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[oni-link]

What racing games do consider to be absolutely top tier?

I'm interested in what people consider to be the pinnacle of the genre but I think it would be interesting to see what people consider the best 3 or 5 racing games ever made

You don't often see people discussing racing games in debates over the best games ever, so I'm curious to see what people think

Mario Kart 8?
F-Zero GX?
Forza Horizon 3?
Driveclub?
Daytona USA?

It's not a genre I have a huge deal of experience with, so what do you think?

 

[Transistor]

Are we talking racing combat? Simulation? Arcade? It's too diverse a genre to compare all of them into a single list

 

[Brandon F]

PGR4 belongs in the ranking.

 

[Ezalc]

F-Zero GX. No other comes close.

 

[30yearsofhurt]

Gran Turismo 5.

 

[daxter01]

Burnout 3: Takedown followed by rally sport challenge 2 and Driveclub

 

[danowat]

The first Gran Turismo literally broke the mould for driving games at the time, that is probably one of the most innovative driving games, and set the standard for the games we currently have.

Driving game is a big genre, but for me, the top 3 would be.

Gran Turismo
Forza 4
Project Cars

 

[Atomski]

Project Gotham 2, Burnout Paradise (wana fight?), Rallisport Challenge 2, F-Zero GX...

I can't choose I wuve them all.

 

[Berto]

The king.

The most demanding and gratifying sim ever made.

 

[Grim Patron]

Forza Horizon 2
Forza Horizon 3
Need for Speed Underground
Need for Speed Underground 2.

Those are the only options.

 

[Arkeband]

MEGARACE

 

[JamboGT]

Gran Turismo 2 or 3? I prefer 4 and 5 but imagine 3 especially is remembered fondly.

My list would include GT5, WIpEout HD, WipEout 2097, F1 97, F1 2005, Grand Prix 2, Ridge Racer Type 4, NFS Underground 2, Colin McRae Rally 2, TOCA 2, Outrun 2, Sega Manx TT, Burnout 3, Daytona USA 2, Sega Rally 1 and 2 and Virtua Racing.

 

[Summer Haze]

PGR4

 

[SeeNoWeevil]

FH3 is a great sandbox to goof around in but as a racing game it's pretty lousy. There's hardly any 'game' there at all in fact.

 

[Familienoberhauptvogel]

MK64

 

[oni-link]

Are we talking racing combat? Simulation? Arcade? It's too diverse a genre to compare all of them into a single list

Well you can class your answers into categories if you'd like

I agree with your point though, but when people talk about the best games ever they don't always feel the need to separate genres into categories

I just want to get a sense of what people consider the absolute best racing games

 

[Courage]

Burnout 3: Takedown

followed by F-Zero GX and Forza Horizon 3

 

[1.21Gigawatts]

Wipeout HD Fury

 

[HvySky]

Game of a generation

 

[Spukc]

MK64

diddy kong racing

 

[Auto-Reply]

FlatOut: Ultimate Carnage

 

[Harmondale]

Playstation 1 holds the throne for 2 titles

Gran turismo
Colin Mcray rally - cant Believe no rally game can come Near this game both in art style and gameplay. Pure fun

 

[endlessflood]

Gran Turismo 4. That game cast a big shadow over the industry that even Polyphony themselves have struggled to escape.

 

[shandy706]

PGR 5

Spoiler

Actually Horizon 3, I made a full list further down

 

[compo]

My personal favorite is Moto GP 2.

For what I feel is objectively the best though, I'm going to have to vote iRacing.

 

[Serious Sam]

These are my picks for the best driving games in each of their respective subgenre:

Forza Horizon 3
Forza Motorsport 4
Trackmania United Forever
Dirt 2
FlatOut: Ultimate Carnage
Mario Kart 8

 

[MaDKaT]

Gran Turismo 3 for me. Really wish I could have that feeling again in any of the newer games. I will say VR has made games like Assetto Corsa really incredible but VR just ins't quite there yet. Honorable mention, Forza Horizon 3.

 

[gunstarhero]

Daytonaaaaaaaa!

 

[Bitch Pudding]

Grand Prix Legends.

 

[trugs26]

F-Zero GX, Mario Kart DD, Wii and 8.

 

[Joey Ravn]

Serious answer: Burnout Paradise.

My heart's answer: Wacky Wheels.

 

[JamboGT]

Yeah I can't pick one, Gran Turismo as a series probably had the most effect on me and my career though.

 

[Acquiescence]

Either Burnout 3: Takedown or Rollcage Stage 2.

Game of a generation

Blergh.

 

[oni-link]

There is absolutely NO WAY I could pick just one.

People that pick just one probably live(d) in a gaming bubble and didn't have a range of hardware.

Well the OP says you can list more than one

 

[30yearsofhurt]

Oh yeah forgot WipeOut 2097.

 

[jblank83]

F-Zero GX? It's F-Zero GX.

F-Zero GX.

I don't know how much more F-Zero GX this post can hold... F-ZERO GX.

 

[Finaika]

Tokyo Xtreme Racer 2

 

[fabricated backlash]

Gran Turismo 4. That game cast a big shadow over the industry that even Polyphony themselves have struggled to escape.

Same here. It set an expectation that no other GT game since has matched.

 

[shandy706]

Well the OP says you can list more than one

Well....welll...yeah, I'm blind. LOL

(goes to make list)

Mario Kart (multiple)
GT4
Forza 4
Forza Horizon 1 and 3
Metropolis Street Racer
Burnout 3: Takedown
PGR4
Extreme G
Excite Truck
Destruction Derby
Uniracers
F-Zero (multiple)
Super Off Road (so many quarters)
Vigilante 8: 2nd Offense
Crash Team Racing
Twisted Metal: Black
Wave Race 64
Diddy Kong Racing
Beetle Adventure Racing
Pole Position (heh)
NFS: Hot Pursuit 2

 

[Vitten]

F-Zero X.

Endless time trialling potential once you learn all its hidden techniques. GX had much better graphics but its techniques sucked balls compared to X.

 

[Always-honest]

Not sure. But i don't like Sim racers.
So, Mario kart DS and Mario Kart 8 were very good imo.
Loved F-Zero GX on the Gamecube.
And i really Liked Burnout Paradise.
Motorstorm 1 was pretty awesome too. They should just remake that.
Driveclub is great too.

I can't choose..

 

[Juicy Bob]

F1 2016 is a legit contender.

I'm deadly serious.

 

[Shaneus]

PGR4 belongs in the ranking.

Surprised someone mentioned this so quickly.

Gets my vote, along with DC.

 

[13ruce]

Mario Kart 8 and some of the older need for speed games on ps2.

 

[Triggerhappytel]

I can't narrow it down to just one, but here are some of my favourites:

Crash Team Racing
TOCA World Touring Cars
Burnout 2: Point of Impact
Burnout 3: Takedown
Wipeout HD Fury
Driveclub

It's not a genre I've played much in recent years, but I definitely lean towards arcadey racers as opposed to those realistic.

 

[Shig]

Burnout 3 and Wipeout HD Fury.

 

[Cow1337killr]

Crash Team Racing
Mario Kart 8
Need for Speed Underground
Grand Theft Auto IV Races
London Racer 2

 

[Eblo]

I don't generally enjoy racing games, but I've had tons of fun with Sonic & All-Stars Racing Transformed. Really satisfying to learn the mechanics and how to control each character, and it's also tons of fun with friends.

 

[Mupod]

It's F-Zero X or GX for me. I played a lot more of X and liked how it handled a bit more, but GX was absolutely stunning at the time.

Mario Kart 64 is close to my heart even though the series is quite iterative and everything has been done better by now. 8 is so good and has so many tracks.

I really liked Hydro Thunder and played a ton of Hurricane on XBLA. Why it gets shit on constantly whereas the original gets only praise is some weird quirk of the internet I'll never understand. But I really enjoy this style of racing game - batshit crazy tracks, often with either no laps or tracks that change completely between laps. Tons of shortcuts, boosts and the like. Just fun nonsense. I know Hurricane has a PC version but I only have Windows 7 so I've never been able to try it, might look into it again when I finally get W10.

There isn't much point to me dividing up my favorites by genre. I've tried several times to get into more realistic racers but I just don't care.

 

[Glass Rebel]

I think F-Zero GX is better designed but I prefer F-Zero X.