If you want to see what cutting-edge graphics look like, it’s a safe bet that you’ll get your answer from a racing game.
This year’s Electronic Entertainment Expo (E3) has revealed the annual updates to all your favorite racing franchises. Here they are.
Forza Motorsport 6 – Xbox One
The newest installment in the Forza series comes out on September 16th. It’s chock-full of stuff, with 450 cars and 26 locations—and multiplayer support for up to 24 people. But what are fans most excited about?
Weather! Forza Motorsport 6 will have dynamically changing weather. The roads are alive with the sound of…rain?
It really is impressive. Watch the trailer above to see some of the most realistic splash effects ever. It might not seem like a big deal, but for fans of the franchise it really matters! Forza strives to be the most realistic of racing simulations, and the creators extensively studied the physics of driving on wet pavement to get it right. If you want a more in-depth look at the game, Ars Technica has a hands-on write-up of their experience with the demo.
Need for Speed – PS4, Xbox One, PC
Need for Speed shows us a different, seedier side of racing, focusing on street-racing instead of motorsports. The new Need for Speed has an open world that will be twice the size of Need for Speed Rivals.
The gameplay trailer shows the player customizing every part of their vehicle with incredibly granular tools. You will even be able to tweak the car’s handling to your preference.
Need for Speed is taking a leaf out of Grand Theft Auto V‘s book (in a good way) and will feature five overlapping stories. In classic Need for Speed style, they will involve illegal road racing and trying to outrun the cops. The racing footage is really impressive, in the sense that it’s so realistic and chaotic that it’s hard to tell where you’re supposed to go next. That’s the appeal of open-world city driving.
The Crew: Wild Run – PC, Xbox One, Xbox 360, PS4
Ubisoft’s open-world street-racing game is getting its first expansion pack. The draw of The Crew is its real-world maps that cover basically the entire United States, albeit in a world where it takes 45 minutes to drive across the country.
Motorcycles and monster trucks are coming to the game. The expansion focuses on a series of events called The Summit, which Ubisoft says will be “extreme.” Hence the flipping monster trucks. It’s likely that players will compete against each other to set records, as in the first installment of The Crew.
It comes out on November 17, 2015.
Trackmania: Turbo – PlayStation 4, Xbox One, PC
If defying gravity is what you’re all about, this might be the new release for you. Trackmania will have over 200 tracks, with the ability to randomly generate more. The demo showed the player driving upside down and sideways on curving tracks that are full of jumps and roller-coaster-style loops. This is the first Trackmania game for consoles.
Apparently Trackmania will have a virtual reality demo at E3 which promises to be either awesome or nausea-inducing. Or both! Look out for it on November 26.
This article will continue updating as more driving games are announced.
