After several years of rapid growth, this should be another exciting year for the racing game and racing sim genres. Here are some things that should be released in 2022.
One of the things that benefitted from more people staying home for entertainment over the past two years is sim racing. Whereas a celebrity or real world racing driver posting a picture of their home sim rig in 2019 would have made news in our niche community, in 2020 and 2021 it has become almost expected. This surge in popularity is sure to continue into the next calendar year and bring with it some exciting new titles and content for all of us to enjoy. Here are some of the things we should see released next year.
1) Assetto Corsa Competizione Updates - Kunos' most recent major update to ACC brought a new car, improved performance, and some subtle news that more was to come. Their official launch video of the 1.8 update was tagged with a rapid-fire image showcase featuring American tracks and the newest edition of the Porsche Cup car. This is in addition to the Super Trofeo EVO2 that made a brief appearance to the public earlier this year. Lastly, let's not forget that ACC will be released to the PlayStation 5 and Xbox Series S/X quite soon. So 2022 should be a big year for this sim.
2) F1 2022 - Codemasters is surely hard at work getting things ready for the next installment of the F1 series. The past two seasons of Formula 1 have been significantly disrupted, and three tracks added to F1 2021 post-release showed Codies' efforts to try and keep up. 2022 will bring a substantial update to the car regulations in Formula 1, and hopefully we see those updated cars well represented in the official F1 game.
3) Automobilista 2 Updates - Reiza Studios has made a habit of releasing updates at least once per month since AMS2 was given to us, and that pattern should carry in next year. The third installment of the popular Racin' USA DLCs could drop in 2022, along with other new content and game improvements. The online rating system has been released already in beta form, but as the title gains more users that system will be refined and will hopefully make for some great racing in a title that shows massive potential for multiplayer competition.
4) Gran Turismo 7 - More details from the upcoming Gran Turismo title are being released each week, and it seems like it'll be a return to what made this series a favourite to many of us over the past decades. Whereas Gran Turismo Sport seems to have always been tailored to the online competitive racing realm, GT7 should include the car customization, game modes, and even some of the tracks that made GT famous.
5) Forza Motorsport 8 - 2021 was a massive year for the Forza franchise, with Horizon 5 posting incredible sales figures and garnering awards. Horizon's more serious circuit racing sister-franchise, Forza Motorsport, could seem its eighth installment released next year. Where it falls in terms of realism and an appeal to hardcore sim racing fans remains to be seen, but a likely scenario is that similar to the Gran Turismo series, Turn 10 will play to their strengths and release a title that falls in line with what millions of players have come to love about the franchise.
What are you expecting in the world of sim racing next year? Is there any new content on this list or otherwise that you'd really want to get your hands on in 2022? Let us know in the comments below.
One of the things that benefitted from more people staying home for entertainment over the past two years is sim racing. Whereas a celebrity or real world racing driver posting a picture of their home sim rig in 2019 would have made news in our niche community, in 2020 and 2021 it has become almost expected. This surge in popularity is sure to continue into the next calendar year and bring with it some exciting new titles and content for all of us to enjoy. Here are some of the things we should see released next year.
1) Assetto Corsa Competizione Updates - Kunos' most recent major update to ACC brought a new car, improved performance, and some subtle news that more was to come. Their official launch video of the 1.8 update was tagged with a rapid-fire image showcase featuring American tracks and the newest edition of the Porsche Cup car. This is in addition to the Super Trofeo EVO2 that made a brief appearance to the public earlier this year. Lastly, let's not forget that ACC will be released to the PlayStation 5 and Xbox Series S/X quite soon. So 2022 should be a big year for this sim.
2) F1 2022 - Codemasters is surely hard at work getting things ready for the next installment of the F1 series. The past two seasons of Formula 1 have been significantly disrupted, and three tracks added to F1 2021 post-release showed Codies' efforts to try and keep up. 2022 will bring a substantial update to the car regulations in Formula 1, and hopefully we see those updated cars well represented in the official F1 game.
3) Automobilista 2 Updates - Reiza Studios has made a habit of releasing updates at least once per month since AMS2 was given to us, and that pattern should carry in next year. The third installment of the popular Racin' USA DLCs could drop in 2022, along with other new content and game improvements. The online rating system has been released already in beta form, but as the title gains more users that system will be refined and will hopefully make for some great racing in a title that shows massive potential for multiplayer competition.
4) Gran Turismo 7 - More details from the upcoming Gran Turismo title are being released each week, and it seems like it'll be a return to what made this series a favourite to many of us over the past decades. Whereas Gran Turismo Sport seems to have always been tailored to the online competitive racing realm, GT7 should include the car customization, game modes, and even some of the tracks that made GT famous.
5) Forza Motorsport 8 - 2021 was a massive year for the Forza franchise, with Horizon 5 posting incredible sales figures and garnering awards. Horizon's more serious circuit racing sister-franchise, Forza Motorsport, could seem its eighth installment released next year. Where it falls in terms of realism and an appeal to hardcore sim racing fans remains to be seen, but a likely scenario is that similar to the Gran Turismo series, Turn 10 will play to their strengths and release a title that falls in line with what millions of players have come to love about the franchise.
What are you expecting in the world of sim racing next year? Is there any new content on this list or otherwise that you'd really want to get your hands on in 2022? Let us know in the comments below.
