Gaming

Studio 397 has released a substantial beta for PC sim rFactor 2 today. We’ve got a detailed breakdown of what racers can expect from the update, care of Dom Duhan.

Fresh off the release of a muddy new experience, iRacing is expanding into another discipline, one for those players seeking challenges outside of fixed online schedules: Time Attack.

Jeff Gordon — the man who coached players through Gran Turismo 5’s NASCAR School and is seen as one of the greatest racers in the sport — has learned what the big deal is about racing simulators.

Gran Turismo Sport is set to arrive later this year. While Kazunori Yamauchi says the game could be called GT7, it bucks the numbered-title trend. This has inspired us to take a look back at the first spin-off titles in the long-running franchise: the Gran Turismo Concept trilogy.

The grand finale of a month packed with Porsches in Forza Horizon 3 has arrived. “Horizon Secret Service” is the last Forzathon of April, and marks another opportunity to obtain a part of the German manufacturer’s lineup at no additional cost.

Last week, Team VVV was fortunate enough to get some seat time with Project CARS 2, testing out the recently announced inclusion of the Red Bull Ring. There was a catch though: recorded video would be done with a controller instead of the expected sim racing rig.

We’re entering the final stretch before DiRT 4 barrels into the homes of gamers in early June. To celebrate, Codemasters has released the first gameplay trailer for the game.

Getting into a sim racing is a commitment, one many people understandably have a hard time making because of the cost involved. Sure, you can play with a controller, but the full experience — and often the fastest times — belong to those who shell out big bucks for the best gear.

Following up from the comparison to the original Project CARS, we now have some more footage directly looking at how GT Sport compares to its predecessor, Gran Turismo 6.

Xbox players aren’t the only ones that get to enjoy savings on racing games this week. The latest North American PlayStation Store PS+ sale brings with it big discounts on two of Codemasters’ more recent offerings and more.

The familiar setting of Brands Hatch has become a testing ground for yet another comparison, showing the similarities — and differences — between two racing simulators. The latest video compares Project CARS to the GT Sport beta, using the up-to-date Corvette C7.R and Gr.3 car, respectively.

https://youtu.be/9IvaVveDnlk

Playground Games has just announced the second Forza Horizon 3 expansion — focusing on the beloved Hot Wheels brand — and it looks absolutely bonkers.

Big savings have again arrived for the Forza series for Xbox Live Gold members. In this week’s Deals With Gold, Microsoft has combined Forza Motorsport 6 and Forza Horizon 2 (the Xbox One version) into one bundle, along with other content such as Car Passes and a VIP membership for sale separately.

The achievement and trophy list for upcoming rally racer DiRT 4 has been released to the public this week. Codemasters has shown off the type of events and challenges that will put players to the test when the game launches on June 9. The list seems to be a good mix of career-based tasks and general driving tests whilst containing some entertaining names to boot.

Earlier this month it was announced Porsche would be coming to Gran Turismo Sport, continuing a theme within the genre now that the Electronic Arts exclusivity deal is dead.

Recent developments in the automotive industry have pointed toward self-driving cars being closer than we might expect. Firms like Alphabet (the parent company of Google) and Apple are leading the way in autonomous car investment.

One of the most promising features of DiRT 4 is the Your Stage feature, an in-depth track creation tool that players will be able to take advantage of. Codemasters has used the latest iteration of its “Road Book” blog series to tackle this topic and why the team is confident that the tool can deliver worthwhile rally tracks.

Just in case you weren’t aware, April has basically become the month of Porsche, at least in the Forza world. To continue with the theme, another Forzathon has landed on Forza Horizon 3, bringing along a supercar that first started production three decades ago, but still manages to impress.

It’s no secret that Thrustmaster very much has a stronghold on the Playstation side of the sim racing market. Despite a few offerings elsewhere, the company has done well with its Sony-compatible products that include entry level wheels like the T150 series and high end products like the upcoming GT Sport wheel.