systems have the promise for more improvements and depth, but what's available is plenty of fun to experiment with. See More

Top Con

Inconsistent AI difficulty

During qualifier rounds where there should be a reasonable amount of difficulty, the AI is deceptively easy. You'll end up winning races with a false sense of security, only to find much harder ones later on. It makes things confusing when trying to figure out your skill level and where you might need to improve. See More

Top Pro

Racing veterans will find a challenge to conquer

For anyone looking for customizable difficulties in a racing game, MotoGP has plenty of settings that you can fine-tune to match your skill level. Longtime racing fans can jump right into races at higher difficulties, or you can tweak the AI settings to be more challenging across the board. For tournaments, there's a ramp-up in difficulty from the qualifying rounds to the ranked races, so veterans will find a good challenge in adjusting to each race on the fly. See More

Top Pro

Plenty of tools to help new players excel

For new players, you're able to adjust settings in the menu to give you an easier time controlling your motorcycle. You can set colored path lines along the track that you can follow if you need some help with getting ready for turns ahead of time. There are also options to manually lower the AI difficulty to get you used to the game's learning curve. As you become more skilled at the game, you can gradually wean yourself off of these tools. They're great for anyone who wants to reach those expert levels of play, but might be discouraged by all the new mechanics that come with the racing game genre. See More

F1 2018

Top Pro

Realistic cars, tracks and weather

Each car in F1 2018 is a faithful rendition of real-life motorsport racing, giving you control of awesome cars like the Mercedes, McLaren, Ferrari, and other brands. You'll drive in first-person view from the cockpit, getting to see the car up-close and personal, like how the huge front wheels at either side of you run at full speed and curve with your movements. The true-to-life tracks are straight out of locations from across the world. The game's weather is also spectacular to look at, like the sunny skies reflecting off of your car's coat of paint. When it's raining, you're get to see every detail from the open cockpit, with every drop of rainwater dripping down your helmet. See More

Top Con

Reused driver animations from F1 2015, F1 2016, and F1 2017

Yet again, this latest iteration of the F1 series has too many recycled assets. During the victory segments, the drivers have reused animations to express excitement over their awards. Popping bottles of champagne and spilling the contents out in glee is great in moderation, but it gets old after a while. Certain drivers may not have the personality to do that, so for fans who follow the racers in real life, it can be a strange thing to see. See More

TranquilPhrike's Experience

LOVE this series mainly because this is the only game I play that feels like I'm driving a real car. If I spin or crash, I can almost always point to my specific mistake that put me there. I can't say this about most other sims that seem to have arbitrary tire slip rules (I'm looking at you iRacing). See More

Specs

Steam Rating:Very Positive

Top Pro

Fast, fun races with on-the-fly strategies

To win races in F1 2018, it comes down to learning when to make those hard turns, when to be aggressive, and when to take the risk of making pit stops. Driving fast is exhilarating as you feel the car's wheel in your hand through your controller or peripheral wheel. You play the long game in F1 2018, making quick judgment calls on when the best time is to make a pit stop, even if it means losing your lead in the race. When you know you won't be able to make it to the finish line, that's when you'll want to stop. If you want to push your car past its limits, then you can decide to keep going and do your absolute best to drive better and shave off even more time. As you keep playing, this cerebral risk/reward aspect will come more naturally to you, helping you improve your races down the line. See More

Top Con

Poor graphics for human models

Compared to the smooth graphics for cars, tracks and weather, the human models look terrible in comparison. Their skin textures look unfinished and they lack detail. It can be distracting and jarring to go from great-looking races to scenes with the drivers. They do look better than the ones in F1 2017, but not by much. Models for key characters in the career mode are thankfully a bit more polished. See More

Top Pro

Lots of customization options for the UI, AI difficulty, weather, and car upgrades

The game gives you a bunch of options to make everything custom-fit for you. There are settings like hiding elements on the screen during races, setting the time of day and the weather you'd like for each track, and tweaking the AI difficulty to your liking. In the career more, there's also an in-depth Research and Development skill tree, improved from F1 2017, with dozens of upgrade options for your car. If the R&D skill trees looks too complicated, you can always go with the recommended options instead. See More

Top Con

Almost no updates

Each year's game is basically the same game with new tracks and updated drivers. It would be better to just sell an update pack rather than a whole new game for over $60. See More

Top Pro

You get to enjoy time in the media spotlight throughout the story

During the story, you get to experience what it's like having the media's attention on you as a pro racer. The reporters come up to you with a camera and prepared questions, asking you about the results of the race -- whether you win or lose -- as a way to probe how you feel. If you give good PR responses about team morale and doing better next time, then your sponsors may see this as a good thing, if and only if that's the kind of reputation they want you to have. But they may want someone who's more of a lone wolf and boasts about their own performance, so that same sponsor won't respond well to your sportsmanship. It's a cool way to feel involved in the sport, giving the sense that you're representing not only yourself, but also your team and your sponsors. See More

Tuk Tuk Extreme Simulator

Specs

Steam Rating:Very Positive

Grand Prix Legends

netKar Pro

Top Pro

Immersive driving conditions

There is an included slider to adjust the weather conditions for each track allowing the user to drive in whatever weather they like. This can be done to recreate certain settings or just to experience how each track will play depending on what weather was chosen. See More

Top Con

Low selection of cars

In comparison to other popular racing sims, netKar Pro does not have a very large collection of cars to race with, which is pretty limiting to the user and leads to boredom. See More

Top Pro

Full on simulation

Players need to have a deep understanding of racing mechanics and all that can be adjusted in order to take full advantage of the game, as driving is so realistic that it will take a seasoned racer to do well from the get go. See More

Live for Speed

Top Con

Looks a bit old

But feels better than a lot of other titles. See More

Top Pro

Realistic simulator

The title says it all. You have to drive. See More

RealisticMictecacihuatl's Experience

I'm experienced on Assetto Corsa (very nice), Project Cars (good weather and night option), rFactor (it was nice but bit old), RBR (no #1 on rally class), netKar-pro (very good sim) and many other titles from mid 90s and on. Live For Speed is always on my drive whenever I want a quick race or thrill, it's there; car setup is possible in a way that no other sim could come close. Tire model is unique and the developers are still working on that area to improve it more. Demo mode is available with three cars and one track with no time limit. On-line statistics etc.. one should try to see what I mean. PS. Don't expect eye candy and licensed cars/tracks, weather options etc.. This sim is three man job. It is a hard core online racing simulator. I have seen (and raced with many of them) many people including real race car or cart drivers around the world. Just find a decent server to join (preferably after some practice) and get ready to blast! See More

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