Need for Speed (NFS) is a racing game franchise published by Electronic Arts and currently developed by Criterion Games, the developers of Burnout. The series generally centers around illegal street racing and tasks players to complete various types of races while evading the local law enforcement in police pursuits. The series is one of EA's oldest franchises not published under their EA Sports brand. The series released its first title, The Need for Speed, in 1994. The most recent game, Need for Speed Unbound, was released on December 2, 2022. Additionally, a free-to-play mobile installment released in 2015, Need for Speed: No Limits, is actively developed by Firemonkeys Studios, the developers of Real Racing 3.
Simulated racing or racing simulation, commonly known as simply sim racing, are the collective terms for racing game software that attempts to accurately simulate auto racing, complete with real-world variables such as fuel usage, damage, tire wear and grip, and suspension settings. To be competitive in sim racing, a driver must understand all aspects of car handling that make real-world racing so difficult, such as threshold braking, how to maintain control of a car as the tires lose traction, and how properly to enter and exit a turn without sacrificing speed. It is this level of difficulty that distinguishes sim racing from arcade racing-style driving games where real-world variables are taken out of the equation and the principal objective is to create a sense of speed as opposed to a sense of realism.
Forza Motorsport is a 2005 simulation racing video game developed by Turn 10 Studios and published by Microsoft Game Studios for the Xbox gaming system. The word Forza is Italian for strength. The game is the first installment in the Forza series, a series that has continued on Microsoft's subsequent consoles, the Xbox 360, Xbox One, and Xbox Series X/S. It features over 200 cars and multiple real world and fictional race courses. It also featured online multiplayer via Xbox Live. It is compatible on the Xbox 360 via backwards compatibility. Forza Motorsport received universal acclaim according to the review aggregation website Metacritic, and received a Gold sales award from the Entertainment and Leisure Software Publishers Association (ELSPA), indicating sales of at least 200,000 copies in the United Kingdom. The NPD Group reported that in its release month the game sold over 100,000 copies in North America.
rFactor is a computer racing simulator designed with the ability to run any type of four-wheeled vehicle from street cars to open wheel cars of any era. rFactor aimed to be the most accurate race simulator of its time. Released in November 2005, rFactor did not have much competition in this market, but it featured many technical advances in tire modeling, complex aerodynamics and a 15 degrees of freedom physics engine.
Race Driver: Grid is a 2008 racing video game developed and published by Codemasters for Microsoft Windows, PlayStation 3, Xbox 360, Nintendo DS, arcade, Java ME and OS X. It is the first game in the Grid series.
Colin McRae: Dirt 2 is a racing video game developed and published by Codemasters in 2009, first for the Nintendo DS, PlayStation 3, PlayStation Portable, Wii and Xbox 360, and then later for PC platforms. It is the sequel to Colin McRae: Dirt. Dirt 2 is the first game in the series since McRae's death in 2007 and the last to feature his name in the title. It is also the first and only game in the series to be available on a Nintendo home console and the last game in the series to be released on handhelds.
Dirt 3 is a simcade racing video game developed and published by Codemasters for Microsoft Windows, PlayStation 3 and Xbox 360. It was released on 24 May 2011 and is the first game in the series without carrying the Colin McRae name. A sequel, Dirt 4, was released in June 2017.
Forza is a series of simulation racing games for Xbox consoles and Microsoft Windows published by Xbox Game Studios. The series seeks to emulate the performance and handling characteristics of many real-life production, modified, and racing cars.
Assetto Corsa is a sim racing video game developed by the Italian video game developer Kunos Simulazioni. It is designed with an emphasis on a realistic racing experience with support for extensive customization and moddability. The game was first released through the Steam Early Access program on 8 November 2013, and officially left Early Access as final release version on 19 December 2014.
F1 2001 is a racing video game developed by Image Space Incorporated for the Microsoft Windows version and EA UK for the PlayStation 2 and Xbox version and published by EA Sports for Microsoft Windows, PlayStation 2 and Xbox. It is based on the 2001 Formula One season. A port for GameCube was planned, but cancelled for unknown reasons, and eventually released with minor changes as F1 2002. A Game Boy Color version was also cancelled during development.
Wreckfest is a racing video game developed by Bugbear Entertainment and published by THQ Nordic. Wreckfest is described as the spiritual successor to the FlatOut series and a cross between FlatOut, Destruction Derby and cult 1989 PC racer Street Rod. A notable feature of the game engine is the use of soft-body damage modelling, which enables location-based damage that affects the driving dynamics of vehicles in a realistic fashion.
Grid Autosport is a racing video game developed by Codemasters for Microsoft Windows, PlayStation 3, Xbox 360, Linux, iOS, macOS, Nintendo Switch and Android. It is the third game in the Grid series. It aims to move the series back towards "more authentic racing games" following the release of Grid 2, which Codemasters felt was not as well-received by the company's core fanbase as it was hoped for. The developers consequently introduced major modifications to the handling model and built a lean, race-first oriented design for this title.
BeamNG.drive is a vehicle simulation video game developed and published by Bremen-based video game developer BeamNG GmbH. The game features soft-body physics, which simulates realistic handling and damage to vehicles. The game was initially released as a tech demo on 3 August 2013 along with paid access to an alpha, and was made available on Steam Early Access for Microsoft Windows on 29 May 2015.
Forza Motorsport 7 is a 2017 racing video game developed by Turn 10 Studios and published by Microsoft Studios, serving as the tenth installment in the Forza series. It was released on Windows 10 and the Xbox One family of consoles on October 3, 2017, with early access to players who pre-ordered the game's Ultimate and Deluxe editions. It will be succeeded by Forza Motorsport, the eighth in the Motorsport series, within the second half of 2023.
Assetto Corsa Competizione is a racing simulation video game developed by Italian video game developer Kunos Simulazioni. The game focuses on GT3 and GT4 cars and is an officially licensed simulation of the 2018 and 2019 Blancpain GT Series season Sprint and Endurance Cups and the Total 24 Hours of Spa, and is set to serve as a platform for esports.
Asphalt 9: Legends is a 2018 racing game developed by Gameloft Barcelona and published by Gameloft. Released on July 25, 2018, it's the fifteenth major game of Asphalt series. In comparison to previous entries, there are several new and improved features, such as a prestigious car lineup, new control schemes, including the autopilot mode called "TouchDrive", and race modes, and the reimplemented "shockwave nitro" from Asphalt 6: Adrenaline. The graphics are considered significantly improved compared to its 2013 predecessor, Asphalt 8: Airborne.
Test Drive Unlimited Solar Crown is an upcoming racing video game developed by KT Racing and published by Nacon. It will be the twenty-first game in the Test Drive series, the first title in the series since 2012's Ferrari Racing Legends, and the third game in the franchise's Unlimited reboot, following 2011's Test Drive Unlimited 2. The game was teased on 3 July 2020 on Twitter and was officially revealed during the Nacon Connect event on 7 July. Test Drive Unlimited Solar Crown is set to be released for Microsoft Windows, Nintendo Switch, PlayStation 5, and Xbox Series X/S in 2024.
Superstar Racing Experience (SRX), officially known as the Camping World SRX Series, is an American stock car racing series founded by Tony Stewart, Ray Evernham, Sandy Montag and George Pyne. The formation of the series was announced on July 13, 2020, and debuted on June 12, 2021, televised on CBS.
Grid is a racing video game series developed by Codemasters and published by Electronic Arts. It is considered a descendant of Codemasters' earlier TOCA Race Driver series.
Grid Legends is a 2022 racing video game developed by Codemasters and published by Electronic Arts. It is the fifth instalment in the Grid franchise. The game was released for Microsoft Windows, PlayStation 4, PlayStation 5, Xbox One and Xbox Series X/S on February 25, 2022. On January 12, 2023, the game was released for Meta Quest 2.
