Best and worst tracks in racing games?
- Thread starter JR98
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Favorites
Laguna seca (Forza/GT)
Silverstone (Forza/GT)
Maple valley (Forza)
Swiss alps (Forza) (Bernese alps)
Watkins glen (Forza 6)
Spa (Forza/GT)
Least favorites
Ladera Test track (Forza 3/4)
New York circuit (Forza 3)
I'm sure there's a bunch more of both, that's just off the top of my head.
Laguna seca (Forza/GT)
Silverstone (Forza/GT)
Maple valley (Forza)
Swiss alps (Forza) (Bernese alps)
Watkins glen (Forza 6)
Spa (Forza/GT)
Least favorites
Ladera Test track (Forza 3/4)
New York circuit (Forza 3)
I'm sure there's a bunch more of both, that's just off the top of my head.
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- 27,387
- Toronto
- NewAesthetic
- SlipZtrEm
I dunno. The original in GT2 is fantastic in slow cars, and I'm still upset that's not what appeared on PS3.
This could get long...
Best Fictional
Mario Circuit 4 - Super Mario Kart - Practically a long track in this game, it had a tight, memorable layout. I'd always insist on racing it when I'd get to play this at a friend's house.
Vertigo - Need For Speed 1 - Probably the first "serious" racing track I remembered. I loved the scenery: waterfalls, a dark forest area, and plunging hills. Watching some Youtube videos to remind me, I'm still impressed at the sound of the chassis flex as cars land after jumps in the first NFS.
Deep Forest Raceway - Gran Turismo - Yep. Grand Valley comes close (before PD ruined its flow in the newer games), but if I had to pick one from GT's fantasy tracks, this would be it. It beats SSR11 too: while we all remember that suicide chicane, the track itself couldn't come close to DFR's flow.
Apricot Hill Raceway - Gran Turismo 2 - GT2 may have introduced us to real world tracks in the form of Laguna Seca, but Apricot Hill was my favourite.
Sewer Speedway - Crash Team Racing - This track had an insanely good flow to it once you followed Oxide's ghost. Landing every jump, maxing your turbo out: it was a challenge, and it felt great when you nailed it.
DK Mountain - Mario Kart Double Dash!! - Oh man, I love this track. The charge down the mountain is intense. I maintain Double Dash has a stellar track lineup, and is a far better game than MK 64.
Citta Di Aria - Gran Turismo 4 - Damnit PD, bring this back. I loved that they had the balls to bring a super-narrow track to the game, and nobody has really done it since. This was such a blast, we need it on this generation.
Lowenseering - Enthusia - Fast, challenging, yet fun. Though I still have nightmares about taking an R8 around there...
Iberian International Circuit - Forza Motorsport 4 - Like others, I've got a soft spot for this one. It requires the right line, as I hated getting to learn it. The first video I found online was in a Ford GT, which is the exact car I got comfortable with there!
Bernese Alps - Forza Motorsport 4 - Same as above. Hated it at first, seemed really boring and featureless, but hundreds of online races have given me an appreciation for it. Much more challenging than I originally thought.
Holmastad - DriveClub - It's what I've always pictured a run through the mountains would be. A couple hairpins to start things off, then a fast charge through the valley. The tunnels are a nice touch too. I took the V12 Zagato here first, and it was one of the best DC experiences I had.
Black Hills Circuit - DriveClub - A circuit that feels like you're flat out all the time. In a track-friendly car like the BAC Mono, it's magic to hit apex after apex.
That's long enough, I'll post another time with my list of worsts. I've ignored real tracks, since there's just so many to list. Lime Rock has become a new short-track favourite (a far better test site than the awful, boring Tsukuba). Road Atlanta is a quick track that demands a perfect line. Laguna Seca will always hold a special place in my heart for what it has provided me thanks to GT4. Obviously the 'Ring is high up there. Cadwell is like the Nordschleife in concentrated form. I love the rolling hills of Sonoma. Oh yeah, and Watkins Glen.
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- 18,043
- Florida
- GranTurismo0517
- RandomCarGuy17
My list of tracks, mainly on how much I enjoyed racing on the track.
Best:
- Midfield Raceway (Gran Turismo)
- Maple Valley Raceway (Forza Motorsport)
- Suzuka Circuit
- Laguna Seca Raceway
- Nurburgring Nordschleife
- Circuit de la Sarthe
- Trial Mountain (Gran Turismo)
- Silverstone Circuit (2005)
- Island Outskirts (NFS Hot Pursuit 2)
- Seattle Circuit (Gran Turismo 2-4)
- Rome Circuit (Gran Turismo 2 & 3)
- Apricot Hill Raceway (Gran Turismo)
Worst:
- London Circuit (Gran Turismo)
- Long Beach (Forza Motorsport)
- Fuji Speedway (2005)
- Sedona Raceway (Full Circuit only)
- Cita di' Aria (Gran Turismo 4); I can't stand this track, I only race on it when I have to in GT4 such as winning the Cadillac Cien Concept in the Special Condition event. Otherwise, I avoid racing on it. I don't like that there's little room for overtakes and how tight everything is.
- Fujimi Kaido (Forza Motorsport); I just get annoyed by this Circuit, I can't find any enjoyment through racing on this track other than probably the scenary. The first time I tried it in Forza 3 in a race with GT500 Super GT cars; I was wondering when the race would end.
Best:
- Midfield Raceway (Gran Turismo)
- Maple Valley Raceway (Forza Motorsport)
- Suzuka Circuit
- Laguna Seca Raceway
- Nurburgring Nordschleife
- Circuit de la Sarthe
- Trial Mountain (Gran Turismo)
- Silverstone Circuit (2005)
- Island Outskirts (NFS Hot Pursuit 2)
- Seattle Circuit (Gran Turismo 2-4)
- Rome Circuit (Gran Turismo 2 & 3)
- Apricot Hill Raceway (Gran Turismo)
Worst:
- London Circuit (Gran Turismo)
- Long Beach (Forza Motorsport)
- Fuji Speedway (2005)
- Sedona Raceway (Full Circuit only)
- Cita di' Aria (Gran Turismo 4); I can't stand this track, I only race on it when I have to in GT4 such as winning the Cadillac Cien Concept in the Special Condition event. Otherwise, I avoid racing on it. I don't like that there's little room for overtakes and how tight everything is.
- Fujimi Kaido (Forza Motorsport); I just get annoyed by this Circuit, I can't find any enjoyment through racing on this track other than probably the scenary. The first time I tried it in Forza 3 in a race with GT500 Super GT cars; I was wondering when the race would end.
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Brend
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- ClassicBrend
Best:
Alpine 1 (SEGA Rally Revo)
There aren't mant fictional tracks that can be considered flawless, but for me personally Alpine 1 comes damn close to racing perfection. The flow between corners and straightaways just works astoundingly well, considering the entire circuit is pretty much made up of 'S' bends. The key here though is that the handling engine allows it to feel rewarding. Revo was notoriously difficult for an Arcade racer and although there are (debatable) harder tracks in the game but none really make you feel as happy as this track when you nail it.
Moa Therma (WipEout HD Fury/Pulse/Pure)
This track breathes the essence of what makes WipEout so great in my opinion. Whilst other tracks may be more outlandish and excruciating difficulty wise, Moa hits a sweet spot between memorability and maneuverability. For the majority of the track there's no ability to deviate but there 2 main opportunities seasoned players know they can take advantage of to get ahead of the competition. Coming out of the Tunnel sector at the end of the first Mag-strip and the final downward corkscrew most players know about thanks to the trophy linked to doing a barrel roll here. The state of Zen you can get in for this track make the most interesting to race on, unlike other circuits you can't rely on rival racers to mess up but rather you find those inches that can add up to a mile. Which describes competitive WipEout play down to a tee.
High Speed Ring (GT Series)
This track has earned a bit of an infamous reputation due to its overuse in recent games but I still consider it one of the best fictional circuits in the series. The racing is always good fun here, and for the majority of cars it is a fun throw-around that can get all skill levels involved in good racing. Aside from obvious wall-riding opportunities, it is a well-designed track that encourages close encounters.
That's my Top 3 best. I will think a bit more about the worst list and post back. 👍
Alpine 1 (SEGA Rally Revo)
There aren't mant fictional tracks that can be considered flawless, but for me personally Alpine 1 comes damn close to racing perfection. The flow between corners and straightaways just works astoundingly well, considering the entire circuit is pretty much made up of 'S' bends. The key here though is that the handling engine allows it to feel rewarding. Revo was notoriously difficult for an Arcade racer and although there are (debatable) harder tracks in the game but none really make you feel as happy as this track when you nail it.
Moa Therma (WipEout HD Fury/Pulse/Pure)
This track breathes the essence of what makes WipEout so great in my opinion. Whilst other tracks may be more outlandish and excruciating difficulty wise, Moa hits a sweet spot between memorability and maneuverability. For the majority of the track there's no ability to deviate but there 2 main opportunities seasoned players know they can take advantage of to get ahead of the competition. Coming out of the Tunnel sector at the end of the first Mag-strip and the final downward corkscrew most players know about thanks to the trophy linked to doing a barrel roll here. The state of Zen you can get in for this track make the most interesting to race on, unlike other circuits you can't rely on rival racers to mess up but rather you find those inches that can add up to a mile. Which describes competitive WipEout play down to a tee.
High Speed Ring (GT Series)
This track has earned a bit of an infamous reputation due to its overuse in recent games but I still consider it one of the best fictional circuits in the series. The racing is always good fun here, and for the majority of cars it is a fun throw-around that can get all skill levels involved in good racing. Aside from obvious wall-riding opportunities, it is a well-designed track that encourages close encounters.
That's my Top 3 best. I will think a bit more about the worst list and post back. 👍
- 11,660
- GTP_Orido
One of the best : Tsukuba 
- 4,222
- Philippines
- GBalao888
- GBalao888
Best:
New York Circuit (Forza Motorsport 3)
Nurburgring Nordschleife
Circuit de la Sarthe
Autodromo Nazionale Monza
Fujimi Kaido
Anulpha Pass
Ubermall
Worst:
Special Stage Route 7
Côte d'Azur
Ascari Race Resort
Silverstream
Citta Nuova
New York Circuit (Forza Motorsport 3)
Nurburgring Nordschleife
Circuit de la Sarthe
Autodromo Nazionale Monza
Fujimi Kaido
Anulpha Pass
Ubermall
Worst:
Special Stage Route 7
Côte d'Azur
Ascari Race Resort
Silverstream
Citta Nuova
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- 27,387
- Toronto
- NewAesthetic
- SlipZtrEm
Worst Fictional
Vanilla Lake 2 - Super Mario Kart - It's a square, with annoying blocks impeding progress, and the big hole in the middle.
Ice Crusher - Jet Moto - I hated this track. The fragmented nature meant you'd constantly fall off, or get stuck between blocks of ice. Just awful. Excellent music, though.
Smokey Mountain North - Gran Turismo 2 - Though really, all of the rally tracks (other than Pikes Peak) in GT2 could be here. PD's introduction of the sport saw ridiculously huge jumps and tracks roughly the width of an airport runway.
Oxide Station - Crash Team Racing - Difficult for the sake of it. Had as much flow as week-old porridge.
Gare D'Europa - Wipeout XL - How did I ever play this as a kid? Dark, with a bunch of tight turns, this was almost impossible to get a clean lap on.
Dino Dino Jungle - Mario Kart Double Dash!! - In a game full of great tracks, this is the weak link.
Hong Kong - Gran Turismo 4 - Booooooring. It's saving grace was looking pretty for Photomode.
Cape Ring - Gran Turismo 5 - Lifeless. Utterly silly.
It's a shorter list than my bests, if only because a lot miss out for being so forgettable, or not as bad as others in the games listed above. See most of DriveClub's roster for the former: I recognize a lot of the tracks I've raced before, but I couldn't tell you any of their names. Forza's Fujimi Kaido just narrowly avoids this, because while I found it boring for actual racing, I understand its use for drifting, and it offered a lot for Photomode.
Best Real World
Laguna Seca - That Corkscrew. Challenging. Will always be a favourite.
Lime Rock - Everything you'd want out of a short track for testing purposes. Enables David-and-Goliath upsets.
Sonoma/Infineon/Sear's Point - Looking at a trace gives you very little idea of the roller coaster you're about to ride.
Nordschleife - Yes, of course. It's overrated, but it's just so much fun to drive.
Watkins Glen - Speed. More speed. Some speed on top. Feels American in all the best ways.
Cadwell Circuit - Simply incredible. One of my absolute favourite tracks. Shame it's not in everything.
Worst Real World
Fuji - Lifeless. The old layouts were simple, but at least flowed nicely. Newest one is a bore.
Tsukuba - It flows well enough, but is lacking in any form of excitement. People will point to Best Motoring as some sort of validation for the track, but it pales in comparison to places like Lime Rock when it comes to a challenge. Then, there's PD's insistence to throw you there for hours on end in Miatas...
Yas Marina - A spectacle for the eyes, but I hate driving here. Most corners are void of personality.
Monza - Yep, I went there. It has history, but in the modern incarnation, it's a decidedly simple track.
Long Beach - Ugh. No.
Vanilla Lake 2 - Super Mario Kart - It's a square, with annoying blocks impeding progress, and the big hole in the middle.
Ice Crusher - Jet Moto - I hated this track. The fragmented nature meant you'd constantly fall off, or get stuck between blocks of ice. Just awful. Excellent music, though.
Smokey Mountain North - Gran Turismo 2 - Though really, all of the rally tracks (other than Pikes Peak) in GT2 could be here. PD's introduction of the sport saw ridiculously huge jumps and tracks roughly the width of an airport runway.
Oxide Station - Crash Team Racing - Difficult for the sake of it. Had as much flow as week-old porridge.
Gare D'Europa - Wipeout XL - How did I ever play this as a kid? Dark, with a bunch of tight turns, this was almost impossible to get a clean lap on.
Dino Dino Jungle - Mario Kart Double Dash!! - In a game full of great tracks, this is the weak link.
Hong Kong - Gran Turismo 4 - Booooooring. It's saving grace was looking pretty for Photomode.
Cape Ring - Gran Turismo 5 - Lifeless. Utterly silly.
It's a shorter list than my bests, if only because a lot miss out for being so forgettable, or not as bad as others in the games listed above. See most of DriveClub's roster for the former: I recognize a lot of the tracks I've raced before, but I couldn't tell you any of their names. Forza's Fujimi Kaido just narrowly avoids this, because while I found it boring for actual racing, I understand its use for drifting, and it offered a lot for Photomode.
Best Real World
Laguna Seca - That Corkscrew. Challenging. Will always be a favourite.
Lime Rock - Everything you'd want out of a short track for testing purposes. Enables David-and-Goliath upsets.
Sonoma/Infineon/Sear's Point - Looking at a trace gives you very little idea of the roller coaster you're about to ride.
Nordschleife - Yes, of course. It's overrated, but it's just so much fun to drive.
Watkins Glen - Speed. More speed. Some speed on top. Feels American in all the best ways.
Cadwell Circuit - Simply incredible. One of my absolute favourite tracks. Shame it's not in everything.
Worst Real World
Fuji - Lifeless. The old layouts were simple, but at least flowed nicely. Newest one is a bore.
Tsukuba - It flows well enough, but is lacking in any form of excitement. People will point to Best Motoring as some sort of validation for the track, but it pales in comparison to places like Lime Rock when it comes to a challenge. Then, there's PD's insistence to throw you there for hours on end in Miatas...
Yas Marina - A spectacle for the eyes, but I hate driving here. Most corners are void of personality.
Monza - Yep, I went there. It has history, but in the modern incarnation, it's a decidedly simple track.
Long Beach - Ugh. No.
- 2,848
Spa. Interesting...
- 5,551
- Controls set for heart of sun
- GTP_RogerTheHors
In terms of my favourites:
Iberian International Circuit (Forza) - A great fast, flowing short track with nice scenery and a mini Eau Rouge which most cars can take flat out. can... Never so difficult as to be frustrating, but challenging enough to draw one back in again and again.
Apricot Hill Raceway (Gran Turismo) - What a technical track should be like. Great variety of corners to test a car out on, some long straights to get up to speed on, and the most "real" feeling of all the Gran Turismo original courses.
Trial Mountain (Gran Turismo) - The downhill entry to the hairpin. That is all.
Rome Night (Gran Turismo 2) - Just a quick flowing track that's fun to drive. Sadly overlooked.
Red Rock Valley Speedway (Gran Turismo 2) - Again, but with a whole load of added spectacle. The sunset is just gorgeous.
Tsukuba Circuit - Deceptively simple yet tricky to master. Great fun in slower cars.
Laguna Seca - Challenging elevation changes combined with some great corners which require absolute dedication to take quickly, somehow combined into a layout which genuinely flows nicely.
Brands Hatch - Same as above, but a bit faster.
Nurburgring - More than just long, offers a great high speed flow which is great fun in touring cars. Anything faster? Not so much.
In terms of tracks I don't like:
Silverstone - Bland, lacks any real flow. Completely flat with the barriers all 10 kilometres away so it's hard to gauge breaking points or where the corners are or generally why this track is so popular.
Motegi - Purgatory Autodrome.
Variations of Cape Ring with the silly jump (Gran Turismo) - For goodness sake Polyphony... The versions without the silly jump all make for great racing. The jump makes for big crashes.
Hong Kong, New York, the two Paris tracks (Gran Turismo 4) - 90 degree right. short straight. 90 degree left. slightly longer straight. 90 degree right...
Iberian International Circuit (Forza) - A great fast, flowing short track with nice scenery and a mini Eau Rouge which most cars can take flat out. can... Never so difficult as to be frustrating, but challenging enough to draw one back in again and again.
Apricot Hill Raceway (Gran Turismo) - What a technical track should be like. Great variety of corners to test a car out on, some long straights to get up to speed on, and the most "real" feeling of all the Gran Turismo original courses.
Trial Mountain (Gran Turismo) - The downhill entry to the hairpin. That is all.
Rome Night (Gran Turismo 2) - Just a quick flowing track that's fun to drive. Sadly overlooked.
Red Rock Valley Speedway (Gran Turismo 2) - Again, but with a whole load of added spectacle. The sunset is just gorgeous.
Tsukuba Circuit - Deceptively simple yet tricky to master. Great fun in slower cars.
Laguna Seca - Challenging elevation changes combined with some great corners which require absolute dedication to take quickly, somehow combined into a layout which genuinely flows nicely.
Brands Hatch - Same as above, but a bit faster.
Nurburgring - More than just long, offers a great high speed flow which is great fun in touring cars. Anything faster? Not so much.
In terms of tracks I don't like:
Silverstone - Bland, lacks any real flow. Completely flat with the barriers all 10 kilometres away so it's hard to gauge breaking points or where the corners are or generally why this track is so popular.
Motegi - Purgatory Autodrome.
Variations of Cape Ring with the silly jump (Gran Turismo) - For goodness sake Polyphony... The versions without the silly jump all make for great racing. The jump makes for big crashes.
Hong Kong, New York, the two Paris tracks (Gran Turismo 4) - 90 degree right. short straight. 90 degree left. slightly longer straight. 90 degree right...
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- JASON_ROCKS1998
- JR98 GAMING
Update to my original list (new additions are bold)
Best:
Midfield Raceway (Gran Turismo)
Trial Mountain (Gran Turismo)
Deep Forest (Gran Turismo)
Spa
Nurburgring Nordschleife
Donington Park
Brands Hatch
Silverstone (2005)
Zolder
Laguna Seca
Sebring
Indianapolis
Daytona
Road America
Road Atlanta
Seattle (Gran Turismo)
Hockenheimring
Circuit De La Sarthe
Rio (Forza 6)
Catalunya
Oulton Park
Lime Rock Park
Monza
Sunset Peninsula (Forza 2)
Suzuka
Iberian (Forza 3)
Swiss Alps (GT3)
Smokey Mountain (GT3)
Zolder
Worst:
Enna Pergusa
Fujimi Kaido (Forza)
Anderstorp
Grindelwald (GT2)
New York (GT4 & Forza 2)
Hong Kong (GT4)
Citi Di Aria (GT4)
All Rally Tracks (GT4, Except Swiss Alps)
Best:
Midfield Raceway (Gran Turismo)
Trial Mountain (Gran Turismo)
Deep Forest (Gran Turismo)
Spa
Nurburgring Nordschleife
Donington Park
Brands Hatch
Silverstone (2005)
Zolder
Laguna Seca
Sebring
Indianapolis
Daytona
Road America
Road Atlanta
Seattle (Gran Turismo)
Hockenheimring
Circuit De La Sarthe
Rio (Forza 6)
Catalunya
Oulton Park
Lime Rock Park
Monza
Sunset Peninsula (Forza 2)
Suzuka
Iberian (Forza 3)
Swiss Alps (GT3)
Smokey Mountain (GT3)
Zolder
Worst:
Enna Pergusa
Fujimi Kaido (Forza)
Anderstorp
Grindelwald (GT2)
New York (GT4 & Forza 2)
Hong Kong (GT4)
Citi Di Aria (GT4)
All Rally Tracks (GT4, Except Swiss Alps)
- 5,551
- Controls set for heart of sun
- GTP_RogerTheHors
And why have those new additions made your list?
- 6,484
- Nantes
- P308R
From the Gran Turismo Series
Best: High Speed Ring GT1
Worst: High Speed Ring GT5/6
Best: High Speed Ring GT1
Worst: High Speed Ring GT5/6
- 3,104
- Sweden
Dragon Range and Löwenseering from Enthusia are both fantastic fictional tracks - the latter being (to me at least) a sort of mini-Spa, with some great high speed sections and technical corners while retaining a nice flow (DR 17-4 can f' right off, even though I S ranked that bitch 
). Dragon Range on the other hand is a lovely touge track perfectly suited for either drifting or just doing time attacks.
Edit : I'm also a huge fan of Autosport Raceway (all variations) from GRID:AS. Nice flow, high speed corners and almost guaranteed close racing every time.
). Dragon Range on the other hand is a lovely touge track perfectly suited for either drifting or just doing time attacks.Edit : I'm also a huge fan of Autosport Raceway (all variations) from GRID:AS. Nice flow, high speed corners and almost guaranteed close racing every time.
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- Hammerhead Garage
Psygnosis remade it for the Wipeout 3 special edition. The colour palette in particular was redone so that it was considerably easier. Unfortunately, Odessa Keys was still a nasty piece of work, especially in the final sector with the jump into the off-camber corner followed by another jump into a switchback.
I know Wipeout Fury wasn't the most popular game in the series, but I did enjoy the glacier and tropical island circuits; I forget their names.
LeGeNd-1
Premium
- 7,264
- Australia
- GTP_LeGeNd-1
It's quite hard for me to pick favourites without listing almost every single racetrack I have come across. I'm the sort of person that prefers a game with 1 car and many tracks rather than vice versa. That being said, I have my 25 GB rFactor library open and my notebook of every racing game I ever played, so let's start *cracks knuckles*:
Favourite Real:
Albert Park
A1 Ring (now Red Bull Ring)
Austin (in reverse, thanks Codemasters)
Anderstorp
Adelaide
Ascari
Algarve/Portimao
AVUS (not a great track by any means, but I just love the oddness of it
)
Bathurst (loved it since TOCA on PS1)
Birmingham Superprix
Enna Pergusa (better with chicanes oddly)
Hermanos Rodriguez (with full Peraltada)
Imola (chicane or no chicane ok)
Macau Guia
Monte Carlo (probably favourite of all time)
Mont Tremblant
Monza (old combination track with oval)
Mondello Park (the only good thing about NFS Shift)
Nordschleife (duh!)
Old La Sarthe (without chicanes)
Old Fuji (before chicanes and Tilke butchering)
Old Hockenheim
Pau
Sebring
Solitude
Varano (from V8 Superstars)
Vancouver Indy (also from TOCA on PS1)
Virginia (especially North layout)
Watkins Glen
Yas Marina (in F1 cars only)
Zolder
Favourite Semi Fictional (real roads not used to race IRL):
Akina/Haruna
Hakone Turnpike
Irohazaka
Transfagarasan
Favourite Fictional:
Gran Turismo - SSR11 (GT1 version), Grindelwald, Seattle, Complex String, Citta di Aria, Costa di Amalfi, El Capitan, Trial Mountain, Rome Night, Eiger Short, Smokey Mt North, Tahiti Maze
Codemasters GRID series - Barcelona, Chicago, San Francisco, Dubai, Autosport Raceway, all touges (California, Hong Kong, Cote de Azur, Okutama)
Codemasters DIRT series - Croatia (DIRT 2), Monte Carlo (DIRT 3)
NFS - Proving Grounds (NFS II), Atlantica (NFS III), Olympic City (NFS UG)
Test Drive - London (TD6), Yucatan, Canadian Rockies, Mt Fuji, Vermont, New York (TDOR3)
Ridge Racer - Extreme Oval (Rage Racer), Wonderhill, Brightest Nite, Shooting Hoops (R4)
NASCAR Rumble - Night Flight, Circus Minimus
Destruction Derby RAW - Avalanche, Four, Karsutra, Leap of Faith
I could go on, but those are the ones that stood out most to me. You might notice some perennial favourites such as Spa and Suzuka are missing. Personally, except for 1 or 2 corners I found these tracks quite average. If you take away the history they don't really stand out to me.
As for fictional tracks, I find it a shame that a lot of modern arcade racers are now open world. It's fun from an exploratory point of view, but track design suffers and ends up being unmemorable/repetitive. From a sim racer point of view, PD seems to have lost their touch in making fictional tracks. Codemasters remains the only dev that still makes great fictional tracks.
Worst Real:
Any modern Tilkedrome (except those listed above, obviously)
Any city circuits that is constant 90 degree turns and chicanes (Singapore, Valencia and almost all Formula E tracks for example)
Any oval that isn't Indy, Daytona, Talladega, Pocono, Bristol (sorry oval fans, but all the others are just permutations on a theme for me)
Worst Fictional:
Gran Turismo - Cape Ring, Sierra, restyled Grand Valley (squared esses before tunnel), restyled High Speed Ring (banks not steep enough), New Rome (just bleh compared to old one)
Aside from GT there's not really much that springs to mind. Most fictional circuits are just meh, nothing special or bad about them, so I don't have any particularly strong feelings towards them. Also the proliferation of open worlds in arcade games have made it difficult to rate tracks properly (see above).
Well that's it from me. I doubt anyone will read this list in its entirety, but oh well...
Favourite Real:
Albert Park
A1 Ring (now Red Bull Ring)
Austin (in reverse, thanks Codemasters)
Anderstorp
Adelaide
Ascari
Algarve/Portimao
AVUS (not a great track by any means, but I just love the oddness of it
)Bathurst (loved it since TOCA on PS1)
Birmingham Superprix
Enna Pergusa (better with chicanes oddly)
Hermanos Rodriguez (with full Peraltada)
Imola (chicane or no chicane ok)
Macau Guia
Monte Carlo (probably favourite of all time)
Mont Tremblant
Monza (old combination track with oval)
Mondello Park (the only good thing about NFS Shift)
Nordschleife (duh!)
Old La Sarthe (without chicanes)
Old Fuji (before chicanes and Tilke butchering)
Old Hockenheim
Pau
Sebring
Solitude
Varano (from V8 Superstars)
Vancouver Indy (also from TOCA on PS1)
Virginia (especially North layout)
Watkins Glen
Yas Marina (in F1 cars only)
Zolder
Favourite Semi Fictional (real roads not used to race IRL):
Akina/Haruna
Hakone Turnpike
Irohazaka
Transfagarasan
Favourite Fictional:
Gran Turismo - SSR11 (GT1 version), Grindelwald, Seattle, Complex String, Citta di Aria, Costa di Amalfi, El Capitan, Trial Mountain, Rome Night, Eiger Short, Smokey Mt North, Tahiti Maze
Codemasters GRID series - Barcelona, Chicago, San Francisco, Dubai, Autosport Raceway, all touges (California, Hong Kong, Cote de Azur, Okutama)
Codemasters DIRT series - Croatia (DIRT 2), Monte Carlo (DIRT 3)
NFS - Proving Grounds (NFS II), Atlantica (NFS III), Olympic City (NFS UG)
Test Drive - London (TD6), Yucatan, Canadian Rockies, Mt Fuji, Vermont, New York (TDOR3)
Ridge Racer - Extreme Oval (Rage Racer), Wonderhill, Brightest Nite, Shooting Hoops (R4)
NASCAR Rumble - Night Flight, Circus Minimus
Destruction Derby RAW - Avalanche, Four, Karsutra, Leap of Faith
I could go on, but those are the ones that stood out most to me. You might notice some perennial favourites such as Spa and Suzuka are missing. Personally, except for 1 or 2 corners I found these tracks quite average. If you take away the history they don't really stand out to me.
As for fictional tracks, I find it a shame that a lot of modern arcade racers are now open world. It's fun from an exploratory point of view, but track design suffers and ends up being unmemorable/repetitive. From a sim racer point of view, PD seems to have lost their touch in making fictional tracks. Codemasters remains the only dev that still makes great fictional tracks.
Worst Real:
Any modern Tilkedrome (except those listed above, obviously)
Any city circuits that is constant 90 degree turns and chicanes (Singapore, Valencia and almost all Formula E tracks for example)
Any oval that isn't Indy, Daytona, Talladega, Pocono, Bristol (sorry oval fans, but all the others are just permutations on a theme for me)
Worst Fictional:
Gran Turismo - Cape Ring, Sierra, restyled Grand Valley (squared esses before tunnel), restyled High Speed Ring (banks not steep enough), New Rome (just bleh compared to old one)
Aside from GT there's not really much that springs to mind. Most fictional circuits are just meh, nothing special or bad about them, so I don't have any particularly strong feelings towards them. Also the proliferation of open worlds in arcade games have made it difficult to rate tracks properly (see above).
Well that's it from me. I doubt anyone will read this list in its entirety, but oh well...
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- 8,238
- United Kingdom
The Marina Air layout at the LA Coliseum rallycross course in DiRT 2 is fantastic just because of the airtime... try it out with some of the larger trophy trucks/buggies. Great fun trying to thread them through the more technical parts. Very easy to bin it and take yourself out in a split second if you're millimetres off line but that's just part of the challenge.
The Milan street circuit in GRID deserves a mention. The cut through the Galleria mall is brilliant. Don't take a prototype there though, I remember one of the one-off guest races being with the Daytona Prototype at the high-speed ring layout of it which was just painful. But the physics model made all the fastest cars in that game drive poorly.
The Milan street circuit in GRID deserves a mention. The cut through the Galleria mall is brilliant. Don't take a prototype there though, I remember one of the one-off guest races being with the Daytona Prototype at the high-speed ring layout of it which was just painful. But the physics model made all the fastest cars in that game drive poorly.
- 10,990
- Plymouth, UK
- motorforum
At the minute, I'm highly impressed with the North Loop of Ride's North Wales locale. I've seen some duff tracks in bike games - the ones in Riding Spirits 2 spring to mind - but this one managed to be a decent course and still look like a real-world location. I can see it being my go-to track like Deep Forest is in Tourist Trophy.
- 4,040
- UK
- ReTyger
Just out of interest, why such universal dislike for Cape Ring? I like it, and remember being excited when I saw an early video of it in the rain. The jump isn't *that* silly, surely? There are jumps that big on some rally stages, and it's one little feature of a big track. The only feature I dislike is how slow the AI cars drive around the "spiral", but it's not a biggie.
- 33,155
- Hammerhead Garage
Correction: it wasn't Wipeout Fury, but Wipeout Fusion. The glacier circuit was Cubiss Float; the tropical island was Mandarashee.
- 5,551
- Controls set for heart of sun
- GTP_RogerTheHors
LeGeNd-1
Premium
- 7,264
- Australia
- GTP_LeGeNd-1
Jumps on rally tracks are fine because cars are designed for it. Jumps on road courses are just ridiculous, especially in a sim racer. Flugplatz on the Nordschleife is probably the highest you can jump without destroying a normal race car's suspension.
But for me, the jump itself is not the main problem. Nor is the spiral (my fave part of the track actually). But the whole track in general is uninspiring compared to the legacy PD fictional tracks such as Trial Mountain, Deep Forest, Red Rock Valley and even some of the later ones like Eiger and Matterhorn. Layout wise it's trying too hard to be like Complex String, but it's not as technical so the corners end up feeling "forced" and has no flow. The surrounding landscape is just bland. Also the connecting parts between the various layouts (the part where the road is painted red/blue) is annoying to drive.
IMO, they should just keep one layout (Cape Ring Outer) and remove the rest. Spice up the surroundings (maybe set it in South Africa? Cape of Good Hope and all that) and it'll be a decent track.
- 33,155
- Hammerhead Garage
I love the Formula C race on the club layout. Once you learned how to drive the cars, you could take it flat out. It was especially fun to do it over a full twenty-five laps.
A lot of the street circuits in the Grid series are brilliant. Especially the shorter Paris and Barcelona ones.
I remember reading a review of Colin McRae Rally 2.0 where the reviewer complained that he couldn't pull off the "long, delicious power-slides" that he could in Gran Turismo 2 because the stages were so narrow and mistakes were punished. And while the likes of Tahiti Dirt Route 3 and Green Forest Roadway had some nice corners, they were very arcade-y. In many ways, I think Colin McRae Rally 2.0 was ahead of its time, because it really needed the sensitive trigger buttons for acceleration and braking. Even though Codemasters developed the annoying and lazy habit of recycling parts of their stages, they still had some brilliant stuff in Dirt 3, which is why I am so excited for Dirt Rally.
Now, if only they could remake the best stages from all of the Colin McRae and Dirt games and release them as DLC ...
- 11,660
- GTP_Orido
Cape Ring South is great, spend a lot of time racing there online back in GT5.
LeGeNd-1
Premium
- 7,264
- Australia
- GTP_LeGeNd-1
Agreed. I always feel that the rallying sections of GT is more inspired by SEGA Rally/Rallcross style off road racing with 4 other cars on track than actual WRC rallying. It's fun in itself, but not challenging at all and no way representative of actual rallies.
- 33,155
- Hammerhead Garage
Meanwhile, I remember one of the late-game stages in Colin McRae Rally 2.0 where the road was two muddy wheel tracks through paddocks. The stage was run at night after a series of tough stages, so it was absolutely terrifying when you had to aim for the narrow gaps in the stone walls separating each paddock while driving over a hundred kilometres per hour with flickering headlights.
