With the majority of RaceDepartment readers seemingly PC users, we understand this list may not be of direct relevance – but we hope you find it interesting to see what other platforms offer at present, and you may have a friend or relative whose primary system is a PS5. Let us know your thoughts in the comments below, all feedback is welcome.
Strap in commenters, get ready to double down on your assertions and fight the good fight, here are what we think are the 10 best racing video games and sim racing platforms for Sony’s PlayStation 5 console.
With sales of the PS5 topping the charts currently, in markets such as the UK and US, there are legions of players out there looking for a new driving or riding title to pick up.
The updated PS5 Console. Image: Sony
Unlike the early days of the platform, be it family-friendly or hardcore simulation – this compendium includes both and titles in between – there are now shedloads of engaging racing games available for the platform.
Images: Either taken by RaceDepartment or provided by Sony and iRacing.
Top-down heroes Circuit Superstars and Rush Rally Origins can be played on a PS5 via backwards compatibility, but they are only native to the PlayStation 4. Including them would open a can of worms to the entire PS4 catalogue, and to be clear, this list is only for titles specifically produced, or upgraded for, the newer console. Thus, they are excluded.
Circuit Superstars
In terms of a family-friendly driving title, LEGO 2K Drive makes an excellent fist at a first attempt, but we’re plumping for a different game in this sub-genre for the final 10. Similarly, you won’t find either Ride 4 or Ride 5 on this list for reasons explained later.
While it added some worthy features, MotoGP 23 remains stuck in a bland physics rut, sadly, and did F1 Manager 2023 add enough to justify a purchase over 2022? Not quite.
F1 Manager 2023
Perhaps the closest two to making the cut are the recent port of overhead Gran Turismo replicant Super Woden GP and the 2022 PS5 re-release of Inertial Drift. The one-man-band touge-inspired racer, with its cel-shading and synthwave soundtrack, in particular, can be thought of as reaching number 11. Only this is very definitely a ‘Top 10’, not a ‘Top 11’, so it didn’t make it…
A turn-up for the books, and one for fans of the American racing series, World of Outlaws: Dirt Racing by rights shouldn’t be this good.
Monster Games splintered off from Motorsport Games over three years ago and promptly produced two eponymous Tony Stewart stock car games based on the ramshackle Unity underpinnings of the NASCAR Heat titles.
It then moved on to SRX: The Game, before being purchased by iRacing in early 2022. It is under this stewardship that improved AI performance and physics were implemented, and when the official WoO game launched within the same year, we were pleasantly surprised by its branching career and satisfying detailed driving experience. You can notice grip changes on different lines and the top-class vehicles are unruly beasts.
Steering wheel force feedback, however, is noticeably lacklustre, with the handling clearly designed with gamepads in mind first and foremost, differentiating it from the full-blown iRacing simulation on PC.
Now, we understand this will not be for everyone. Driving in circles has limited appeal outside of the sport’s fans on paper, but Dirt Racing manages to be proficient enough to hopefully draw new fans into the sport. In that respect, this is the modern-day TOCA 2: Touring Cars. Sort of…
If you’re looking for a racing game for a younger relative, it is hard to go wrong with either of the two Hot Wheels Unleashed titles.
The 2021 original is often available in digital store sales, or as a cheap used physical copy, and will surprise and delight you through a combination of pliable handling, knock-out visuals and a sense of childish fun. Diecast cars, on giant orange plastic tracks, bringing preadolescence dreams to (virtual) reality.
The sequel from 2023, Hot Wheels Unleashed 2: Turbocharged is more of the same, but with the added variety of being able to drive on different surfaces, ride motorcycles and a largely throwaway animated ‘story’ throughout the career.
The limited-time vehicle store returns, meh, and blind boxes are replaced by a straight copy of Forza Horizon’s wheelspin system. Double meh.
It also adds in-race mechanics such as jumping and side-slamming, the latter of which (thanks to aggressive AI programming) can leave you punted off the track at the final corner. Rage-inducing in what otherwise is a high-speed romp. 2 has more varied content, but the simpler driving mechanics in the first still hold a certain charm. Take your pick.
We’re not looking for a sympathy vote here, but determining the best motorcycle game on PS5 is tricky. Really tricky.
The obvious choice is Ride 5, Milestone’s two-wheeled licenced collect-a-thon, with its life-like visuals, slick presentation and lengthy career.
But that’s what Ride 4 also managed with a less linear progression path to boot. We’re not sure ‘5’ moved the series on enough despite the three-year gap between releases. It lacks the developer’s ranked online multiplayer system seen in MotoGP 23, for example.
The other contender, (deep breath) TT Isle of Man: Ride On The Edge 3 (exhale), is the first attempt at an official Tourist Trophy simulation by former RiMS Racing creators RaceWard Studio. You can tell, too, with only two of the TT race’s classes available, the inability to create a customised team and short draw distances outside of the villages that look decidedly dated.
The riding experience, however, is a leap forward for the series. With the Snaefell Mountain Course remaining as daunting as ever, at last, there are the sounds and weighty physics a title of this ilk deserved.
The bare-knuckled perspiration-inducing challenge of completing a lap means you are too adrenalised to notice its technical shortcomings. Perhaps the steep learning curve makes this one for the cognoscenti, true TT fans. After all, it is all too easy, despite assists, to give up after a string of crashes. If you stick with it, however, the gratification is worth it.
Bored of hearing those on PC and Xbox talk about how Forza Horizon is the doyen of open-world racers? Then try The Crew Motorfest.
Ubisoft Ivory Tower’s third attempt at a true rival is set on the Hawaiian island of Oʻahu, ditching the vast open American plains of its forebearers. Instead of scale, it prioritises a vibrant, detailed and varied environment. It’s all the better for it.
What started life as a DLC expansion for 2018’s The Crew 2 (and was initially set to be called ‘Motorcamp’), Motorfest sees you driving, flying and riding through a series of themed playlists – each with curated on-track rivals, cinematography and locations. There’s a sense of structure and togetherness that even the aforementioned Microsoft title lacks.
We’re even placing this here instead of Need for Speed Unbound, which despite off-putting visuals (for some) and tardy opening hours, does include a richer progression curve once you find it.
This isn’t the last word in handling finesse (especially on two wheels or hypercars) and sometimes you can see corners have been cut, such as the lack of functional rear-view mirrors. The playlists soon dry up too and can suffer from pedestrian pacing. But when you’re catapulted down the side of a mountain on a motocross bike at sunrise, you won’t care.
The all-new official game of the FIA World Rally Championship has witnessed development switch from Parisian team Kylotonn (KT Racing) to Codemasters’ Southam studio – not to be confused with the Birmingham-based team working on the F1 titles.
EA SPORTS WRC isn’t a derivation of those single-seater games either, surprisingly eschewing the venerable Ego game engine technology and instead using Unreal Engine.
A first for the company, the switch has allowed for significantly larger stage layouts. They can be over double the length of the studio’s previous stage rally release – where it’s just you against the clock – DiRT Rally 2.0. There’s also greater quantity and diversity in design, this platform’s strength alongside community clubs.
Sadly, there are growing pains, namely visual instabilities, which prevent it from charting higher. You’ll likely spot screen tearing, when dark the frame rate can dip and the water effects look distinctly low poly. At least, on PS5, we’ve not noticed the stuttering effect plaguing some PC users. This alone means that some of the OverTake team have decided to play it primarily on console.
It must be said too that the career structure is perfunctory. The vehicle handling on gravel, engine sounds, diverse car line-up and the aforementioned stage design are all Sébastien Ogier-levels of quality, however.
Kunos Simulazioni’s fêted GT simulator made an awkward debut on consoles back in 2020. Simply, the PS4 couldn’t Assetto Corsa Competizione, with woeful graphical performance that left some venues rendered unplayable.
That changed two years later when Untold Games took the reins of conversion ahead of publisher 505 Games releasing a new console version for PS5. Visually, you’d be hard-pressed to spot the difference between this version and a mid-to-high spec PC, plus the driving experience translates across.
It was beset by a series of quite frankly strange bugs, like unintended accelerating in braking zones when racing online. Now, thankfully mostly amended, cross-platform online play with the Xbox Series X|S was recently added to bolster server player numbers.
Sure, the ultimate ACC experience remains on PC, with bigger grids, more straightforward mid-race driver swaps, the Cinema HUD photo mode and third-party ranking systems like Low Fuel Motorsport. As it stands, the PS5 version has content and DLC parity with PC, but the release date for the upcoming GT2 pack on PC is yet to be confirmed for console.
But, for those not in the financial/space/time position for a full sim rig, after some hiccups, the most recent console version of Assetto Corsa Competizione is an essential sim platform purchase in the context of the PS5.
EA SPORTS and Codemasters’ most recent official Formula 1 driving game built upon the limp F1 Life sofa-collecting seen in the previous year’s instalment with a new F1 World game mode. It promised a lot, with a constant dripping tap of XP and unlocks, but it felt like a vision half realised. Worse, the core mechanics were uncomfortably close to the free-to-play F1 Mobile title.
To rub salt in the wounds, the genre-defining My Team career was left largely untouched – much to our dismay.
But EA SPORTS F1 23 drives much better than F1 22, with a greater sense of where the limits of grip lie, whether you’re using a wheel peripheral or gamepad. There is also an engrossing online ranking system and the Braking Point story returned in a much longer, more compelling, fashion than 2019 or 2021’s attempts.
While certain elements are starting to feel a bit aged now, if you find this for a good price then F1 23 is almost worth a purchase for Braking Point 2 alone.
Purists may scoff at that, but then we’re convinced that they could still have fun in the ranked lobbies – even if they can find more hardcore driving physics elsewhere. Considering that an F1 game must try to straddle all comers, there’s something here for most drivers.
Art of Rally is a charmingly accessible entry point into the sport of rallying. If EA SPORTS WRC is a little too intimidating with its pacenotes and simulation-targeted handling, Funselektor’s indie darling ditches the directions and serious pretence.
It’s a KitKat Chunky as opposed to a Michelin-stared taster menu – both remain enjoyable in their own right.
Except breaking down Dune Casu’s tribute to nostalgic YouTube rally videos to a candy bar is perhaps a disservice. Every element has been crafted to be a fitting tribute to the real-world sport, from the fake sponsor hoardings to the distinctive location design. The cars are the real star though, loving crafted facsimiles of some of the most obscure vehicles from the sport’s history.
Aside from the main career, which will see you driving point-to-point against the clock, online leaderboards are for the uber-competitive, while open-world variants of each location with hidden collectables are there for those of the more relaxed persuasion.
Wreckfest is older than Martin Scorsese’s The Wolf of Wall Street, Beyonce’s Drunk In Love and the ALS Ice Bucket Challenge. Literally. Development for the ‘Next Gen Car Game’ (as it was initially codenamed) began in 2012.
Nearly 12 years later, the impish allure of smashing things up remains as captivating as ever. The fact that creator Bugbear Entertainment managed to make it drive well as well as crash like a Euro NCAP test is a testament to a creative process that understands gameplay is king. It remains a party game staple.
Sharp visuals, with gravel tracks left by your tyres and god rays through the Scandinavian trees belie its advancing years – a fresh lick of paint was applied when the game hit the PS5 in 2021 helping the visuals still stand up. It looks spectacular on this platform.
There’s a reasonably lengthy single-player career plus a vibrant online multiplayer community. The loading times aren’t the sharpest, however, and a lack of cross-platform multiplayer is perhaps the only item that showcases its true age.
The often-regular new content updates have now ended while the Finnish outfit gears up for a new game. However, if you’ve never tried a demolition derby on a sit-on lawn mower, or a race in a sofa with an engine, you’ve not truly maximised your PS5 experience.
Only Polyphony Digital could get away from the main single-player progression centred around a café. But, in the wonderfully isosteric Gran Turismo 7, it just about manages it.
While the current entry in the 26-year-old driving game may not have hard-edged driving physics, nor the throw-back championship-based career of elder instalments, it’s managed to carve a new path.
One that consists of monthly free content drops, a ranked online system with the occasional ‘special events’, an esports ladder open to all and weekly leaderboard-focused time trials plus limited-time single-player races. You get suckered in and fire it up each week to come back for more.
The main draw, in our eyes, is an engaging car-collection loop, which all those aforementioned features tie into by providing credits.
Which is a key distinction – if you love cars, of all types, then Gran Turismo 7 is the game for you. It may no longer be the ‘real driving simulator’ anymore, but it is certainly the ‘ultimate tribute to automotive culture’.
The vehicle model fidelity is unprecedented, with greater attention to detail than a Swarovski crystal. Not forgetting, all game modes can be played in native 4K or with a PSVR2 headset. You should try the Sophy AI system, too.
Kazunori Yamauchi and the team treat each included car with respect, and only include those with significant provenance.
Two years after launch, this remains the default choice for PS5 owners looking for a race. Buy this before anything else.
There we go, what we think are the 10 best racing games on PS5. In the comments below, feel free to let us know what you think should be included, removed or placed higher.
Strap in commenters, get ready to double down on your assertions and fight the good fight, here are what we think are the 10 best racing video games and sim racing platforms for Sony’s PlayStation 5 console.
With sales of the PS5 topping the charts currently, in markets such as the UK and US, there are legions of players out there looking for a new driving or riding title to pick up.
Unlike the early days of the platform, be it family-friendly or hardcore simulation – this compendium includes both and titles in between – there are now shedloads of engaging racing games available for the platform.
Images: Either taken by RaceDepartment or provided by Sony and iRacing.
Nearly Made It
As is often the case, when trying to whittle down 10 of the best, there are some high-profile casualties. It’s not that we don’t enjoy them, it’s just that we prefer some of their contemporaries.Top-down heroes Circuit Superstars and Rush Rally Origins can be played on a PS5 via backwards compatibility, but they are only native to the PlayStation 4. Including them would open a can of worms to the entire PS4 catalogue, and to be clear, this list is only for titles specifically produced, or upgraded for, the newer console. Thus, they are excluded.
In terms of a family-friendly driving title, LEGO 2K Drive makes an excellent fist at a first attempt, but we’re plumping for a different game in this sub-genre for the final 10. Similarly, you won’t find either Ride 4 or Ride 5 on this list for reasons explained later.
While it added some worthy features, MotoGP 23 remains stuck in a bland physics rut, sadly, and did F1 Manager 2023 add enough to justify a purchase over 2022? Not quite.
Perhaps the closest two to making the cut are the recent port of overhead Gran Turismo replicant Super Woden GP and the 2022 PS5 re-release of Inertial Drift. The one-man-band touge-inspired racer, with its cel-shading and synthwave soundtrack, in particular, can be thought of as reaching number 11. Only this is very definitely a ‘Top 10’, not a ‘Top 11’, so it didn’t make it…
10. World of Outlaws: Dirt Racing
A turn-up for the books, and one for fans of the American racing series, World of Outlaws: Dirt Racing by rights shouldn’t be this good.
Monster Games splintered off from Motorsport Games over three years ago and promptly produced two eponymous Tony Stewart stock car games based on the ramshackle Unity underpinnings of the NASCAR Heat titles.
It then moved on to SRX: The Game, before being purchased by iRacing in early 2022. It is under this stewardship that improved AI performance and physics were implemented, and when the official WoO game launched within the same year, we were pleasantly surprised by its branching career and satisfying detailed driving experience. You can notice grip changes on different lines and the top-class vehicles are unruly beasts.
Steering wheel force feedback, however, is noticeably lacklustre, with the handling clearly designed with gamepads in mind first and foremost, differentiating it from the full-blown iRacing simulation on PC.
Now, we understand this will not be for everyone. Driving in circles has limited appeal outside of the sport’s fans on paper, but Dirt Racing manages to be proficient enough to hopefully draw new fans into the sport. In that respect, this is the modern-day TOCA 2: Touring Cars. Sort of…
9. Hot Wheels Unleashed/2 Turbocharged
If you’re looking for a racing game for a younger relative, it is hard to go wrong with either of the two Hot Wheels Unleashed titles.
The 2021 original is often available in digital store sales, or as a cheap used physical copy, and will surprise and delight you through a combination of pliable handling, knock-out visuals and a sense of childish fun. Diecast cars, on giant orange plastic tracks, bringing preadolescence dreams to (virtual) reality.
The sequel from 2023, Hot Wheels Unleashed 2: Turbocharged is more of the same, but with the added variety of being able to drive on different surfaces, ride motorcycles and a largely throwaway animated ‘story’ throughout the career.
The limited-time vehicle store returns, meh, and blind boxes are replaced by a straight copy of Forza Horizon’s wheelspin system. Double meh.
It also adds in-race mechanics such as jumping and side-slamming, the latter of which (thanks to aggressive AI programming) can leave you punted off the track at the final corner. Rage-inducing in what otherwise is a high-speed romp. 2 has more varied content, but the simpler driving mechanics in the first still hold a certain charm. Take your pick.
8. TT Isle of Man: Ride On The Edge 3
We’re not looking for a sympathy vote here, but determining the best motorcycle game on PS5 is tricky. Really tricky.
The obvious choice is Ride 5, Milestone’s two-wheeled licenced collect-a-thon, with its life-like visuals, slick presentation and lengthy career.
But that’s what Ride 4 also managed with a less linear progression path to boot. We’re not sure ‘5’ moved the series on enough despite the three-year gap between releases. It lacks the developer’s ranked online multiplayer system seen in MotoGP 23, for example.
The other contender, (deep breath) TT Isle of Man: Ride On The Edge 3 (exhale), is the first attempt at an official Tourist Trophy simulation by former RiMS Racing creators RaceWard Studio. You can tell, too, with only two of the TT race’s classes available, the inability to create a customised team and short draw distances outside of the villages that look decidedly dated.
The riding experience, however, is a leap forward for the series. With the Snaefell Mountain Course remaining as daunting as ever, at last, there are the sounds and weighty physics a title of this ilk deserved.
The bare-knuckled perspiration-inducing challenge of completing a lap means you are too adrenalised to notice its technical shortcomings. Perhaps the steep learning curve makes this one for the cognoscenti, true TT fans. After all, it is all too easy, despite assists, to give up after a string of crashes. If you stick with it, however, the gratification is worth it.
7. The Crew Motorfest
Bored of hearing those on PC and Xbox talk about how Forza Horizon is the doyen of open-world racers? Then try The Crew Motorfest.
Ubisoft Ivory Tower’s third attempt at a true rival is set on the Hawaiian island of Oʻahu, ditching the vast open American plains of its forebearers. Instead of scale, it prioritises a vibrant, detailed and varied environment. It’s all the better for it.
What started life as a DLC expansion for 2018’s The Crew 2 (and was initially set to be called ‘Motorcamp’), Motorfest sees you driving, flying and riding through a series of themed playlists – each with curated on-track rivals, cinematography and locations. There’s a sense of structure and togetherness that even the aforementioned Microsoft title lacks.
We’re even placing this here instead of Need for Speed Unbound, which despite off-putting visuals (for some) and tardy opening hours, does include a richer progression curve once you find it.
This isn’t the last word in handling finesse (especially on two wheels or hypercars) and sometimes you can see corners have been cut, such as the lack of functional rear-view mirrors. The playlists soon dry up too and can suffer from pedestrian pacing. But when you’re catapulted down the side of a mountain on a motocross bike at sunrise, you won’t care.
6. EA SPORTS WRC
The all-new official game of the FIA World Rally Championship has witnessed development switch from Parisian team Kylotonn (KT Racing) to Codemasters’ Southam studio – not to be confused with the Birmingham-based team working on the F1 titles.
EA SPORTS WRC isn’t a derivation of those single-seater games either, surprisingly eschewing the venerable Ego game engine technology and instead using Unreal Engine.
A first for the company, the switch has allowed for significantly larger stage layouts. They can be over double the length of the studio’s previous stage rally release – where it’s just you against the clock – DiRT Rally 2.0. There’s also greater quantity and diversity in design, this platform’s strength alongside community clubs.
Sadly, there are growing pains, namely visual instabilities, which prevent it from charting higher. You’ll likely spot screen tearing, when dark the frame rate can dip and the water effects look distinctly low poly. At least, on PS5, we’ve not noticed the stuttering effect plaguing some PC users. This alone means that some of the OverTake team have decided to play it primarily on console.
It must be said too that the career structure is perfunctory. The vehicle handling on gravel, engine sounds, diverse car line-up and the aforementioned stage design are all Sébastien Ogier-levels of quality, however.
5. Assetto Corsa Competizione
Kunos Simulazioni’s fêted GT simulator made an awkward debut on consoles back in 2020. Simply, the PS4 couldn’t Assetto Corsa Competizione, with woeful graphical performance that left some venues rendered unplayable.
That changed two years later when Untold Games took the reins of conversion ahead of publisher 505 Games releasing a new console version for PS5. Visually, you’d be hard-pressed to spot the difference between this version and a mid-to-high spec PC, plus the driving experience translates across.
It was beset by a series of quite frankly strange bugs, like unintended accelerating in braking zones when racing online. Now, thankfully mostly amended, cross-platform online play with the Xbox Series X|S was recently added to bolster server player numbers.
Sure, the ultimate ACC experience remains on PC, with bigger grids, more straightforward mid-race driver swaps, the Cinema HUD photo mode and third-party ranking systems like Low Fuel Motorsport. As it stands, the PS5 version has content and DLC parity with PC, but the release date for the upcoming GT2 pack on PC is yet to be confirmed for console.
But, for those not in the financial/space/time position for a full sim rig, after some hiccups, the most recent console version of Assetto Corsa Competizione is an essential sim platform purchase in the context of the PS5.
4. EA SPORTS F1 23
EA SPORTS and Codemasters’ most recent official Formula 1 driving game built upon the limp F1 Life sofa-collecting seen in the previous year’s instalment with a new F1 World game mode. It promised a lot, with a constant dripping tap of XP and unlocks, but it felt like a vision half realised. Worse, the core mechanics were uncomfortably close to the free-to-play F1 Mobile title.
To rub salt in the wounds, the genre-defining My Team career was left largely untouched – much to our dismay.
But EA SPORTS F1 23 drives much better than F1 22, with a greater sense of where the limits of grip lie, whether you’re using a wheel peripheral or gamepad. There is also an engrossing online ranking system and the Braking Point story returned in a much longer, more compelling, fashion than 2019 or 2021’s attempts.
While certain elements are starting to feel a bit aged now, if you find this for a good price then F1 23 is almost worth a purchase for Braking Point 2 alone.
Purists may scoff at that, but then we’re convinced that they could still have fun in the ranked lobbies – even if they can find more hardcore driving physics elsewhere. Considering that an F1 game must try to straddle all comers, there’s something here for most drivers.
3. Art of Rally
Art of Rally is a charmingly accessible entry point into the sport of rallying. If EA SPORTS WRC is a little too intimidating with its pacenotes and simulation-targeted handling, Funselektor’s indie darling ditches the directions and serious pretence.
It’s a KitKat Chunky as opposed to a Michelin-stared taster menu – both remain enjoyable in their own right.
Except breaking down Dune Casu’s tribute to nostalgic YouTube rally videos to a candy bar is perhaps a disservice. Every element has been crafted to be a fitting tribute to the real-world sport, from the fake sponsor hoardings to the distinctive location design. The cars are the real star though, loving crafted facsimiles of some of the most obscure vehicles from the sport’s history.
Aside from the main career, which will see you driving point-to-point against the clock, online leaderboards are for the uber-competitive, while open-world variants of each location with hidden collectables are there for those of the more relaxed persuasion.
2. Wreckfest
Wreckfest is older than Martin Scorsese’s The Wolf of Wall Street, Beyonce’s Drunk In Love and the ALS Ice Bucket Challenge. Literally. Development for the ‘Next Gen Car Game’ (as it was initially codenamed) began in 2012.
Nearly 12 years later, the impish allure of smashing things up remains as captivating as ever. The fact that creator Bugbear Entertainment managed to make it drive well as well as crash like a Euro NCAP test is a testament to a creative process that understands gameplay is king. It remains a party game staple.
Sharp visuals, with gravel tracks left by your tyres and god rays through the Scandinavian trees belie its advancing years – a fresh lick of paint was applied when the game hit the PS5 in 2021 helping the visuals still stand up. It looks spectacular on this platform.
There’s a reasonably lengthy single-player career plus a vibrant online multiplayer community. The loading times aren’t the sharpest, however, and a lack of cross-platform multiplayer is perhaps the only item that showcases its true age.
The often-regular new content updates have now ended while the Finnish outfit gears up for a new game. However, if you’ve never tried a demolition derby on a sit-on lawn mower, or a race in a sofa with an engine, you’ve not truly maximised your PS5 experience.
1. Gran Turismo 7
Only Polyphony Digital could get away from the main single-player progression centred around a café. But, in the wonderfully isosteric Gran Turismo 7, it just about manages it.
While the current entry in the 26-year-old driving game may not have hard-edged driving physics, nor the throw-back championship-based career of elder instalments, it’s managed to carve a new path.
One that consists of monthly free content drops, a ranked online system with the occasional ‘special events’, an esports ladder open to all and weekly leaderboard-focused time trials plus limited-time single-player races. You get suckered in and fire it up each week to come back for more.
The main draw, in our eyes, is an engaging car-collection loop, which all those aforementioned features tie into by providing credits.
Which is a key distinction – if you love cars, of all types, then Gran Turismo 7 is the game for you. It may no longer be the ‘real driving simulator’ anymore, but it is certainly the ‘ultimate tribute to automotive culture’.
The vehicle model fidelity is unprecedented, with greater attention to detail than a Swarovski crystal. Not forgetting, all game modes can be played in native 4K or with a PSVR2 headset. You should try the Sophy AI system, too.
Kazunori Yamauchi and the team treat each included car with respect, and only include those with significant provenance.
Two years after launch, this remains the default choice for PS5 owners looking for a race. Buy this before anything else.
There we go, what we think are the 10 best racing games on PS5. In the comments below, feel free to let us know what you think should be included, removed or placed higher.
