Best Racing Game?

Started by Norwood, August 27, 2015, 08:14:41 AM

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Hey guys, I'm looking for a racing game to run on my new computer. I have been looking around at the different modern racing games, but I don't really know that much about them. I want to buy a really beautiful street racing game, with an awesome environment and cars, and lots of content. So I'm here to ask, in your opinion what are some of the best PC racing games?
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I know it's not a PC game, but if you have a PS2 or Original Xbox, you need Burnout 3.

Not sure which ones are on PC but I like;
F12011 (or newer)
Grid (or Grid Autosport is supposed to be good and I'm pretty sure there's a few street circuits in that)
Need for speed games; The older underground games are about street racing.
Or you could get an open world game like Grand Theft Auto (depending on your age ;) ) and treat it just as a driving game.
I play less now but I'll always be around, lets keep this site and battlefront going. :)

Ahhhh, my kind of thread.

*cracks knuckles*

First off, I'll need to know what games you have played, to get an idea about how powerful your current rig is. Secondly, here's my list of racing games I've played so far:


  • Need for Speed: Underground 2: It's got great customization, races only occur at night, but the freeroaming is nice. I played this on GameCube, but you will most likely be able to find a PC copy off Amazon for a good price.
  • Need for Speed: Carbon: Customization isn't quite as thorough as Underground 2, however you have a more updated car catalog, and you also have a wingman this time to help you win races. Races also occur at night, however the Canyon Duels can get pretty intense regardless. You'll also find yourself in the odd police pursuit as well. Also played this on GameCube, but most likely available for PC via Amazon.
  • Need For Speed: Undercover: While not quite a shining light in the series' run, it still has some decent gameplay. You can't skip cutscenes, races take place during the day, and there's more involvement in police pursuit. Actually bought this game yesterday for $10 off Steam, so I've been playing this one actively.
  • Need for Speed: Shift: EA's take on making NFS a racing sim. Professional racing, so there's no cops or street racing involved. Handling will be a nightmare though unless you can fine-tune your car and having a racing wheel for your PC. I personally didn't enjoy this title all that much being raised on NFS:U2, but if you want professional racing, I'd still steer away from this one (no pun intended), since there are better racing sims out there.
  • Shift 2: Unleashed: Same as above, only the handling I believe is worse on the cars.
  • Need for Speed: Hot Pursuit (2010): A reboot of NFS' old Hot Pursuit series. Not much of a story-driven campaign here, you pretty well race as either a street racer of a cop. Almost nothing in regards to customization (aside from choosing your color), and the AI have a bit of a rubberband-ing style to them, so you'll find it tough to be able to get/keep the lead for long. You also have a damage meter, so you'll have to be fairly careful in regards to how you drive through traffic and tackle corners as well as the cops/racers.
  • Burnout 2: Point of Impact: An awesome game if all you care about is carnage, and speed. No car brands in this one, but I can guarantee you'll have loads of fun crashing your car as you try to rack loads of cost-to-state damage, slamming into rush hour traffic and the like. Racing can take place at any time of day, and the handling on the cars isn't too bad. I played this one of GameCube as well, but you should be able to find a cheap PC copy off Amazon.
  • Burnout: Paradise: The Ultimate Box: A PC-port of the console version pretty much. Obviously no car brands involved (aside from those invented by Criterion), but the cars themselves resemble real life cars pretty well. Lots of racing modes, and would fully recommend if you are more of an arcade-y type of racer.
  • BeamNG.drive: Not too sure I need to explain this one. A basic physics sandbox where you can drive cars and smash 'em up. Pretty similar to Next Car Game: Wreckfest.
  • TrackMania: United: Now this, is a great racing game. About as arcade-y as you can get, with loop-de-loops, insane driving stunt courses, all through the terrain of several environments, it's really fun. Plus, you can download skins for the game so you can look like you are driving a nice BMW or whatever you want. I recommend this if you like arcade-style racing. :P
  • TrackMania 2 Series: Stadium, Canyon, and Valley, all 3 titles an updated version of United pretty much. More of what I mentioned above.
  • Copa Patrobra de Marcas: A full-on racing sim. Unfortunately I've never been one for racing sims, but I can absolutely say this game is a true sim racer. From a fuel gage, to pitstops, etc., it's a pretty solid racing sim. It's a free one too, but I would heavily recommend a racing wheel for this game (it's near impossible to race the game without one).
Aside from that, if you do prefer racing sims however, Assetto Corsa and Project Cars are all I can recommend. Sorry my thing became a ramble, but being in a racing craze recently, this was the kind of stuff I just wanted to vent out. :P

I think we all know swbf1 is the best racing game  ;)

Burnout 2 was good, but 3: Takedown is way more fun IMO. In addition to races (which I remember having a TON of variety, including urban and countryside maps in the US, Europe, the Middle East and Asia) there also 'crash' mode, where you try to make the biggest pileup you can, and then blow up your car for EVEN MORE damage! (we need an 'evil' smiley) As well as road rage mode where you and the AI opponents try to destroy each other in a high-speed chase through the race maps. Some really fun cars, too. They're all made up, but look a lot like real ones. There's also some really fun bonus/easter egg ones (I won't spoil them). I remember the handling being superb. And on top of that it has an EPIC soundtrack. (Listen to it here: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ec1lYHHn7ps&list=PLSr82Inu7VRKL8y3opjbUMQgxoLTxmMsd )

Burnout 4: Revenge was also really fun. Very similar to Takedown, execpt it's on the then-next-gen consoles and it has a few new modes, but they aren't really as fun as the three main ones. My big complaints really are that that most of the cars look old and rusty, crash mode wasn't as fun as 3, and the soundtrack wasn't as good.

Burnout paradise was kinda boring for me, and I didn't really like how it was open world.

Another good game is Flatout (IDK if it's for PC, I have it on PS2), it's similar to Burnout, except you're on dirt tracks. Handling is kinda difficult. There's also a demolition derby mode and a mode where you drive as fast as you can and fling the driver out the window to hit a target.  :rofl:

@Kiwi, Don't forget about Racer Revenge and Super Bombad Racing!  :P (I actually own those, and play them!) And yes, SWBF is great for racing, too. As a side note, I think a modern Star Wars Racing/Driving game would be awesome.

Quote from: {Alpha} Kiwi on August 27, 2015, 10:09:13 PM
I think we all know swbf1 is the best racing game  ;)



TAUNTAUN RACER 3
And you thought they smelt bad on the outside

If you like the more simulation-based game:

rFactor: good physics with loads of mods and can run in almost any pc.

Copa Petrobras de marcas: It`s a game made by a brasilian group of modders who took the rFactor engine and polished it.It`s based on a brasilian racing competition with some street cars.

Game stock car extreme: Same thing as the above but this one is based on brasilian stock car series.

Formula truck: Same thing,but you race with racing trucks.

Assetto Corsa: Good physics,good graphics and mods.

PCars: By far the most enjoyable of them all for me,it doesn't have mods but the combo = graphics/effects/optimization + physics + multiplayer + good career, make it the best one in my opinion.

And you have rFactor 2 ,iRacing and some others where you need a monthly/yearly subscription.

Yay, something I actually know something about!

First and foremost, the three most basic types of racing games are:

Arcade does not require a wheel. (Examples:  Flatout, Burnout, Trackmania, Need for Speed (Except Shift1/2)
Simcade have aspects of sim racing but still has an exceptionally large amount of arcadiness.  You should use a wheel but it does work without it. (Examples:  NFS Shift, Grid)
Sim.  You pretty much have to use a wheel.  (Examples:  iRacing, rFactor, Race 07)

For either simcade and simulation I HIGHLYsuggest a wheel.  If you live in a town with plenty of thrift stores, with a bit of luck you can buy wheels for 1/5 of the price of one on amazon depending on the wheel.

I see that most people have already suggest the more common games, so I shall try to give you some new ones.
---------------

Flatout 1/2 is a great destruction styled racing game.  It's often compared to burnout but is actually very different.  You don't need a wheel for this game.

The Race series by Simbin is good but you would need a steering wheel.

Driver San Francisco is one of the best arcade racers ever in my opinion.

Crazy Taxi is a very fun old arcade game.

Dirt Track Racing 2 is an old fun game that is slightly more sim-ish than simcade but not a full blown sim.  I managed to use a keyboard with it.

Raceroom Racing Experience is free but comes with very few things.  You have to pay a lot of real money for it.  IT's also a sim, so use a wheel.

NetKar Pro is free now but has been taken offline.  Now it has just practice modes.  I'd suggest a wheel.
-----

You see me keep talking about getting a wheel but it really is that important.

You might end up like me, with a racing seat in his living room and full blown sim racing setup.    :P








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as an f1 fan, f1 2012 was really good and fun. The newest f1 2015 is very good in singleplayer (bad multiplayer though). U need a wheel with force feedback to play racing games. please dont just stick to a controller or worse...a keyboard.


Add me on steam you piece of hairy wookie

Quote from: BOB.LION on August 28, 2015, 07:51:47 AM
or worse...a keyboard.
*waves hand in the distance*

Yes, I use a keyboard for my racing games. I'm quite cheap to go for a full on racing wheel (and since I have a laptop, configuration for the thing would be chaotic). I have considered getting a PC controller though (since it shouldn't be that hard to find a half-decent one for a good price I figure).

Nonetheless, I might take Josh's advice and got to my local Salvation Army/Goodwill store and see if I can pick one up for a good price sometime. :P

Quote from: Gold Man on August 28, 2015, 09:51:57 AM
*waves hand in the distance*

Yes, I use a keyboard for my racing games. I'm quite cheap to go for a full on racing wheel (and since I have a laptop, configuration for the thing would be chaotic). I have considered getting a PC controller though (since it shouldn't be that hard to find a half-decent one for a good price I figure).

Nonetheless, I might take Josh's advice and got to my local Salvation Army/Goodwill store and see if I can pick one up for a good price sometime. :P

i used to use a keyboard. i was bad but it wasnt awful. now that i use a wheel, i couldnt consider going back!


Add me on steam you piece of hairy wookie

Wow! Thanks for all of the replies guys! That is a lot of games, and quite a bit to take in, but can anyone agree on which one(s) are the absolute best? I have seen a lot of Need for Speed games listed, here and elsewhere, as good games. So maybe I will start by looking into them. I'm not a big fan of simulators, but I haven't played many either. I usually find something that is hard to control, (Think Combat Flight Simulator 3) to be very frustrating, but maybe a car would be easier. :shrug:

Out of all of those the only one I have ever played is Dirt Track Racing 2, which I played with a keyboard. I do have a cheap controller which I never use, and have no idea if it works, but no steering wheel. My computer is brand new, and I currently have no games capable of pushing it to the limits. The biggest game I have is Civilization V and it runs in like a breeze.

Picture of Computer Specifications Attached.
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Quote from: Norwood on August 28, 2015, 05:58:58 PM
Wow! Thanks for all of the replies guys! That is a lot of games, and quite a bit to take in, but can anyone agree on which one(s) are the absolute best? I have seen a lot of Need for Speed games listed, here and elsewhere, as good games. So maybe I will start by looking into them. I'm not a big fan of simulators, but I haven't played many either. I usually find something that is hard to control, (Think Combat Flight Simulator 3) to be very frustrating, but maybe a car would be easier. :shrug:

There are many different types of racing games and everybody has a different preference.  I am unaware of your preferences (If you have on, yet) so it would be very hard to say. 

If you are going to avoid anything the slightest sim-ish, buying a wheel will still help, but not required. 

Like others have suggest, Copa something blah-blah is free and a sim.  So you can get the feel for a sim without paying any money, so I'd download that.  Copa is a very basic edition of Game Stock Car (Euro stock car racing, not American oval style) which is just a modified rFactor.  If you like Copa, try rFactor or GSC.   

Also, I would highly suggest the highly suggest the Dirt and Grid games (Except Grid 2, and Dirt Rally).  I think you would definitely enjoy those.  I played Dirt 3 with a keyboard once and it worked magnificently, so I would assume you would find luck with one of those if you are going to avoid a wheel.

I give you all permission to shoot me if you disagree, but I find keyboards better then controllers most of the time. 




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Quote from: Norwood on August 28, 2015, 05:58:58 PM
Wow! Thanks for all of the replies guys! That is a lot of games, and quite a bit to take in, but can anyone agree on which one(s) are the absolute best? I have seen a lot of Need for Speed games listed, here and elsewhere, as good games. So maybe I will start by looking into them. I'm not a big fan of simulators, but I haven't played many either. I usually find something that is hard to control, (Think Combat Flight Simulator 3) to be very frustrating, but maybe a car would be easier. :shrug:

Out of all of those the only one I have ever played is Dirt Track Racing 2, which I played with a keyboard. I do have a cheap controller which I never use, and have no idea if it works, but no steering wheel. My computer is brand new, and I currently have no games capable of pushing it to the limits. The biggest game I have is Civilization V and it runs in like a breeze.

Picture of Computer Specifications Attached.
Seems like a fairly sturdy rig you have there. The later racing titles these day would run fine, but you might struggle running anything to the extent of Project Cars (or even the new Need for Speed for that matter).

Overall though, I recommend NFS Carbon, Underground, Underground 2, or Most Wanted if you want a nice arcadey, street racing game that you can get away with using a keyboard. As far as a sim goes, the ones Disciple mentioned earlier would be pretty well recommended, even Copa Petrobras de Marcas if you want a real taste of a sim game, though you might wind up forking money over for a controller or an actual racing wheel to get into those.