Feel like there’s a lot of one-off talks about racing games on the deck, so I wanted to write a slightly more comprehensive list as a die hard racing fan who bought his deck almost entirely for racing games on the go. I’m really curious to hear other peoples’ thoughts, I feel like racing games are the best genre for handheld devices since they’re so pick-up-and-play.
My 3 favorites at the moment are:
- Wreckfest - the fact you get to play a game with this detailed of a physics engine, online, with 23 other players, from your bathroom, at stable 60fps, on a handheld device, is simply incredible; a must buy, imo the best racer on the deck
- Inertial Drift - really comfy, twin stick mechanics are engaging, great aesthetic, higher skill ceiling than what meets the eye but extremely rewarding to learn; feels REALLY at-home on a handheld device
- BallisticNG - not officially supported but seems to run flawlessly on my deck, easily the best AG racer currently available, super comfy once you get used to the mechanics, split screen works great for docked mode
Some runner ups:
- NFS: HP Remastered - enough said, crazy good graphics, super fun to drift a McLaren at 150mph while laying in bed
- Rush Rally 3 - may appear elementary at first but this game is FUN on the deck, super comfy, surprising amount of content and a surprisingly decently outfitted upgrade/tuning system
Other worth mentions:
- CarX - easy to get into, can play privately online with friends, runs great
- Horizon Chase Turbo - great retro feel, campaign is challenging too
- Ride 2 - basically Forza for bikes, runs damn smooth on the deck
- Art of Rally - comfy, fun, plenty of content
- Super Woden GP 2 - if you can get used to the iso perspective this is basically Gran Turismo 2 lite
Like I said at the beginning, I’m really curious to hear everyone’s thoughts, suggestions, and recommendations.
New Star GP is awesome on Deck.
Basically an arcade racer with all the trappings of an F1 sim.
Bought it from reading your comment and can confirm it’s a banger, physics feel fucking awesome
I think it’s the most underrated racing game right now. I have never heard anyone talking about it. Hopefully once it hits 1.0, it gets some marketing and buzz.
Dude I played it for like 5 hours straight. My god. The campaign is so fleshed out, the fact you can shit talk opponents into driving more aggressively and turn down opportunities to donate your earnings which sours everyone to you, absolutely fantastic. I agree, criminally underrated, can’t believe I didn’t hear of it before writing this post
Same devs as Retro Bowl, which is a love letter to the old Tecmo Bowl football games back on the Nintendo and GameBoy.
They seem to really have an awesome knack for capturing a retro feel while still having engaging gameplay for today’s players.
Gravel, Forza horizon 4 and 5
Does Forza run well now? I remember a while ago people reporting of a “physics rubberband” effect from the CPU not keeping up