What's a good modern racing game (sim OR arcade, whichever) that is a good game and looks pretty?

aweigh · Dec 26, 2018

From the browsing online I've done so far it seems like the Forza Horizon series is the #1 pick in terms of a normie-tier racer that's legitimately a good game and also looks pretty but I wanted to ask here anyway.

I was also watching youtube footage of Dirt Rally (most recent one) and not only does it look pretty but it looks fun as fuck, really amazing sound design as well. I never imagined virtual gear shifting would look and sound so good.

Freddie · Dec 29, 2018

Forza Horizon is pretty arcadey. There's also Forza Motorsport 7 but it uses tweaked engine from Horizon 3.

I'v heard good things about Dirt Rally and Assetto Corsa.

Astral Rag · Dec 29, 2018

Do you have a wheel? If the answer is yes you should get Assetto Corsa and Dirt Rally. I also still enjoy racing with the classic cars in F1 2013.

Forza is console trash and a windows store exclusive to boot...

Lars_Rosenberg · Dec 29, 2018

Forza Horizon 4 is an awesome game, the most fun racing game I've ever played.
It's an arcade game with default settings, but if disable driving aids it gets quite simulative. Basically it has something for everyone.
On pc it is a memory hog though, but it works decently well if you install it on an ssd and enable paging. I played it with GTX 960, 8 Gb Ram + 10 Gb paging.
If you have an Xbox One X it runs better of course, but I guess you don't.
Graphics are amazing, probably the best you can find in a car game.

Dirt Rally is also a great game, but it's very different from Forza Horizon.
First of all it's only rally (and rallycross) while Forza is an open world where you can run any kind of race.
Then Dirt is very simulative and extremely punitive. Finishing third in a rally will feel like a victory, at least in the first few seasons and you will crash a lot.
The driving feel is great, but very hard to master. When you succeed at this game you feel great though.

In summary, FH4 is pure fun and has a lot of variety and hundreds of cars.
Dirt Rally is a game that requires dedication an focus, but it can be very rewarding.

I personally love both, but I have more fun with Forza because I'm not a hug fan of car game and Forza just let's me relax and have fun, but if you are more into simulation you may prefer Dirt.