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With the PlayStation 5 now over four years into its lifecycle, there are a plethora of must-have racing titles to choose from – so many that it can be overwhelming. Luckily, we’ve compiled a handy list of the 10 best PS5 racing games that need to be in your collection.
Racing games are also a great showcase of the newly launched PS5 Pro‘s capabilities, with many games enhanced for Sony’s more powerful console with improved fidelity and higher frame rates.
Whether you prefer ultra-realistic simulators or casual arcade games, here are our picks for the top 10 best PS5 racing games you can play in 2024. As a caveat, this list only includes native PS5 games, so backwards-compatible PS4 games are not eligible.
Honourable mentions
As always with top 10 lists like this, several racing games didn’t quite make the grid but still deserve an honourable mention.
Hot Wheels Unleashed 2: Turbocharged is a solid entry in the acclaimed arcade racing series, with new vehicle types, abilities and outdoor environments. GRID Legends on the other hand is an underrated circuit racer with a variety of racing classes, a novel story mode with live-action cut scenes featuring Doctor Who himself, Ncuti Gatwa, and more accessible handling than Gran Turismo 7.
Meanwhile, TT Isle of Man: Ride on the Edge 3 offers the most intense racing experience on two wheels as you hurtle down the famous Snaefell Mountain course at terrifying speeds or explore the surrounding country roads at your leisure in an open world.
If you’re looking for something different, Inertial Drift: Twilight Rivals Edition stands out with its unique twin-stick drift controls and stylish presentation reminiscent of Ridge Racer.
Meanwhile, Distance is a unique blend of driving, platforming and horror survival, arriving on PS5 six years after its initial PC release, and World of Outlaws: Dirt Racing 24 is a superb sprint car racer.
10. Ride 5
For motorcycle enthusiasts, Milestone’s Ride series is hard to beat. Hailed as the Gran Turismo of bike games, the Ride games feature hundreds of licenced motorcycles, with manufacturers including Ducati, Triumph, BMW and many more.
Ride 5 launched with over 230 bikes, with DLC packs further increasing this number. A comprehensive roster of road bikes sets it apart from Milestone’s MotoGP series.
An eerily lifelike clip of wet weather racing in Ride 4 made the series go viral on social media a few years ago. Running on Unreal Engine 5, Ride 5 looks even more impressive, with an improved dynamic weather system bringing enhanced lighting and volumetric clouds.
An extensive career mode featuring over 200 events also introduces a new rivals system pitting you against ten opponents in head-to-head challenges.
If you’re new to bike games, a rewind system makes Ride 5 the most accessible entry yet, and the bike handling feels more refined, with a wealth of assists helping you tweak the difficulty to suit your skill level. Ride 5 is a must-have for two-wheel racing fans looking for a lengthy single-player experience.
9. EA Sports WRC
EA Sports WRC sees Codemasters and EA take over the World Rally Championship game licence from KT Racing and Nacon, ushering in a new era of official rally games with mixed results.
Switching to Unreal Engine 4 enabled Codemasters to create some of the most authentic and challenging stages ever seen in a rally game, with the longest lasting nearly 35 km. As you would expect from a developer with a rich rally game heritage dating back to the original Colin McRae Rally, the car handling and audio design is masterful, easily trumping KT Racing’s WRC Generations.
The car selection is a rally enthusiast’s dream, from the latest Rally1 hybrid monsters to classics like the legendary Group B Audi Sport quattro S1, Colin McRae’s iconic Subaru Impreza 555 and lesser-known fan-favourites like the Mitsubishi Galant VR4. You can even create your own car from scratch in EA Sports WRC’s unique build mode.
Unfortunately, moving to the aforementioned Unreal tech is just as much a curse as a blessing. EA Sports WRC’s murky visuals fall short of expectations, and the PS5 version still suffers occasional frame rate drops and screen tearing. Although we found it to be nowhere near as bad as the initial stuttering PC launch, it lacks the visual polish we’ve come to expect from Codemasters’ racing games.
While it lacks an official WRC licence and the stages are noticeably shorter, Dirt Rally 2.0 arguably outshines EA Sports WRC in some respects. Powered by Codemasters’ in-house Ego engine still used in the F1 games, it not only looks sharper and cleaner but also features official FIA rallycross racing. If only DIRT Rally 2.0 had a native PS5 release.
Instead of releasing annual sequels like the F1 series, EA sees WRC as a platform to build on. A recent update added cars, liveries and stages from the 2024 championship, with more DLC planned in 2025. It’s a refreshing approach compared to yearly sequels with incremental improvements sold at full price.
8. Art of Rally
Art of Rally is an indie game gem. From Funselektor’s Dune Casu, the creator of Absolute Drift and the more recent Golden Lap, Art of Rally sees you navigate idyllic point-to-point stages from a top-down perspective.
Alternatively, you can take a relaxing drive exploring open environments, taking photos and collecting letters that spell ‘RALLY’. There’s no co-driver calling out pace notes to guide you, but that would spoil the tranquil ambience.
Despite a lack of licensed cars, this is a love letter to the golden age of rally racing from the 1960s to the 1990s. The deceptively deep handling model is rewarding, complimented by a calming synthwave soundtrack and stylised visuals.
From the low-poly presentation to the slidey car handling, Art of Rally is simply sublime.
7. Redout 2
WipEout was once a prominent fixture of the PlayStation lineup, but the series has been dormant since 2017’s Wipeout Omega Collection. Luckily, Redout 2 is a worthy successor to the beloved futuristic racing series.
Developed by Italian indie studio 34BigThings, Redout 2 delivers everything you could want from a futuristic racer – a genre that is sorely underrepresented on PS5 in WipEout’s absence.
As you navigate the gravity-defying tracks, your ship’s speed is so mind-meltingly fast it should be measured in Mach numbers.
Mastering these anti-gravity courses requires skill and precision, with the ability to strafe using the left analogue stick and adjust your ship’s pitch with the right stick. Meanwhile, you must pay attention to your boost bar to prevent your ship from overheating and exploding, adding an extra layer of challenge.
It’s a steep learning curve, and Redout 2 can be relentlessly difficult as a result – but that’s what makes it so compulsive.
It’s a shame that Redout 2 fell under a lot of players’ radars. If you’re a fan of futuristic racers and pining for a new WipEout-style game, Redout 2 deserves a place in your PS5 games library.
6. F1 23
You might be wondering why F1 24 hasn’t made our best PS5 racing games list.
For many longtime fans, F1 24 was disappointing. A revamped career mode lets you race as the real drivers for the first time. This was a welcome addition, but we feel it didn’t move the series forward enough, and a My Team tweak is long overdue.
Aside from a lack of innovation, handling is a core issue. At launch, it was forgiving to the point you could fly over kerbs without consequence and chuck cars around corners at preposterous speeds.
Despite tweaks to the handling in patch updates, F1 23 feels better to drive, with tighter, more satisfying controls. With no major changes to this year’s season (at least at the start of the calendar), F1 23’s driver and track roster is identical, making this year’s game feel very familiar.
You also get Braking Point 2.0, which continues the story of fictional drivers Devon Butler and Aiden Jackson, who race as teammates for a fictional eleventh team on the grid known as Konnersport.
Braking Point provides a welcome diversion from the career but is sorely absent in F1 24. With the story mode usually taking two years to develop, we’re expecting it to make a triumphant return in F1 25.
Elsewhere, F1 World is largely the same in F1 23 and F1 24; a mostly superfluous cramming of mobile game ideas into a PC and console title. Last year’s game is cheaper than this year’s too, making F1 23 easy to recommend for those who don’t have a contemporary Formula 1 title in their library.
5. Assetto Corsa Competizione
Normally reserved for the PC crowd, hardcore racing simulations are seldom seen on consoles. Assetto Corsa Competizione is a rare and welcome exception. Simulating the official GT World Challenge, Assetto Corsa Competizione’s commitment to realism makes it daunting for new players and you’ll need a racing wheel setup to get the most out of it.
The original PS4 port was plagued with performance issues, but that’s fortunately less true on PS5, especially after a spate of post-release patches. Not only does the PS5 version boast better graphics and a more stable frame rate, but DLC like the Challenge Pack is only available for the current-gen version.
With Assetto Corsa EVO’s console port potentially years away, Assetto Corsa Competizione is hands down the most realistic racing simulator on Sony’s current console, with true-to-life driving physics, dynamic weather effects and laser-scanned tracks.
4. Horizon Chase 2
If you’re looking for a more casual racing experience, there are plenty of arcade-style indie racers to choose from on PS5. But, for us, Horizon Chase 2 takes the crown.
Building on the hit Horizon Chase World Tour mobile racer and its predecessor’s PC and console port, Horizon Chase 2 was originally an Apple Arcade exclusive before being ported to PS5 over a year later.
Inspired by old-school arcade games like OutRun, the retro-style racer sees you tear across vibrant locations, from the lush jungles of the Amazon rainforest to an active volcano in Japan. Compared to the original, the cars and environments are more detailed without losing their retro charm, while the smoother handling makes the driving more enjoyable.
Once again, the soundtrack is terrific, with new songs from legendary Barry Leitch, who composed the iconic soundtracks for the Top Gear games, complementing the fast-paced gameplay.
On the downside, Horizon Chase 2’s campaign is shorter than its predecessors, and it’s unclear if post-launch DLC will add new cars and locations like the original.
However, hunting blue coins scattered on each track adds replay value, with a bonus location set on the moon unlocked for collecting all 349 coins. Removing the requirement to top up your fuel by collecting canisters also makes the campaign far less frustrating.
Whenever you want to enjoy a quick blast of pure, unadulterated arcade racing, Horizon Chase 2 is heartily recommended.
3. The Crew Motorfest
The Crew series was renowned for its staggering scale, allowing players to explore the entire US in an enormous open world. And so, it was surprising when The Crew Motorfest was announced with a significantly smaller map set on the island of Oahu in Hawaii. Luckily, the gamble paid off, resulting in a more polished and focused experience.
Like Forza Horizon, Motorfest is set around a sprawling car culture festival, and can sometimes feel like a derivative clone of the Xbox’s rival series as a result. This isn’t a setback for PS5 players though, as Microsoft’s open-world driving games are forbidden fruit on Sony’s console.
However, Motorfest’s different structure sets it apart from its rival. Themed playlists celebrate a diverse range of car cultures, with cameo appearances from YouTube influencers like Blackpanthaa, Supercar Blondie and former Donut Media host James Pumphrey.
Graphically, the island of Ohau looks stunning, with its blissful beaches and stunning sunsets. Motorfest was already one of the best-looking current-gen racing games, but the PS5 Pro update adds an extra layer of polish, with denser environments and improved reflection effects.
Vehicle handling is a step up from The Crew 2’s floaty driving physics, and you can continue progress from the last game by importing cars from your garage.
The Crew Motorfest keeps getting better thanks to regular updates, with Season 5 recently adding the volcanic island of Maui to explore and the police-themed Chase Squad expansion.
With its gorgeous graphics, frequent live service updates and an unmatched vehicle variety spanning cars, boats and planes, The Crew Motorfest sets the gold standard for open-world PS5 racers.
2. Wreckfest
Thanks to strict licensing requirements, vehicle damage modelling often leaves a lot to be desired in racing games with real cars. Not so in Wreckfest, former FlatOut developer Bugbear Entertainment’s brilliant destruction racer. Battering opponents is not only allowed but encouraged in full-contact races and arena events.
Even though it’s now over five years old, Wreckfest’s soft-body damage technology is unsurpassed on PS5. The driving physics are surprisingly involving too, whether you’re sliding around in a beaten-up estate car or trying not to tip over a three-wheeler.
Wreckfest took a long time to arrive on consoles following the initial early access PC release in 2013, when it was known as Next Car Game. But it was worth the wait, with the PS5 version upgraded with higher resolution textures and a reliably smooth frame rate despite the copious amounts of on-screen chaos.
With Wreckfest 2 on the way and set to dial up the destruction, post-launch updates for the original smash-em-up dried up, but the lengthy campaign and an active online player base more than make up for this. With up to 24 players causing carnage, Wreckfest’s online racing is delightfully chaotic when you’re in the mood to cause some mayhem.
1. Gran Turismo 7
Gran Turismo has always been the pinnacle of PlayStation racing games, and the latest entry, Gran Turismo 7, is no exception. When it comes to console racing, GT7 is class-leading, with spellbinding 4K visuals, realistic yet intuitive driving physics whether you play on a wheel or DualSense controller, and a gargantuan collection of meticulously modelled cars.
Its predecessor was a departure from the series, with Gran Turismo Sport focusing on esports and ranked online racing, foregoing a traditional single-player campaign at launch.
GT7 returns to the series’ roots, bringing back used car dealerships and tuning while introducing the somewhat esoteric GT Café. Admittedly, it can feel like a glorified tutorial at times, with quest-style missions requiring you to collect specific cars, and it’s shorter than previous Gran Turismo campaigns.
Since it launched in March 2022, a raft of free updates have added new cars, tracks and campaign events. But its most significant update introduced the human-like Sophy AI agent, a game changer for racing driver AI.
If you have a PSVR2 headset, GT7 offers one of the best virtual reality racing experiences. It’s also a great showcase of the PlayStation 5 Pro, with a recent enhancement patch adding in-race ray tracing at 60fps and an 8K graphics mode.
It may not reach the same heights as the first four genre-defining games in the series, but if you’re remotely interested in cars and own a PS5, then Gran Turismo 7 is essential.
Do you agree with our top 10 best PS5 racing games list? Let us know in the comments below.
