Best Car Driving Games To Try in 2025 For PC, Mobile, and Console

If you’ve ever floored it down a virtual highway or drifted through a mountain pass with nothing but a controller in hand and your heart racing, you already know the thrill a solid driving game can deliver. Car driving games aren’t just getting better, they’re evolving. The realism, the physics, the graphics, the attention to vehicle behavior… it’s the closest most of us will get to racing a McLaren at 200mph without breaking the bank (or a few bones).

I’ve personally spent the better part of the last year immersed in everything from hyper-realistic simulators like Assetto Corsa Competizione to mobile gems like CarX Drift Racing 2, and I can confidently say, we’re living in a golden age of virtual driving. Whether you’re rocking a full-blown sim rig with a racing seat and pedals, or just killing time on your phone while you wait for your oil change, there’s a perfect driving experience out there for everyone.

But what sets the best ones apart in 2025? It’s no longer just about shiny cars or open roads, it’s about immersion. It’s the way your car reacts to wet pavement in BeamNG.drive, or how Forza Motorsport lets you feel every bump and brake under pressure with haptic feedback.

According to a 2024 Statista report, driving simulators saw a 17% increase in global downloads, with U.S. gamers making up nearly 40% of mobile-based users. Add to that the rising interest in VR-compatible titles and cross-platform racing, and it’s clear: this is one of the fastest-growing niches in gaming right now.

This guide is built for you, the weekend gamer, or even the sim racing addict looking to upgrade. I’ve tested, researched, and spent countless hours behind virtual wheels to break down the best car driving games for PC, mobile, and consoles. And I’ve included pro tips, gameplay insights, and real feedback along the way.

By the way, if you’re also into building your own setup, you might want to check out our breakdown of the Top Steering Wheels for Car Games, it’s a great companion read if you want that extra edge.

So, buckle up. We’re shifting into gear.

What Makes a Great Driving Game in 2025?

You ever sit down just to test a game for ten minutes and end up burning through two hours without realizing it? That’s exactly what happened to me with BeamNG.drive earlier this year. I wasn’t even in the mood for full-blown sim racing. I just wanted to mess around. But then I crashed into a guardrail and saw the way the hood crumpled in slow motion… and I was hooked. That’s when it clicked driving games aren’t just about how fast you go. They’re about how much you feel.

Back in 2015, it was about style: neon lights, custom body kits, NFS nostalgia. But now? Now it’s about immersion. It’s about the way the tires lock up under hard braking, the delayed input if your ABS fails, the sweat you feel when you’re one millisecond ahead on a time attack. The best games to recreate all of that tension, and they make it beautiful.

Honestly, it’s not even about realism all the time. Some days, I want to chill in Euro Truck Simulator and just vibe out to the rain on the windshield while hauling furniture across Sweden. Other days, I’m redlining through tight city corners in Assetto Corsa with a death grip on my controller like it’s a real steering wheel. That freedom to bounce between moods? That’s what makes this era of driving games so damn good.

And it’s not just PC or console anymore. Mobile’s caught up in a big way. I remember testing CarX Drift Racing 2 while waiting for my tires to get rotated, and it honestly felt more satisfying than half the console racers I’d tried that month. Touch controls are finally catching up, and mobile graphics are no longer just “good for a phone.” They’re just good.

If you’re ever stuck on a long road trip or you’ve got a couple of antsy kids in the backseat, here’s something fun you can try out some fun games to play in the car to keep everyone entertained. Sure, it’s not your typical Forza deep-dive, but those simple moments, offline contests, and turn-based racing challenges often spark the loudest laughs.

But back to it, the soul of a great driving game is found in the details. How the car reacts on gravel. The sound of your gearbox rattling under strain. That perfect downshift on a canyon road that feels like poetry.

You don’t need a full sim rig to enjoy it either (though, trust me, it helps). Whether you’re racing on a borrowed laptop, a PS5, or your phone with cracked glass, there’s a kind of thrill that cuts through. And when a game captures that? It stays with you.

Best Car Driving Games for PC (2025 Edition)

If you’re playing on PC, you’re spoiled. No other platform gives you this much freedom from full-blown racing sims with laser-scanned tracks to total chaos crash tests that let you throw a hatchback off a cliff just to see what happens. Welcome to the wild west of racing games.

Let’s talk about the ones that actually feel like something in 2025, the kind that grip you hard, test your reflexes, and maybe teach you a thing or two about car control.

Assetto Corsa Competizione For the Hardcore Sim Racer

This one? It’s the gold standard. You don’t just drive in ACC, you suffer, in a good way.

If you’ve got a racing wheel setup, even a mid-range Logitech or Thrustmaster, ACC transforms into a completely different beast. You’ll feel the difference between tire compounds, the grip loss in cold weather, and even minor steering adjustments during high-speed cornering. The game punishes you if you treat it like Forza, but rewards you like no other sim if you dial it in.

Mods, Tracks & Setup Tweaks

One of the best parts? The modding community. You can slap on everything from real-world liveries to new GT4 circuits. I recently added a Sebring mod that almost fried my pedals, the bumps felt so violently accurate I actually checked if something broke underneath my desk.

ACC isn’t for everyone. But if you’re serious about realism and your favorite F1 driver isn’t just a stat card but someone you watch religiously this is home.

BeamNG.drive: The Chaos Physics King

No cap, this game shouldn’t even be this fun but it is. BeamNG is that sandbox playground where things go wrong… beautifully. Every car has soft-body physics, meaning if you smack into a tree, the hood folds, the suspension warps, and you’ll genuinely feel sorry for the virtual chassis.

I once spent 40 minutes trying to land a perfect jump off a highway ramp in a box truck. Did I succeed? No. Did I laugh my head off every time it nose-dived into a field? Absolutely.

Not Just a Crash Fest

Don’t sleep on the realism, though. There are detailed maps, weight shifting, engine overheat models, and even off-road car setups. It’s not just for memes. If you want something between simulation and sandbox, BeamNG balances that line perfectly.

If you’re into browser-based titles or just need something unfiltered and fun, check out our picks for car games unblocked, not everything needs a 4GB update to be fun.

Euro Truck Simulator 2 (with Mods) Calm, But Surprisingly Addictive

Okay, hear me out. It’s not a racing game. But if you’ve ever wanted to zone out, deliver furniture across Norway, and somehow feel relaxed while doing it… ETS2 is pure therapy.

The base game is chill, but with mods? You can turn it into a semi-realistic driving sim that still runs smooth on budget setups. I tried a real weather add-on that synced in actual road conditions from Denmark. Felt like a mild fever dream in the best way.

Also, shoutout to the community. This game has one of the most wholesome, oddly passionate mod scenes I’ve seen. People treat their trucks like their kids.

Automobilista 2: The Underdog with Depth

This one’s slept, and I don’t get why. Brazilian devs, insane tire modeling, and a slick weather system that blows most AAA racers out of the water.

Handling feels different from ACC, though. A bit looser, more responsive off the line, and easier on newcomers. But it still keeps that sim energy. Plus, VR support here is smooth. No nausea, no clunky tracking. Just vibes.

Best Car Driving Games for Mobile

Alright, let’s talk about mobile. Five years ago, I’d have laughed at the idea of taking car simulators seriously on a phone. And some of these games now rival what you’d get on a PS3 (and in a few cases, even better). Graphics are wild, controls are tighter, and if you’ve got a decent phone with a 120Hz display? Welcome to pocket-sized racing nirvana.

CarX Drift Racing 2: Mobile Physics Done Right

This one’s my go-to whenever I’m stuck in line somewhere and need to kill time with style. The physics? Surprisingly accurate. It’s not just “press gas and slide” you’ve actually got to manage throttle and counter-steer like a real drift monkey.

Tuning is legit, too. Camber, toe, tire pressure and you can tweak it all. I spent half a weekend getting a Nissan Silvia replica to feel just right. Paired it with an Xbox controller via Bluetooth, and suddenly I forgot I was even on mobile.

Rebel Racing Quick Hits, No B.S.

If you want clean arcade racing with no learning curve, this is it. Gorgeous graphics, quick races, no endless tutorials or confusing menus.

Sure, it’s got some classic freemium nonsense (buy fuel, wait 3 hours, or watch 15 ads to unlock a spoiler), but if you’re just looking for a quick dopamine hit between meetings, Rebel Racing gets it done. Also, the sense of speed is solid. Like, “tilt-your-head-while-turning” levels of immersive.

Real Racing 3 The OG Still Holds Up

Yes, it’s still here. And somehow? Still excellent. Real Racing 3’s been around forever, but the updates keep it fresh. Licensed cars, real-world tracks, surprisingly solid AI. The only reason people fall off it is the grind. But if you stick with it, or, you know, throw a few dollars in here and it becomes one of the most rewarding mobile racing sims available.

I’m not saying it replaces your PS5, but if you’re someone who enjoys console-level polish, you’ll appreciate what this brings to the table. Speaking of which, if you are more of a console player and you’re looking for your next fix, I dropped a full breakdown of the must-play PS5 racing car games in 2025. Go check that out after this, I promise you’ll find at least one sleeper hit you didn’t know about.

Off The Road (OTR) The Chill Off-Roader

Not all great car games are about speed. Sometimes, you just want to get lost in the mud literally.

OTR lets you haul trailers across rivers, scale mountain passes, and build bridges while battling gravity and questionable tire traction. It’s kind of like SnowRunner’s little cousin, but mobile-friendly. I once spent an hour just trying to rescue my own flipped jeep because it was oddly satisfying to do it right.

Best Console Car Driving Games (PS5 & Xbox Series X/S)

Let’s be honest, if you’re gaming on console, you’re living in a golden age for racing. Between the hardware power, ultra-fast SSDs, and those delicious haptic feedback controllers, 3D car racing games on PS5 and Xbox are the closest thing most of us will get to driving a supercar. Unless you’re Jeff Bezos, in which case… thanks for reading?

Gran Turismo 8: Sony’s Simulation King

Gran Turismo has been the gold standard for decades, but GT8? It’s something else.

This game doesn’t just simulate and it worships cars. From the moment you launch it, you’re greeted with photorealistic cinematics, smooth jazz, and glossy menu transitions that make it feel more like a car showroom than a racing game.

The real kicker? The driving. Every curve, every braking zone, every oversteer moment is so well-tuned that even on a standard DualSense controller, you’ll feel the tires begging for grip.

VR2 Mode & Immersion Boost

If you’ve got a PSVR2 headset? Holy hell. It’s like sitting inside a carbon fiber shell and hurtling through Le Mans at 140 mph. The depth perception in VR is so wild, I had to take breaks between laps just to catch my breath. Seriously — hydration is a strategy.

Forza Motorsport (2025 Update) Xbox’s Heavy Hitter

Forza took a minute off with Horizon taking the spotlight, but now it’s back with a full-on sim revival, and it slaps. This isn’t your typical open-world Sunday cruise. The new Forza is all about competitive racing: sharp AI, dynamic weather that actually messes with grip, and some of the tightest track design I’ve seen on console.

I booted it up on Xbox Series X with a mid-range wheel setup, and the way the force feedback translated over rumble strips felt filthy, in the best way.

Dynamic Weather + Damage Model

Rain doesn’t just make things slippery; it changes everything. Braking distances, throttle response, tire temps, it’s all live. And don’t even get me started on the body damage… watching your hood pop open mid-race because of one aggressive divebomb? Perfection.

F1 24: Speed, Sweat, and Strategy

Codemasters did it again. F1 24 is fast, sharp, and punishing in a way only a Formula game can be.

The new handling model is less twitchy, which means casuals can hang longer, but don’t get cocky. One botched pit stop strategy or late brake into a chicane and it’s game over.

I raced the full 2024 Monaco GP in cockpit view and legit felt like I needed a neck brace afterwards. The tension? Real. The satisfaction when you nail a perfect DRS overtake? Even more real.

Honorable Mentions Cross-Platform & Upcoming Titles Worth a Spin

Some games don’t fit cleanly into just one platform box and others? They’re on the horizon, teasing greatness. This is the part of the list where we get a little messy, a little weird, and a lot more fun.

The Crew Motorfest: Horizon Energy, Ubisoft Style

Okay, if Forza Horizon and Test Drive Unlimited had a sun-soaked baby, it’d be The Crew Motorfest. Open-world, ridiculously colorful, and all about vibes and this one drops you on the island of Oʻahu with a mix of races, challenges, and pure chaos.

It’s not the most “serious” racer, but that’s the charm. One moment you’re street racing Lambos, next you’re off-roading through volcano ash. If you want less sim and more fun-first, it’s a sleeper pick.

SnowRunner The Slowest Game You’ll Obsess Over

Not every driving game is about speed. Some are about patience, planning, and watching mud physics slowly ruin your morning.

SnowRunner is beautifully miserable. You’ll spend 45 minutes delivering fuel to a stranded outpost — and love every minute of it. If you’ve ever wanted a game that tests your brain and your truck’s axle durability at the same time, this is the one.

Mod Support & Community Vibes

Mods add real-life trucks, tougher terrain, and even multiplayer mayhem. Also, the community on Reddit? Weirdly wholesome for a game that breaks your will to live.

WRC Generations Rally Fans, This One’s Yours

Codemasters does rally right, and WRC Generations is proof. This game puts you in some of the most unforgiving terrain on Earth and then dares you to go full throttle.

Handbrake turns on gravel, rainstorms in the Alps, and tight-tree-lined roads that’ll destroy your car if you so much as blink wrong. It’s gritty, it’s punishing, and it’s glorious.

Upcoming Games to Watch in 2025

Here’s where it gets spicy. We’ve got rumors and pre-launch hype brewing:

• GTA 6: Leaks hint at hyper-detailed driving physics, customizable interiors, and in-depth car damage.
• BeamNG.drive Console Port: Yeah, it’s still unofficial. But if it lands? Game. Over.
• Test Drive Unlimited Solar Crown: Been delayed more than my Amazon orders, but it might drop this year — and it’s aiming to blend sim depth with luxury car flex.

Tips to Maximize Your Driving Game Experience

Let’s be real, even the best racing game won’t hit right if your setup sucks. And no, I’m not saying you need to drop $3,000 on a sim rig with triple monitors and hydraulic pedals (though… respect if you do). But with a few tweaks, some smart gear, and a little community knowledge, you can level up your experience big time, even if you’re playing on a couch or a Chromebook.

Get a Decent Steering Wheel (Even a Budget One)

If you’ve never driven with a racing wheel, man… you’re missing half the experience. There’s just something about fighting for grip in a corner with actual force feedback that makes every race feel 10x more intense.

My Starter Setup

I started with a Logitech G29, nothing fancy, but it totally changed the way I played games like Assetto Corsa and Forza. Even mobile games like CarX feel better when paired with a Bluetooth controller. Not saying it’ll make you faster, but it’ll make you care more.

Try VR if You Can (But Ease Into It)

If your stomach can handle it, VR in sim racing is ridiculous. The depth, the immersion, you look into your apex, not at it. Just… be ready to sweat.

Pro tip: Start slow. I went straight into a 20-lap Nürburgring race in GT7 with a headset and almost threw up on my pedals. Maybe don’t do that.

Join Modding Communities (They’ll Change Everything)

Mods are where racing games really come alive. New tracks, tuned cars, weather packs, full-on career modes, it’s insane what creators are putting out.

Best Places to Find Mods

• RaceDepartment (for ACC, rFactor2, etc.)
• BeamNG forums (some truly cursed but hilarious content)
• Reddit + Discord (smaller creators post gold here)

Seriously, I downloaded a Tokyo expressway map last month and haven’t touched the base game tracks since. Pure vibes.

Tweak Settings Like You Mean It

Don’t sleep on setup. Turning off assists, adjusting dead zones, boosting FOV, it makes a bigger difference than people think. I had my steering way too sensitive at first, and it felt like I was playing on a spinning top. One YouTube tutorial later, and boom, everything clicked.

Also: if you’re on console, calibrate your HDR settings. Racing at night with realistic lighting is a whole new vibe when it’s done right.

Record Your Races (Even Just for Fun)

I started doing this just to watch back cool moments, but weirdly, it helped me improve. You see what you missed, where you braked too early, how your line fell apart in turn 7. Plus, you’ll have some hilarious fails to post if things go sideways (they will).

FAQs On Real Talk for Real Racing Game Fans

Final Thoughts

The wild thing about car games in 2025? There’s something for everyone. Whether you’re out here with a full-blown racing seat and triple-monitor setup, or just vibing on your phone in between classes, you can still catch the rush.

Maybe you’re the kind of person who craves perfection in every corner. Cool. Fire up Assetto Corsa Competizione, go full cockpit view, and sweat through a 45-minute endurance race. Or maybe you’re more like me on lazy weekends, rolling through open-world vibes in The Crew Motorfest with zero intent to brake.

And hey, if you’re just starting out? That’s honestly the most fun part. The learning curve. The dumb crashes. That first time you land a drift that feels so good you wish someone was watching.

That’s the thing about this genre. It doesn’t matter how “good” you are it’s all about the feel. That moment you get locked into a groove, everything else fades out, and suddenly… you’re just driving.

So whether you’re on console, PC, mobile or even stuck in traffic playing unblocked browser games (no judgment) there’s a racing lane with your name on it.