Your Top 10 Racing Games of All Time - One Hit Wonders Edition

[toastet]

I think it could be interesting if we start another Top10 racing games thread and exclude the big IPs with multiple titles like Gran Turismo, Forza, NFS, Colin/Dirt, Grid, TOCA + Race Driver, Motorstorm, Burnout, PGR, Ridge Racer, Midnight Club and only enter titles with 1 or max 2 titles in a series. Still having a small hope finding a good title I missed yet playing 😍

• Driveclub - obvious, shame they didn't continue and started a series with it (PS4)
• Sportscar GT - cars, tuning (parts and setup), tracks, level of realism at the time, big grids, EA/DICE before today. still playing it every ~2 years (PC, never touch the PSX vers., tracks and cars modding was already a thing. Abandonware, free DL available running on Win10)
• Enthusia - Konamis Gran Turismo, better handling model but missing content and maybe to much sim for most of the players at the time of the PS2
• Sega GT 2002/GT Online (re-release with cars + tracks added) - kind of the same problems like Enthusia, Segas Gran Turismo try but still worth it (Xbox Classic) (there was Sega GT as predecessor)
• Wreckfest - amazing game, top handling and crash physics, lacking a bit of more single player championships and missing including DLC tracks into the career ladder (PS4/5, XOne, X|S, PC)
• Big Scale Racing - absolute gem for me, tarmac RC racing on real world RC tracks with multiple weather conditions and difficult challenges depending on the car classes, lack of tracks since a bit repetitive running the same courses in every championship (PC, abandonware, free DL available running on Win10)
• Rallisport Challenge 1 - Microsofts Colin McRae rival but including rallycross, ice racing (kind of Andros Trophy style) and hill climbing (incl. Pikes Peak!) besides stage rallys. Absolute blast with nice physics and very nice rally car choices including 90s-2000s WRC, Group B and some french Maxi cars (PC, abandonware, free DL available running on Win10 and Xbox Classic), Rallisport Challenge 2 had the same formula but Xbox Classic exclusive
• World Racing 2 - Part 2 of Mercedes Benz World Racing with multiple car manufacturers now instead of MB only, wonderful tracks and challenging racing (PC, still on Steam)
• Stuntman - amazing driving game with lots of challenges, sadly one of the few games not running properly on an emu to enhance graphics but just get the PS2 disc, absolutely worth it, highly challenging (PS2) Better to avoid Part 2 Ignition on X360, killed the game with too easy challenges
• GT Legends - Simbins amazing work on the historic FIA championship of 2005 with vehicles from the 60s and 70s from small Minis and Lotuses to big V8 Corvettes and Mustangs to Porsches running on modern GP tracks from Nürburgring to Spa or unicorns like Anderstorp. Challenging GT-R series-like physics and handling and tough AI but still analogue controller managable (lots of different driving aids available if needed) (PC, 5-6 bucks on Steam, totally worth it with lots of tracks and cars as mods available)

Honorable mentions: Grand Prix Legends (PC), Racing Evoluzione/Apex (Xbox Classic), N.I.C.E. 2 (PC), Asetto Corsa (PC because Mods), Fatal Racing/Whiplash (PC), Indycar Racing II (PC), Wacky Wheels (PC)

Hoping others will find missed gems too!

 

[FT-1]

This seems like a good idea, as with my post in the other thread this is in alphabetical order rather than preference

• Art of Rally - Gorgeous aesthetic, the gameplay has more depth than the low-poly visuals would make you believe
• Auto Modellista - The art style is timeless and it had several interesting features, including garage customisation
• Live For Speed S2 - At the peak of this game's popularity, I sunk a lot of time into cruise servers
• Modnation Racers - Loading speed really killed this title for me, but was pretty fun when you got into the action
• Shox: Rally Reinvented - Probably the most obscure entry on this list, the Shox zones were an interesting concept
• Split/Second - The destructible environments added so much gameplay value
• Wreckfest - Always eventful to play and had great post-launch support

I'm finding it harder to come up with legendary titles based on this criteria, but I'll also give a shout-out to Juiced and Rallisport Challenge.

As for games I never got a chance to play but look like one-hit wonders based on gameplay I've watched, I'll add Blur and Driveclub to the list.

 

[FerrariF1GT]

• Richard Burns Rally: needs no explanation; if not for Burns’s death, I feel confident that there would’ve been another one for PC/PS3/360 with improved fidelity across the board
• Midtown Madness 3: the only one on console and the only one developed by DICE, the driving and especially the writing were wacky in a good way (IMO)
• NASCAR Inside Line: not the only Eutechnyx NASCAR game but the only one to have substantial improvements compared to its predecessor, best console NASCAR game post-Thunder IMO
• Lotus Challenge: had the best selection of Lotuses at the time and arguably today covering the company’s history from the 50s to 2000 with both road and open-wheel cars, is the only game on top of my head with the Elite, the newer Elan, and the Proton Satria, even had a car football minigame (even if it was just penalties)
• Midway Arcade Treasures 3: part of a series of emulated arcade games from the company for PS2/Xbox/GC (don’t worry, this was an official retail title), this one focused on the racers; includes Hydro Thunder, Rush 2049 (both of these are in fact based on their Dreamcast ports), Super Off-Road, among others
• Diddy Kong Racing: gameplay styles and single-player content are more varied than Mario Kart 64 but track design is admittedly lacking, we don’t talk about the DS version; Donkey Kong Racing continues to be one of my favorite ‘what ifs’ if Microsoft didn’t buy out Rare
• Chocobo Racing: Square’s attempt at a kart racer with Final Fantasy characters, a similar game was released for the Switch last year but it has terrible monetization and last I’ve heard it’s getting shut down
• Speed Racer (Wii): based on the Wachowskis’ film, has deep, physical vehicular combat that’s satisfying to get right
• Re-Volt: RC car racing with powerups, was recently re-released on Steam
• Simraceway: free-to-play sim-lite, hasn’t been updated in years and probably shut down by now, RaceRoom is monetized better anyway, but I remember messing around with it back in the day and liking the handling

 

[egl92]

Driveclub
Enthusia
Auto Modellista
Advan Racing
V8 Superstars Next Challenge
Evolution GT
Art of Rally
Horizon Chase Turbo
Ultimate Racing 2D 2*
Super Wooden GP**

Honorable mention: Circuit Superstars

*I am aware that it's a 2D indie and many people may not like that, but I don't understand why it's not more popular.
In the Steam workshop you can find anything.
I have 1992 DTM, 1998 BTCC, 2004 V8 Supercars, F1 all of eras, Formula E, WRC, JGTC, Super Formula, Nascar, GT3, MotoGP...

** The second is in development and it looks very promising.

 

[MagpieRacer]

1. Blur, 2010 Xbox 360
Obvious choice, take the mechanics of a game like Mario Kart, curate a licensed csr list and a selection of fantastic city circuits and you have a recipe for absolute fun. I much preferred this to the Burnouts of the time. And it feature my hometown Brighton as a location.

2. Split/Second, 2010 Xbox 360
Obvious choice number 2. No game has done what this game did, it was just unfortunately ahead of its time. Imagine what could be done with this IP with current tech.

3. Mercedes Benz World Challenge, 2003 Xbox
This was a game I absolutely love played. Over 100 Mercs, over 100 glorious tracks, had loads of challenges and was just a really good fun game to play.

4. Racing Evoluzione, 2003 Xbox
A game where you create your own car company, logo etc, develop a brand, build cars from blueprints you find, race the cars and then evolve them further. What could be more fun? It was even executed pretty well and it's a shame it never saw a sequel. Good roster of licensed cars and entertaining races.

5. Total Immersion Racing, 2002 Xbox
I absolutely loved this racing game. Its focus was on GT and Prototype racing cars, 17 in total, 12 tracks with a mix of real world and fictional, and a pretty good career mode with had everything from 1 on 1 sprints to endurance racing. It was noted at the time for having the AI pressure system, by which you could force an opponent into a mistake by putting them under pressure.

6. R:Racing, 2004 Xbox
While technically a spin off of Ridge Racer, it was very much its own thing. Weirdly another game either a pressure based AI system. R:Racing was so much fun, had a great selection of cars from DTM, Super GT, Le Mans, WRC and more. Had around 10 tracks with circuits, rallying and drag racing and featured a bizarrely entertaining story mode complete with CG cut scene and in race dialogue. Thoroughly entertaining and although and door was left open for a follow up, it never materialised.

7. Sega GT 2002, 2002 Xbox
The sequel to the dreamcast game, this was a very interesting take on the Gran Turiamo formula and I really enjoyed it. 125 cars, 15 or so circuits. It really had some odd ball cars, mostly Japanese but a decent variety. I loved chronicles mode where you raced through the decades, tuning uk the cars as you went. I also love, love, loved the garage where you could personalise the 3d space around your car. So much fun.

8. Porsche Challenge, 1997 PS1
Nowadays, a game with 1 cars and a handful of tracks would be stingy. But back then, if the gameplay was fun, who cares? This was one of the very best PS1 racers.

9. Beetle Adventure Racing, 1999 N64
One of thenmost fun, silly, arcade racing games of the era. Inspired by NFS meets Mario Kart, it was just hilarious fun to play, with some really well thought out track designs and was a real delight to play.

10. Enthusia Professional Racing, 2005 PS2
Konami went hard with this, excellent physics married to a really interesting progression system, with an excellent selection of cars and circuits made for a very good alternative to Gran Turismo, whilst also doing something to differentiate itself from the competition. A travesty that a sequel never appeared.

Edited for honourable mention because it probably should have been in either of my top 10s. RalliSport Challenge 1 and 2. These were both unbelievable games, I remember how good RC1 looked and felt on the original xbox, it was a properly good game and RC2 was one of the og Xbox' best titles.

 

[egl92]

MagpieRacer Maybe you're inside my brain.
I have been doubting whether to name the indies or put four of the games that you have mentioned:
Blur, Split/Second, R:Racing and Mercedes World Racing.

 

[toastet]

Don't know why I'm always forgetting BeamNG.

 

[Eunos_Cosmo]

Live for Speed
Enthusia
Sega GT (Xbox)
Soda Off Road Racing (really, really impressive physics for 1997, developed by some of the people behind GPL and iRacing)
4X4 Evo (PS2)
Rush 2 (N64) - I remember the jumps in this game were super fun, especially in one environment

Struggling a bit to think of more

One game I would really like to experience that was never made for export markets was Racing Lagoon...which seemed like what you would get if you crossed Gran Turismo, Tokyo Extreme Racer, and....Final Fantasy together...It might be the most ambitious racing game ever made. Some of the gameplay seems really novel (like traversing an abstracted version of the city from above) and I'm kind of all about it. I might try to set this up on my PC via emulator.

 

[Pearl Jam]

Driveclub x 10

 

[mika haka]

Virtua racing on the mega drive - only had 3 tracks and one car but it actually had decent physics and was a fun hot lap game. Very revolutionary for the time.

Horizon chase turbo ps4 - throwback to the 80s arcade racing with modern gameplay mechanics. Pure arcade fun but is very much pick up and play.

Richard burns rally. As mentioned king of rally games and the physics are still the best we've ever had for a rally game. Extremely hard but very rewarding.

Ferrari supercar challenge ps3 - filled a gap while waiting on gt5. Decent physics and a cool livery editor. For a budget game was surprisingly good


Project gotham racing og xbox - amazing graphics for the time and loads of cool cars and tracks. With decent physics that with more refinement could have been the xbox gt.

Sebastian loeb rally ps4 - next to richard burns rally this is the best rally game we've had in a long time. Amazing physics and one of the biggest rosters of tracks and cars seen yet in a rally game. Would love a sequel

Gravel ps4 - nice selection of cars in fantasy tracks all over the world. Solid arcade game

Super hang on - fun bike game that was revolutionary at the time

Sunset rider ps4 xbox - not the classic western arcade game but an indie bike game on the xbox that plays like horizon chase turbo with a bike.

Daytona usa - gameeeee overrrrr. Another classic sega title. Man they should get baçk into making consoles


Sega rally - daytona usa with rally cars. Pure arcade awesomeness

 

[Mercia]

Definitely Auto Modellista for me, gorgeous game but made more frustrating than it could have been with finnicky physics and perhaps limited gameplay modes. One of those that I'm glad to have experienced though.

 

[m355y]

F355 Challenge on the Dreamcast! I’ve literally just remembered this one when I saw the above post about the Ferrari game - I never played that one, but I bloody loved F355 and it had such a brilliant track list as well as being really good in terms of physics and racing - yeah it was limited in scope but for what it was, it was great. I remember the PS2 version was good too, although I think there was also a cheat for the DC version which gave you an external camera view?

TT Superbikes on the PS2 - looked like a budget game, was published by Jester, not a promising start - but the game underneath it was really good fun and managed to incorporate the full TT course years before the On the Edge game managed it (with s**tty physics) on the last gen. Even had that Mad Sunday or whatever they call it where the bikes weave in and out of the traffic, really good game. Was basically rereleased twice with minimal improvement, although the sequel had lots more tracks. Both the second and third game are pretty hard to find but the original game is pretty easy to get cheap.

Total Immersion Racing - get the Xbox version though, because the PS2 version is an absolute migraine on a disc, one of the ugliest looking games of that gen. But underneath the shabby presentation is a pretty solid game with a fantastic car list, can be really good and surprisingly challenging with well tuned difficulty and very solid driving mechanics. A very interesting one-off.

Beetle Adventure Racing - one of the most underrated games ever. Mixes the really charming track design of Need For Speed 2 with better driving physics and the exploration side that means it feels as much a platformer as a racing game. Only ever appeared on the N64 and basically forgotten aside from its cult following. If you have an N64, find this at CeX or EBay and get it, seriously.

Sebastien Loeb Rally Evo - personally I think the Milestone WRC games were really underrated. They were good. Good handling and physics, faithful recreations of the WRC from that era. Really middling reviews, but I liked them. SLRE was almost a “greatest hits” of that series, only so much more - it launched alongside DiRT Rally but in some ways was the better game - the tarmac physics were better, the stages were actually based on real stages and were reportedly much closer to the real thing than DR. And it didn’t do the DiRT Rally thing of cutting two big stages into pieces and reusing them over and over - there were far more original stages in this. And the car list was brilliant. It wasn’t perfect - the difficulty level was wildly inconsistent and the ‘moon physics’ that would have the car eight feet in the air if you hit a bank or ditch were annoying, but this seems to be forgotten and in many ways I think it was much better than Codemasters’ games.

Porsche Challenge - my first ever video game. My parents surprised me with a PlayStation at Christmas, with this and V-Rally. I hated V-Rally then and I still hate it now, the handling sucks. But Porsche Challenge was so much fun, I loved the characters, the track designs and the music - the way the tracks changed routes lap by lap, the handling. Like F355 Challenge in a lot of ways, but obviously more arcadey. I always played as Dan.

 

[Tristan H]

Here are 10 that haven't been mentioned yet:

• Rollcage Stage 2 (PS1)
• N-Gen Racing (PS1)
• Muppet RaceMania (PS1)
• RC de Go! (PS1)
• Motorhead (PS1)
• Grand Prix Challenge (PS2)
• Test Drive: Ferrari Racing Legends (PS3)
• Redout
• Absolute Drift
• Lonely Mountains: Downhill

 

[toastet]

Total Immersion Racing - get the Xbox version though, because the PS2 version is an absolute migraine on a disc, one of the ugliest looking games of that gen. But underneath the shabby presentation is a pretty solid game with a fantastic car list, can be really good and surprisingly challenging with well tuned difficulty and very solid driving mechanics. A very interesting one-off.

Another one which is free today on PC and runs on Win10. Good cars, nice tracks, multiple class racing but only 3-5 opponents are a bit dull in GT racing (the one thing I also don't like on GT1-4). The opponents had kind of a memory on your driving behaviour towards them and sometimes made revenge fouls in later races which was something new back then.

 

[INEEDNAWZZZ]

I'll abstain from writing out an essay like I did for the main thread, but seeing the OP reminded me of one I should've actually put on my Top 10; RalliSport Challenge 2. That game is genuinely the only reason I have an OG Xbox as it sadly isn't backwards compatible with the 360. Just so much fun and had a PGR sense of style to it, but different at the same time too.

 

[toastet]

works 97% on a modded 360 with freed backwards compatibility.

 

[m355y]

I'll abstain from writing out an essay like I did for the main thread, but seeing the OP reminded me of one I should've actually put on my Top 10; RalliSport Challenge 2. That game is genuinely the only reason I have an OG Xbox as it sadly isn't backwards compatible with the 360. Just so much fun and had a PGR sense of style to it, but different at the same time too.

I love this game, so much better than the first one. Such a shame it’s not backwards compatible without modding. I have an OG Xbox purely to play this and Midtown Madness 3. I only play them once in a blue moon but like to know that I still can.

 

[MagpieRacer]

Here are 10 that haven't been mentioned yet:

• Rollcage Stage 2 (PS1)
• N-Gen Racing (PS1)
• Muppet RaceMania (PS1)
• RC de Go! (PS1)
• Motorhead (PS1)
• Grand Prix Challenge (PS2)
• Test Drive: Ferrari Racing Legends (PS3)
• Redout
• Absolute Drift
• Lonely Mountains: Downhill

Grand Prix Challenge was absolutely fantastic. Was so much better than both the EA and Sony F1 2002 games, both visually and physics wise. Suffered really in terms of popularity by launching just before the 2003 seasons so was out of date super fast, the EA game had a 6 month head start at the Sony version launched around the same time but was marketed better and came with a free DVD.

 

[m355y]

EA F1 2002 was garbage. The ultimate in lazy cash-grab, used the previous season car models with the new liveries, so the cars looked all wrong. It’s a shame because 2001 was good but it was just so utterly lazy. GP Challenge was excellent though.