Yearly releases are not the norm in sim racing, with EA Sports' and Codemasters' F1 Series being a notable exception: Since 2009, Formula One has received a new official game each year - which is not something the IndyCar Series can claim for their championship. In fact, the last official game released to date, titled IndyCar Series 2005, has just turned an incredible 19 years old.
Image credit: Honda Newsroom (Michael L. Levitt, USA. LAT Photographic)/Codemasters
If there is a perfect example for the confusion and chaos of the split in American open-wheel racing, IndyCar Series 2005 might be a front runner for that title: Released in June 2004 for PlayStation 2 and Xbox (and in July 2004 for PC, but only in Europe), the game does not portray the 2005 season as it had not happened yet, of course. It also does not contain the 2004 season - rather confusingly, IndyCar Series 2005 focuses on the 2003 season.
Its predecessor, which was simply titled IndyCar Series, had been released a year earlier and featured the 2002 season, so a game focusing on the previous year's season was not out of the ordinary. Why Codemasters chose to name the successor after the 2005 season is puzzling, though.
Behind all the confusion about names was a dedicated IndyCar game that chose a somewhat realistic approach - it certainly was not an arcade racer, but rather as much of a simulation as the console generation of the time could handle. Car setups were crucial, so taking time to test and tweak them were prerequisites in order to be able compete. While driving skill was also an important factor, it could get players only so far if their setup held them back.
Meanwhile, the other half of the former IndyCar World Series was still called CART in 2003, but would reform as Champ Car after going bankrupt. Featuring faster cars and more road courses, the series would eventually adopt a schedule consisting of road and street circuits only in 2007, its last season before merging with the IRL to re-unify American open-wheel racing.
The announcement of an official game in 2021 had fans of the series very excited as a result. Since then, Motorsport Games has postponed the title's launch from 2023 to 2024. The company also owns rFactor 2, which has added official IndyCar DLC in 2022. Many in the community question whether the game will ever see the light of day due to Motorsport Games' track record with NASCAR 21: Ignition and their financial situation. Meanwhile, an official WEC game is set for a late 2023 release and was already playable at the 2023 Le Mans 24 Hours.
Image credit: Honda Newsroom (Michael L. Levitt, USA. LAT Photographic)/Codemasters
If there is a perfect example for the confusion and chaos of the split in American open-wheel racing, IndyCar Series 2005 might be a front runner for that title: Released in June 2004 for PlayStation 2 and Xbox (and in July 2004 for PC, but only in Europe), the game does not portray the 2005 season as it had not happened yet, of course. It also does not contain the 2004 season - rather confusingly, IndyCar Series 2005 focuses on the 2003 season.
Its predecessor, which was simply titled IndyCar Series, had been released a year earlier and featured the 2002 season, so a game focusing on the previous year's season was not out of the ordinary. Why Codemasters chose to name the successor after the 2005 season is puzzling, though.
Behind all the confusion about names was a dedicated IndyCar game that chose a somewhat realistic approach - it certainly was not an arcade racer, but rather as much of a simulation as the console generation of the time could handle. Car setups were crucial, so taking time to test and tweak them were prerequisites in order to be able compete. While driving skill was also an important factor, it could get players only so far if their setup held them back.
Pack Racing - Exciting, But Dangerous
This was much like the real IRL at the time, which was still running an all-oval schedule and known for its pack racing - cars running two or even three wide for multiple laps was not uncommon, and while highly exciting, this was also inherently dangerous, as multiple enormous crashes showed. The 2003 season saw arguably one of the biggest wrecks of all time that a driver survived when 1999 Indianapolis 500 winner Kenny Bräck ended up in the catchfence after tangling with Tomas Scheckter. Luckily, Bräck recovered to race again - and even looks back at the crash with a smile on his face.Meanwhile, the other half of the former IndyCar World Series was still called CART in 2003, but would reform as Champ Car after going bankrupt. Featuring faster cars and more road courses, the series would eventually adopt a schedule consisting of road and street circuits only in 2007, its last season before merging with the IRL to re-unify American open-wheel racing.
Still Waiting for a New Game
Since then, the series has been slowly clawing back some of its former popularity, and the difficult years in the 2000s likely are the main reason for the lack of official games. IndyCar content has appeared in multiple titles like iRacing, the Race Driver/GRID series or Forza Motorsport, but a full, modern IndyCar season has never been in another game or sim since.The announcement of an official game in 2021 had fans of the series very excited as a result. Since then, Motorsport Games has postponed the title's launch from 2023 to 2024. The company also owns rFactor 2, which has added official IndyCar DLC in 2022. Many in the community question whether the game will ever see the light of day due to Motorsport Games' track record with NASCAR 21: Ignition and their financial situation. Meanwhile, an official WEC game is set for a late 2023 release and was already playable at the 2023 Le Mans 24 Hours.
