Racing Games Through the Years

[Paul Jeffrey]

Just for fun we take a look at how racing games have progressed graphically over the years.

A picture says a thousand words, so I'll shut up and let you look at some pictures!

1979 Sega Monaco Grand Prix - Sega

1982 Pole Position - Namco

1983 Pole Position 2 - Namco

1985 Richard Petty's Talladega - EA

1986 Sega Out Run - Sega

1989 Indianapolis 500 The Simulation - Papryus

1993 IndyCar Racing - Papyrus

1996 Daytona USA - Sega

1996 IndyCar Racing II - Papyrus

1997 F1 97 - Bizzare Creations

 

[Paul Jeffrey]

1998 Colin McRae Rally - Codemasters

1998 Grand Prix Legends - Papyrus

1999 Nascar Racing 3 - Papyrus

2000 F1 2000 - EA Sports

2002 Geoff Crammond Grand Prix 4 - Infogrammes Entertainment

2003 Colin McRae Rally 3 - Codemasters

2004 F1 2004 - SCEE

2005 GTR Simbin

2006 GTR2 - Simbin

2007 Forza Motorsport 2 - Turn 10 Studios

 

[Paul Jeffrey]

2009 Forza Motorsport 3 - Turn 10 Studios

2009 SuperStars V8 - Milestone

2012 F1 2012 - Codemasters

2013 Assetto Corsa - Kunos Simulazioni

2015 Project CARS - SMS

2018 GTR3 - Simbin

Did you enjoy our look back through time at some of the great (and not so great) games of yesteryear? Do you have any fond memories of the title's in our list (or even those not included)? When was your favourite period for racing games? Have any interesting stories to tell / memories to share from these old beauties? Let's have a conversation about it below!

 

[CaptainRizla]

No Geoff Crammond love
Nice thread anyway

 

[Andy_J]

Nice one Paul, but how many of those did you actually own and play? Apart from the console entries, I own every one bar the coming title and I have a loft area full of all the boxed race sims on PC and Amiga since the 80's. I will have to dig out my boxed copies of Indycar Racing and some of the others to take a pic and put it on here. Two years ago I even built a retro PC with a voodoo graphics card just to play some of these as well as some old flight sims I have.

 

[Paul Jeffrey]

Yeah I realised after it was done, but it was so boring pulling together all the images and formatting them and ordering them up I lost interest and just went with what I had

Still half the fun is looking at what's missing and spreading the love directly

 

[Andy_J]

No Geoff Crammond love
Nice thread anyway

No RRE or AMS or RF2 either......

 

[Paul Jeffrey]

will have to dig out my boxed copies of Indycar Racing

That was one epic game! I clearly remember playing on a no ffb wheel at a mates and it was wonderful. Sadly struggling to work out where the walls on the street tracks were due to lousy graphics, but amazing fun anyway!

 

[Paul Jeffrey]

No RRE or AMS or RF2 either

Awwww 'com on ! Gimmie a break

 

[CaptainRizla]

There are so many great games, and thanks RaceDepartment, I've just subbed. Keep up the good work

 

[Rodent]

Still regularly listen to the Outrun soundtrack. It's probably why I root for Ferrari to this day, Schumi didn't hurt ofcourse but he came after. Begging my parents for a few more coins as a kid and then still spending them coins on it as a teen, man... Daytona etc. were great but Outrun and Hang on were my childhood and it was a good one.

 

[Paul Jeffrey]

but how many of those did you actually own and play?

For the record all of them from Out Run onwards Didn't own them all of course, as some were arcade jobbies, but had a go in them all.

Fun fact, in Mablethorpe (a grim Northern seaside down for all you non UK people) they still have Out Run, including mock Ferrari units, in the local arcade. Now that's a place where time forgot !

 

[TobiasR]

Did you guys know I'm the biggest Simracing YouTuber just for this one vid alone?

 

[Andy_J]

That was one epic game! I clearly remember playing on a no ffb wheel at a mates and it was wonderful. Sadly struggling to work out where the walls on the street tracks were due to lousy graphics, but amazing fun anyway!

Jeez, I couldn't even dream of an FFB wheel back then. A simple joystick was the controller of the day. Do you remember the precursor if this game? It was called Indy 500 and the crashes were spectacular. You cars could literally disintegrate into many small parts in a big crash. Epic days back then.

 

[CaptainRizla]

Well, can we include another classic?

edit - I'm not Geoff Crammond but the way

 

[Paul Jeffrey]

Another fun fact, this time in relation to Daytona USA. I worked in a sales call centre once (shudders) and to help "motivate" the staff (try paying more, that would help) they brought in a full Daytona arcade rig for us to use.

The Sales Director at the time, a real slimy Italian dude no-one liked, put a challenge up that anyone who could beat him he'd give them his Porsche Boxer. Best day of my life when he lost and you saw his face. Epic stuff.

Just to be clear, he didn't lose to me I caught the bus home...

 

[Andy_J]

Fun fact, in Mablethorpe (a grim Northern seaside down for all you non UK people) they still have Out Run, including mock Ferrari units, in the local arcade. Now that's a place where time forgot !

Fun fact real, did you know that Mablethorpe is my local seaside town and it's not up north, it's in Lincolnshire and it floods a lot. Yes the arcade is a bit retro there. But there is a chippy to die for.

 

[AndrewBo]

Great one again Paul. Oh, those memories...........feeling old now, because I've played all of the games you have posted...and more . Let's see what our FB community can add...3...2...1... posted.

 

[Andy_J]

The Sales Director at the time, a real slimy Italian dude no-one liked, put a challenge up that anyone who could beat him he'd give them his Porsche Boxer. Best day of my life when he lost and you saw his face. Epic stuff.

And to think he went on to create kunos simulazioni and do really well. Only joking Lord Kunos.

 

[Paul Jeffrey]

Well, can we include another classic?

Awww man forgot about that one, that was sweet! I bought a copy of that at a car boot sale. It even worked for like more that 50% of the time too

Jeez, I couldn't even dream of an FFB wheel back then

He had this proper big ass metal thing with a big old spring on it. Can't remember if it had pedals or not now.. doubt it did. We thought we were the bees knees on that thing

Do you remember the precursor if this game? It was called Indy 500

Mmmm don't remember that one. Feels like a YouTube video linking moment

Ahh the good old days. When life was simpler and all the better for it

Man people trying to read this thread on a mobile phone are going to struggle loading all these pictures and videos