PS2 PS2 Racing Games

[Tonberry]

Which PS2 racing games do you consider the best ones? Which do you consider the worst ones?
Any cool hidden gems you think are underappreciated? Call in now!

I'm not very well versed in this genre in general, I mostly just played Burnout 3 at a friend's house. I didn't really get into racing games until accelerating with triggers became commonplace because it improved the experience so much for me, unless we're talking kart racers or stuff like Wipeout or F-Zero where you go a billion miles an hour anyways.

 

[Yousef]

Burnout, Midnight Club and Need for Speed are the three kings for me.

 

[bjork]

The Gran Turismo games are pretty good so long as you're okay with a fairly sterile presentation and some healthy rubberbanding by the CPU drivers.

Test Drive Unlimited is really fun and maybe has more of a focus on the driving around part than the actual racing, but I love it. The PS2 version doesn't have the motorcycles found in the PC/360 version, but it does have online play, no idea if anyone has that running nowadays, though.

I remember my dad playing a good amount of Rumble Racing because it has a 1958 Chevy as one of the selectable cars, and that seemed like a fun/wacky kind of racer.

 

[nobitakun]

Does Initial D count?

 

[Yousef]

Does Initial D count?

Absolutely.

 

[diet_orange]

Burnout 3, Need For Speed Underground 2, and Need For Speed Most Wanted

I also have a bit of a soft spot for Wipeout Fusion and Simpsons Road Rage even if they're less than perfect

 

[nobitakun]

Absolutely.

Love to listen its OST while driving. As the gameplay is arcade style mixed together with some adventure, it's one of my favourite driving franchises :)

 

[Yousef]

Love to listen its OST while driving. As the gameplay is arcade style mixed together with some adventure, it's one of my favourite driving franchises :)

Same same same, initial D was my soul back in college. I continue to rewatch stage 1 whenever I get the chance.

 

[Kamako]

For me it's

Need for Speed: Most Wanted
Need for Speed: Underground 2
Burnout: Revenge

In that order. NFS:MW (2005) might still be the best street racing game ever made, for my money.

 

[Dany28]

 

[bjork]

For me it's

Need for Speed: Most Wanted

In that order. NFS:MW (2005) might still be the best street racing game ever made, for my money.

I had no idea that this has a PS2 version. I played a ton of the 360 one and it was so fun. Gonna have to see the PS2 one now, thanks for the unintentional heads up!

 

[qw90700]

My favorites:

- These days Auto Modellista getting so popular and became a PS2 racing game that was "hidden gem" and "underrated legend" for it's a CAPCOM game developed with anime graphics, has race track like Gran Turismo but you have more freedom to customize your car like classic bumper and whatnot change, install spoiler, decide on some skins but then you can even customize your garage by deciding what to put into it and what to hang onto your car. Unlike what today's people would think the game was popular for its time though, but perhaps some regions missed experiencing its greatness during such a time when other games were also popular.

- Tokyo Xtreme Racer series. In its own way it's Japanese-style Need for Speed game but more leaning into Japanese way of street racing as in you hunt rivals on the road to race to them. If you watched the Wangan Midnight you pretty much can figure out how this series works with gameplay format and innovation in its own context. However it also has drifting series like the one called Kaito Racer 1 that you go to a meetin place to bet on your rival and agree on what kind of race you guys wanna do which pretty much works like the anime Initial D but not so simple as that. In this game you read about racing scene via forum format and as you build your legend people talk about you and even make a GF too lol!!! But my favorite feature is as you progress in the game you unlock sounds that you can use to produce your own music that you can listen to while you drift lol.

- Test Drive Eve of Destruction. My favorite derby simulator game. Lots of fun game modes and even a detailed livery creation option to spray paint stuff on your car in whatever way you want!!!

- Rumble Racing. Kinda 2nd game of the Nascar Rumble on PS1. The whole this series is about as you race you collect powerups that's are fun, and thus you attack to other cars.

- Juiced series. It's more like another version of Need for Speed series that leans more into simulation of a street racing genre.

 

[bjork]

Damn, I forgot about Tokyo Xtreme Racing too. There's three of them on PS2, right? 3, Zero, Drift?

 

[Segadude113]

Never played any racing games for PS2 outside Gran Turismo 3 A-SPEC and that was because my cousin had it and gave it to my sister. Not really into realistic racing sims. It was super impressive back then though! Had I known Star Wars Episode 1 Racer had a version released for PS2 I would have been all over that.

 

[Nelson2001 Nelson2001]

Although my favorite PS2 Racing games are:

Burnout 3: Takedown (2004)
Burnout Revenge (2005)
Gran Turismo 3: A-Spec (2001)
Gran Turismo 4 (2004-05)
Need for Speed: Hot Pursuit 2 (2002)
Need for Speed: Most Wanted (2005)
Need for Speed: Underground 2 (2004)
and among some others.

 

[ThunderBoy]

Midnight Club 3 and Gran Turismo 4

 

[diet_orange]

Never played any racing games for PS2 outside Gran Turismo 3 A-SPEC and that was because my cousin had it and gave it to my sister. Not really into realistic racing sims. It was super impressive back then though! Had I known Star Wars Episode 1 Racer had a version released for PS2 I would have been all over that.

Yeah, I'm not one for racing sims either and tend to prefer strictly arcade affairs, but NFS Underground 2 completely changed my mind. I spent literal hours fine tuning my ride in the garage and test track (usually going with a metallic green or purple Mitsubishi Eclipse)

 

[HippyJ3]

The only ones I've played on the PS2
Initial D Special Stage has great soundtrack and responsive drift controls too bad it's only in japanese

Ridge Racer V if you're into arcade style racing, if you fell in love with Ridge Racer Type 4 on the PS1, you'll also gonna love this, I think Type 4 is much better though

R Racing Evolution also has some great soundtrack and has an engaging story mode following Rena Hayami's professional racing driving career while climbing up the ranks until she reaches a developing rivalry with the veteran racer Gina Cavalli which is rare for a racing game, just can't stop playing this one till I finished the story mode

 

[ShadowsofCreationAga]

My favorites:

- These days Auto Modellista getting so popular and became a PS2 racing game that was "hidden gem" and "underrated legend" for it's a CAPCOM game developed with anime graphics, has race track like Gran Turismo but you have more freedom to customize your car like classic bumper and whatnot change, install spoiler, decide on some skins but then you can even customize your garage by deciding what to put into it and what to hang onto your car. Unlike what today's people would think the game was popular for its time though, but perhaps some regions missed experiencing its greatness during such a time when other games were also popular.

- Tokyo Xtreme Racer series. In its own way it's Japanese-style Need for Speed game but more leaning into Japanese way of street racing as in you hunt rivals on the road to race to them. If you watched the Wangan Midnight you pretty much can figure out how this series works with gameplay format and innovation in its own context. However it also has drifting series like the one called Kaito Racer 1 that you go to a meetin place to bet on your rival and agree on what kind of race you guys wanna do which pretty much works like the anime Initial D but not so simple as that. In this game you read about racing scene via forum format and as you build your legend people talk about you and even make a GF too lol!!! But my favorite feature is as you progress in the game you unlock sounds that you can use to produce your own music that you can listen to while you drift lol.

- Test Drive Eve of Destruction. My favorite derby simulator game. Lots of fun game modes and even a detailed livery creation option to spray paint stuff on your car in whatever way you want!!!

- Rumble Racing. Kinda 2nd game of the Nascar Rumble on PS1. The whole this series is about as you race you collect powerups that's are fun, and thus you attack to other cars.

- Juiced series. It's more like another version of Need for Speed series that leans more into simulation of a street racing genre.

Came here to say Rumble Racing. Love that game so much.

A similar game that is also pretty good is Hot Wheels: Velocity X.

 

[diapered]

Not a big racing fan, but I remember playing this one a lot for some reason, maybe it is underappreciated?

Honestly, I don't remember much. I had to look up the soundtrack to know which atv fury game I had Also Burnout revenge, but that was already mentioned.

 

[Maximecool]

Ben hur

 

[Dany28]

 

[qw90700]

Damn, I forgot about Tokyo Xtreme Racing too. There's three of them on PS2, right? 3, Zero, Drift?

Yeah, we are so lucky to have like half of the games in this series on PS2!!! Even if PS2's library was shit this series alone would make me buy PS2. I bought PS1 for less, but I would just buy a PS1 for Racing Lagoon (my beloved street racing RPG) and Zero4 Champ DooZy-J (this series started my initial love for street racing genre). For those who loves street racings SNES, PS1 and especially PS2 made us blessed by gods of street racing amen!!!! lolol

 

[Frickinfrik]

Best:
Burnout 3
Jak X Combat Racing
Crash Nitro Kart
Gran Turismo 4
Midnight Club


Worst:
Ford Racing 2
Sonic Riders (way too difficult and not beginner friendly)
Action Girlz Racing (PS2 Version is Europe exclusive)
Myth Makers Super Kart GP (Also PS2 Version is Europe exclusive)
MX vs ATV Untamed

 

[nathman]

The Gran Turismo games are pretty good so long as you're okay with a fairly sterile presentation and some healthy rubberbanding by the CPU drivers.

Test Drive Unlimited is really fun and maybe has more of a focus on the driving around part than the actual racing, but I love it. The PS2 version doesn't have the motorcycles found in the PC/360 version, but it does have online play, no idea if anyone has that running nowadays, though.

I remember my dad playing a good amount of Rumble Racing because it has a 1958 Chevy as one of the selectable cars, and that seemed like a fun/wacky kind of racer.

Only Gran Turismo 3 has rubberbanding. They got rid of that for Gran Turismo 4.