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120-403: TX-1 placed a greater emphasis on realistic simulation racing than previous games in the genre, with details such as forcing players to brake or downshift the gear during corners to avoid the risk of losing control, and let go of the accelerator when going into a skid in order to regain control of the steering. It was also the first car driving game to use force feedback technology, which caused

240-401: A mainframe computer racing game played between TV presenter Raymond Baxter and British two-time Formula One world champion Graham Hill on their 1970 Christmas special, broadcast on Christmas Eve, 1970. The game was written by IBM -employee, Ray Bradshaw, using CALL/360 and required two data centre operators to input the instructions. Atari founder Nolan Bushnell had the idea for

360-434: A racing video game where the player sits on and moves a motorbike replica to control the in-game actions. Hang-On was a Grand Prix style motorbike racer. It used force feedback technology and was also one of the first arcade games to use 16-bit graphics and Sega's " Super Scaler " technology that allowed pseudo-3D sprite-scaling at high frame rates . Hang-On became the highest-grossing arcade game of 1986 in

480-506: A racing video game where the player sits on and moves a motorbike replica to control the in-game actions. Hang-On was a popular Grand Prix style rear-view motorbike racer, was considered the first full-body-experience video game, and was regarded as the first motorbike simulator for its realism at the time, in both the handling of the player's motorbike and the AI of the computer-controlled motorcyclists. It used force feedback technology and

600-483: A radar , to show the rally car's location on the map. In February 1976, Sega released the arcade game Road Race , which was re-worked into a motorbike variant Moto-Cross , also known as Man T.T. (released August 1976). It was then re-branded as Fonz in the US, as a tie-in for the popular sitcom Happy Days . The game featured a three-dimensional perspective view, as well as haptic feedback , which caused

720-408: A video game genre in which the player participates in a racing competition . They may be based on anything from real-world racing leagues to fantastical settings. They are distributed along a spectrum between more realistic racing simulations and more fantastical arcade-style racing games. Kart racing games emerged in the 1990s as a popular sub-genre of the latter. Racing games may also fall under

840-491: A 3D game called Mario Kart 64 , a sequel to Super Mario Kart and has an action so that Lakitu needs to either reverse, rev up your engines to Rocket Start, or rescue players. Mario Kart 64 focused more on the items used. Atari didn't join the 3D craze until 1997, when it introduced San Francisco Rush . In 1997, Gran Turismo was released for the PlayStation , after being in production for five years since 1992. It

960-402: A driver must understand all aspects of car handling that make real-world racing so difficult, such as threshold braking , how to maintain control of a car as the tires lose traction, and how properly to enter and exit a turn without sacrificing speed. It is this level of difficulty that distinguishes sim racing from arcade racing -style driving games where real-world variables are taken out of

1080-557: A driving video game in the early 1970s. When he was a college student, he worked at an arcade where he became familiar with EM driving games, watching customers play and helping to maintain the machinery, while learning how it worked and developing his understanding of how the game business operates. When he founded Atari, Bushnell had originally planned to develop a driving video game, influenced by Speedway , but they ended up developing Pong (1972) instead. The earliest rudimentary racing video game to be released dates back to 1972, with

1200-466: A free-to-play simulator for Microsoft Windows. Around this time, Eugene Cojocar of Exotypos also released X Motor Racing . Also in 2013, the first direct-drive wheel was released commercially. In 2015, Slightly Mad Studios launched Project CARS for Windows, PlayStation 4 and Xbox One. The game was unique in that it was Crowdfunded, CARS standing for Community Assisted Racing Simulator . In 2016, Brazil's Reiza Studios released Automobilista ,

1320-416: A game mode in popular vehicular combat franchises such as Twisted Metal , Destruction Derby and Carmageddon . Simulation style racing games strive to convincingly replicate the handling of a real automobile . They often license real cars or racing leagues, but will sometimes use fantasy cars built to resemble real ones if unable to acquire an official license for them. Vehicular behavior physics are

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1440-445: A garage facility to allow players to enact modifications to their vehicle, including adjustments to the tires, shocks and wings. With Indy 500 , players could race the full 500 miles (800 km), where even a blowout after 450 miles (720 km) would take the player out of the competition. The simulation sold over 200,000 copies. It was around this time that sim racing began distinguishing itself from arcade-style racing. Consoles saw

1560-401: A greater emphasis on realism, with details such as forcing players to brake or downshift the gear during corners to avoid the risk of losing control, and let go of the accelerator when going into a skid in order to regain control of the steering. It also used force feedback technology, which caused the steering wheel to vibrate, and the game also featured a unique three-screen arcade display for

1680-445: A high-speed turn, forcing the player to adopt a proper racing line and believable throttle-to-brake interaction. It includes a garage facility to allow players to enact modifications to their vehicle, including adjustments to the tires, shocks and wings. The damage modelling, while not accurate by today's standards, was capable of producing some spectacular and entertaining pile-ups . Crammond's Formula One Grand Prix in 1992 became

1800-535: A hit in Japan, while Wheels and Wheels II sold 10,000 cabinets in the United States. Its use of vertical scrolling was adopted by Atari's Hi-way (1975), which introduced a sit-down cabinet similar to older electro-mechanical games. In 1977, Atari released Super Bug , a racing game historically significant as "the first game to feature a scrolling playfield" in multiple directions. Sega's Monaco GP (1979)

1920-447: A kart racing game featuring the characters from Crash Bandicoot. It was praised for its controls and courses. Crash Bandicoot and its racing series has continued, with the most recent game being Crash Team Racing: Nitro Fueled (June 2019). The year 1999 also marked a change of games into more "free form" worlds. Midtown Madness for the PC allows the player to explore a simplified version of

2040-412: A key factor in the experience. The rigors of being a professional race driver are usually also included (such as having to deal with a car's tire condition and fuel level). Proper cornering technique and precision racing maneuvers (such as trail braking ) are given priority in simulation racing games. Although these racing simulators are specifically built for people with a high grade of driving skill, it

2160-617: A lamp, which produced colorful graphics projected using mirrors to give a pseudo-3D first-person perspective on a screen, resembling a windscreen view. The gameplay involved players driving down a circular road while dodging cars to avoid crashing, and it resembled a prototypical arcade racing video game, with an upright cabinet, yellow marquee, three-digit scoring, coin box, steering wheel and accelerator pedal. Indy 500 sold over 2,000 arcade cabinets in Japan, while Speedway sold over 10,000 cabinets in North America, becoming one of

2280-631: A more three-dimensional perspective of the track. It also introduced nonlinear gameplay by allowing players to choose which path to drive through after each checkpoint, eventually leading to one of eight possible final destinations . Since the mid-1980s, it became a trend for arcade racing games to use hydraulic motion simulator arcade cabinets . The trend was sparked by Sega 's "taikan" games, with "taikan" meaning "body sensation" in Japanese. The "taikan" trend began when Yu Suzuki 's team at Sega (later known as Sega AM2 ) developed Hang-On (1985),

2400-417: A new version of netKar which aimed to bring together highly accurate physics and sound modeling as well as DirectX 9 graphics. Development tools for modifying NKP were announced, although the game is now considered obsolete due to the release company’s other sim, Assetto Corsa . In 2008, David Kaemmer, co-founder of the now-defunct Papyrus, released iRacing , a multiplayer-oriented simulator run on

2520-418: A personal computer. Accurately replicating the 1989 Indianapolis 500 grid, it offered advanced 3D graphics for its time, setup options, car failures and handling. Unlike most other racing games at the time, Indianapolis 500 attempted to simulate realistic physics and telemetry , such as its portrayal of the relationship between the four contact patches and the pavement, as well as the loss of grip when making

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2640-532: A poor option and NASCAR Racing was the race sim of choice for anyone with a capable PC, particularly in North America. It was the first sim where cars no longer looked like boxes. It keyed in on sophisticated physics modeling. NASCAR Racing sold over one million units. Moreover, the first real online racing started with NASCAR Racing using the "Hawaii" dial-in servers and it was not uncommon for these early sim racers to have $ 300 to $ 1500 phone bills. Online racing had seen its first true realization, and to many, this

2760-496: A qualifying lap concept where the player needs to complete a time trial before they can compete in Grand Prix races. It also pioneered the third-person rear-view perspective used in most racing games since then, with the track's vanishing point swaying side to side as the player approaches corners, accurately simulating forward movement into the distance. In a 2007 retrospective review, Eurogamer called it "a simulation down to

2880-464: A racing simulator featuring, among others, Formula Truck racing, Rallycross and some lesser known Brazilian racing classes. The game was based on their well-known Stock Car Extreme , which was again based on the ISI Motor2 Engine. In 2017, Project CARS 2 was launched by Slightly Mad Studios . It was the successor to Project CARS and used suggestions from the community to help improve upon

3000-435: A semi-realistic driving experience with more detail than most other racing games at the time. Since the mid-1980s, it became a trend for arcade racing games to use hydraulic motion simulator arcade cabinets . The trend was sparked by Sega 's "taikan" games, with "taikan" meaning "body sensation" in Japanese. The "taikan" trend began when Yu Suzuki 's team at Sega (later known as Sega AM2 ) developed Hang-On (1985),

3120-499: A subscription model. In 2010, Kunos Simulazioni started developing Assetto Corsa , a sim built on experience gained from netKar Pro and Ferrari Virtual Academy but with an entirely new engine. The new engine was designed to provide extensive and detailed tools for modding, allowing players to create highly detailed content with minimal effort. It was released on Windows through Steam's Early Access program in November 2013, with

3240-412: A successor to their popular Automobilista . The game features many cars from old F1 cars to trucks. The game also features both real and fictional tracks, many of the real tracks like Jerez and others get laser-scanned for a perfect recreation of the track. The game uses the madness engine, the same one used for Project CARS 2 . Following the cancellation of part of the 2020 Formula 1 season due to

3360-433: A surround view. In 2000, Angel Studios (now Rockstar San Diego ) introduced the first free-roaming, or the former "free form", racing game on video game consoles and handheld game consoles with Midnight Club: Street Racing which released on the PlayStation 2 and Game Boy Advance . The game allowed the player to drive anywhere around virtual recreations of London and New York. Instead of using enclosed tracks for races,

3480-414: A total prize money of €500,000. F1 Esports, renamed to F1 Sim Racing in 2023 , was founded in 2017 and is annually hosted on F1's official games during several shows in the late year. They have a current prize fund of $ 750,000 and all ten teams from the real-life Formula One championship select three drivers to represent them, with two of those drivers participating in select races. Brendon Leigh won

3600-446: A type of racing game where players use science fiction vehicles, such as sci-fi cars or other sci-fi vehicles , to race against the clock or other vehicles. A number of futuristic racing games may also feature vehicular combat elements. In the arcades, futuristic racing games date back to the 1980s. The laserdisc games Star Rider (1983) and Cosmos Circuit (1984) featured animated racing, using animated laserdisc video for

3720-423: A unique surround-style, sit-down three-screen display. In this design, the primary monitor is mounted directly in front of the steering wheel and secondary monitors, angled at thirty degrees, are mounted both to the left and the right of the primary monitor. At the top of the left monitor is a display of the score and the car's current position; at the top of the right monitor is a running total of cars passed during

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3840-562: Is a competitive two-player game with black and white graphics and controlled with a two-way joystick. The following year, Atari released the first driving video game in the arcades, Gran Trak 10 , which presents an overhead single-screen view of the track in low resolution white-on-black graphics. It inspired the Kee Games clone Formula K , which sold 5,000 arcade cabinets . In late 1974, Taito released Speed Race designed by Tomohiro Nishikado (of Space Invaders fame), in which

3960-406: Is a member of Team Redline ; a multinational sim racing team. In recent years as international interest has grown, so has the online community and underground racing circuit. These communities act as a focal point for users around the world to engage with one another co-ordinate racing schedules, exchange modded cars, tracks, discuss hardware configurations and facilitate other communications. Also

4080-703: 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 (ABS), steering assistance, damage resistance, clutch assistance, and automatic gear changes. Sound plays a crucial role in player feedback in racing games, with the engine and tire sounds communicating what is physically happening to the car. The three main elements of car audio are intake , exhaust, and internal engine sounds. Recorded samples of those elements are implemented in-game by methods such as granular synthesis , loop-based modelling, or physical modeling. Tire sounds modulate loop samples or pitch based on slip angle and deformation to let

4200-475: Is often generally regarded as the personal computer's first true auto racing simulation. Unlike most other racing games at the time, Indianapolis 500 attempted to simulate realistic physics and telemetry , such as its portrayal of the relationship between the four contact patches and the pavement, as well as the loss of grip when making a high-speed turn, forcing the player to adopt a proper racing line and believable throttle-to-brake interaction. It also featured

4320-575: Is the closest many would come to driving cars on a real track. Even those who race in real-world competition use simulations for practice or for entertainment. With continued development of the physics engine software that forms the basis of these sims, as well as improved hardware (providing tactile feedback), the experience has become more realistic. The sim racing gameplay style has been applied in several video games, such as iRacing , Assetto Corsa and Assetto Corsa Competizione , Gran Turismo , Forza Motorsport , and more. Prior to

4440-729: Is typically used, as a form of matchmaking to group together drivers of similar skills. The safety rating instead is typically used as a form of licence which is required to access some classes of races. Sim racing games that include some form of ranked online racing are iRacing (with iRating and safety rating), Gran Turismo Sport (with Driver Class and Sportsmanship Points), Project CARS 2 (Racecraft Ranking and Skill Rating), RaceRoom (with Reputation Rating and Rating), Gran Turismo 7 , and Assetto Corsa Competizione . Other sims have similar systems under development, like Automobilista 2 and rFactor 2 . The ranked games and sims also include an esports division that shows off

4560-578: The F-Zero series. The PlayStation game Wipeout (1995) by Psygnosis featured 3D polygon graphics and spawned the Wipeout series. The F-Zero series subsequently made the transition to 3D polygon graphics with F-Zero X (1998) for the Nintendo 64 . The basis for racing video games were arcade driving electro-mechanical games (EM games). The earliest mechanical racing arcade game dates back to 1900, when

4680-556: The COVID-19 pandemic , many F1 drivers such as George Russell , Lando Norris and Alexander Albon took part in Virtual Grand Prix , using the online features of the official game. In his free time, four-time and current Formula One World Champion Max Verstappen enjoys sim racing. Having taken part in many sim racing competitions, Verstappen stated that it helps him with his real life racing, keeping him "ready to go". Verstappen

4800-697: The Game Machine upright/cockpit charts for a combined sixteen months between December 1983 and July 1985. It was later Japan's eighth highest-grossing upright/cockpit arcade game during the first half of 1986 . This game was not licensed by Atari and was rare in North America. Sim racing Simulated racing or racing simulation , commonly known as simply sim racing , are the collective terms for racing game software that attempts to accurately simulate auto racing , complete with real-world variables such as fuel usage, damage, tire wear and grip, and suspension settings. To be competitive in sim racing,

4920-571: The Grandprix series (Known collectively as GPX to its fanbase), produced what is considered the first attempt at a racing simulator on a home system, REVS , released for the BBC Microcomputer. The game offered an unofficial (and hence with no official team or driver names associated with the series) recreation of British Formula 3. The hardware capabilities limited the depth of the simulation and restricted it (initially) to one track, but it offered

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5040-517: The London -based Automatic Sports Company manufactured a mechanical yacht racing game, Yacht Racer . Mechanical car driving games later originated from British amusement arcades in the 1930s. In the United States, International Mutoscope Reel Company adapted these British arcade driving games into the electro-mechanical game Drive Mobile (1941), which had an upright arcade cabinet similar to what arcade video games would later use. A steering wheel

5160-568: The motorcycle handlebars to vibrate during a collision with another vehicle. In Spring 1976, the arcade game Nürburgring 1 presented a first-person view. Considered the first "scandalous" arcade game, Exidy 's Death Race (1976) was widely criticized in the media for its violent content, which only served to substantially increase its popularity. Sega released a two-player version of Man T.T. called Twin Course T.T. in January 1977. 1979 saw

5280-425: The 1980s, with over 30,000 arcade cabinets sold worldwide. The same year, Durell released Turbo Esprit , which had an official Lotus license, and working car indicator lights. In 1987, Square released Rad Racer , one of the first stereoscopic 3D games. In the same year, Atari produced RoadBlasters , a driving game that also involved a bit of shooting. One of the last successful pseudo-3D arcade racers

5400-560: The 2023 season for a total purse of $ 300,000 with $ 100,000 going to the champion. Live broadcasts are featured on Twitch , YouTube and Facebook . In 2023, Gran Turismo 7 hosted the Olympic Esports Series, and was sanctioned by Fédération Internationale de l'Automobile . In 2023, German esports organizer ESL announced a new sim racing competition in collaboration with the new sim racing platform Rennsport. The championship, consisting of 2 separate seasons in 2023, offers

5520-520: The Driver/Team selection menu): Ayrton Senna became "Carlos Sanchez", for example. In 1995, Sega Rally Championship introduced rally racing and featured cooperative gameplay alongside the usual competitive multiplayer. Sega Rally was also the first to feature driving on different surfaces (including asphalt , gravel , and mud ) with different friction properties and the car's handling changing accordingly, making it an important milestone in

5640-689: The Free-to-Play RaceRoom Racing Experience . In 2003, a 3-man team began developing Live for Speed . Phase 2 brought in many updates, including the first real cars (the BMW Sauber F1 car being included in those). The third phase of the content release cycle was launched in 2015, announcing the VW Scirocco and featuring the first real-world circuit, the Rockingham Motor Speedway . In 2004, rally fans received

5760-619: The TORCS-Based Speed Dreams) Sega AM2 's 1999 arcade game Ferrari F355 Challenge , later ported to the Dreamcast in 2000, was considered the most accurate simulation of the Ferrari F355 possible up until that time; its focus on realism was considered unusual for an arcade game at the time. Since Grand Prix Legends , its publisher Image Space Incorporated has produced its own sims such as Sports Car GT in 1999 and

5880-414: The United States, and one of the year's highest-grossing arcade games in Japan and London. Suzuki's team at Sega followed it with hydraulic motion simulator cockpit cabinets for later racing games, notably Out Run (1986). It was one of the most graphically impressive games of its time, known for its pseudo-3D sprite-based driving engine, and it became an instant classic that spawned many sequels. It

6000-564: The United States. 3D polygon graphics appeared in arcade racing simulators with Namco's Winning Run (1988) and Atari's Hard Drivin' (1989), the latter also becoming a staple on home computers , where it was one of the most widely played simulators up to that point. During the late 1980s to early 1990s, arcade racing games such as Out Run and Virtua Racing (1992) had increasingly elaborate, hydraulic motion simulator arcade cabinets, with arcade racers such as Virtua Racing and Daytona USA (1993) increasingly focused on simulating

6120-466: The backgrounds. Alpha Denshi 's Splendor Blast (1985) combined Pole Position style racing with Zaxxon style sci-fi vehicles, space settings and shoot 'em up elements. STUN Runner (1989) by Atari Games featured 3D polygon graphics and allowed players to blast other vehicles. On home consoles, futuristic racing games were defined by Nintendo 's F-Zero (1990) for the SNES, which spawned

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6240-441: The backing of NASCAR and the online sim racing community grew. In 1997, Gran Turismo was released for the PlayStation . It was considered the most realistic racing simulation for consoles at the time, featuring a wealth of meticulous tuning options and an open-ended career mode where players had to undertake driving tests to acquire driving licenses , earn their way into races and choose their own career path. It introduced

6360-438: The biggest arcade hits of the 1960s. Taito 's similar 1970 rear-projection driving game Super Road 7 involved driving a car down an endlessly scrolling road while having to dodge cars, which formed the basis for Taito's 1974 racing video game Speed Race . One of the last successful electro-mechanical arcade games was F-1 , a racing game developed and released by Namco in 1976, and distributed in North America by Atari

6480-400: The car is in neutral or parking position, starting the engine, placing the car into gear, releasing the hand-brake, and then driving. The player can choose from three routes while following instructions, avoiding collisions with other vehicles or pedestrians, and waiting at traffic lights; the brakes are accurately simulated, with the car creeping forward after taking the foot off the brake until

6600-478: The car jumping up and down, turning back and forth, and spinning up to 180 degrees, with an emphasis on acceleration, braking, and gear shifting, along with the need for counter-steering to avoid spin-outs. It also featured a day-night cycle, accurately simulated courses approved by the Automobile Club de l'Ouest , and force feedback to simulate road vibration in the form of a vibrating steering wheel that reacts to

6720-485: The category of sports video games . Usually, arcade -style racing games put fun and a fast-paced experience above all else, as cars usually compete in unique ways. A key feature of arcade-style racers that specifically distinguishes them from simulation racers is their far more liberal physics. Whereas in real racing (and subsequently, the simulation equivalents) the driver must reduce their speed significantly to take most turns, arcade-style racing games generally encourage

6840-530: The city of Chicago using a variety of vehicles and any path that they desire. In the arcade world, Sega introduced Crazy Taxi , a sandbox racing game where you are a taxi driver that needed to get the client to the destination in the shortest amount of time. A similar game also from Sega is Emergency Call Ambulance , with almost the same gameplay (pick up patient, drop off at hospital, as fast as possible). Games are becoming more and more realistic visually. Some arcade games are now featuring 3 screens to provide

6960-732: The competition between racers by adding weapons that can be used against opponents to slow them down or otherwise impede their progress so they can be passed. This is a staple feature in kart racing games such as the Mario Kart series, but this kind of game mechanic also appears in standard, car-based racing games as well. Weapons can range from projectile attacks to traps as well as non-combative items like speed boosts. Weapon-based racing games include games such as Full Auto , Rumble Racing , Grip: Combat Racing , Re-Volt and Blur . There are also Vehicular combat games that employ racing games elements: for example, racing has been featured as

7080-489: The core: those dedicated will eventually reap success but most will be deterred by the difficulty". Pole Position II was released in 1983 and featured several improvements like giving the player the choice of different race courses. TX-1 , developed by Tatsumi in 1983, was licensed to Namco, who in turn licensed it to Atari in America, thus the game is considered a successor to Pole Position II . TX-1 , however, placed

7200-525: The division between arcade-style racing and sim racing, the earliest attempts at providing driving simulation experiences were arcade racing video games , dating back to Pole Position , a 1982 arcade game developed by Namco , which the game's publisher Atari publicized for its "unbelievable driving realism" in providing a Formula 1 experience behind a racing wheel at the time. It featured other AI cars to race against, crashes caused by collisions with other vehicles and roadside signs, and introduced

7320-544: The driver's acceleration and off-road bumps. The first racing game with simulation pretensions on a home system is believed to have been Chequered Flag , released by Psion on the 8-bit ZX Spectrum in 1983 . REVS , followed in 1986 . REVS was a Formula 3 sim that delivered a semi-realistic driving experience by Geoff Crammond that ran on the Commodore 64 and BBC . REVS had a big fan base in England, but not so much in

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7440-466: The drivers of "wacky" vehicles. Kart racing games are a more arcade-like experience than other racing games and usually offer modes in which player characters can shoot projectiles at one another or collect power-ups . Typically, in such games, vehicles move more alike go-karts , lacking anything along the lines of a gear stick and clutch pedal . While car combat elements date back to earlier titles such as Taito 's Crashing Race in 1976,

7560-541: The equation and the principal objective is to create a sense of speed as opposed to a sense of realism like the Need for Speed series . Due to the complexity and demands of mimicking real-life driving, racing sims require faster computers to run effectively, as well as a steering wheel and pedals for the throttle and brakes for the immersion. While using a gamepad or even a mouse and keyboard , may suffice for most arcade-style driving games on home systems, it would not provide

7680-527: The fact it was based on the same, outdated graphics engine as GP2. However, because of the graphical and physical similarities between the two games, the game was popular with modders who were able to port mod tracks and cars directly into GP3. Another milestone in sim racing came in 1998 with the release of Papyrus’ Grand Prix Legends , which was based on 1967 F1 season. It was hailed as outstanding in all areas, especially in its physics and sound design. For many players, their first real experience of sim racing

7800-573: The first arcade racing game with 3D graphics (it was predated by Winning Run , Hard Drivin' and Stunts ), it was able to combine the best features of games at the time, along with multiplayer machine linking and clean 3D graphics to produce a game that was above and beyond the arcade market standard of its time, laying the foundations for subsequent 3D racing games. It improved on earlier 3D racing games with more complex 3D models and backdrops, higher frame rate, and switchable camera angles including chase-cam and first-person views. IGN considers it

7920-407: The first third-person racing video game (it was predated by Sega's Turbo ), Pole Position established the conventions of the genre and its success inspired numerous imitators. According to Electronic Games , for "the first time in the amusement parlors, a first-person racing game gives a higher reward for passing cars and finishing among the leaders rather than just for keeping all four wheels on

8040-620: The first true rally sim with Richard Burns Rally , which to this day is still recognised by its community as the best rally sim available. Much like most sims from the graphic accelerator and modern era, the game is highly modifiable and has many third-party mods that introduce anything from new cars to new physics. In 2005, Image Space Incorporated released rFactor , a highly modifiable sim based on their Motor2 physics engine. Notable for its initial download-only distribution model, rFactor originally released with fictional cars and tracks. Thanks to its enthusiastic and ongoing modding community,

8160-553: The first two championships, while current champion Frederik Rasmussen holds the record for the most wins and poles in the series. In August 2024, Mercedes-AMG recognized Assetto Corsa Competizione , iRacing , and Gran Turismo 7 as simulators for the Mercedes-AMG GT3 race car , and holds a competition for sim racers to win a chance to test drive the Mercedes-AMG GT3 race car. Racing game Racing games are

8280-411: The footage is played. These early EM driving games consisted of only the player vehicle on the road, with no rival cars to race against. EM driving games later evolved in Japan, with Kasco's 1968 racing game Indy 500 , which was licensed by Chicago Coin for release in North America as Speedway in 1969. It had a circular racetrack with rival cars painted on individual rotating discs illuminated by

8400-524: The full version releasing in December 2014. In 2012, ISI launched the open beta of rFactor2 . It went out of beta in 2013 mostly unfinished, and was met with backlash from players. In 2016 however Studio 397 took over development of rFactor2 with the aim to revamp and revive the title, making huge efforts to bring the series back to its prime with extensive customisation and detailed physics. In 2013, Sector3 Studios (formerly SimBin) released RaceRoom ,

8520-610: The game has remained as one of the best racing sims around. In 2006, SimBin Studios released GTR 2 (itself a sequel to GTR – FIA GT Racing Game ), a sports car racing simulator developed with input from the actual racing teams which took part in the FIA GT 2003 / 2004 seasons ( FIA GT Championship ). It has received widespread acclaim and has been noted for its high levels of technical and driving realism with regards to sports car racing. In 2006, Kunos Simulazioni released netKar Pro ,

8640-464: The game to this very day. Modding teams even managed to further improve on the game's physics and create third-Party expansions for following seasons, such as the 1969 season. Wired magazine wrote an in-depth article about racing sims called Hard Drive in their February 1997 issue. In 1997, TORCS was released. Uniquely for Racing Sims, it was open source, making it even easier for modding teams to add new features and even create whole new games (Such as

8760-445: The game uses various checkpoints on the free roam map as the pathway of the race, giving the player the option to take various shortcuts or any other route to the checkpoints of the race. In 2001 Namco released Wangan Midnight to the arcade and later released an upgrade called Wangan Midnight R. Wangan Midnight R was also ported to the PlayStation 2 by Genki as just Wangan Midnight. In 2003, Rockstar San Diego's Midnight Club II

8880-478: The genre along significantly. Multiplayer was made possible by allowing different drivers to take turns, and racers could also hook up their machines for racing via a null modem cable. This only allowed two drivers to race. Leagues emerged where drivers would submit records of their single player races to compare with other drivers. This is the first sim in which drafting/slip streaming was possible. Papyrus followed up Indy 500 with IndyCar Racing in 1993 and F1GP

9000-415: The genre. During the early-to-mid-1990s, Sega and Namco largely had a monopoly on high-end arcade racing games with realistic 3D visuals. In 1996, a number of competitors attempted to challenge their dominance in the field, including Atari Games with San Francisco Rush: Extreme Racing , Gaelco with Speed Up , Jaleco with Super GT 24h , and Konami with Winding Heat . In 1996, Nintendo created

9120-465: The hand-brake is applied. Leisure Line magazine considered it the "hit of the show" upon its debut at the 1991 JAMMA show. It was designed for use by Japanese driving schools , with a very expensive cost of AU$ 150,000 or US$ 117,000 (equivalent to $ 273,000 in 2023) per unit. The next major milestone was the 1992 release of Formula One Grand Prix (AKA World Circuit in some markets) by MicroProse , also developed by Geoff Crammond. This moved

9240-496: The high caliber drivers in each sim. Some sims have both special events and championships series that put those drivers on the big stage. During the 2022 FIA Motorsport Games , Assetto Corsa Competizione was used for the events discipline titled Esports Cup . The race was contested with GT3-spec cars . iRacing is home of the eNascar Coca Cola iRacing Series , Porsche TAG Heuer Esports Supercup, World of Outlaws series, and more. The Coca Cola series competes for 20 races in

9360-558: The kart racing subgenre was popularized by Nintendo 's Super Mario Kart in 1992 for the Super Nintendo Entertainment System (SNES), which spawned the Mario Kart series. The game was slower than other racing games of the time due to hardware limitations, prompting the developers to use a go-kart theme for the game. Since then, over 50 kart racing games have been released, featuring characters ranging from Nicktoons to South Park . Futuristic racing games are

9480-401: The load off of the main processor. F1 Racing Simulation by Ubisoft , was among the first to utilize the new technology in 1997. After years of development, Microprose released Grand Prix 3 , which used a more modern graphics engine and featured the same customizable structure of GP2 . However, GP3 was not as well received as its predecessor due to a lack of full online multiplayer and

9600-515: The look and feel of driving or riding a vehicle. For example, a motorbike that the player sits on and moves around to control the on-screen action, or a car-like cabinet (with seats, steering wheel, pedals and gear stick) that moves around in sync with the on-screen action. This has been especially common for arcade racing games from Sega since the 1980s. However, this can typically only be found in arcade racing games for amusement arcades, rather than arcade-style racing games for home systems. During

9720-591: The mid-late 2000s there was a trend of new street racing ; imitating the import scene , one can tune sports compacts and sports cars and race them on the streets. The most widely known ones are the Midnight Club 3: DUB Edition and the Midnight Club series, certain entries in the Need for Speed and Test Drive series, Initial D series, the Juiced series and FlatOut 2 . Some arcade-style racing games increase

9840-417: The most important racing game ever made." It was an evolution of Namco's earlier racing electro-mechanical games , notably F-1 (1976), whose designer Sho Osugi worked on Pole Position . Pole Position was the first video game to be based on a real racing circuit, and the first with a qualifying lap, where the player needs to complete a time trial before they can compete in Grand Prix races. While not

9960-415: The name of the country; the path chosen during the previous three stages determines which "races" can be run in the final two stages. TX-1 was a pioneer in this style of play, which would be copied by myriad other games, especially Sega 's successful Out Run series. Though TX-1 uses raster graphics similar to the 1982 release Pole Position , developed by Namco and published by Atari, TX-1 uses

10080-543: The new champion of sim racing, until the release of Papyrus' IndyCar Racing the following year. Formula One Grand Prix boasted detail that was unparalleled for a computer game at the time as well as a full recreation of the drivers, cars and circuits of the 1991 Formula One World Championship. However, the U.S. version (known as World Circuit ) was not granted an official license by the FIA, so teams and drivers were renamed (though all could be changed back to their real names using

10200-585: The officially-licensed F1 series starting in 2000, all published by Electronic Arts . Unlike the Papyrus sims, the physics are easily modified, and many communities have been founded with the sole purpose of improving and updating MotorEngine-based games. One such community, Simbin , have created their own company and have released several games themselves, including GTR – FIA GT Racing Game , GT Legends , GTR 2 , RACE – The Official WTCC Game , RACE 07 , STCC – The Game , GTR Evolution , Race On and

10320-422: The player drives down a straight track dodging other cars. The game used vertical scrolling , inspired by two older electro-mechanical games : Kasco's Mini Drive and Taito's Super Road 7 . Speed Race was re-branded as Wheels by Midway Games for release in North America and was influential on later racing games. Midway also released another version, Racer , with a sit-down cabinet. Speed Race became

10440-819: The player know the limit of grip. The best sounding games effectively integrate the sound model with the vehicle and tire simulation models. Some of these racing simulators are customizable, as game fans have decoded the tracks, cars, and executable files. Internet communities have grown around the simulators regarded as the most realistic and many websites host internet championships. Some of these racing simulators consist of Forza Motorsport , Gran Turismo , GTR2 , Assetto Corsa , iRacing , Project CARS , Automobilista 2 and many more. Kart racing games have simplified driving mechanics while adding obstacles, unusual track designs and various action elements. Kart racers are also known to cast characters known from various platform games or cartoon television series as

10560-1196: The player to "powerslide" the car to allow the player to keep up their speed by drifting through a turn. Collisions with other racers, track obstacles , or traffic vehicles is usually much more exaggerated than simulation racers as well. For the most part, arcade-style racers simply remove the precision and rigor required from the simulation experience and focus strictly on the racing element itself. 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 sprints, with one or multiple paths sometimes with checkpoints, or other types of competition, like demolition derby , jumping, or testing driving skills. Popular arcade-style racing franchises include Battle Gear , Out Run , Ridge Racer , Daytona USA , Need for Speed , Sega Rally , Cruis'n , Burnout , Rush , Midnight Club , Project Gotham Racing , TrackMania , MotorStorm and Forza Horizon . Conversely, many arcade racing games in amusement arcades frequently use hydraulic motion simulator arcade cabinets that simulate

10680-551: The previous version, introducing features such as Rallycross, improved graphics and more. In May 2019, Kunos Simulazioni launched Assetto Corsa Competizione , the spiritual successor to their wildly successful Assetto Corsa . The game aims to provide an accurate simulation of GT3 Racing and uses the official license for the Blancpain GT Endurance Series as well as Unreal Engine 4 for vastly improved graphics. In March 2020 Reiza Studios released Automobilista 2 ,

10800-450: The race. A display of stage, speed, and time remaining is at the top of the primary screen. The immense size of the cabinet limited the number of arcades which could display this game. Game Machine listed TX-1 as Japan's top-grossing upright/cockpit arcade cabinet of December 1983 . TX-1 continued to top the Japanese upright/cockpit arcade charts for six months into 1984 , through January, February, March and April up until May. It

10920-445: The racing simulation genre to home consoles , becoming the basis for all modern racing simulations on video game consoles . Graphics accelerator cards brought a new level of realism to the graphics and physics of sim racing games. These new graphics processing units provided texture mapping , antialiasing , particle effects (i.e. fog, rain and snow), HDR and the capability to perform polygonal calculations faster, while taking

11040-535: The release of Human Entertainment 's Fastest 1 for the Sega Mega Drive/Genesis in 1991. It was considered the most realistic Formula 1 racing simulation up until that time. In 1991, Namco released the arcade game Mitsubishi Driving Simulator , co-developed with Mitsubishi . It was a serious educational street driving simulator that used 3D polygon technology and a sit-down arcade cabinet to simulate realistic driving, including basics such as ensuring

11160-421: The release of Vectorbeam 's Speed Freak , a three-dimensional vector racing game, which Killer List of Videogames calls "very impressive and ahead of their time". Turbo , released by Sega in 1981, was the first racing game to use sprite scaling with full-color graphics. Pole Position , developed by Namco and released by Atari in North America, was released in 1982. It is considered "arguably

11280-572: The release of the first video game console , the Magnavox Odyssey . It included a game called Wipeout , where the player moves a dot around a race track that is outlined by an overlay placed on the television screen. It required the use of physical items to play, including a race game board, screen overlay, car tokens and pit stop cards. In 1973, Atari released Space Race , an arcade video game where players control spaceships that race against opposing ships, while avoiding comets and meteors. It

11400-473: The road". According to IGN , it also "introduced checkpoints," and its success, as "the highest-grossing arcade game of 1983 in North America, cemented the genre in place for decades to come and inspired a horde of other racing games". It sold over 21,000 arcade cabinets in the US by 1983, and again became the highest-grossing arcade game of 1984 in the US. Taito's Laser Grand Prix , introduced in July 1983,

11520-466: The rules and rescue racers from falling down. In 1988, Namco released Winning Run , which used 3D polygon graphics . It became the second highest-grossing arcade game of 1989 in Japan. In 1989, Atari released Hard Drivin' , another arcade driving game that used 3D polygon graphics. It uses force feedback, where the wheel fights the player during aggressive turns, and a crash replay camera view. Sega produced Virtua Racing in 1992. While not

11640-425: The same level of immersion and realism as using a racing wheel and pedals. In recent years, many sim racing experiences have been developed for consoles, such as the PlayStation and Xbox . While these games can be played with a controller, it is recommended that players invest in a racing wheel and pedals. With the development of online racing, the ability to drive against human opponents and computer AI offline

11760-408: The same year. The gameplay is viewed from the perspective of the driver's viewpoint, which is displayed on the screen using a projector system. It was Japan's highest-grossing arcade game for two years in a row, in 1976 and 1977. F-1 is believed to have been influenced by Indy 500 , and would in turn be influential on Namco's racing video games in the 1980s. Another notable EM game from the 1970s

11880-485: The second-most successful racing game franchise of all time, selling over 80 million units worldwide as of April 2018. By 1997, the typical PC was capable of matching an arcade machine in terms of graphical quality, mainly due to the introduction of first generation 3D accelerators such as 3DFX Voodoo. The faster CPUs were capable of simulating increasingly realistic physics, car control, and graphics. Colin McRae Rally

12000-548: The speed and thrills of racing. At the same time, arcade racing games gradually moved away from the more difficult simulation style of Pole Position . By the early 1990s, arcade racing games had less emphasis on realistic handling or physics, and more emphasis on fast-paced action, speed and thrills. Sim racing is generally acknowledged to have really taken off in 1989 with the introduction of Papyrus Design Group 's Indianapolis 500: The Simulation , designed by David Kaemmer and Omar Khudari on 16-bit computer hardware. The game

12120-459: The steering wheel to vibrate, and the game also featured a unique three-screen arcade display for a more three-dimensional perspective of the track. It also introduced nonlinear gameplay by allowing players to choose which path to drive through after each checkpoint, eventually leading to one of eight possible final destinations . A sequel, TX-1 V8 , was released in 1984. Both TX-1 and its sequel were highly successful in Japan, where they were

12240-438: The third most influential racing game of all time. In 1993, Namco released Ridge Racer . Its 3D polygon graphics stood out for the use of Gouraud shading and texture mapping . And thus began the polygon war of driving games. Sega later released Daytona USA , which featured 3D polygon graphics with texture filtering . The following year, Electronic Arts produced The Need for Speed , which would later spawn one of

12360-423: The top-grossing upright/cockpit arcade cabinets for a combined sixteen months between 1983 and 1985. The sequel was not licensed by Atari for North American release. Gameplay is similar to Pole Position , in that the player, piloting a Formula One racecar, needs to reach a check point in a certain period of time in order to continue playing. While negotiating the course, the driver needs to exercise caution in

12480-439: The topic of E-Sports is ever growing in the sim racing community. Some racing games have introduced a multiplayer driver ranking system for organizing online racing. There are usually two orthogonal types of driver rankings, one which ranks drivers according to how safe they are on track and with respect to other drivers in avoiding incidents, and one according to how fast they are. For the driver speed rating, an Elo rating system

12600-408: The turns, as excessive speed will cause the car to skid; additionally, the driver needs to pass slower cars carefully to avoid a fiery crash. Unlike Pole Position , each stage ends at a branch point; depending on which way the driver turns, the course will be substantially different. The final two stages of this five-stage game were based upon famous Formula One races of the time and are identified by

12720-434: The world's most successful racing game series and one of the most successful video game series. In the same year, Midway introduced Crusin' USA . The now defunct Papyrus Design Group produced their first attempt at a racing simulator in 1989, the critically acclaimed Indianapolis 500: The Simulation , designed by David Kaemmer and Omar Khudari. The game is generally regarded as the first true auto racing simulation on

12840-422: Was The Driver , a racing- action game released by Kasco (Kansai Seiki Seisakusho Co.) that used 16 mm film to project full motion video on screen, though its gameplay had limited interaction, requiring the player to match their steering wheel , accelerator and brakes with movements shown on screen, much like the sequences in later LaserDisc games . The BBC television program Tomorrow's World broadcast

12960-474: Was Sega's Super Monaco GP (1989), a simulation of the Monaco Grand Prix . It was the third highest-grossing arcade game of 1989 in Japan, and again the third highest-grossing arcade game of 1990 in Japan. In 1992, Nintendo released Super Mario Kart , but it was known that it was pseudo-3D racing. Here it has items to affect players from racing and the referee, Lakitu will help you out to know

13080-438: Was achievable by way of the online community. Players could change everything about the game: drivers, teams, graphics, physics, car shapes, and eventually even the racetracks. Offline leagues reached their peak with GP2 in 1998. In 1996, NASCAR Racing 2 was released, further improving the original, and the number of sim racers exploded. The TEN multiplayer hosting service was introduced and went live in November 1997 with

13200-420: Was also notable for giving the player the non-linear choice of which route to take through the game and the choice of soundtrack to listen to while driving, represented as radio stations. The game has up to five endings depending on the route taken, and each one was an ending sequence rather than a simple "Congratulations" as was common in game endings at the time. It became Sega's best-selling arcade cabinet of

13320-469: Was also one of the first arcade games to use 16-bit graphics and Sega's " Super Scaler " technology that allowed pseudo-3D sprite-scaling at high frame rates . Suzuki's team at Sega followed it with hydraulic motion simulator cabinets for later racing games, such as Out Run in 1986. In 1986, Konami released WEC Le Mans , an early car driving simulator based on the 24 Hours of Le Mans . It attempted to realistically simulate car driving, with

13440-421: Was considered the most realistic racing simulation game in its time, combined with playability, enabling players of all skill levels to play. It offered a wealth of meticulous tuning options and introduced an open-ended career mode where players had to undertake driving tests to acquire driving licenses , earn their way into races and choose their own career path. The Gran Turismo series has since become

13560-466: Was introduced in 1998 to the PC world, and was a successful semi-simulation of the world of rally driving, previously only available in the less serious Sega Rally Championship . Motorhead , a PC game, was later adapted back to arcade. In the same year, Sega releases Daytona USA 2 (Battle On The Edge and Power Edition), which is one of the first racing games to feature realistic crashes and graphics . The year 1999 introduced Crash Team Racing ,

13680-562: Was later Japan's tenth highest-grossing upright/cockpit arcade game during the latter half of 1986 . Upon release, Computer and Video Games magazine called it "possibly the most sophisticated racing simulation game on the market to date" and said it was "a thrilling game!" A sequel, TX-1 V8 , was released by Tatsumi in 1984 and was licensed to Namco . In Japan, it topped the Game Machine upright/cockpit arcade charts for about ten months, from September 1984, through October, November and December, up until July 1985. Both TX-1 games topped

13800-520: Was one of the most successful traditional 2D racing games, becoming the most popular arcade driving game in the US in 1981 , and among the highest-grossing games that year, while making a record number of appearances on the RePlay arcade charts through 1987. In 1980, Namco 's overhead-view driving game Rally-X was one of the first games to have background music , and allowed scrolling in multiple directions, both vertical and horizontal . It also uses

13920-507: Was surpassed in all areas. Papyrus later released more tracks and a final expansion included the Indianapolis track plus a paintkit. Now drivers could easily customize their cars. IndyCar Racing sold around 300,000 copies. The first variant of Papyrus' NASCAR Racing series was launched in 1994. In SVGA (640×480) it pushed the PCs of the time to the limit. Suddenly a resolution of 320×200 seemed

14040-401: Was the dawn of "real" sim racing. 1995 saw the release of IndyCar Racing II , updating the first version with the new NASCAR graphics engine. A year later, MicroProse released the successor to F1GP, Grand Prix 2 , to much anticipation. GP2 became successful not just because of its detailed and thorough simulation of the 1994 Formula 1 season, but also because it was customizable; this

14160-429: Was the first racing laserdisc game , using pre-recorded live-action footage. In 1984, several other racing laserdisc games followed, including Sega's GP World with live-action footage and Universal 's Top Gear featuring 3D animated race car driving. The same year, Irem 's The Battle-Road was a vehicle combat racing game with branching paths and up to 32 possible routes. Geoff Crammond , who later developed

14280-400: Was through GPL or one of its many derivatives, such as NASCAR Racing 2003. The release of a groundbreaking third-party add-on for GPL, VROC (Virtual Racers Online Connection), allowed players to join together online and race in leagues. Despite its age, GPL has remained a common benchmark for Racing Sims even in the modern era thanks to a strong community who continue creating new content for

14400-439: Was used to control a model car over a road painted on a metal drum , with the goal being to keep the car centered as the road shifts left and right. Kasco introduced this type of driving game to Japan as Mini Drive in 1958. Capitol Projector's 1954 machine Auto Test was a driving test simulation that used film reel to project pre-recorded driving video footage, awarding the player points for making correct decisions as

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