The Grand Tour

The Top Racing Games Of This Console Generation

“Console generation” is sort of a loose term these days. With Microsoft releasing a new iteration of the Xbox One every year, we may be on the cusp of the end of traditional “new” consoles and heading towards the age of annual “upgrade” consoles.

Regardless, there are racing games aplenty for fans of the Xbox One, PS4, and even Wii U/Nintendo Switch. Let’s take a look at some of the best offerings this generation (in no particular order):

FORZA HORIZON 3

The Horizon series is a dream come true for fans of open world driving games. Choosing a car and driving through this massive game world is the next best thing to actually getting in your dream car and going for a drive. Plus, the racing isn’t bad either.

NEED FOR SPEED

I might get some flak for this one, but I legitimately had a ton of fun with Need For Speed. Sure I could have done without the horrible live action acting and the always nighttime setting, but tell me you didn’t enjoy tearing through the city racing Magnus Walker!

DIRT RALLY

After a bunch of games that focused more on Gymkhana and demolition derby than rally racing, the DiRT series returned to its roots with DiRT Rally. This is probably one of the best pure rally games to ever hit the console, and it is brutally difficult. It’s a DiRT game as it should be.

DRIVECLUB

Another entry that will raise some eyebrows, DriveClub did not exactly launch with the strongest of debuts. But while other racing games launched to great fanfare, DC slowly fixed all its issues and ended up with an incredible racing game. Evolution Studios may be gone now, but at least they left with a (finally!) finished version of DriveClub.

PROJECT CARS

I remember being a backer for the PC beta of this game way back in the day, and having a ton of fun with even the unfinished version of CARS. The finished product most certainly isn’t perfect, but I know of very few games that capture the violence and excitement of racing as well as Project CARS does.

ASSETTO CORSA

Another PC to consoles racing game, Assetto Corsa gives players possibly the most realistic driving physics to date in a racing game. Sure the rest of the game is bland as hell and there’s virtually no excitement whatsoever, but if realism is your cup of tea, then there’s no better game than AC.

THE CREW

The gameplay left a lot to be desired and the storyline was eye rollingl-y bad, but being able to hop in my Mustang and drive from New York to Los Angeles in one go is something I still love doing to this day. If Forza Horizon 3’s game world is massive, then The Crew’s game world is galactically large (I’m not sure that’s even a thing).

MARIO KART 8

No, I am not joking. I never said this list was only for sim and sim-cade games. If you want to find something that can entertain all ages and falls under the “racing” genre, then you really shouldn’t be surprised to find Mario Kart on here. From my three-year-old son to his grandmother, Mario Kart 8 is something that anyone can experience with a huge smile on their face.

So there you have it! Let’s hear your pics for favorite racing games this generation of consoles!

Tony Hsieh

Cars, the Buffalo Bills, video games, comics, sandwiches, jelly beans, and the shooting star press; these are the things that Tony loves (in addition to his family, of course). When he's not spending his time writing tech reviews for theslanted.com, Tony puts his lifetime love of muscle cars to use on his 2015 Mustang GT. Tony's top three favorite cars are the 1973 Mustang Mach 1, Ferrari 458, and Aston Martin DBS.

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