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The best racing games have always been technical showpieces on each generation of hardware, with most console makers having their own prestigious franchise to parade around in front of the competition. But the sheer breadth of options has never been wider than in 2025, with a sub-genre for everyone looking to get a high speed thrill.
The beauty of the racing genre is that it can be so many different things to different players. If you want to kick back and enjoy some laps around a circuit, you can play anything from the highly successful Mario Kart 8 Deluxe to the gorgeous Forza Horizon 5, and enjoy a wealth of options in-between. If you crave something more grounded and challenging, there multiple strong choicesfor technical simulation racing that each have a degree of approachability to let you find the right fit. You’ve got options ranging from isometric camera views to stunningly detailed and dutifully recreated real-life tracks, letting you tear through rubber in whichever way suits you.
Racing games have also transcended the simple nature of doing laps around a track. Games like Forza Horizon and The Crew Motorfest have given players the ability to explore massive open worlds, enjoying races of all varieties on the streets that pierce that gorgeous landscape. Modern hardware has also afforded a level of technical artistry that brings you even closer to the real thing, with highly accurate tracks and vehicles presented in incredible detail in games like Gran Turismo 7, Forza Motorsport, and more. Nostalgia is also well represented, with homages to visual styles of old and physics models that will have you recalling fond arcade racing memories.
With so many options to choose from, it can be a little daunting to sort through which rise to the top as some of the best racing games to enjoy in 2025. We’ve selected what we think of the best of the best, in no particular order, spanning over a decade of releases that goes to show that a fantastic racing game rarely ages poorly. For more, check out our lists for the best RPGs, the best PS5 games, the best Xbox games, and the best Nintendo Switch games.
