Racing Games
A racing game is any game that involves competing in races through a surrogate playing piece or vehicle, either getting it from one point to another or completing a number of circuits in the shortest time.
- Many board games can be said to be racing games, such as Chutes and Ladders, Cribbage or Formula D?
- There are also toys made for racing, like slot cars and radio controlled cars.
One of the more common uses of the term racing game is to describe a genre of computer and video games. Racing games are either in the first or third person perspective. They may be based on anything from real-world racing leagues to entirely fantastical settings, and feature any type of land, air, or sea vehicles. In general, they can be distributed along a spectrum anywhere between hardcore simulations, and simpler arcade racing games.
Sim racers
Simulation style racing games strive to replicate the handling of a car as it feels in the real world. They often license real cars or racing leagues, but will use fantasy cars built to resemble real ones if unable to acquire them.
Although these simulation games are specifically built for people with a high grade of driving skill it is not uncommon to find aids that can be enabled from the game menu. The most common aids are traction control (TC), anti-lock brakes, steering assistance, damage resistance, clutch assistance, automatic gearbox, etc. This softens the learning curve for the difficult handling characteristics of most racing cars.
The Formula One World Championship has a fan base all over the world and is one of the racing series with the most simulation adaptations.
Some of these racing simulators are customizable, as game fans have decoded the tracks, cars and executable files. Large internet communities have grown around the simulators regarded as the most realistic and many websites host internet championships.
Arcade racers
Although pretending to be a simulator, Gran Turismo 3 is an Arcade racer.
Arcade style racing games put fun and a fast-paced experience above all else, as cars usually fight rather than compete. They often license real cars and leagues, but are equally open to more exotic settings and vehicles. Races take place on highways, windy roads or in cities; they can be multiple-lap circuits or point-to-point, with one or multiple paths (sometimes with checkpoints), or other types of competition, like demolition derby, jumping or testing driving skills. Popular arcade racers are the Need for Speed series, the Rush series, the Burnout series and the classic OutRun.
Frequently, an arcade racer will feature unrealistic physics which allows cars to drift for hundreds of metres, jump ramps with very little starting speed and a low launch angle and to heavily shunt a rival car with only a slight nudge.
Over the last three years there has been a trend of new street racing; imitating the import scene, one can tune family cars or coup? and race on the streets. The most widely known ones are the Need for Speed Underground series, Midnight Club 3: DUB Edition, Street Racing Syndicate and Juiced.
Simulation style racing games
F1 Challenge - Formula One simulator series
PS2 Formula One (Studio Liverpool) series
Grand Prix Legends - Simulator of the 1967 F1 season
Grand Prix series: F1GP, Grand Prix 2, Grand Prix 3, Grand Prix 4 - F1 simulator
series
GTR - FIA GT Racing Game - FIA GT racing game
GT Legends - 60s and 70s GT simulator
Live for Speed - online racing simulator
Motorsport - open source driving simulator
NASCAR Racing series
Racer - customizable online racing simulator
Rally Trophy
rFactor - by Image Space Incorporated (Platform for modders with deep physics
model)
Sports Car GT - also by Image Space Incorporated
Richard Burns Rally - rally simulator
Semi-simulation style racing games
These games are neither simulators nor arcade racers; they stand in the middle of the spectrum.
Colin McRae Rally series
Enthusia Professional Racing
Forza Motorsport
Gran Turismo series
TOCA Race Driver series
Arcade style racing games
Beetle Adventure Racing
Burnout series
Carmageddon series
Cruisin' series
Midnight Club series
Need for Speed series
Out Run series
Pole Position series
Project Gotham Racing series
Ridge Racer series
Rush series
Sega Rally series
PS Formula One series
Futuristic racers
F-Zero series
Wipeout series
Kart racers
Mario Kart series
Crash Nitro Kart
Arcade racing games time line
1982 Pole Position - Namco
1983 Pole Position 2 - Namco
1984 TX-1 - Atari
1986 Out Run - Sega
1987 Final Lap - Namco
1988 Chase HQ - Taito
1988 Continental Circus - Taito
1988 Hard Drivin' - Atari
1988 Power Drift - Sega
1989 Winning Run - Namco
1989 SCI - Taito (Chase HQ 2)
1989 Super Monaco Grand Prix - Sega
1991 Rad Mobile - Sega
1991 Final lap 2 - Namco
1991 F1 Exhaust Note - Sega
1992 Final Lap 3 - Namco
1992 Super Chase - Taito
1992 Virtua Racing - Sega
1993 Out runners - Sega
1993 Ridge Racer - Namco
1994 Cruis'n USA - Midway
1994 Daytona USA - Sega
1994 Sega Rally Championship - Sega
1995 Rave Racer - Namco
1996 Cruis'n World - Midway
1996 Scud Race - Sega
1996 San Francisco Rush - Atari
1998 Sega Rally 2 - Sega
1998 DaytonaUSA 2 - Sega
1999 Battle Gear - Taito
1999 Cruis'n Exotica - Midway
2000 San Francisco Rush 2049 - Atari