I’m a sim racer and amateur racer with a passion for Motorsport, good racecraft and the technical and setup aspect of sim racing.
Assetto Corsa EVO hit v0.5 on February 12, 2026 – over a dozen tracks, 44 cars, and a full release now locked in for June 2026. The sim racing landscape has rarely moved this quickly. Here’s where things stand on all of our favourite sim racing platforms.
We usually focus on elements of sim racing, such as gaming hardware, setup tutorials, and how-to guides here at SIMRACINGCOCKPIT.GG, I thought it would make a nice change of pace to discuss some of the best sim racing games for any driver looking to expand their experience beyond their usual sim platform.
Table of Contents
Whether you enjoy a good smash and crash scenario in BeamNG.drive or a serious bit of competition in iRacing, these are , in my opinion, the best games sim racing developers have on offer:
Assetto Corsa EVO
Compatibility: PC (Steam Early Access)
Early Access RRP: $39.99 / €39.99 / £34.99
Release: Early Access launched January 16, 2025 | Full release now expected June 2026
Version 0.5, released February 12, 2026, is the biggest Early Access update yet. Track count’s past fifteen now – Bathurst, Spa, Imola, the Nordschleife, Suzuka, Laguna Seca among them, plus a healthy mix of European and North American circuits either side. Car count has reached 44, with the Ferrari SF-25 F1 car among the notable additions. Kunos confirmed full release is targeting June 2026 – the end of their fiscal year.
The physics and force feedback have drawn consistent praise since launch, with the tyre model in particular cited as a step forward from the original AC. The new graphics engine running on Unreal Engine 5 makes it the best-looking sim on the market right now, full stop.
One notable change: Career Mode was removed during Early Access development and replaced with a Driving Academy – a structured, skill-based progression system focused on technique rather than a traditional championship ladder. It’s a different philosophy, and not everyone loves it, but it fits EVO’s positioning as a sim that takes driver development seriously.
Online’s catching up. Version 0.4 added 1v1 drift battles and the Daily Racing Portal – structured online racing with scheduled events. Not finished by any stretch, but EVO’s well past the hotlap-only phase now.
Assetto Corsa
Compatibility: PC, PS4, PS5, Xbox One, Xbox Series X|S
Ultimate Edition RRP: £31.99 / $55 (includes all DLC packs with regular discount opportunities)
Since its release in 2014, a hugely passionate community of sim racing fans has taken Assetto Corsa to its collective hearts, making it perhaps the most popular ‘serious’ sim ever.
With Assetto Corsa EVO now in Early Access, the original AC remains incredibly relevant thanks to its unmatched modding scene. Many consider it the best value in sim racing.
Developer Kunos Simulazioni combines believable driving physics with attractive visuals to create an immersive racing experience, signing key licensing deals with Ferrari and Porsche to help bring some iconic cars to its vehicle roster.
With 178 cars and 19 tracks, there’s no shortage of combinations to enjoy, with VR compatibility enhancing the experience further.
However, AC’s modding capabilities keep it relevant eleven years on; name a car or track and someone has likely created it in AC (although mods are only available for the PC version and not on PlayStation 4, PlayStation 5, Xbox One or Xbox Series X|S).
The most important mods, however, relate to how the game looks, bringing the game’s graphics up to current standards.
Mods like Sol, the Custom Shaders Pack and Pure variously introduce day/night cycles, dynamic weather and jaw-dropping effects, while Content Manager offers a handy way to consolidate everything into one, easy-to-use package.
Thanks to its popularity with road, dirt and drifting communities, AC has a plethora of written and video tutorials to help newcomers get up and running with mods too. Therefore, in many ways, AC is the perfect gateway into the sim racing scene.
Although its driving physics perhaps lack the fidelity of rFactor 2, AC captures so much of the essence of sim racing that it should be part of any racing enthusiast’s library.
Assetto Corsa Competizione
Compatibility: PC, PS5, Xbox Series X|S
Ultimate Edition RRP: £102.45 / $118.90 / €118.90 (includes all DLC packs)
After its full release in 2019. Assetto Corsa Competizione was a surprise hit for Kunos Simulazioni, especially after its success with Assetto Corsa.
Based on the Blancpain Endurance Series (now known as GT World Challenge Europe) for GT3 racecars, ACC is an officially licensed game that moved away from using Kunos’ proprietary game engine towards Unreal Engine. This stepped up the visual presentation of the game but also made it far more resource-intensive.
The way it looks is secondary to the overall driving experience, however, with genre-leading sound design and believable physics it immerses the player in the hot seat of a trick GT3 car.
DLC packs have bumped the laser scanned track list up to 25, including perhaps the best-ever version of the Nürburgring Nordschleife, while the range of cars – although limited to SRO-sanctioned series – includes GT2, GT3, GT4, TCX and single-make series vehicles like the Porsche 911 GT3 Cup and Ferrari Challenge.
With a fairly limited single-player experience, ACC players mostly find their kicks online, with the official SRO Esports series impressively blurring the line between real and virtual motorsports thanks to its slick presentation and fierce competition.
As the SRO-run GT World Challenge has covered the globe with its championships, ACC’s playerbase grew with it. Development has now wound down – ACC has reached end-of-life as a product – but a dedicated community remains active, and the GT3/GT4 racing on offer is still among the best you’ll find in any sim. If you want structured online GT racing, Low Fuel Motorsport (LFM) is the recommended route in rather than the in-game matchmaking.
Read the setup guide to Assetto Corsa Competizione here.
Automobilista 2
Compatibility: PC and Linux
RRP: £34.99 / $39.99 on Steam
2020-2022 Season Pass: $99.99 / €89.99 / ~£77
Trying to build on the success of 2016’s Automobilista was always going to be a tough task for Brazilian developer Reiza Studios.
The PC-only title was effectively a heavily improved version of Image Space Incorporated’s rFactor but with more single-player content, more officially licensed series (including Brazilian Stock Car V8s and Formula 3 Brasil) and a greater variety of tracks (including Brazilian gems like Campo Grande and more familiar British tracks such as Oulton Park and Snetterton).
However, its driving physics were second to none, which is unfortunately where its sequel, Automobilista 2, falls down.
Using a version of Slightly Mad Studios’ MADNESS engine (as used in Project CARS 2), AMS 2 features a capable handling model but it lacks the tactility of its top-tier sim rivals.
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On the other hand, AMS 2 looks incredible – especially in VR – and its sheer variety of cars and tracks makes it an excellent platform to showcase sim racing to your friends.
Super Trucks, touring cars, Group C prototypes, historic single-seaters, rallycross and up-to-date Formula 1-style machinery are all present and correct, with dynamic weather and day-to-night transitions supplying all the eye candy you’ll ever need.
And the track roster isn’t bad either, with famous venues such as Daytona, the Nordschleife and Spa-Francorchamps all represented, with more DLC and physics improvements promised for future updates.
Update February 2026: Version 1.6.9 (December 2025) delivered the biggest tyre physics overhaul in AMS2’s history, with v1.6.9.1 following on January 1, 2026 with further refinements. The driving feel has genuinely improved – Reiza has been quietly closing the gap to its top-tier rivals update by update.
The original Automobilista entry received a lot of praise for its phenomenal racing simulation but its successor, Automobilista 2 has upped the ante by providing sim racing enthusiasts with the perfect balance between simulation and realism.
Developed by Reiza Studios and released in 2020, Automobilista 2 is available for Microsoft Windows and Linux only and you can grab this one for just £34.99 on Steam.
Over the years, Automobilista 2 has received regular updates, and new content is added with each update.
With recent updates, Automobilista 2’s endurance racing capabilities have been significantly enhanced. The sim’s dynamic weather system and full 24-hour day-night cycle make it brilliant for marathon stints, and you can hand over to AI teammates when you need a break. Whilst it doesn’t include the Circuit de la Sarthe, you can still run proper 24-hour races on any of its included circuits.
It’s an excellent package overall, but a little more work is required to bring the driving experience up to scratch. You wouldn’t bet against the talented team at Reiza nailing it.
In terms of DLC, you can purchase the 2020-2022 Season Pass for approximately £77 (€89.99), which includes every DLC pack ever released for the sim. The Historical Endurance Pack Pt1 brings 2005-era LMP and GT cars for approximately £4.70.
However, don’t expect Le Mans Ultimate levels of feedback and enjoyment from the sim’s physics.
Read our guide to AMS2 here.
Assetto Corsa Rally
Compatibility: PC
RRP: £24.99 (Early access)
Release: 13 Nov, 2025
Assetto Corsa Rally launched into Early Access on November 13, 2025 – and GP Laps called it “rally simulation like we’ve been dreaming of” after testing the pre-release build. The physics delivered on that promise.
The driving is “absolutely wonderful” according to GP Laps, with weight transfer and momentum properly nailed. It’s built on Unreal Engine 5 with laser scanned terrain rather than procedural generation. The attention to surface detail shows. GP Laps noted it feels like a natural transition for Richard Burns Rally players, which is about the highest compliment you can give rally physics. Jimmy Broadbent put it neatly: it sits “somewhere between Richard Burns and EA WRC, more towards Richard Burns Rally in terms of sim fidelity.”
At launch you’re getting two locations: Rally Alsace (France, asphalt, 15km) and Rally Wales through the Hafren Forest (gravel, 18km) – 33km of unique roads total, with 10 cars spanning 1960s classics to modern machinery. It’s deliberately slim. GP Laps summed it up: “Like having incredible dessert at a fancy restaurant, but only getting one bite.” A Monte Carlo DLC is in the pipeline, bringing the Skoda Fabia RS Rally 2 with it.
The Unreal Engine 5 implementation is demanding – expect 50-70fps on an RTX 4070 Ti at 1440p ultrawide with DLSS on Medium settings. The laser scanned roads look fantastic, but you’ll need the hardware to match. Kunos and Supernova prioritised physics accuracy over content volume here. Whether that’s the right call depends whether you value depth over variety – but the depth is genuinely exceptional.
NASCAR 25
iRacing’s NASCAR 25 launch marked something I didn’t expect to see: they licensed Unreal Engine rather than porting their proprietary physics technology. Monster Games handled development with Dale Earnhardt Jr. as Executive Producer. It launched on PS5 and Xbox Series X|S on October 14, 2025, then hit PC via Steam on November 11 – on schedule, no delays.
All four NASCAR series in one package: Cup, Xfinity, Truck, and ARCA Menards, with a proper career mode where you start in ARCA and work your way up to Cup. There are 150+ licensed drivers and 400+ paint schemes, and the NASCAR tracks were fully rescanned – iRacing subscribers got that as a free update.
Since launch: Portland International Raceway and Sonoma Raceway were added as DLC in January 2026. A performance patch on February 4, 2026 addressed AI behaviour and framerate consistency. The Unreal Engine choice has held up – iRacing licensing third-party tech rather than building console capability in-house was clearly the right call.
iRacing
Compatibility: PC
RRP: ~$13/month or $110/year (subscription) | Cars and tracks purchased separately
Release: Originally 2008, continuously updated
There’s no way around it – iRacing is the benchmark for competitive online sim racing, and has been since before most current sims existed. The subscription model puts some people off (you’re paying monthly before you even start buying individual cars and tracks), but if structured online competition is what you’re after, this is where the best racing lives.
The hook is the matchmaking. iRating and Safety Rating sort you into splits with drivers of similar pace and racecraft, so even your first few official races feel genuinely competitive. Real-world NASCAR, IndyCar and F1 professionals keep showing up on the service – which says plenty about how the physics hold up.
Content-wise, you’ve got the deepest roster in sim racing. NASCAR (Cup, Xfinity, Truck), IndyCar, IMSA sportscars, World of Outlaws dirt, GT3, GT4, open wheelers – the list is genuinely silly. Nobody else does ovals properly, either. The wet weather model that rolled out across 2024-2025 is widely praised as the best rain in any sim, and Adaptive AI now handles offline racing properly if you’d rather not go wheel-to-wheel with real people every session.
The 2026 Season 1 build dropped December 9, 2025 – Porsche 911 Cup (992.2) headlining, plus continued track rescans across the NASCAR circuits. Seventeen years in and they’re still shipping meaningful content each quarter.
It’s expensive when you tot it all up. That’s the caveat – and I mentioned it in the LMU section for good reason. But for structured competition and the sheer depth of its racing catalogue, nothing else comes close right now.
Le Mans Ultimate
Compatibility: PC (Steam)
RRP: £31.50 / $39.99
2024 Season Pass: £39.99 / $48.99 / €46.99
Release: v1.0 launched July 22, 2025
I’ve been watching Le Mans Ultimate since its rocky Early Access days. The v1.0 release on July 22, 2025 showed real progress. Studio 397 took rFactor 2’s pMotor 2.5 engine and built something impressive. Jimmy Broadbent said the GT3 cars “drive better than anything else”. That’s high praise when ACC exists as the dedicated GT3 sim.
The technical foundation is solid here. The game features an industry-leading physics model with advanced dynamic track evolution. The hybrid systems use actual manufacturer data that’s under NDA. Weight transfer comes through clearly at the wheel. The GT3 and LMP2 cars communicate tyre grip levels particularly well.
The caveat is that v1.0 launched without career mode. That strikes me as unusual for a “feature-complete” release. Studio 397 prioritised physics accuracy over traditional progression systems. Whether that’s the right call depends what you want.
Content-wise, you’re getting the 2023 and 2024 FIA WEC seasons – 17 base cars with 200+ livery variations across Hypercars, LMP2, GTE, and LMGT3 classes. The ELMS DLC landed in December 2025, adding the Ginetta G60-LT-P1 ORECA LMP3 and Circuit Paul Ricard to the mix.
Version 1.2 (December 9, 2025) was a significant update: anti-cheat system, revised track surfaces, LiveSteward race direction tool, and an engineer mode that adds a genuine team management layer to endurance events. The v1.2.3 patch in February 2026 then delivered a reworked Hypercar tyre model – a physics-level change that affects how the top-class cars communicate grip through force feedback. Version 1.3 is expected end of March 2026. Studio 397 are updating at pace.
RaceControl handles ranked multiplayer – daily races, weekly races, driver swaps, team management. The optional subscription opens up full championship access. Base single-driver races are included in the ~£30 purchase price. Jimmy Broadbent’s take: “far more accessible than iRacing… a good place to start before dishing out tons of money on iRacing.” If you want competitive online endurance racing without the subscription-plus-per-content model, LMU is currently the answer.
After hundreds of hours in rFactor 2, this feels like vindication. Those of us who appreciated rF2’s handling despite its rough edges now have proof. The physics foundation was sound all along.
BeamNG.drive
Compatibility: PC
RRP: £19.20
BeamNG.drive arrived as a Steam Early Access title way back in 2015, providing realistic handling and a genre-leading soft body physics model that allows players to destroy their vehicles in elaborate ways.
Although its development team is small, BeamNG has more regular players on Steam than many of the sims covered on this site, with a burgeoning mod scene allowing numerous new vehicles, environments and Scenarios.
There’s even a multiplayer mod available, allowing friends to hilariously crash into each other online (although your experience will likely be unstable or even game-breaking).
Update February 2026: BeamNG has been quietly maturing as a serious sim. Rally Loop landed in a recent update: proper time controls, liaison sections between stages, the works. It’s a real rally structure inside BeamNG. It’s basic compared to AC Rally, but BeamNG’s easy moddability means you can extend it however you want. The crash physics remain peerless; the driving simulation underneath them is better than most people give it credit for.
The gameplay is largely freeform, with a short single-player career mode (a fuller career mode is available but limited) complemented by a variety of zany, separate Scenarios.
BeamNG’s lineup of default cars includes road cars, supercars, dune buggies, trucks and three-wheelers, with diverse landscapes to explore including a re-creation of the Johnson Valley off-road racing hub in California.
It’s fun to explore the game’s various maps, with most of BeamNG’s vehicles feeling intuitive to drive. Some of the game’s off-road vehicles feel a little unsteady, however, especially when it comes to tackling steep slopes.
Using the game’s World Editor, players can also set up elaborate stunts to rival those created by their favourite online personalities, providing almost endless possibilities.
If you enjoy driving with no particular goal in mind, BeamNG is the game for you.
Read our guide to BeamNG Drive here.
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