Little-Known or Forgotten Racing/Driving Games
- Thread starter JohnBM01
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- Houston, Texas, USA
- JMarine25
Before I begin, I want to thank everyone for contributing kindly to this thread with a handful of racing/driving games many of us never heard of or have forgotten. Glad this has gotten so much attention and involvement.
Having said this, I saw a bunch of videos last night on YouTube about a number of past racing games. The one I'll talk about here, though, is C1 Racing Battle. Now as a fan of the Tokyo Xtreme Racer/Kaido Battle series, it seems kind of awkward battling familiar gangs from the TXR games in an environment outside of illegal highway racing. Like you get to battle some of these drivers like on the highways of Tokyo in the daytime as well as on tracks like Tsukuba. Almost as if these illegal street racers decide to take their tuned machines onto a proper race track rather than on the streets risking the lives of others. And to me, it's a shame this game was never marketed in the United States or maybe even Europe. That would have been a game I would have logged lots of hours playing. My Japanese is... decent, so I'm not going to understand most of the text or spoken words. Yet still- it would have been a great game.
Having said this, I saw a bunch of videos last night on YouTube about a number of past racing games. The one I'll talk about here, though, is C1 Racing Battle. Now as a fan of the Tokyo Xtreme Racer/Kaido Battle series, it seems kind of awkward battling familiar gangs from the TXR games in an environment outside of illegal highway racing. Like you get to battle some of these drivers like on the highways of Tokyo in the daytime as well as on tracks like Tsukuba. Almost as if these illegal street racers decide to take their tuned machines onto a proper race track rather than on the streets risking the lives of others. And to me, it's a shame this game was never marketed in the United States or maybe even Europe. That would have been a game I would have logged lots of hours playing. My Japanese is... decent, so I'm not going to understand most of the text or spoken words. Yet still- it would have been a great game.
- 5,888
- Vidzeme, Riga
- Driverman447
- None.
Being a massive fan of rallying, I had to mention this. It's a very average game to be honest, but a chunk of my childhood went into this. I still have vivid memories of racing in the Corsican mountains during a thunderstorm and thick fog with a 400m drop right beside the road. Also, it had a fun rally school/licence.
- 472
- Melbourne
- Senator2655
- Senator265
Street rod 1 and 2 Lol still have street rod 2 on floppy disc somewhere ahhh I was young when we got that.
- 472
- Melbourne
- Senator2655
- Senator265
also wish I kept that Holden racing team game from 1994? I think lol it was horrible back then with graphics and handling lol it was on pc.
- 3,461
- Melbourne
- 407
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- Archer28
If memory serves me correctly that game was basically a badly digitised video of Bathurst with a dashboard overlay.
- 1,747
- PletdeKoe
My most beloved little racing game is Newman Haas Racing on the psx. This game was created by psygnosis. It featured the indycar series with lotst of official tracks. It had nice comentary on a nice cockpit view. Driving was a bit twitchy as it was so sensitive, but with the arrival of the analog stick controller it was a blast to drive.
Only downfall was that every time you would his an opponent, or he would hit you, the camera switched to broadcast mode and you would lose sense of direction when it switched back.
But it was an awesome racing game with great tracks and a nice sense of speed.
Only downfall was that every time you would his an opponent, or he would hit you, the camera switched to broadcast mode and you would lose sense of direction when it switched back.
But it was an awesome racing game with great tracks and a nice sense of speed.
- 14,656
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- JASON_ROCKS1998
- JR98 GAMING
Matej
Premium
- 2,006
- Zagreb
I played a demo of Crash Time I recently, couldn't resist it. The tracks are too wide for my taste (you don't need to concentrate much while avoiding traffic, which is completely the opposite of what high-speed pursuits demand) and the physics would have been far better if the cars didn't have such tight turning angle and responsiveness, even at higher speed.
And yes, it seems the first title doesn't have any free-roam, you can complete the story mode and then repeat each for maximum score, but that's pretty much all. It's a shame they didn't put more effort into the game, it had a big potential.
- 1,325
- England
- Doomotron
The GT-R series was a series of racing games created by Kuju Entertainment. @CORRUPTEDDISC called it one of the worst racing games of all time, but for me it was definitely one of the most fun.
I'll put some more information about them later on as currently I'm stuck for time.
I'll put some more information about them later on as currently I'm stuck for time.
CORRUPTEDDISC
(Banned)
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- CORRUPTED_DISC
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You know I bought this game new at Gamestop for $20 for the PS2 back in early 2008, but I only barely played it. I had gotten NFS Prostreet for Christmas shortly before buying this game and I had a hard time understanding that game and Test Drive Unlimited. I guess I got tired of not fully understanding what to do in those games, then I moved on and Test Drive Unlimited hasn't seen the light of day since! I have considered playing it in recent years, but I forget all about it most of the time. Am I missing out on much?
Matej
Premium
- 2,006
- Zagreb
It depends. If you enjoy racing at high speed in vast, open environment, it probably would be a welcome change if you are used to circuit games. When I first tried it out, I thought it was awesome. Huge world to explore, exciting cars, and tons of races.
From my point of view, after several hours of playing it became clear that was all the game could offer - a shiny surface. The races would soon become repetitive, the map had no secrets or special side-missions, and you received plenty of reward cars without trying that much. I didn't really enjoy it because I felt like I don't have much to do in the game after a while.
It's not a bad game, but I think it's quite far from what people would expect when thinking about an open-world driving game. I think the Forza Horizon series is what Test Drive Unlimited should have been.
TDU had a good idea but failed to execute almost anything well, IMO...which is like Ubisoft's trademark. 
It was intended to be more than just an open world driving game; it was marketed as the first (notable) MMO racing game as I recall. That didn't pan out until The Crew, which actually pulled off the concept with enough success that I think it justifies its internet connection requirement because it's literally structured like an MMORPG.
It was intended to be more than just an open world driving game; it was marketed as the first (notable) MMO racing game as I recall. That didn't pan out until The Crew, which actually pulled off the concept with enough success that I think it justifies its internet connection requirement because it's literally structured like an MMORPG.
- 1,325
- England
- Doomotron
No
I was actually talking about GT-R 400 and Touring. I personally loved the games.Haha, not specifically the GT-R series bud. I am yet to play GT-R and GT-R.2. The one which I was referencing was GTR-400, a racing game for the PS2 consisting of only the Mosler MT900 and Ascari KZ-1. Great cars, but boring monotonous trash, published by Midas.
MedigoFlame
Premium
- 6,214
- Maine
- MedigoFlameX
Most of the games I was thinking of for this thread have already been mentioned.
But how about...promotional games? I remember playing the E92 M3 racing game as well as the Unity engine one for the Lamborghini Huracan. Heard about the one for the IS-F, but never played it. (I believe it even used the same engine as the BMW M3 game)
Don't have any pictures myself, but they are on IGCD.
But how about...promotional games? I remember playing the E92 M3 racing game as well as the Unity engine one for the Lamborghini Huracan. Heard about the one for the IS-F, but never played it. (I believe it even used the same engine as the BMW M3 game)
Don't have any pictures myself, but they are on IGCD.
Last edited:
- 1,325
- England
- Doomotron
About a month ago, I mentioned the GT-R games. Finally, here's the full 'history', if you will.
In the early 2000s Gran Turismo was the king of the racing genre, followed by Need For Speed, the critically-acclaimed Burnout games and a few others. Anyway, developers wanted to tap into GT's market to make money. This is how we got Enthusia, a racing game (that I hate for it's horrible controls) and GT-R.
Please don't confuse the GT-R simulator game with this, as they are very different but have the same name. The GT-R I'm talking about was developed by Kuju Entertainment and published (in Europe at least) by Midas, who also published Takara's Choro Q games. There were two games in the series, GT-R 400 and GT-R Touring.
GT-R 400 was the first and was developed by KE's GlossGhost. It featured versions of two cars, the Mosler MT900 and the Ascari KZ1. All the tracks were original designs and had usually two layouts and reverse versions. They were:
- Woodcote Park - unlocked at the start of the game, this is a British touring car track. This is my favourite in the game and had only one layout.
- Glendale - an American race track like Willow Springs but more built up. There were two layouts, a short and long circuit.
- Altendorf - this is the hardest track on the game and is also the longest. It is based on a German airfield and on the track you actually drive under stationary planes and helicopters. This also had two layouts.
- Rouen - my second favourite track in the game, this track is based in a French valley (that according to my father looks nothing like the real Rouen). It has two layouts, a high-speed layout (named Scenic) and a shorter layout, possibly called Touring.
- Atlanta Raceway 500 - as you could expect, this is an oval track in America. Weirdly, only the road course is available, no oval version to be seen. It's like the opposite of GTS's Blue Moon Bay Speedway in that sense.
The singleplayer is made of two modes: Championship (exactly what you expect) and Time Trial (also as expected. There are two classes of cars: road and race. These classes can only race with cars of the same type, so Mosler race cars can only race Mosler race cars. This rule does not apply in split-screen. There is also one special car, unlocked by beating all the time trials, a supercar Ascari. I can't tell you how it drives because I never unlocked it.
The physics in the game aren't good but they're not bad either. Cars like to oversteer and the physics aren't really arcadey because you can spin out easily. In general, the handling is light and responsive, and makes you feel like you're controlling the car.
GT-R Touring was the sequel, released a few years later and developed by Kuju's Infusion Games. It ditched the real cars and replaced them with two original cars: the Auburn, a German saloon, and the Crusader, a hatchback. Both feel suited to the game, which is based on touring car racing. The singleplayer is the same, but new tracks and layouts have been added. These are:
- Alternative variations of last game's tracks. If I can remember, these were new layout for Rouen, Altendorf and Glendale. These replaced one of the layouts for the last game.
- Yellow Brick - an Australian race track similar to that Phillip Island track (or whatever it was called). There were two variations, one called Clubmans.
- Savannah - African race tracks on the plains. There were two layouts, Rocks and Grasslands.
- Eastern Star - a track obviously based on the Istanbul circuit, but based in a Middle East desert.
There might have been another track but I can't remember it. What's more important though is that these new tracks also could be raced in the wet, something Gran Turismo hadn't done much of yet. Locations from GT-R 400 cannot be raced in the wet, though.
The car classes have been expanded. Now each car has three classes. However, only one type of car can be raced at a time like the last game. There is a basic track class with light track modifications. Then there's a more serious heavily-modified race class. Finally there are the crazy super touring cars that are basically mad and don't like you very much. For some reason, this final class changes the tail lights on the Crusader, which is odd.
As for the driving, the physics are much lighter in this and harder to control, you'll need to get used to them first. Both of these games have damage, bith physical and mechanical and can be turned off. The system is actually very nice. However, in Touring (I don't think this happened in 400) is you receive damage the tail lights on the cars break but glitch a bit, so when you start breaking, the tail lights will go on for a frame or to and then turn off.
I really liked these games, but @CORRUPTEDDISC didn't. May I ask what you found wrong with it?
Anyway, thanks for reading. I think next I might write about Downforce, an arcade racer developed by Titus and Smart Dog.
In the early 2000s Gran Turismo was the king of the racing genre, followed by Need For Speed, the critically-acclaimed Burnout games and a few others. Anyway, developers wanted to tap into GT's market to make money. This is how we got Enthusia, a racing game (that I hate for it's horrible controls) and GT-R.
Please don't confuse the GT-R simulator game with this, as they are very different but have the same name. The GT-R I'm talking about was developed by Kuju Entertainment and published (in Europe at least) by Midas, who also published Takara's Choro Q games. There were two games in the series, GT-R 400 and GT-R Touring.
GT-R 400 was the first and was developed by KE's GlossGhost. It featured versions of two cars, the Mosler MT900 and the Ascari KZ1. All the tracks were original designs and had usually two layouts and reverse versions. They were:
- Woodcote Park - unlocked at the start of the game, this is a British touring car track. This is my favourite in the game and had only one layout.
- Glendale - an American race track like Willow Springs but more built up. There were two layouts, a short and long circuit.
- Altendorf - this is the hardest track on the game and is also the longest. It is based on a German airfield and on the track you actually drive under stationary planes and helicopters. This also had two layouts.
- Rouen - my second favourite track in the game, this track is based in a French valley (that according to my father looks nothing like the real Rouen). It has two layouts, a high-speed layout (named Scenic) and a shorter layout, possibly called Touring.
- Atlanta Raceway 500 - as you could expect, this is an oval track in America. Weirdly, only the road course is available, no oval version to be seen. It's like the opposite of GTS's Blue Moon Bay Speedway in that sense.
The singleplayer is made of two modes: Championship (exactly what you expect) and Time Trial (also as expected. There are two classes of cars: road and race. These classes can only race with cars of the same type, so Mosler race cars can only race Mosler race cars. This rule does not apply in split-screen. There is also one special car, unlocked by beating all the time trials, a supercar Ascari. I can't tell you how it drives because I never unlocked it.
The physics in the game aren't good but they're not bad either. Cars like to oversteer and the physics aren't really arcadey because you can spin out easily. In general, the handling is light and responsive, and makes you feel like you're controlling the car.
GT-R Touring was the sequel, released a few years later and developed by Kuju's Infusion Games. It ditched the real cars and replaced them with two original cars: the Auburn, a German saloon, and the Crusader, a hatchback. Both feel suited to the game, which is based on touring car racing. The singleplayer is the same, but new tracks and layouts have been added. These are:
- Alternative variations of last game's tracks. If I can remember, these were new layout for Rouen, Altendorf and Glendale. These replaced one of the layouts for the last game.
- Yellow Brick - an Australian race track similar to that Phillip Island track (or whatever it was called). There were two variations, one called Clubmans.
- Savannah - African race tracks on the plains. There were two layouts, Rocks and Grasslands.
- Eastern Star - a track obviously based on the Istanbul circuit, but based in a Middle East desert.
There might have been another track but I can't remember it. What's more important though is that these new tracks also could be raced in the wet, something Gran Turismo hadn't done much of yet. Locations from GT-R 400 cannot be raced in the wet, though.
The car classes have been expanded. Now each car has three classes. However, only one type of car can be raced at a time like the last game. There is a basic track class with light track modifications. Then there's a more serious heavily-modified race class. Finally there are the crazy super touring cars that are basically mad and don't like you very much. For some reason, this final class changes the tail lights on the Crusader, which is odd.
As for the driving, the physics are much lighter in this and harder to control, you'll need to get used to them first. Both of these games have damage, bith physical and mechanical and can be turned off. The system is actually very nice. However, in Touring (I don't think this happened in 400) is you receive damage the tail lights on the cars break but glitch a bit, so when you start breaking, the tail lights will go on for a frame or to and then turn off.
I really liked these games, but @CORRUPTEDDISC didn't. May I ask what you found wrong with it?
Anyway, thanks for reading. I think next I might write about Downforce, an arcade racer developed by Titus and Smart Dog.
CORRUPTEDDISC
(Banned)
- 1,666
- UK
- CORRUPTED_DISC
Mainly because if I'm gonna buy a racing game, I want more than two cars (the only saving grace for GTR-400 being that I love both Mosler and Ascari)
Racing is always secondary to the fun of driving a disparate selection of vehicles for my gaming experience. Plus the pasty graphics and ho-hum physics don't help.
- 1,381
- United States
- RazorSharkz
Rumble Racing for PS2 comes to mind. Fun arcade racer and spiritual follow up to Nascar Rumble. It has Mario Kart style weapons and some interesting track designs, even a bit of self awareness. Youtube videos of it aren't hard to find but I will link some here in a bit.
I'm pretty sure a lot of you know this already and i'm not sure if this is the place to post this but back in late 2017, i discovered that there's a special arcade version of Initial D 4th stage (I know it's not the newest one) that uses actual cars!
https://www.autoevolution.com/news/...tures-3-real-cars-that-move-video-102170.html
I want to really try it.
Unfortunately it seems to be only available in Japan therefore my dreams might never come true...until i found out about this video:
Somehow, somewhere, one of these builds ended up in freaking Dubai of all places...
https://www.autoevolution.com/news/...tures-3-real-cars-that-move-video-102170.html
I want to really try it.
Unfortunately it seems to be only available in Japan therefore my dreams might never come true...until i found out about this video:
Somehow, somewhere, one of these builds ended up in freaking Dubai of all places...
Matej
Premium
- 2,006
- Zagreb
Anyone played full version of Rally Trophy? It is said to be one of the best rally simulators from that period, but the demo I played was pretty much unplayable due to sensitive steering. The car also seems to straighten out after changing direction more than it should, it's not natural. If anyone has experience with the full game, I would appreciate it, because I have been dying for a rally simulator with historic cars.
The demo is down below, hopefully you can notice the quirks in handling as the driver steers:
The demo is down below, hopefully you can notice the quirks in handling as the driver steers:
