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2022 has been quite a memorable gaming year so far when it comes to experiencing diversity across many genres. Sports and racing games released this year have managed to deliver on expectations with some adrenalin-pumping titles.
2022 was an especially great year for racing games in particular. The year witnessed many next-gen racing games getting launched, including the most advanced Gran Turismo edition to date, as well as a fresh new Need for Speed title in Unbound.
Everything else will be discussed below, as this article will list down some of the best sports and racing games released this year:
Note: This article reflects the author’s choices.
Gran Turismo 7, Need for Speed Unbound and 8 other swashbuckling sports and racing games released in 2022
1) Gran Turismo 7
- Platforms available: PlayStation 5 and PlayStation 4
The latest iteration of Sony’s exclusive racing game franchise, Gran Turismo 7 has come as a welcome surprise this year. From iconic racing tracks of the old Gran Turismo titles to a seamless single-player campaign experience, Gran Turismo 7 has all the ingredients which made Sony’s racing series so popular in the first place a decade ago.
Gran Turismo 7’s driving mechanics are cutting edge, the in-game graphics are gorgeous, and overall, Gran Turismo 7 offers more customization options than previous titles.
2) Horizon Chase 2
- Platforms available: PlayStation 5, Nintendo Switch, PlayStation 4, Xbox One, Xbox Series X, Xbox Series S, and Microsoft Windows.
The Horizon Chase series has been a revolutionary arcade racing franchise, and Horizon Chase 2 is its latest mainline entry released in 2022. This one’s a follow-up title to Horizon Chase Turbo, and although it’s not out on PC yet, it has managed to generate a lot of buzz among new fans on the Apple Arcade.
The arcade racing title offers endless addictive high-speed racing fun full of competitive gameplay and crashes. It must be admitted that developers Aquiris Games have done a great job in recreating some of the old-school fun of classic arcade racing games.
3) Olli Olli World
- Platforms available: Nintendo Switch, PlayStation 5, PlayStation 4, Xbox One, Microsoft Windows, Xbox Series X and Series S
Rated 10/10 on the Steam platform, Olli Olli World is a high-adrenaline booster sports adventure game about endless skateboarding fun. Taking place in the unique-looking and ultra-vibrant open world of Radlandia, Olli Olli World has a lot to offer from super-addictive race courses and interesting in-game characters as the players stunt their way through the storyline.
4) WWE2K22
- Platforms available: PlayStation 5, PlayStation 4, Xbox One, Xbox Series X and Series S, Microsoft Windows
WWE2K22 is coincidently the 22nd mainline entry of the popular wrestling simulation game, which represents the WWE business. After a gap of many years, the franchise has finally pulled off a wrestling game title worth trying, which is not plagued with bugs and glitches. WWE2K22 looks extremely satisfying in high graphics, and the story progression is fun to play along with friends, where players can forge their own factions within the roster of wrestlers.
5) F1 Manager 2022
- Platforms available: PlayStation 4, PlayStation 5, Xbox One, Xbox Series X and Series S, and Microsoft Windows
Out in the first month of 2022 itself, the F1 Manager 2022 is a competitive spin-off of the Formula One season. F1 racing games are known for delivering a realistic F1 driving experience to gamers with top-notch graphics, and 2022’s edition of the same didn’t disappoint at all in that regard.
Moreover, F1 Manager 2022 has also come up with a revamped and much-improved career mode with complex budgeting options, and a completely new class of veteran drivers from the past.
6) Test Drive Unlimited Solar Crown
- Platforms available: PlayStation 5, Nintendo Switch, PlayStation 4, Xbox One, Xbox Series X, Xbox Series S, and Microsoft Windows.
In terms of core driving feel and open-world setup, the Test Drive Unlimited Series is probably the only racing game that can comes close to the Forza Horizon series.
Like the Forza Horizon games, Test Drive unlimited Solar Crown, the 2022 entrant of the series, takes place in a massive open-world environment full of explorable elements on some cool and noble cars to have ever hit the roads.
7) Dakar Desert Rally
- Platforms available: Microsoft Windows, PS4, PS5, Xbox One, and Xbox Series X/S
The Dakar Rally is widely considered the toughest motorsport event in the world. While the current Dakar Rally 2022 came to a successful end this year, racing enthusiasts can still relive the race tracks and the open-world environment of South America through the Dakar Desert Rally game developed by Bigmoon Entertainment and published by Saber Interactive.
It’s one of the most competitive motorsport racing and sports games ever created with a variety of motorbikes, licensed trucks, rally cars, quads, and SSVs to choose from offering 30 different stages and also the official Dakar race routes along with a ton of explorable elements.
8) GRID Legends
- Platforms available: PlayStation 5, PlayStation 4, Xbox One, Xbox Series X, Xbox Series S, and Microsoft Windows.
GRID Legends is a beginner-friendly arcade racing game that manages to deliver a pretty realistic driving experience as well. This particular racing title has a plethora of vehicle classes to choose from: trucks, F1 cars, drift cars and many more. The single-player storyline constructs a docu-series-styled narrative similar to the Netflix series Drive to Survive, which feels unique.
9) MotoGP 22
- Platforms available: PlayStation 5, Nintendo Switch, PlayStation 4, Xbox One, Xbox Series X, Xbox Series S, and Microsoft Windows.
The official game of the MotoGP season, MotoGP 2022 has over 120 riders to pick in the single-player career mode along with 20 official MotoGP race courses. The extent of realism offered in the game is commendable, and the game also managed to deliver a well-polished and extensive career mode worth checking out. However, this is probably the hardest game to master on this list.
10) Need for Speed Unbound
- Platforms available: PlayStation 5, Xbox Series X, Series S, and Microsoft Windows
Need for Speed Unbound is the 25th main entry in one of the most well-known arcade racing game series, the Need for Speed. With a total of 143 cars to pick from, Unbound has come up with the highest selection of cars ever seen in an NFS title before.
Creators Criterion Games, have also come up with a welcome twist not seen in previous Need for Speed editions by introducing a colorful and vibrant open-world of Lakefront City where the characters have a cartoonish appearance.
Which one of these sports and racing games would you like to try? Let us know in the comments section below.
