I've recently built my first Gaming PC, hence don't have a ton of money to spend in games. So, for the moment I can buy just one. I'm between AC, ACC and iRacing. I'm also interested in the Forza Horizon games, but I'm trying to lean more towards racing sims. Also, a little bit more context about me and my rig. My rig: CPU: Ryzen 5 4500 (I know I messed up with the CPU since I could 've just gone with the 5600x which is not much more expensive and performs better). GPU: RX 5600XT (I think this is a decent one for gaming when pushed close to 100%). RAM: 1x16gb 3200hz (Open to upgrade to 16gb in near future). Wheel and pedals: G25
Before building my PC I used to play Gran Turismo 6 in my PS3, so I love the variety of cars in GT games but I found out I like the "pro races" better, like GT3, LMP1, Formula 1, etc.
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Best sim racing game?
There is no "best" game. Every game has strengths and weaknesses. It's up to you to find the game that suits best your needs.
Anyway here's my personal impressions on the ones I tried:
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iRacing: best online system by a long shot. It's the go-to if you are interested in racing competitively online. Looks are meh, not bad not great. Will make you poor due to the business model.
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Assetto Corsa Competizione: limited in scope (GT3 and GT4 only), but considered one of the best overall sims around. It is a steaming hot pile of garbage in VR unfortunately, so that kills it for me.
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Assetto Corsa: the base game looks and feels a little outdated, but it has a thriving community of modders that keeps updating it and adding new content. It requires a bit of patience to set up the mods, but once you do it's a gift that keeps on giving. Runs well in VR unlike ACC (different engine). Can be had on sale for very cheap. One of my favourites!
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rFactor 2: supposedly has the best physics of them all. Truth to be told, it's an ancient game with a terrible UI and you'll probably end up uninstalling and refunding within 20 minutes unless you are really hardcore about "muh physics".
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Project Cars 2: this game takes a lot of flak from the reddit hivemind but I think it is a very decent game overall. You can get it on sale very cheap and it has an amazing amount of content, some of which is very good, some not so much. Interface and graphics are very very good, also in VR. It is true that it is a little on the arcade side and at some point it will leave you wanting for more, but honestly I think it deserves a spot in a simracer collection.
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Automobilista 2: my go-to sim at the moment. It uses PC2 engine but tuned more on the simulation side, so it inherits PC2 strong suits (looks, interface, etc.) without the drawbacks. The content is not up to PC2 levels yet but it is already very good and constantly improving (the game is still in very active development!). It is by a very, very long shot the best looking sim for VR. Online is pretty much dead, so if that's your thing, you are not gonna like it.