Best Xbox Racing Games

GRID Legends (Xbox Series X|S)

2019's GRID reboot brings Codemasters series back onto the track, and then GRID Legends takes the concept to the next level. Legends opts for a mixture of arcade thrills and simulation seriousness that delivers some fantastically flashy and properly engaging racing action. There's just something endlessly exciting about taking part in events here as tracks are always jam-packed full of cars, making for lots of really tight, ferociously fought battles where you can even get yourself a nemesis to duel with should you happen to rub another driver up the wrong way. GRID Legends delivers high octane, high-contact, aggressive racing action that's a blast to engage with.

• Xbox Game Pass? Yes

Disney Speedstorm (Xbox Series X|S)

Some of us here at the PX office have been enamoured by a certain Xbox kart racer that left early access in late 2023, so yeah, we feel like Disney Speedstorm deserves a spot on this list! Encompassing a huge swathe of Disney cartoons and characters, Speedstorm is a super-compelling racing package - especially in its now-free-to-play form.

It helps that the game's on-track gameplay matches up to the calibre of IP on show as well. Disney Speedstorm is just fun as heck to play across its various single and multiplayer game modes, and we're absolutely in on this one for the long haul. If you're after a new kart racing obsession on Xbox, look no further than Disney Speedstorm.

• Xbox Game Pass: No (Base game is free-to-play)

Forza Motorsport (Xbox Series X|S)

There's something for everyone with the Forza series! While Forza Horizon is based on exploring big open world maps and racing in slightly more arcade-like conditions, Forza Motorsport is all about replicating the hardcore simulation aspects of the sport. Just like previous entries in the series, that's exactly what the reboot sets out to achieve.

Instead of going to Forza Motorsport 8, the team over at Turn 10 decided to give the franchise a refresh with its Xbox Series X and Xbox Series S debut, suggesting we could be looking at many years' worth of content for the new Forza Motorsport in the future. If you're intrigued by this one, it's definitely something to add to your download list.

• Xbox Game Pass? Yes

Need for Speed: Hot Pursuit Remastered (Xbox One)

Need for Speed: Hot Pursuit Remastered is a delightful arcade racer that serves up ferociously fast driving action and spectacular crunchy car crashes. Playing as both illegal street racer and police pursuer, here you can switch at your leisure between hunting down lawless speed freaks and high-speed escapes from supercharged cop cars. With an excellent, and ever-expanding, array of tricks and traps to use as you blow other vehicles off the roads, and delicately remastered graphics that still look ace in 2024, this is blisteringly fast arcade action that just never grows old.

• Xbox Game Pass? Yes

GRIP: Combat Racing (Xbox One)

Remember PS1 cult classic Rollcage? This is the spiritual successor to that game. The idea behind GRIP is that your vehicle can't be tipped over — it works both ways — allowing you to drive on the walls, ceilings, and find your ideal path to the finish line. The game also packs an immense sense of speed, making it overwhelming at first, but stick with it, and you'll get a real kick out of its masterfully designed courses and pumping soundtrack.

• Xbox Game Pass? No

DiRT Rally 2.0 (Xbox One)

The sequel to 2015's critically acclaimed racer quickly established itself as the premiere rally game on Xbox One, improving on the original with a brand-new weather modelling system, upgraded My Team mode, enhanced vehicle handling and over 50 fully-licenced historic and modern-day cars. DiRT Rally 2.0 prides itself on its simulation-heavy gameplay, making this a racer you'll need to spend many hours with in order to truly master its mechanics.

• Xbox Game Pass? Yes

Forza Horizon 4 (Xbox One)

In our opinion, this is possibly the best racing game available on Xbox - Forza Horizon 4. As we previously mentioned, it just pips Forza Horizon 5 for us as the best in the Horizon series, a series that's delivered impeccable open world racing to Xbox players for more than a decade now.

The novel setting of Great Britain, with its varied seasonal weather patterns in tow, makes for a great open world driving setting and one that still entertains us after hundreds of hours of play. Miles and miles of open roads, great racing, wacky side events, hundreds of incredibly high-detailed cars, fantastic driving physics, the list goes on. You just can't go wrong with this one and we absolutely recommend a download - that free Xbox Series X|S upgrade is a lovely touch too!

• Xbox Game Pass: Yes

Hot Wheels Unleashed 2: Turbocharged (Xbox Series X|S)

You can't really go wrong with either of the Hot Wheels Unleashed games on Xbox (the first one is still part of Xbox Game Pass at the time of writing as well), but it's the sequel that has the slightly better reviews, so that's probably the best one to recommend in this case! These are some fantastic arcade racers featuring well-designed environments, great racing mechanics, plenty of scope for creativity in the form of customisation and track-building elements, and generally just a whole lot of fun. Try the first one, and then pick up the sequel if you really like it!

• Xbox Game Pass: Yes