! Warning, This article is based solely on personal opinion, not any kind of quality ranking !

Ah memories, in particular gaming memories, we’ve all got them, so how about sharing them? Take a look below at some of my personal top list of driving games and don’t forget to comment on your favourites and why!

TOCA World touring cars:

A game that will always hold a place in my heart as the first one that I truly ‘got in to’. Nights given up to work through the seemingly long career mode (though I was young, and therefore suckish, so chances are it wasn’t so long), although I still remember the first time I realised my dad hadn’t even plugged in my controller….hmph. Anyways, the TOCA series was always a winner, this particular game receiving 10/10 in the official Playstation magazine, look at games like FORZA and GRID (obviously) and their origins clearly trace back to the series. 14 cars on one track (which sure seemed like a lot at the time), a great progressive career mode (something still rarely perfected) and a more ‘arcadey’ feel (a la GRID, DiRT) being highlights of the game. Top Stuff, I’m sure I’m not the only one out there with a love for TOCA games.

 

Gran Turismo 3: A Spec

Certainly not the best of the series, but easily my favourite, highlights for me including swinging round Trial Mountain in my favourite Subaru Impreza  or swerving through the chicane at Laguna Seca, although come to think of it, that was more of an issue than a highlight. Gran Turismo is, and always will be, one of the greatest series of games, let alone driving games, of all time, so I’m sure just about everyone has some kind of memory of this series. If you’ve yet to play any of the series, grab a copy of GT5 for PS3, but be warned, the Gran Turismo mode needs some major dedication, I still have nightmares of fucking up on lap 98 of an endurance race round Super Speedway. Curse the gods!….of, erm, driving.

 

Need for Speed: Underground

Still, to me, the best in the series, contrary to just about everyone else’s opinion, again though this is not due to the quality of the game, but rather the time and dedication I put in to playing the solid title. I’ll be honest the main thing I remember from playing Underground is constantly signing along to Get Low by Lil Jon, actually I just YouTubed  it, major nostalgia. But aside from the memorable soundtrack (something of an appeal to me by the way) the customisation introduced in Underground was unlike any that had come before it, it was truly the first game to make me feel as though I owned my very own racing machine, and sadly, probably the last. On top of that the simple set up and progression perfectly fitted by noobish qualities, obviously something that was frowned upon by others, but no matter where they take the series, Underground will always be home base to me.

Motorstorm

Ah Motorstorm, my very first PS3 game, so that alone gives it a place of pride among my collection. But as well as that easily one of my favourite driving games, I think it’s hard to find a game that nails the outrageous fun that racing can be, yes it had 8 tracks, but damn did I not study, learn and love those tracks like a real racing pro (at least in my own eyes). Motorstorm is, and always will be, unashamedly bombast and crazy, with little regard for ‘clever’ gaming, and that’s why I loved it, well that and the incredible graphics that came with it (this was 2006 people!). Short, simple, but oh so sweet.

Colin McRae: Dirt 2

By far the most recent game on my list, Dirt 2 (with a helping hand from GRiD) brought me back to the world of racing that I had all but left after Motorstorm had seen its days, and what a welcome it gave me. These are fresher memories, actually laughing at my own apparent awesomeness as I slide gracefully round a hairpin, beating a bunch of racing pro’s in the world tour finale, and of course, exposing my feminine side during the still awesome homage video to Colin McRae (Check it out here). Dirt 2 also contains and implements what is, to me, the best soundtrack in gaming history, Elbow’s ground for divorce or Rise against’s Injection blasting during the loading scenes or Madina Lake’s Never take me alive playing in the background whilst in the trailer, pure audio godliness. And just as a side note, currently really enjoying Dirt 3, good stuff Codies.

Honourable mention: Rock ‘n’ Roll racing

I remember little about this game to be frank, mainly just playing the same tracks over and over and over because I didn’t know how to save a game, then rocking out in my PJ’s to Paranoid by Black Sabbath, HARDCORE! But still, this was one of the first games I understood, and got good at, ‘cos, well, playing the same track 500 times has that effect.

So is Forza more your thing, maybe Burnout? Or even good ‘ol Mario and his multiple Karts, well whatever your favourite be sure to post it in the comments below! (Just fake an e-mail )

And check back for more articles like this at GamertechTV…                                   R.G.D

Top 5 Driving Games, 4.0 out of 10 based on 20 ratings

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 Ryan is a contributing gaming journalist, with a love of console gaming Read more from this author

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