The racing genre is one of the oldest in gaming, with its origins dating all the way back to the early 1970s with games like Atari’sGran Trak 10andNight Driver.The racing genrehas also often been at the forefront of technological advancements in the gaming world, being some of the first mainstream titles to experiment with features like 3D modeling and ray-tracing. Of course, many of these groundbreaking racing games have ended up onPlayStation.
There have been countless third and first-party racing games onPlayStationover the years, ranging from hardcore simulators to arcade combat racers to everything in between. PlayStation has always had a strong share of the racing market, but thanks to a recent Xbox announcement, PlayStation is about to become the definitive console for the racing genre.
PlayStation Will Soon Be Home to Both Major Racing Franchises
PlayStation Is About to Get One of The Best Racing Games of All Time
It’s just been officially confirmed thatForza Horizon 5is coming to PlayStation 5in Spring of this year, marking the latest entry in Xbox’s recent multi-platform strategy. For fans of the racing genre, this is absolutely huge news.
For decades there have been two racing franchises that have persisted through practically every console generation, those beingPlayStation’sGran Turismoand Xbox’sForza Motorsport/Forza Horizon. With the announcement thatForza Horizon 5is coming to PlayStation, the PS5 is about to make history as the first console to be home to both major racing franchises.
Forza Horizon 5received universal acclaim upon its initial 2021 release, and it currently sits at a 92 Top Critic Average on OpenCritic.
PlayStation Already Has a Strong Library of Racing Games
PlayStation’s most enduring racing series is undoubtedlyGran Turismo. Debuting in 1997,Gran Turismohas been around for the best part of three decades now, and it’s arguably gotten better with each entry.Racing game enthusiastswill likely have already put plenty of hours intoGran Turismo 7since its 2022 release, but anyone who hasn’t checked out the latest mainline entry in the long-running racing sim franchise definitely should.
Those new to the racing sim genre, however, might want to check outGran Turismo’s latest release,My First Gran Turismo. Released last December,My First Gran Turismois essentially a small free-to-play slice ofGran Turismo 7, offering the same mechanics but featuring 18 new cars and three tracks.
PlayStation owners also have a wealth of classic racing games available via backwards-compatibility, such as theWipeout Omega Collection,Twisted Metal, andMotorstorm. Though, it should be noted that the only way to play some of these games on PS5 is viaPlayStation Plus' Premium tier. WithForza Horizon 5,Gran Turismo, and all of these classic racing games under its belt, PlayStation could become the definitive platform for racing fans.
It’s possible that PlayStation returns the favor and putsGran Turismoon Xbox to make things equal, but that doesn’t seem likely, with PlayStation expressing no clear interest in wanting to reciprocate or copy Xbox’s new multi-platform approach.
