10 Best Racing Games on Xbox Series X|S (2025)

Show off your best drifting skills in some of the best racing games on Xbox Series X/S. Perhaps check out realistic simulation games, featuring officially licensed cars in real-life locations around the world. Or more casual ones with fantasy tracks and karts. Whatever you fancy in a racing game, from authentic handling to arcade racing games with a focus on speed, our list of the best racing games on Xbox Series X/S has got you covered.

What is a Racing Game?

A racing game often features cars that the player chooses from and controls against other AI or human-controlled cars along a circuit or race track. Matches may vary, testing your drifting skills or dotting the race track with collectibles that boost your speed. Whoever is the first to cross the finish line wins.

Best Racing Games on Xbox Series X/S

With the best racing games on Xbox Series X/S below, you’ll enjoy slick graphics, smooth controls, deep customization systems, and more features.

10. Wreckfest

As much as you’re told to choose a car and go wild in Wreckfest, there are certain strategies you’ll want to keep track of. You probably want to enforce your car’s bumpers, put up some side protectors, and install roll cages. 

You’ll need speed, too, as the winner is still the first player to cross the finish line. And that’s where customizing your engine comes in. In any case, there’s so much under the hood of Wreckfest’s demolition derby, merging chaos and racing in ecstatic ways.

9. EA Sports WRC

EA Sports WRC, on the other hand, is the latest high-quality rally simulation game. From the stages to the cars featured, they all draw from the official FIA World Rally Championship, ensuring you truly feel like a true rally racer. 

Depending on the track you’re racing in, whether murram or snowy, you want to tweak your car’s handling accordingly. You also have a ton of cars to choose from, all across 25+ years of rally heritage, just as much as the tracks, from Kenya to Japan and Portugal, at an optimum 200+ stages total.

9. WRC 10

The World Rally Championship has its own racing game, with WRC 10 among the best titles currently available. It lets you veer off-road, in some of the toughest tracks in WRC history.

To celebrate the 50th anniversary, you’ll relive the most iconic moments in WRC history from 1973 to date. In History Mode, you’ll relive 19 historical events, each with unique, challenging racing conditions, depending on the time period.

Moreover, you’ll enjoy 20 legendary cars, compete in four new rallies, 120 special stages, and access 52 official teams.

8. GRID Legends

While most simulation games might be more stringent in their features, GRID Legends has more freedom. You can create your own motorsport events, for instance, or compete in live multiplayer races. 

Up to 21 friends can join you in intense matches, with cross-play enabled. With the Race Creator, you can come up with your own rules, mixing and matching race types and events.

7. Hot Wheels Unleashed

If you’re a fan of collecting cars, you should have a blast in Hot Wheels Unleashed 2: Turbocharged. Featuring over 130 vehicles, it’s a sequel that really steps up its game, adding monster trucks and motorbikes to the mix. 

The tracks are so different as well, going from mini-golf courses to the Wild West. Each track has its hidden paths and vantage points, further making every drift and boost hella exciting to pull off.

6. Art of Rally

The visuals of Art of Rally might deter you from considering it for the best racing games on Xbox Series X/S. But don’t let their simplistic nature fool you. It’s indeed a beautiful game with colorful tracks and environments. 

The cars are pretty dynamic, as are the 72 stages you can race in. Further, beginners will enjoy a smooth landing as they grapple with easy-to-use steering, braking, and handbrake turns. Think you can top the daily and weekly leaderboards? Art of Rally awaits.

5. DIRT 5

Another off-road racing game, albeit more simulated, is DIRT 5. Unlike rally racing games that stick to rally cars, now you can try out sprint cars, trucks, muscle cars, and more. It’s a true, authentic off-road experience, taking you to unique routes from frozen circuits to racing under the Northern Lights in extreme weather conditions.

Across the series, Codemasters have well outdone themselves, reaching peak potential with DIRT 5’s innovations and style. Fans can now create their own challenges and share them with friends. Meanwhile, the core multiplayer matches remain, alongside a career mode, racking up sponsorships and rewards.

4. Assetto Corsa Competizione

Among all realistic simulation games, Assetto Corsa Competizione is arguably the most stunning game, with such accurate detail and polish on the cars and circuits alike. The handling is just as good, feeling smooth and integrating deeper mechanics, from tire grips to engine systems. You even have a damage modeling feature that influences your car’s performance.

3. Need for Speed Unbound

Assetto Corsa Competizione, though, isn’t always a breeze for beginners. And so, Need for Speed Unbound might offer a more fulfilling experience. It offers several ways to play, from head-to-head battles to drifting and a “cops versus robbers” game mode. The cop chases are pretty engaging, implementing ride-or-die crews you break into lockups with and make the getaway together, Fast & Furious-style.

2. F1 25

In the latest F1 25 iteration in the annual racing franchise, you enjoy plenty that remains intact. Iconic racing moments, though, return across ten years of FIA Formula One World Championship racing. You also enjoy consistent, all-new scenarios and rewards that keep you coming back for more. 

Through the various game modes, you should find something suited for you, whether it’s the story Braking Point mode, creating your own dream team of F1 cars and liveries, hopping into online competitive events, or more options.

1. Forza Horizon 5

The best racing game on Xbox Series X/S is Forza Horizon 5 for its massive scale and open-world adventures. When you want to show off your best skills, you can challenge other players to head-to-head races in the open world. But you can also freely explore the vibrant and ever-evolving landscapes of Mexico. 

There are limitless ways to take out your new ride, unlocking hundreds of iconic and fantasy cars, be it the battle royale mode, where you challenge up to 72 players in The Eliminator, or simply enjoy creating and sharing custom races via EventLab.