Futuristic Racing Games: The Complete List

An Attempt At A Complete List Of Games In The Genre, Chronologically by Platform

A thread where the greatness of the futuristic racing game genre, one of my favorites, is celebrated with a list of every game ever made in the genre.

Note – moved sections are at the bottom. Fix links/include them inline for other forums.

Contents
———
Introduction
Key
—-
The List
—-
Dedicated Systems
Consoles
Computers
Other Platforms
Upcoming
—-
Addendums
—-
Changelog
“Extreme” but modern-day racing games
Alternate History Modern Day racing games
Titles not on list that deserve consideration

Key

Categories: (Games are listed in order by category but in no order within each category)
* for true exclusives, not available on any other home platforms (eg. this can include arcade ports).
(*) for once exclusives now available on download services — PSN, XBLA, or VC.
+ for semi-exclusives — titles only available on this console/handheld and computer(s) but not other consoles, or this computer OS and console(s) but not other computers.

I bolded the games I have. I’ve played more of these games than just those though, of course, but those are the ones I have in the genre.

—————-
The List
—————-

————-
Dedicated Systems
These are hardwares that only play the built-in games and do not have any way of playing other titles.

Play TV Legends Outrun 2019
(likely more, but I do not know of them)


Consoles

Magnavox Odyssey

None

Fairchild Channel F

None

Atari 2600

None unless you count:
Fatal Run (mostly shooting, not racing)

RCA Studio II

None

Bally Astrocade

None

Magnavox Odyssey II

None

Mattel Intellivision

None

Emerson Arcadia 2001

None

Entex Adventurevision

None

Atari 5200

None

Coleco Colecovision

None

Vectrex

None

Sega SG-1000 (Japan/Europe only)

*Space Slalom

Nintendo Entertainment System (NES)

(*)Mach Rider (more shooting than racing)
*Galaxy 5000: Racing in the 51st Century
*Astro Fang: Super Machine (Japan only)
RoadBlasters (more shooting than racing)
Death Race (checkpoint combat racing)

Famicom Disk System (NES add-on) (Japan only)

None?

Epoch Super Cassette Vision (Japan only)

*Star Speeder

Sega Master System (SMS)

None unless you count:
+Fire & Forget II (driving shooter with small racing part) (Europe only)

Atari 7800

None unless you count:
Fatal Run (combat-heavy)

NEC TurboGrafx-16 (Japan/US only)

(*)Moto Roader
*Moto Roader II (Japan only)

NEC Turbo CD (add-on, or stand-alone as the TurboDuo) (Japan/US only)

*Moto Roader MC (Japan only)

Nintendo Game Boy (Handheld)

*Out of Gas (the goal is to shoot through all the G icons as fast as possible. Not sure if this counts or not, as you don’t have to drive through them, just shoot them.)
*Shinseiki GPX Cyber Formula (Japan only)

Sega Genesis

*Outrun 2019

*Metal Fangs (Japan only)
Rock ‘n Roll Racing
RoadBlasters

Atari Lynx (Handheld)

RoadBlasters (mostly shooting, not racing)
S.T.U.N. Runner

NEC SuperGrafx (Japan only)

None

SNK Neo Geo

None

Super Nintendo (SNES)

(*)F-Zero
*Top Gear 3000

*Uchuu Race: Astro Go! Go! (Japan only)
*Battle Cars (US only) (Namco, 1993)
*Cyber Spin
*Power Rangers Zeo Battle Racers (semi-futuristic)
*Speed Racer in My Most Dangerous Adventures (half racing, half platformer)
Rock ‘n Roll Racing

Panasonic CD-i

*Accelerator (Europe only)

Sega Game Gear (Handheld)

None

Fujitsu FM Towns Marty (Japan only)

None?

Sega CD (add-on, or stand-alone Sega CDX or JVC X-Eye)

MegaRace (only sort of a racing game, more an FMV shooter)

3DO

*Crash ‘N Burn
*Chiki Chiki Machine Mou Race 2: In Space (Japan only release, like the first 3DO Wacky Races game, but with actual racing this time) (like Looney Tunes Space Race, it’s retro-futuristic.) (the first game is land-based, not space-themed, and isn’t actually a racing game — it’s just FMV adventure digital film stuff.)
MegaRace (only sort of a racing game, more an FMV shooter)
Off-World Interceptor (mostly shooting, not racing)

Atari Jaguar (US/Europe only)

Club Drive (you couldn’t tell it’s set in the future without the manual, but it is.)

Amiga CD32 (Europe/Canada only)

+RoadKill
+Black Viper

Pioneer LaserActive

*Rocket Coaster (Sega Pac required)

Sega 32X

None

SNK Neo-Geo CD

None

NEC PC-FX (Japan only)

None

Sega Saturn

*Cyber Speedway

+Scorcher
Off-World Interceptor Extreme (mostly shooting, not racing)
Wipeout
Wipeout XL (Europe/Japan only)
Hi Octane
Impact Racing (combat racing against the clock)

Sony Playstation

*Wipeout 3

*Wipeout 3: Special Edition (Europe only)
*Starwinder: The Great Space Race
*JetMoto 2
*JetMoto 3
*Cosmic Race (Japan only)
*Streak Hoverboard Racing
*Firebugs (only partially futuristic themed)
*Red Asphalt (Rock ‘N Roll Racing II: Red Asphalt in Europe)
*Running High (Japan only)
*NGEN Racing (US/Europe only)
*MaxRacer (Japan only)
*Speed Racer (1998)
*360: Three Sixty (Europe only)
*Bugriders: The Race of Kings (US/EU only) (scifi/fantasy)
*Cubix Robots for Everyone: Race ‘N Robots
*Speed King (JP) / Road Rage (EU) (JP/EU only)
*Defeat Lightning (JP) / Future Racer (EU) (JP/EU only)
+JetMoto
+Crime Killer
+Rollcage

+Motorhead
+Rollcage Stage II
+CyberSpeed

+Locus (Japan only)
+Midway’s Greatest Arcade Hits: The Atari Collection 2 (RoadBlasters)
Killer Loop (on Dreamcast as Magforce Racing)
Wipeout
Off-World Interceptor Extreme
(mostly shooting, not racing)
Wipeout XL

Hi Octane
Hydro Thunder
Hot Wheels Turbo Racing
S.C.A.R.S.
Impact Racing (combat racing against the clock)

Satellaview (SNES add-on) (Japan only)

*BS F-Zero Ace Cup
(BS F-Zero Jack, Queen, and King Cup titles are Satellaview re-releases of the three cups of base F-Zero, but Ace Cup is new)
BS Chrono Trigger Jet Bike Special (downloadable ver. of Chrono Trigger jetbike minigame)

Nintendo Virtual Boy

None (one, *Zero Racers, was cancelled near completion)

Casio Loopy (Japan only)

None

Atari Jaguar CD (add-on)

None

Bandai/Apple Pippin

None

Nintendo 64

*F-Zero X
*Wipeout 64
*Extreme-G

*Stunt Racer 64
*Aero Gauge
*Carmageddon 64
+XG2: Extreme-G 2
San Francisco Rush 2049
Star Wars Episode I Racer
S.C.A.R.S.
Hydro Thunder
Hot Wheels Turbo Racing

Tiger Electronics Game.com

None

SNK Neo Geo Pocket (Handheld) (Japan only)

None

Nintendo Game Boy Color (Handheld)

*San Francisco Rush 2049
*Star Wars Episode I Racer

*NYR: New York Race (Europe only)
*Thunderbirds Are Go! (Europe/Australia only) (minigame collection, one is racing)
*Cubix Robots for Everyone: Race ‘N Robots
*Armada F/X Racers

Sega Dreamcast

*Zusar Vasar (Japan only)
*Pod 2: Speed Zone Multiplayer Online
*Surf Rocket Racers (jetski game with a few futuristic elements)
+TrickStyle

Magforce Racing (on PSX as Killer Loop)
San Francisco Rush 2049
Hydro Thunder
Looney Tunes Space Race
(classic Looney Tunes retro-future)
Star Wars Episode I Racer

Bandai WonderSwan (Handheld) (Japan only)

None

SNK Neo Geo Pocket Color (Handheld)

None

Nintendo 64 Disk Drive (64DD) (addon) (Japan only)

*F-Zero X Expansion Kit (addon, requires original game to run) (Japan only)

VM Labs Nuon

None

Sony PlayStation II

*Wipeout Fusion
*Iridium Runners
*HSX – HyperSonic.Xtreme
*Kinetica
*Hresvelgr (Japan only)
*Hresvelgr International (JP), aka Jet Ion Grand Prix (EU)
*Jak X Combat Racing

*EyeToy: AntiGrav (req. EyeToy camera)
*Action Man ATOM: Alpha Teens on Machines (EU/Australia only)
*Star Wars Racer Revenge
*Star Wars: Super Bombad Racing
(kart racer)
*IGPX: Immortal Grand Prix
*Shinseiki GPX Cyber Formula: Road to the Infinity (Japan only)
*Shinseiki GPX Cyber Formula: Road to the Infinity 2 (Japan only)
*Shinseiki GPX Cyber Formula: Road to the Infinity 3 (Japan only)
*Shinseiki GPX Cyber Formula: Road to the Infinity 4 (Japan only)
+MR3: MegaRace 3 (Europe only)
+Lego Racers 2 (partially futuristic)
+NYR: New York Race (Europe only)
Hot Wheels Stunt Track Challenge
Hot Wheels World Race
Hot Wheels Velocity X
Speed Racer (2008)
Looney Tunes Space Race (classic Looney Tunes retro-future)
Midway Arcade Treasures (RoadBlasters)
Midway Arcade Treasures 3 (Badlands, San Francisco Rush 2049, Hydro Thunder, S.T.U.N. Runner)
XGIII: Extreme-G Racing
XGRA: Extreme-G Racing Association (XG4) (US/Europe only)
Drome Racers
Powerdrome (2004)
Butt-Ugly Martians: Zoom or Doom!

Arctic Thunder
Sonic Riders
Sonic Riders: Zero Gravity
Wipeout Pulse (EU exclusive on PS2, late port)

Bandai WonderSwan Color/Crystal (Handheld) (Japan only)

None

Nintendo Game Boy Advance (Handheld)

*F-Zero: Maximum Velocity
*F-Zero GP Legend

*F-Zero Climax (Japan only)
*Hot Wheels World Race
*Hot Wheels Stunt Track Challenge
*Trick Star
*Lego Drome Racers
*Hot Wheels World Race
*Hot Wheels Velocity X
Rock ‘n Roll Racing
Smashing Drive

Nintendo Gamecube

*F-Zero GX
(also in arcades)
*Tube Slider
*Shinseiki GPX Cyber Formula: Road to the Evolution (Japan only)
XGIII: Extreme-G Racing
XGRA: Extreme-G Racing Association
(XG4) (US/Europe only)
Midway Arcade Treasures (RoadBlasters)
Midway Arcade Treasures 3 (Badlands, San Francisco Rush 2049, Hydro Thunder, S.T.U.N. Runner)
Butt-Ugly Martians: Zoom or Doom!
Hot Wheels World Race
Hot Wheels Velocity X
Drome Racers
Smashing Drive

Sonic Riders
Speed Challenge: Jacques Villeneuve’s Racing Vision (Europe only)

Microsoft Xbox

*Pulse Racer
*Quantum Redshift

Midway Arcade Treasures (RoadBlasters)
Midway Arcade Treasures 3 (Badlands, San Francisco Rush 2049, Hydro Thunder, S.T.U.N. Runner)
XGRA: Extreme-G Racing Association (XG4) (US/Europe only)
Hot Wheels Stunt Track Challenge
Hot Wheels World Race
Hot Wheels Velocity X
Powerdrome (2004)
Smashing Drive
Arctic Thunder
Sonic Riders

Nokia N-Gage (Handheld)

*System Rush

Tiger Telematics Gizmondo

*Trailblazer (2005)

Nintendo DS (Handheld)

*Speed Racer
*Galaxy Racers (Educational)
*Crazy Chicken: Star Karts
Ben 10 Galactic Racing

Sony PlayStation Portable (PSP) (Handheld)

*Wipeout Pure
*Shinseiki GPX Cyber Formula VS (Japan only)
*Spinout (Europe/Australia only) (a PS2 ver. was canned)
+StateShift (Europe/Australia only release)
Wipeout Pulse (PSP only in US/JP, but also on PS2 in EU)

PSP PlayStation Network (digital)

*Wipeout Pure
*Spinout (EU only)
*Trailblazer (2012)
+StateShift (US/EU only)
Wipeout Pulse

Microsoft Xbox 360

Fatal Inertia
Ben 10 Galactic Racing

Xbox 360 Live Arcade (digital) (XBLA)

*Novadrome (mostly arena combat, but there is one checkpoint racing mode)
*Street Trace: NYC
*Hydro Thunder Hurricane

Nintendo Wii

*Yu-Gi-Oh! 5D’s: Wheelie Breakers (Japan/US only)
*Excitebots: Trick Racing (arguably futuristic, the cars are at least)
*Speed Zone (US title) / Wheelspin (Europe title)
Speed Racer (2008)
Sonic Riders: Zero Gravity
Ben 10 Galactic Racing

Wii WiiWare (digital)

*FAST Racing League

Wii Virtual Console (digital) (VC)

F-Zero (SNES)
F-Zero X (N64)
Moto Roader (TG16)
Mach Rider (NES)

Sony PlayStation 3

*Wipeout HD Fury (disc release Europe/Asia only)
Ben 10 Galactic Racing

PS3 PlayStation Network (digital)(PSN)

*Wipeout HD
*Wipeout HD Fury (expansion pack for above title)
*Sodium 2 (in PS Home; free with pay DLC)
+Death Track Resurrection
Fatal Inertia EX

Nintendo DSi

None (the one or two physical DSi games are not racing games.)

Nintendo DSi DSiWare (digital)

AiRace Tunnel

Nintendo 3DS

Ben 10 Galactic Racing

3DS eShop (digital)

AiRace Speed
AiRace Xeno

PlayStation Vita

*Wipeout 2048

Vita PSN (digital)

*Wipeout 2048

Nintendo Wii U

None

Nintendo Wii U eShop (digital)

None

Nintendo Wii U Virtual Console (digital)

F-Zero


Computers

Because of how unbalanced it is towards the IBM PC, and because of the many upgrades to the system over the years, that platform is listed last in this category.

+ now means that this game is only available on this computer platform and consoles, and isn’t on other computer platforms.

Apple II

Autoduel (open-ended racing RPG)

Atari 400/800 (“Atari 8-bit”)

Elektraglide
Autoduel (open-ended racing RPG)
Trailblazer (1986)

Commodore VIC-20

None

Sinclair ZX Spectrum (Europe only platform)

*Robot Messiah (three game types, one racing)
*Micronaut One (one mode is a basic race mode, the main game not really racing)
*Battlecars (Games Workshop, 1984) (48k)
Overlander (RoadBlasters meets Elite)
RoadBlasters
S.T.U.N. Runner
LED Storm
Space Racer
Fire & Forget (driving shooter with minimal racing component)
Fire & Forget II (driving shooter with minimal racing component)
Purple Saturn Day
Trailblazer (1986)
Badlands

BBC Micro (Europe only platform)

None

Commodore 64

*AlleyKat
*Cosmic Causeway: Trailblazer II
Trailblazer (1986)
LED Storm
RoadBlasters
Elektraglide
S.T.U.N. Runner
Overlander (RoadBlasters meets Elite)
Space Racer
Autoduel (open-ended racing RPG)
Fire & Forget II (driving shooter with minimal racing component)
Badlands

Microsoft MSX

*Life in the Fast Lane (mostly shooting)
*Cosmos Circuit (Japan only) (requires a MSX Laserdisc drive) (arcade port)
Trailblazer (1986)

Sega SC-3000

None

Apple Macintosh

Carmageddon 2: Carpocalypse Now
Star Wars Episode I Racer
Wipeout XL
Autoduel (open-ended racing RPG)
Locus
Zone Raiders
C64 Classix (Overlander, Elektraglide)
Tasty Static (freeware Skyroads clone)
Laser Dolphin (platformer with racing side mode)
Mars Explorer

Mac Digital Downloads

Laser Dolphin
Tasty Static (freeware Skyroads clone)
Mars Explorer
Flashout 3D
Energy Hook
Race the Sun
Spectra 8bit Racing
Distance

Amstrad CPC (Europe only platform)

Psyborg
RoadBlasters
Elektraglide
Overlander (RoadBlasters meets Elite)
Space Racer
Purple Saturn Day (four game types, one racing)
Fire & Forget (driving shooter with minimal racing component)
Fire & Forget II (driving shooter with minimal racing component)
Trailblazer (1986)
Badlands

Atari ST

*Runaway
Overlander (RoadBlasters meets Elite)
Powerdrome (1989)
RoadBlasters
Autoduel (open-ended racing RPG)
LED Storm
Major Motion
Jupiter’s Masterdrive
Fire & Forget (driving shooter with minimal racing component)
Fire & Forget II (driving shooter with minimal racing component)
Space Racer
Purple Saturn Day (four game types, one racing)
Trailblazer (1986)
Badlands
Psyborg

Commodore Amiga

*Desert Racing of BarDos
+RoadKill
+Black Viper
Powerdrome (1989)
LED Storm
Major Motion
Overlander (RoadBlasters meets Elite)
Tunnels of Armageddon
S.T.U.N. Runner
Autoduel (open-ended racing RPG)
Purple Saturn Day (four game types, one racing)
Jupiter’s Masterdrive
Fire & Forget (driving shooter with minimal racing component)
Fire & Forget II (driving shooter with minimal racing component)
Space Racer
Wipeout 2097 (XL) (unofficial?)
Badlands
Psyborg

Apple IIGS

Tunnels of Armageddon

Sharp X68000

None

Acorn Archimedes

None

Fujitsu FM Towns (Japan only)

None?

Atari Falcon

*Moonspeeder (download only?)
*Moongames (download only?)

Linux PC

Ballistics

Linux PC Digital Downloads

H-Craft (digital download only, here)
Tasty Static (freeware Skyroads clone)
Energy Hook
Race the Sun
Spectra 8bit Racing
Distance

IBM PC and Compatibles – Disc/Disk Release (DOS/Windows Games) (unless noted, assume that the games had US and European releases.)

*Pod: Planet of Death
*MegaRace II

*Star Wars: Super Bombad Racing
*Kosmonaut (futuristic vehicular driving-platformer) (freeware)
*Skyroads (futuristic vehicular driving-platformer) (now free, once shareware)

*SkyRoads Xmas Special (futuristic vehicular driving-platformer) (freeware)
*Space Haste (Europe only?)
*Space Haste 2
*BeamBreakers
*CyberRace
*DethKarz
*Rocket Jockey
(mostly a combat game)
*Rocky Racers
*Hover
*Motorhead

*HoverAce
*Mad Trax
*Nitro Stunt Racing
*Hoverboard ASDF (Australia only)
*Powerslide
*Death Rally

*Deathtrack
*Tube
*Nelson Piquet’s Grand Prix Evolution
*Freeride Thrash
*Chromadome
*Drive
*Vangers (WEIRD! Open-world, but lots of racing.)
*Slipstream 5000
*Track Attack
*Thunder Offshore
*Thrust Twist and Turn
*Voltage (Russia) / Racers (US) (US: Online orders only, from EDGE Games (boxed product))
*A.I.M. Racing (disc ver. Russia only)
*Hard Truck: Apocalypse (disc ver. Russia only)
*Hard Truck: Apocalypse – Rise of the Clans (disc ver. Russia only)
*Clutch (disc ver. Russia only)
*GearGrinder (disc ver. Russia only)
*Death Track: Resurrection (disc ver. Russia only)
*Pyroblazer (Europe only on disc)
*Auto Assault (MMO futuristic car combat/racing game)
*Sky Track (disc ver. Russia only)
*Death Road (disc ver. EU only)
*Speed Racer in The Challenge of Racer X
+Jeff Gordon XS Racing
+Infestation
+Scorcher
+CyberSpeed
+JetMoto
+StateShift
+Midway’s Greatest Arcade Hits Vol. 2 (RoadBlasters)
+MegaRace
+MR3: MegaRace 3
+XG2: Extreme-G 2
(US only)
+Killer Loop
+TrickStyle
+Lego Racers 2
+Hi Octane
+Crime Killer
+S.C.A.R.S.
+Rollcage
+Rollcage Stage II (“Death Track Racing” in the US)

+Midway Arcade Treasures (RoadBlasters)
+Midway Arcade Treasures 3 (Badlands, San Francisco Rush 2049, Hydro Thunder, S.T.U.N. Runner)
+Carmageddon
+Carmageddon: Splat Pack (expansion)
+Carmageddon 3: TDR 2000
+NYR: New York Race (may have been Europe only)
+Hot Wheels World Race
+Hot Wheels Stunt Track Challenge
+Hot Wheels Velocity X
+Speed Challenge: Jacques Villeneuve’s Racing Vision (definitely released in Europe, maybe also the US)
+Wipeout
+Wipeout XL
+Drome Racers
Star Wars Episode I Racer

Carmageddon 2: Carpocalypse Now
Powerdrome (2004) (Europe only)
S.T.U.N. Runner
Tunnels of Armageddon
Space Racer
Autoduel (open-ended racing RPG)
Ballistics
Locus
Zone Raiders
Mars Explorer
C64 Classix (Overlander, Elektraglide)
Purple Saturn Day (four game types, one racing)
Fire & Forget (driving shooter with minimal racing)
Fire & Forget II (driving shooter with minimal racing)
H-Craft (disc ver. Russia only)
Tasty Static (freeware Skyroads clone)
Laser Dolphin (platformer with racing side mode)
Psyborg

PC (DOS/Windows) – Digital Download
Services: GG: GamersGate; S: Steam; A: Amazon; I: Impulse; GF: GameFly (ex-Direct2Drive); O: Origin; GOG: Good Old Games; H: Humble Store; Other: site linked

*A.I.M. Racing (S, GG, I, A)
*Hard Truck: Apocalypse (S, GG, I, GF, A)
*Hard Truck: Apocalypse – Rise of the Clans (S, GG, I, GF, A)
*Clutch (S)
*GearGrinder (GG)
*Pyroblazer (S, GG, GF)
*Super Laser Racer (site)
*Hoverboard ASDF (DEAD – Online Only Korean title shut down in 2005)
*Nelson Piquet’s Grand Prix Evolution (GG)
*Sky Track (GG)
*Slipstream 5000 (GG, GOG)
*Space Haste 2 (Strategy First store)
*Nitronic Rush (freeware)
*InMomentum (S, GF, A)
*Megarace II (GOG)
*Death Road (O, GG)
*Vangers (S, GOG)
+Megarace (GOG)
+Megarace 3 (GF, GOG)
+StateShift (GG)
+Death Track: Resurrection (S, GG, I, D, A)
H-Craft (site)
Space Track (demo only, full ver. iPhone only)
Flashout 3D
Flashout 2
Energy Hook
Race the Sun (H, S)
Riptide GP2 (S)
Spectra 8bit Racing
PAM: Post Apocalyptic Mayhem (S)
Distance (S)

Windows 8/10 Store
These downloads require Windows 8 or better, and have to go through MS certification.  More focused on tablets than PCs.

Riptide GP
Riptide GP2
Spectra 8bit Racing


Other Platforms


Cybiko Xtreme (Handheld)

*Galaxy Racers (rail shooter/racing)

Web Browser

*SWFRoads (unlicensed Skyroads flash remake)
Mars Explorer

Mobile

*Geopod (Symbian/Windows Mobile)
*Geopod XE (Symbian/Windows Mobile/Zodiac)
*Vektrax (iOS)
*Low Grav Racer (iOS)
*Ground Effect (iOS)
*Repulze (iOS/Android)
*Skyriders (iOS/Android)
*Zaxxon Escape (iOS/Android) – ship-based endless runner, not really racing game but sort of?
*Speed Racer: The Beginning (iOS)
*Unpossible (iOS)
Flashout 2 (iOS)
Flashout 3D (iOS/Android/Ouya)
Space Track (iOS) – Skyroads ripoff
Mars Explorer (iOS)
Riptide GP2 (iOS, Android)

Arcades (* means arcade exclusive)

*Star Wars Racer Arcade (by Sega)
*Vapor TRX
*Motor Raid
*Cyber Cycles
*Hard Drivin’s Airborne (unreleased)
*Astro Race
*Star Rider
*Mad Crasher
*Space Position
*Hyperdrive
*Time Road (one of three settings is in the future)
*Vic Viper (unreleased)
*Wasteland Racers 2071
*H2 Overdrive (Hydro Thunder spiritual sequel)
*San Francisco Rush 2049 (one track is arcade only and all tracks’ shortcuts and coin locations are different. Also, no wings, stunt mode, or battle mode.)
*San Francisco Rush 2049 TE (Rush 2049 arcade, but with new, exclusive content — several new tracks and cars. It also had online network play with other machines.) (completed, but canceled in testing and unreleased)
*San Francisco Rush 2049 SE (newer, released Rush 2049 Arcade upgrade with all Rush 2049 TE content except online play)
*Victory Lap
Hydro Thunder
Badlands
S.T.U.N. Runner
Motorhead (port of the PC/PSX game)
Arctic Thunder
F-Zero AX (simultaneously developed with F-Zero GX)
Killer Loop (port of the PSX/PC/DC game)
LED Storm
RoadBlasters
Ballistics (port of the PC/Linux game)
Cosmos Circuit
Vs. Mach Rider (same as the NES game)
F-Zero (time-limited SNES game)
Speed King
*Hyperdrive


Upcoming


Distance (PS4  DD) – Spiritual sequel to Nitronic Rush!
FAST Racing Neo (Wii U)
Race the Sun (iOS, Android, Wii U) – ports of this good PC game are coming

May Happen:

Flashout 2 (Mac, Android) – already released on PC and iOS, these others are upcoming.
Radial-G (PC DD) – Oculus Rift VR headset-focused pipe-racing game. A demo of the game has been released on the games’ website, but the full game isn’t done yet, so I’m putting it here.

Other than that I don’t know of any actual upcoming futuristic racing games that are going to be released. Console Pyroblazer and Voltage Racers are dead.

Addendums
The Changelog and Non-Futuristic Racing Games Worth Mentioning Here
—————–

Changelog
dates are when added to this list, not when list was posted online.  The early updates without dates are from early to mid 2009.
———-
-added Speed Challenge: Jacques Villeneuve’s Racing Vision
-added Slipstream 5000
-removed Trackmania series
-added Cyber Cycles
-added Cosmos Circuit
-added Astro Race
-added Star Rider
-added Mad Crasher
-added Space Position
-added LED Storm (Arcade version)
-added Killer Loop (Arcade version)
-added Time Road -added Autoduel
-corrected PC systems order
highlighted system names
-added Cosmic Race
-added Motorhead
-added Jet Ion Grand Prix
-added FM Towns computer (“None?”)
-clarified Moto Roader games as definitely futuristic (because all three are)
-added BS Chrono Trigger Jet Bike Special
-added Club Drive (yup, it’s set in the future…)
-added Speed Zone (upcoming Wii game)
-added Death Race (NES; there’s also an old arcade version, but it seems to be pure combat, no racing at all.)
-added Fire & Forget (the first one), added details for Out of Gas (though it’s still a borderline case)
-6/9/09 – Moved Speed Zone/Wheelspin for the Wii from Upcoming to the the main list, because it’s been released in the US.
-9/18/09 – edited Upcoming section, added Voltage to released games list (PC only)
-9/30/09 – added Wipeout Pulse (European PS2 version) and Wipeout HD Fury (PSN expansion pack for the PSN game Wipeout HD)
-12/13/09 – added Chiki Chiki Machine Mou Race 2: In Space (Wacky Races (2) would have been the Western title had it been released here), Carmageddon: Splat Pack (expansion for Carmageddon), Yu-Gi-Oh! 5D’s: Wheelie Breakers, and Wasteland Racers 2071. Racers (Voltage in Russia) added to released PC games section, as an additional title for Voltage — Tim Langdell seems to actually ship copies of the thing, for the handful of people who order it, so it counts I guess. Wipeout HD Fury added to PS3 discs releases section as well as download. Fixed Powerdrome release date. Added some notes. Wheelspin (European release of Arthur McLean’s Speedzone) moved from ‘Upcoming’ to ‘Released’. Mach Rider added to Wii Virtual Console list — it had been marked in the NES section as also being on VC, but hadn’t been added to the VC section. Whoops, fixed.
“Extreme” but modern-day racing games added. Changelog and the “Extreme” modern-day sections moved to other, linked posts to save space.
-12/16/09 – added GearGrinder, Clutch, Hard Truck: Apocalypse – Rise of the Clans, Death Track Resurrection, Super Laser Racer. “Europe only” note on A.I.M. Racing removed, it was released worldwide. PC Digital Download section added, digital download titles listed. Bump ‘n’ Burn removed — it’s not futuristic, but a fantasy/kart-style racer.
-12/18/09 – added H-Craft, Hoverboard ASDF (a South Korean only racing online game which was shut down in 2005 and cannot be played anymore)
-1/25/10 – added Direct2Drive to PC DD services list, and marked all games that support it. Added Battlecars for the Spectrum.
-3/28/10 – fixed Street Racer/Speed Racer confusion. Street Racer is the one I was thinking of for PSX and Saturn and it is a kart racer, not a futuristic racer. However there was a Speed Racer game for PSX, so that was not changed (it just refers to a different game now); there were not Saturn or Game Boy versions of Speed Racer, so those two were removed. Added Speed Racer in The Challenge of Racer X for PC (DOS) which I had previously missed. Added Speed Racer in My Most Dangerous Adventures for SNES as well (it’s half racing, half platformer).
-7/27/10 – added Space Slalom for the Sega SG-1000, a very simple space-based go-through-the-gates game, Cosmic Causeway: Trailblazer II for the Commodore 64, Power Rangers Zeo: Battle Racers for SNES, if it counts (the bikes look futuristic, but the series is sort of set in the present day, right? Any thoughts?), Black Viper (Amiga, Amiga CD32). Added other versions of Trailblazer; it wasn’t just for C64, but for five other computers on the list as well. Added the Mac versions of Locus, which means it’s not PC only on computers, and Zone Raiders, which removes its PC exclusivity mark. Added C64 Classix (Overlander, Elektraglide) for PC and Mac. Added Laser Dolphin (main game is a platformer, racing side mode) for PC and Mac. Added Tasty Static (freeware Skyroads clone from last year) for PC, Mac, and Linux. Added Badlands’ older home computer ports, it was only listed for arcades and Midway Arcade Treasures 3 but was released on various home computers when it came out. Added Amiga, Atari ST, and PC versions of Psyborg; it wasn’t just for Amstrad CPC. I wasn’t sure about Nitro (Amiga, Atari ST), but it appears to be a ‘apocalypse modern day’ setting, so I put the game in the “Alternate World Modern Day” section. I’d love if someone could find the manual for this game, so I could know whether it should be where I put it, or in the main list… Finally, added Mars Explorer (freeware browser/iPhone/Mac/Windows game); it’s mostly not racing I think, just driving and stuff, but I believe there is some in it.
-9/1/10 – added the upcoming game Fast – Racing League for WiiWare, from Shin’en.
-9/11/10 – added the mediocre and utterly unremarkable futuristic racing/educational game “Galaxy Racers” for the DS. (a new release, just recently came out)
11/20/10 – added Space Track for the iPhone and PC. It’s a Skyroads knockoff. The PC version is a demo only with level creator, the full version is only on iPhone but has no level creator.
9/26/11 – added FAST (WiiWare), Metal Fangs (Genesis), Star Wars: Super Bombad Racing (PS2), and Impact Racing (PS1/Saturn). In the “Extreme but not futuristic” category moved both TrackMania games to released (2 for PC, and the Wii game), plus added the second DS TrackMania, TrackMania Turbo. Metal Fangs I just learned about, it’s a topdown-style racer, looks okay. Super Bombad Racing is a Star Wars kart racer, but because of the Star Wars setting I’m including it even if gameplay-wise it’s kart and not futuristic. I see that at the top of pg. 2 I asked about Impact Racing. Now I’ve played it, and it’s definitely futuristic, and it is a racing game because you need to finish before time runs out. Like Offworld Interceptor Extreme, you do a lot of shooting and there aren’t opponents you’re racing against, just enemies, but the timer is tight and killing enemies can get you more so you can finish the race before time runs out.
-10/16/2011 – Hydro Thunder Hurricane (X360), H2 Overdrive (Arcade), Sonic Riders (PS2, PC, Xbox, GC), Sonic Riders: Zero Gravity (PS2, Wii), Sonic Free Riders (X360 Kinect).
10/17/2011 – Sodium 2 (PS Home for PS3) – free to play with pay DLC game in Playstation Home for the PS3. I’ll put it in the PSN section, with a note it’s in Home.
11/7/2011 – Added Star Speeder and the Super Cassette Vision console that it is for, and the GBA version of Drome Racers (which is a different game from the PC/PS2/Xbox/GC title). Also added most of the Cyber Formula series; only two of the eight racing games in the series were in the list. The six new ones are Shinseiki GPX Cyber Formula (GB), Shinseiki GPX Cyber Formula: Road to the Infinity (PS2), Shinseiki GPX Cyber Formula: Road to the Infinity 2 (PS2), Shinseiki GPX Cyber Formula: Road to the Infinity 3 (PS2), Shinseiki GPX Cyber Formula: Road to the Infinity 4 (PS2), and Shinseiki GPX Cyber Formula: Road to the Evolution (GC).
11/15/2011 – Added Ben 10 Galactic Racing (DS/3DS/PS3/360/Wii), Nitronic Rush (freeware PC game), InMomentum (PC DD platform/racer). Ben 10 Galactic Racing is a kart racer style game set in the cartoon franchise. Nitronic Rush is a pretty awesome timetrial racing game with some Rush series influence, along with other things like the platformer-ish levels in Rollcage, etc.
5/22/2012 – Added 360: Three Sixty (PS1, Europe only), Bugriders: The Race of Kings (PS1, US/EU only). Bugriders might not really fit here; the game is fantasy themed, on a strange alien world, but isn’t really clearly futuristic, I think. I’m not sure if it should be here, but it’s definitely not set on Earth anyway.
6/3/2012 – Added Cubix Robots for Everyone: Race ‘N Robots (PS1 and GBC)
9/2/2012 – Added Rocket Coaster (LaserActive Sega PAC) – racing game with fantasy, adventure, and future settings. The cars look futuristic in all three sets of tracks though.
9/6/2012 – Added Future Racer, aka Defeat Lightning (PS1).
10/2/2012 – Added Mac Digital Downloads category with the Mac version of Laser Dolphin, Tasty Static, and Mars Explorer in it. Added Linux Digital Downloads category with Tasty Static and H-Craft in it.
11/5/2012 – Added the Cybiko/Cybiko Xtreme handhelds and the free game Galaxy Racers for it (it’s a rail shooter/racing game cross)
11/17/2012 – Added Armada F/X Racers for Game Boy Color. It’s a mediocre racing game spinoff of the good Dreamcast topdown spaceship action/strategy title.
12/13/2012 – Added Wipeout 2048 for Playstation Vita, and the console. Also added Crazy Chicken: Star Karts for the DS. It’s a quite bad, low-budget game, as with all Crazy Chicken titles, but it exists. Expect bad space Mario Kart. Removed Jeff Gordon’s XS Racing for PS1, because it doesn’t exist — the console ports of that game were never released, it’s a PC-only game.
2/2/2013 – Added Speed King (JP title), aka Road Rage (EU title), for the Playstation and Arcades. It’s a Konami game in the style of Wipeout. No US release.
3/19/2013 – Added Death Road (PC and PC DD) – Another European futuristic racing game. The game released in 2012, but I didn’t hear about it until just now. It’s on Origin and GamersGate, online; physical was Europe-only.
3/20/2013 – Removed X-Car (PC), because really it’s not futuristic. I also added PSP PSN (digital), Vita PSN (digital), DSiWare (digital), 3DS eShop (digital), 3DS Virtual Console (digital), and Wii U, Wii U eShop (digital), and Wii U Virtual Console (digital) categories. All the Wii U has so far is F-Zero for VC, but there’ll be more sometime I’m sure. There are no games in most those categories, but four of the five PSP games here do have digital-download releases on the PSP PSN, so that’s cool. One, StateShift, was only released in the US on PSN — the physical release was Europe-only. Of the five though, only the Japan-exclusive one (Shinseki GPX Cyber Formula) doesn’t have a download release. Note that I slightly changed the formatting — I removed the (disc) labels that had been on the Wii and X360, and instead mark digital-only categories with a (digital) marker. For the purposes of the + or * notes — that is, for purposes of exclusivity — I do not consider the digital and physical categories for each platform to be different platforms, so games still get a * if they available on both physical and digital for a system, but aren’t on any other systems. Midway Arcade Treasures 3, Jet X2O, and Downforce were also added to the “extreme” but modern-day list. I know that list is missing a lot of stuff that could be there, but those do belong, and now have been added. Finally, I updated the PC Digital Downloads category. Origin and Amazon have been added, and GameFly has replaced Direct2Drive since they bought the service. I checked most of those games on most of those services, to see that the listings are correct, and added ones that were missing, such as all of Amazon’s listings, the one on Origin, a few new ones for other services, etc. I also removed one or two D2D games that GameFly doesn’t have anymore. Added Distance (PC) to the Upcoming Games list.
5/25/2013 – Added the Wipeout-inspired Flashout 3D (iOS, Android, Ouya) to the Mobile category, and added Flashout 3D (PC, Mac) and Energy Hook (PC, Mac, Linux) to Upcoming. As for the Ouya though, it’s Android powered, but it’s pretty much a console… should it be in consoles instead of Mobile? Also added Repulze (iOS/Android), another Wipeout-inspired game, and Skyriders (Android/iOS) to the Mobile list as well. Skyriders looks like sort of like Skyroads with a bit of Monkey Ball mixed in, so it’s sort of a platform/racing game. Looking at other Android games, I see Zaxxon Escape (iOS/Android) listed as one, but really that’s an endless runner in a ship. I can’t quite call that a racing game… any opinions?
8/14/2014 – Added Moonspeeder (Atari Falcon), Moongames (Atari Falcon), and the Atari Falcon computer. The Atari Falcon is sort of a revision of the Atari ST, but it’s not entirely backwards compatible, so I guess it should be listed separately? That’s what I did for now, at least. These are shareware/freeware games for the unsuccessful Atari Falcon computer, so I’d never heard of them before bumping into mention of one today… it’s always great to hear of a new futuristic racing game, there are so few these days! There are more additions today: AiRace Tunnel (DSiWare), AiRace Speed (3DS eShop), and AiRace Xeno (3DS eShop). These are all overly simplistic timetrial-only tube racing games, but they are racing games, I guess, so I’m finally adding them. The other game in this series, AiRace (DSiWare), is a plane racing game, not futuristic.
8/17/2014 – Updated formatting for re-posting. Added Radial-G (PC) to Upcoming; a demo of this game is out, but not the full version, so I don’t think it quite counts as released? Also added Flashout 2 (Mac and Android versions), Race the Sun (PS3, PS4, and PS Vita versions), and Riptide GP2 (PS4, XONE) to Upcoming. The other versions of these games were released (listed below), but not these, yet. As for released games that were added in this update, I did add the previously mentioned Zaxxon Escape (iOS/Android) in the Mobile category; I’m not sure if it should count, but I put it on the list. Also added Race the Sun (PC/Mac/Linux, Digital Download for all) – fun game!, Hot Wheels Velocity X (GC/Xbox/PS2/PC), Hot Wheels Velocity X (GBA), Trailblazer (Gizmondo), Trailblazer (PSP DD) – yes, these two are different games, and they are also different from the original classic Trailblazer for old computers (I clarified this by adding years of release for all three titles.), Hresvelgr (PS2) [Jet Ion Grand Prix (PS2) is this games’ sequel.  I clarified that by adding the Japanese title of that game, Hresvelgr International, to the list.], Flashout 2 (iOS/PC), Speed Racer: The Beginning (iOS), Unpossible (iOS), Riptide GP (iOS/Android/W8), and Riptide GP2 (iOS/Android/W8/PC) – this game is disappointing, this mobile thing is nowhere remotely near the level of Hydro Thunder Hurricane, which is from the same team.  I also added Vangers to the PC DD category; it was already listed as a disc release, but the game got a recent digital-download release as well on Steam.  For the Riptide games I also added a new category, Windows 8 App Store, for the W8 App Store releases of those games; it’s clearly a different thing from normal PC games and should be in a different category.  Finally, Android devices (Ouya, Android mode in the Kindle or BlackBerry 10 lines, Gamestick, etc.) do NOT each get a separate category.  They just all go into “Android” in the Mobile category.
7/31/2015 – Added Victory Lap (Arcade), an obscure Sega arcade racing game; Spectra 8bit Racing (for Windows Store – for Windows 8/10), PC, Mac, and Linux); PAM: Post Apocalyptic Mayhem (PC Digital Download); Distance (P, Mac, and Linux) – the game is out, so it has been removed from ‘upcoming’, though an upcoming PS4 port has been added; Race the Sun (iOS, Android, and Wii U ports of this PC game have been added to Upcoming); FAST Racing Neo (Wii U) added to Upcoming; and Hot Wheels World Race (GBA) added — somehow I’d missed listing the GBA version.


“Extreme” Modern-Day Racing Games

———————————–
I considered adding games like Excitebike 64 and 4-Wheel Thunder to this list, because of their turbo systems, etc., but I decided that the more “real-world” track designs of those games doesn’t quite qualify them. I do think that’s an issue worth discussing, though. Off-Road Thunder has crazy track designs, much more so than 4-Wheel Thunder (though 4-Wheel Thunder is the better game)… though that does bring up the issue of Super Off-Road, I guess. Not sure about that one.

Genesis

Hard Drivin’
Race Drivin’ (has (exclusive?) track editor)

Lynx

Hard Drivin’

Game Boy

Race Drivin’

SNES

Race Drivin’

Saturn

Race Drivin’ (Japan only)

Playstation

San Francisco Rush: Extreme Racing (original Rush game only, awful port)
Race Drivin’ (Japan only)

Nintendo 64

*Rush 2: Extreme Racing USA
+San Francisco Rush: Extreme Racing
(includes all Rush and Rush The Rock content, unlike the PSX version which is only the original arcade game)

Playstation 2

*Jet X2O (Hydro Thunder/Wave Race cross)
Downforce (it’s not very “extreme” at all, but they tried to sell it as one, so it sort of counts)
Midway Arcade Treasures 3 (San Francisco Rush The Rock: Alcatraz Edition, Off-Road Thunder)

Gamecube

Midway Arcade Treasures 3 (San Francisco Rush The Rock: Alcatraz Edition, Off-Road Thunder)

Xbox

Midway Arcade Treasures 3 (San Francisco Rush The Rock: Alcatraz Edition, Off-Road Thunder)

DS

*TrackMania DS
*TrackMania Turbo

Wii

*TrackMania: Build to Race

Commodore 64

Hard Drivin’

ZX Spectrum (UK only)

Hard Drivin’

Amstrad CPC (UK only)

Hard Drivin’

Atari ST

Hard Drivin’
Hard Drivin’ II

Amiga

Hard Drivin’ II

PC

*Whiplash (US title) / Fatal Racing (EU title)
*Stunts
*TrackMania (not everyone counts this series as racing, but it kind of is…)
*TrackMania Power Up!
*TrackMania Nations: Electronic Sports World Cup (freeware ver.)
*TrackMania United
*TrackMania United Forever (freeware ver.)
*TrackMania Nations Forever (freeware ver.)
*TrackMania Sunrise
*TrackMania Sunrise eXtreme (freeware ver.)
*TrackMania II (all parts)
Hard Drivin’ II
Midway Arcade Treasures 3 (San Francisco Rush The Rock: Alcatraz Edition, Off-Road Thunder)

Arcade

Hard Drivin’
Race Drivin’
San Francisco Rush: Extreme Racing
San Francisco Rush The Rock: Alcatraz Edition
Off-Road Thunder

Alternate World Modern Day Racing Games
—————————————-
These are titles set in the “present”, but in a present where things happened differently from our present. This generally means a post-apocalyptic game which is supposed to be set in an alternate today, not tomorrow or sometime else in the future.

X360

Fuel (2009)

PS3

Fuel (2009)

PC

Fuel (2009)

Amiga

Nitro

Atari ST

Nitro

Titles not on list that deserve consideration

Futuristic driving shooters not in the main list– SpyHunter series (no racing, just driving forward forever and shooting for high score in the original one, or driving through a level shooting stuff in the newer ones… the newer ones are borderline cases, since there are actually goal points to reach. The old one almost definitely does not count, I would say. The newer ones… maybe.), Twisted Metal series and clones (again, no racing, just vehicle-based arena shooting), etc. Other futuristic driving but not racing games also aren’t in the list — Destructor (Colecovision), Seicross (NES/Arcade) (shmuplike or combat “racing”?), Moon Patrol (Arcade, etc), RoadKill (2003), Speed Power Gunbike (PSX, Japan only), the driving parts of Vice: Project Doom (NES), Highway Hunter (PC) (it’s a shmup with a car), Mad Alien (Arcade), and many more. Most of these are arena shooters or auto-scrolling shooting games, really.

Some borderline titles that I ended up including include RoadBlasters and Fire & Forget II, but they’re questionable inclusions really, for their heavy combat focuses.

Games which are not primarily racing games but which have futuristic racing components to them are also not in the main list — Body Harvest (N64), Beyond Good & Evil, Chrome (PC), RoboCop 3 (PC/Atari ST/Amiga), The Terminator (SNES), Terminator 3: The Redemption (PS2/Xbox/GC), Scrapland (PC), and many more. These could possibly be included.

About Brian

Computer and video game lover
This entry was posted in Articles, Atari 2600, Atari 7800, Classic Games, Dreamcast, Game Boy, Game Boy Advance, Game Boy Color, Game Gear, Gamecube, Genesis, Lists, Modern Games, NES, Nintendo 64, Nintendo DS, Nintendo Wii, Odyssey 2, PC, PC, PlayStation, PlayStation 2, Playstation Portable, Saturn, Sega CD, SNES, Turbo CD, TurboGrafx-16, Xbox, Xbox 360 and tagged , , , , , . Bookmark the permalink.

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