VR Racing Games are one of the biggest trends in the gaming industry over the last few years.
The best VR racing games are available if you want to immerse yourself in a 3D racing environment. It will give you a unique racing experience — a mixture of speed and adrenaline.
VR Racing games will let you experience becoming the next race car champion and can feel as though you are driving a real race car on a real race track.
If you already own a VR Headset and love racing games, and want an immersive 3D racing environment, we have the best VR racing games for you. Read on to find out!
Our Top Picks For The Best VR Racing Games
Dirt Rally 2.0
If you love the thrill of off-road racing, you might want to try Dirt Rally 2.
Dirt Rally 2.0, released in 2019, is the predecessor of Dirt Rally. You can enjoy the thrill of this racing simulation game on Microsoft Windows, Playstation 4 and Xbox One.
The fantastic visual feels more polished than other racing simulation games. You will feel like a professional off-road racer in no time!
There are six rally locations to choose from – Argentina, Australia, New Zealand, Poland, Spain, and the USA.
Dirt Rally 2.0 allows you to choose from 50 power off-road cars and drive iconic and newer rally cars such as the Citroen C3 R5, VW Polo GTI R5, and Mitsubishi Lancer Evolution X.
If you like an even more realistic gaming experience, Dirt Rally 2.0 offers race tracks that are affected by weather and conditions. It can be an unforgiving game with its off-road tracks paired with different weather conditions.
Assetto Corsa
If you ever dreamt of becoming a Formula 1 driver, then the Assetto Corsa racing sim is for you.
Assetto Corsa (AC) was released in 2014. It is one of the old racing sims in the gaming industry.
The visuals are a little outdated and are more basic looking than the other titles on this list. But if you are playing on PC, adding mods will feel like a top racing game.
While the Assetto Corsa visuals are outdated, it still gives you a realistic gaming experience when you play with a Virtual Reality headset.
Some mods can give you better visuals. One of the most popular graphics mods for the Assetto Corsa is Sol. This mod gives the game a more advanced weather simulation that brings more life to the game.
The Sol mod is available to download for free if you have a Race Department account.
Aside from mods, Assetto Corsa has downloadable content (DLC) to make your game more interesting. Just to note that you have to pay if you want to get the DLC pack for the Assetto Corsa.
Single-player and multiplayer game modes are available to enjoy with your friends. There is also a career mode, special events, and challenges that you can choose from.
Assetto Corsa Competizione
If you liked Assetto Corsa, you will definitely love Assetto Corsa Competizione (ACC).
It was released in 2019, five years after Assetto Corsa (AC). Immerse yourself with 14 circuits and up to 43 different cars to choose from.
The visuals in this game are more realistic compared to its predecessor and a big step up from AC. It feels like the most authentic racing sim, especially when played in a VR headset.
It has a well-thought-out career mode which makes the game more engaging.
Assetto Corsa Competizione has a Laserscan Technology that recreates the circuits as accurately as it can. Playing this with a VR headset can become a whole new experience.
Like the Assetto Corsa, ACC offers single and multiplayer modes. You can play with other players through the online community. The force feedback for ACC is great. If you use a racing wheel, you can adjust your force feedback settings to simulate a real-life race car steering wheel.
If you want to level up your racing sim experience, you should get the Assetto Corsa Competizione.
Automobilista 2
Another one that made it to the list of the top VR racing games is Automobilista 2.
This is a fun and great racing game that has a good VR implementation. Automobilista 2 is probably the best-looking racing sim in VR.
This title is very recent having been only on the Market for over 2 years. With such a new game, you can expect the best visuals and performance from this racing sim.
Despite only being 2 years old, Automobilista 2 has gone through many updates. They are constantly updating the game to add improvements, new features, and new cars for a better racing experience.
Most of the circuits on Automobilista 2 are also laser-scanned so you can get the feeling of racing on a true track. There is a diverse range of cars to choose from – you can be a formula 1 car driver, rallycross racer, and more.
Like the other racing sim on our list, Automobilista offers an online multiplayer mode. But the online racing game for this game is smaller compared to Assetto Corsa Competizione. The online community will likely grow larger as the game grows older.
This newer game with great visuals will be a great addition to your racing sim collection.
rFactor 2
Our next racing sim is one of the older titles on our list of top VR racing games.
rFactor 2 was released in March 2013 for PC and console players.
The graphics and audio of rFactor 2 could be a little better as it is not up to par with other racing sims. You would really see a difference when you compare it to, let’s say, the Assetto Corsa Competizione. No doubt ACC will win in the graphics and audio department hands down.
But that is not to say that rFactor 2 is a bad game. Despite being an older title, rFactor 2 is considered to have the most realistic driving physics in a racing sim. The basic UI is very clear and it is easy to get into once you’ve started playing. Laser scanned tracks are also available so you still get that realistic driving experience in the rFactor 2.
If you want to improve your gaming experience in rFactor, they have an active mod community to add to your game. The force feedback for rFactor 2 is very detailed. You can really feel the bumps on the track when you play.
Because this is an older racing sim, the game might not feel as immersive in VR as the newer titles. However, the racing dynamics of rFactor 2 are liked by the racing sim community and its fan base.
iRacing
We are on our list pick for the top VR racing game!
iRacing was released in 2008 but is still very well played amongst the racing community. If you are into competitive racing, you might want to add iRacing to your VR racing experience.
iRacing has a very competitive multiplayer system and ranking is based on the iRacing ‘license’. There are 4 rookie licenses when you start playing and you can rank up by driving safely and consistently. That means avoiding bumping into other cars and staying on the tracks. Your safety rating will go down and will affect your rank if you are a reckless racer. This decides which league you will be competing in.
Despite being an older title, playing iRacing in VR can still feel immersive. The laser-scanned tracks and cars can give a real experience of driving on the circuits.
The game is very responsive in VR and it brings out the details of the game more. There are downsides to this highly-played game, though.
Yes, racing games come with a price. You can think of iRacing as the Netflix or Amazon Prime Video of the racing sim community. It is a monthly subscription-based game to play. On top of the subscription system, you have to pay for additional cars and tracks.
You also have to own the cars you want to use in the multiplayer races. You don’t have to buy all the content but it is essentially a no subscription = no play racing sim.
Monthly subscription aside, iRacing is still one of the most loved racing sims. Pair it with a VR headset and you’ll feel like driving with the pros in no time!
Gran Turismo Sport
Gran Turismo is an oldie but a goodie. Released in 1997, Gran Turismo is the oldest racing game on our list.
I remember playing this game way back when Playstation One was the gaming console everyone wanted to play on. Gran Turismo in PS1 was best paired with the racing wheel and pedal. It gave the best feeling of racing back then even without the virtual reality aspect.
Now that there are more PCs and consoles, and technology has advanced, people are now playing Gran Turismo Sport paired with a VR Headset.
Unfortunately, Gran Turismo 7, which is the latest racing game in the Gran Turismo series, does not have VR support for the PS4 and PS5. But you can still experience the thrill of virtual reality racing with Gran Turismo Sport. It is compatible with Sony’s virtual reality headset.
Released in 2017, Gran Turismo Sport is the 7th in the primary releases of the Gran Turismo series. It features about 300 cars and 84 tracks that you can choose from which you can play on a PS4.
To play Gran Turismo SPort with a VR headset, you need to go to the Main Menu of the game, go to the Arcade area and select the option for the VR tour. You will be able to choose VR Drive, VR Time Trial or VR Showroom once you are connected to your VR Headset.
In the VR Drive option, you will be able to experience what it is like sitting inside of a race car. VR Time Trial is as what the name suggests, this is more of a race where you can set and beat your lap time. While the VR showroom lets you look closely at the cars in the game.
The downside in playing Gran Turismo Sport with a VR headset is you can only play one-on-one with an AI. There are no multiplayer options available so if you like playing with real players, this game might not be for you.
Project cars 3 – honorable mention
Project cars 3 is a fun racing game that can also be played with VR headsets. Compared to other VR sim racing games, it simplifies some of the more complicated aspects of racing cars, while still keeping enough factors to make the races interesting.
You can upgrade your cars using money that you earn from winning races, which makes for an interesting racing simulator. Depending on your VR rig, there can be some performance issues if it can’t keep up with the graphics, but overall I’d say it’s a pretty good virtual reality experience worth trying. Consider this one an honorable mention, but as of now it doesn’t quite make our 5 picks list for the top racing games.
PC and console compatibility
We have included racing games that are both compatible with PC and console and titles that are PC compatible only.
PC compatible only:
• Automobilista 2
• rFactor
• iRacing
Both PC and Console compatible:
• Dirt Rally 2.0
• Assetto Corsa
• Assetto Corsa Competizione
Playstation-exclusive game:
• Gran Turismo Sport
It is good to know that Assetto Corsa Competizione is now available for Playstation 5 and Xbox Series X | S.
Dirt Rally 2 is available for Playstation 4 (PS4) and Playstation 5 (PS5), however, you have to update the system to the latest software. And note that some features of Dirt Rally 2.0 on PS4 may not be available on the PS5.
No matter which platform you play in, it is recommended to have a wheel and pedal set up for a better racing experience.
With the Virtual Reality headset and the wheel and pedal setup, your racing experience will be more immersive and realistic.
VR Headset Compatibility
Of course, before buying racing games, you need to check for headset compatibility if you want the VR experience.
Our top picks for VR racing games are compatible with the following Virtual Reality Headsets:
• Valve Index
• HTC Vive
• Meta Oculus Rift/Quest
According to our research, these headsets all have high-resolution graphics and audio quality.
How Much Does Sim Racing Cost?
Racing games can be expensive especially if paired with a Virtual Reality headset, steering wheel, and pedals.
If you are just starting your VR racing journey, the headset alone can cost you up to $1000 depending on the brand you want to buy. If you want the full racing experience, the steering wheel and pedal will add up to the cost.
The racing game itself lists at a price ranging from $12.99 up to $40. If you are considering buying iRacing, keep in mind that it has a monthly subscription system to play.
There are other factors to consider as well. While there is free DLC for downloads, you need to pay for most of the DLC for these titles.
You might have to prepare your wallets if you plan on having the ultimate VR racing game experience.
Conclusion
We hope this guide has helped decide which VR racing game is for you.
It really depends on what kind of gameplay you are into. And there are other factors to consider, such as the cost of the games, Virtual Reality headsets, and other accessories.
The titles that we listed all have rich content and features. If you are looking to play competitively, our recommendation would be iRacing. It requires a monthly subscription but the online community is one of the best for competitive gaming.
For a more realistic experience with a VR game, the Assetto Corsa Competizione is on top of our list. It is a newer game with high-quality graphics that will make you feel like racing on a real track.
Whether you’re already into the VR world or not, or if you are new to the world of sim racers, we hope this guide helped you. Since all of our picks can be played without VR as well.
