Sim racing aims to replicate real-world driving conditions, including vehicle physics, tire grip, aerodynamics, and even weather effects. This level of detail allows players to experience what it’s like to drive high-performance vehicles on famous tracks around the world. Sim racing is not just about speed; it’s about strategy, vehicle setup, and mastering driving techniques.
Sim racing has grown into a competitive eSports platform, with professional drivers and teams participating in online leagues and tournaments. It also serves as a training tool for real-world racing drivers, thanks to its realistic physics and mechanics.
Several sim racing games offer varying degrees of realism and features. Below are some of the most popular titles in the sim racing community. Our focus at this stage is to list sim racing games on the PC that offer the best experiences.
Assetto Corsa (Recommended)
Assetto Corsa is renowned for its realistic physics and extensive modding community. It offers a wide range of cars and tracks, both official and user-created. It also has a counterpart, Assetto Corsa Competizione focusing on modern GT racing, and a newer game that is currently in Early Access called Assetto Corsa EVO. At the moment, a modified Assetto Corsa game is unbeatable.
Start off with the original game from Steam on the PC, and then download tools such as Content Manager (for a better user interface), Custom Shaders Patch (for more graphical and lighting capabilities), and Pure (for better weather).
Assetto Corsa Modding Recommendations
Assetto Corsa has one of the most diverse modding communities in sim racing. This also produces variable quality in the production of content, with significantly better content coming at a cost considering how much effort and finances go into making the cars. Our recommendation for vehicles is our sister company Race Sim Studio who are the pioneers and the leading development group of the Assetto Corsa scene, producing visually stunning cars at affordable prices!
Features:
iRacing
iRacing is a subscription-based racing simulator focused on online competition. It features officially licensed cars and tracks, with a strong emphasis on realism and competitive racing.
Features:
rFactor 2
rFactor 2 offers advanced physics and tire modeling, making it a favorite among hardcore sim racers. It supports modding and offers dynamic track conditions.
Features:
Automobilista 2 (AMS2)
Automobilista 2 focuses on South American racing series but includes a variety of international content. Built on the Project CARS 2 engine, it offers impressive graphics and physics.
Features:
One of the fascinating things about sim racing hardware is the incredible range of cost and quality available. It can be as cost-effective as an average TV set, or as expensive as a new vehicle. You should never feel pressured to spend more than you are comfortable with in the pursuit of lap time as cost does not always equate to track performance.
We will keep it simple and justify our recommendations less in this section, providing you with our ideal options for price points under the assumption that the higher the price point, the higher the quality, material, performance and workmanship of products in our recommendations. We will also not delve into the accessories options such as extra digital displays, handbrakes, H-pattern and sequential shifters, mounts, button boxes and more.
– Up to £250
Logitech G29 / G920
– Up to £350
Fanatec CSL DD Bundle 5nm
Moza R3 Bundle
Thrustmaster T300 RS GT Edition
– Up to £500
Fanatec CSL DD Bundle 8nm
Moza R5 Bundle
Thrustmaster TS-PC Racer Ferrari 488 Challenge Edition
– Up to £850
At this stage, to accommodate the extra power, we would recommend looking into a wheel stand or rig from the likes of GT Omega, Trak Racer, Next Level Racing or SimLabs. We use Next Level Racing, but we have no particular wheel stand recommendations as anything from those brands are safe.
Fanatec CSL DD QR2 Ready2Race McLaren Elite Bundle
Moza R9 and KS Steering Wheel bundle (requires pedals)
Thrustmaster T818 Ferrari SF1000 Simulator (requires pedals)
– Up to £1200
More customisable options, relying less on bundle deals, and less requirement to stick to parts of a single brand particularly for PC use.
Fanatec
Clubsport Racing Wheel (F1 or DD Extreme), CSL Elite Pedals V2
Moza
R9 and GS V2P GT Wheel Bundle (or the more powerful R12 version for £100 more), CRP2 Load Cell Pedals
Simagic
Alpha Mini Wheelbase, GT Neo Steering Wheel, P1000 Pedals
Asetek
La Prima Wheelbase, Steering Wheel, Pedals
– Enthusiast Budget
At this stage of commitment, it is likely you are aware of the big players such as Gomez Sim Industries, Ascher Racing, VPG, Simucube, GRID Engineering, SimLabs, Leoxz, Cube Controls, Rexing, and many more independent brands that offer exception steering wheels that can cost as high as £2500.
Thanks to our friends at RSS, you can get 5% off at Gomez Sim Industries by using the code RSS5 at checkout.
Wheelbases alone can exceed the £1000 mark with heavier and more powerful offerings from all the major brands.
Pedals from the likes of Heusinkveld, Fanatec, Cube Controls, Simagic, Simucube and more begin to increase in price from £500 to even exceeding £2000 for active pedals.
Undoubtedly, the most crucial aspect to the sim racing experience is the machine it is being played on. The primary platforms are PC and Console in the gaming space. While console gaming can be seen as more casual and limited in options than PC gaming, it is still a viable solution particularly if you already have a game console, enjoy more titles than sim racing, or prefer the all-in-one solution.
Our recommendation for sim racing on PC are the wealth of upgradable options available, higher framerates, higher compatibility of tools and racing components, further simulator titles, modding capability, and more.
Generally speaking, a PC setup at the mid-level will cost under £1500 for a complete setup. We will target something in this price range that can last for a few years, and you can fine-tune your own preferences accordingly. For a specific minimum hardware specification to operate a software, please consult the documentation provided by the software producer.
PC
CPU: AMD Ryzen 7 7800X3D
Motherboard: ASUS TUF GAMING B650-PLUS WIFI
RAM: Corsair DDR5 2x16GB 6000
GPU: NVIDIA RTX 4060 or RTX 4060 Ti
Storage: Samsung 980 Pro 1TB NVMe SSD
PSU: Corsair RM850x
Case: Fractal Meshify 2
Our justification for this PC design is to ensure it is a good performing PC at 2K display resolutions aiming for 60-100 FPS in most sim racing titles with ease during multiplayer, but can also be a little more future-proof over the next few years. The addition of the 7800X3D CPU and combination with an RTX 4060 Ti graphics card will provide a solid all-round gaming experience while still being useful in productivity and content creation.
Additional case fans, keyboard, mouse, monitor, connection cables and speakers are entirely up to your choosing. We believe the best audio experience comes from a pair of Beyerdynamic headphones as their industry leading sound is a step above all gaming headphones. For the display, we would recommend at least an IPS 27″ 1440p monitor that goes above 60hz refresh rates, but nothing over 144hz (as it is overkill), to make the most out of the visual experience of modern gaming. Prices start from £150.
Other display options include a Virtual Reality headset with the Meta Quest 3 being the most suitable option overall.
Here are a list of some of the most reputable retailers operating in or shipping to the UK who stock a variety of items for sim racing and PC hardware. These retailers are not endored by RaceSphere.
Abruzzi – Sim racing hardware retailer
RaceAnywhere – Sim racing hardware retailer
DemonTweeks – Sim racing hardware retailer
Pure-Sims – Sim racing hardware retailer
Race Sim – Sim racing hardware retailer
Trak Racer – Sim racing hardware retailer and rig manufacturer
Next Level Racing – Sim racing rig manufacturer
Sim Demon – Sim racing hardware retailer
Murray Motorsport – Sim racing hardware retailer
Overclockers – Technology retailer stocking sim racing hardware
Scan Computers – Technology retailer stocking sim racing hardware
Digital Motorsports – Sim racing hardware retailer
Argos – Mainstream retailer stocking sim racing hardware
Amazon – Mainstream retailer stocking sim racing hardware
Currys – Mainstream retailer stocking sim racing hardware
