Forza Horizon 6

Forza is back and its in Japan 

Game no: 569

Genre: Racing 
Platform: PC
Release Date: 2026

After 5 years Forza Horizon is back and this time its in Japan. Everything we love about Forza is back and this time they manage to capture Japan perfectly. I need to do a review of the game but since the game is almost the same as Forza Horizon 5 so I will give it a good try. 

The game is the same as the previous game with some slight changes. You are an unknown starting of at the festival but this time you need to push through the festival to unlock all the racers. You are given a colourful band which unlocks certain racers. After beating on the racers you will unlock a Forza event. That is when there is an over the top event where you race with a Robot, Rocket or Plane. Other than that there are other activites like a delivery job, bonus boards and a new thing which is regional mascots (cute foods beased on the Japan Region) 

The Map of this game is amazing. I think its better than Mexico because Japan has 4 seasons. There are small areas that represent famous parts of Japan such Tokyo and Mount Fuji. This is the biggest map of the game but it doesn't seem as empty as Mexico. There is always something to do and see.

So let me tell you what I don't like about this near perfect game. Honestly I love everything about this game. This is my game of the year in 2021. There are a couple of nitpicks that I find a bit annoying about the game. First the map nowadays have an elevated highway. Which means you can get lost in the spider-web of the highway. Another thing is it just me or the character creator looks worse noow than before. Our models seems a bit unfinished. Yeah besides those two this is a near perfect game. 

There is nothing much I can write about a game that I really enjoy. This game will be played for years to come until the next Horizon game will come. I did get the ultimate edition so there is the 2 DLC to look forward to in the coming years. Overall this game is going to get an S-Rank from me. 

New Star GP

One of the best racing simulators I've played 

Game no: 562

Genre: Racing 
Platform: PC (Steamdeck)
Release Date: 2023

I got this game on the steam sale and decide to be the game that I played on my Steamdeck. At first I thought it was just another arcade F1 racing game but boy I was wrong. This game takes the simulation aspects of F1 and adds an arcade flair to it to make it streamline and fun to play. Let's dive in what I am going to say the best racing game I played this year.

 You start New Star GP as a rookie racer (you can customise if you are a man or woman) and thne you are trust into the 1980s where F1 is gaining popularity.

In this game you have to manage the entire F1 season. Which means getting a pit crew, a chief engineer and as well as a promoter. They will give you a specific perk based on the races that you win. Each perk is essential to winning the race. Each decade has 10 racers. Everytime you fly to a new country you need to compete in different arcade racing events like time trials, checkpoints, reverse track and finally the GP. You need to win the race in order to get credits. You need credits to upgrade your car since you can't win
with a stock car. The amount of detail and depth needed for each season is amazing and the way they package it is easy to play and understand. Let's talk about the perk system. The perks range from less collision when being hit, faster refueling and changing tyres and also getting extra money if you win the race with certain conditions. 

The main gameplay is the GP. The whole season there will be a story involving our racer. The story is dynamic and it will change depending on a lot of conditions. Conditions include winning racers, overtaking rivals and also drama in your own team. During the season you will encounter decisions that you have to make. These decisions includes trying to make your pit crew happy. A happy crew will make your you perks better and an unhappy crew member will cost them to quit their job. There are also some shady people will ask you to try to stop your rival by giving you a lot of money. The GP itself is very challenging since once you go in the GP, you are not allowed to restart the game. It only works once (until you have the perk to restart the GP again). 6 laps and you need to figure out when is the best time to pit and chang tires. Also when yo use your boost. What makes the GP amazing is that anything can happen. The first place can have a tyre blowout that will cause you to take first place. 50 racers and each race is thrilling. 

What I don't like about this game is that the economy is not that great. I think the reason is that you need to play a couple of seasons to upgrade your car fully. Other than that this game is near perfect arcade racer. As I end my review I am going to say this if you love F1 and you love racing. This is the game to play. Overall this is confrimed to be in my top 10. Not sure yet will it make the top 3. But this is for sure an S-Rank game 

Replayed: CTR - Crash Team Racing

PS1 answer to Mario Kart.

Game no: 555

Genre: Racing
Platform: PS1
Release Date: 1999

I remember playing this game when I was young. Since we can't get that many games I played this game extensively. CTR is basically all the Crash Bandicoot characters in a kart setting. What makes this different than Mario Kart is that this game has a very robust single player mode. You have a central hub where you go around to race in differnt tracks. The gameplay is almost similar as Mario Kart. The difference is that if you collect 10 fruits your weapon will get an upgrade. Once you get 10 fruits you are practically unstopabble. There is a story to all of this but I wasn't interested that much in the story aspect. After finishing the story mode and beating the final boss. You have the chance to get bonus items like coins and relics. Overall this is a great ps1 game. I certainly had fun so I am giving this an A-Rank 

Lonely Mountains Snow Riders

Got gamepass just for this 

Game no: 544
Genre: Racing
Platform: PC
Release Date: 2025

The first Lonely Mountains was awesome. It was a relax game where you rider a mountain bike downhill. When I heard they are going to make a sequel that involves skiing I have to be the first to try it. The easiest and cheapest way to get this game is through Xbox Gamepass PC. I tried the 14 days trail at 1 buck first to see if this is worth it. So far I have no complains about this game

In this game you control polygonal characters going down a hill. There are usually 7 checkpoints down and you have to try getting the best time going down. Everytime you hit something you have to reset to the last checkpoint. You can find shortcuts and try making impossible jumps down if you want to cut off some time. That the game in a nutshell. Unlike the last game where you can push yourself foward with a bike. The skis are dependent on the snow. If you get stuck without any snow and incline you are just stuck without any traction. That means you are not going anywhere.

What I like about this game is its simplicity. It is very fun to play and going down the hill without any music just the sounds of the wind blowing while your skis drop down and touch the snow is relaxing. That is until you keep on hitting yourself at rock due to speeding down and super fast slope. Sometimes you just have to realised that going fast isn't the key but just making a perfect run is something far much better. There are tons of customisable options for your skier as well as different types of skis to choose from. The game is quite short with only 3 mountains and 12 tracks. After the game is done you either can try to get the best time again or play the multiplayer. The multiplyer is very fun. You and others try to race downhill but with the same set of rules the single player has. 

The only two things that I don't like about this game that it is too short. I think it is shorter than the previous game. Granted the multiplayer makes up for endless play. Another thing that, leveling up is lock behind a paywall. To level up you need to play a lot of multiplayer to get all the good gear. I really don't have time for that. Overall this is a good short game to play. I will give this an A-Rank.

ATV Mania

The PS1 game journey starts now 

Game no: 537
Genre: Racing
Platform: PS1 
Release Date: 2003

So the Playstation 1 is a system where there are a lot of games from all different genre from across the spectrum. So the main goal this console is to play games that are fun. The moment they stop becoming fun I will find another game since there are a lot of games here. So the first game is ATV Mania. Think Mario Kart but with ATV. The contols are sharp and the game is quite fun. There is a story mode but it is just a lot of text so I decided to skip that. Other than that this game is short. After beating the game you can play it again with a harded difficulty. Overall I give this game a B-Rank

Wave Race 64

I cant see why this game is considered one of the best 

Game no: 535
Genre: Racing
Platform: Nintendo 64
Release Date: 1996

This is one of the early games on the Nintendo 64 and I can say that this game is one of the best. This is a simple game where you race jet skis in predeisgn tracks. Due it being open water you need to make sure that you hit the bouys that are on the track accordance to its sign (Either left or right). Hitting them will result in a speed boost and missing them will give a penalty. Miss 5 and the game is over. Thats about it. The races are really intense and I don't know why this game never had a sequel since the water physics here are one of the best I've seen in a while. There are only 6 tracks so judjing the price of the game during that time, it may seem like a ripoff. Overall this is one of the best N64 games I've played. A-Rank

Rally Challenge 2000

Arcade racing games in the old days really have bad design 

Game no: 525
Genre: Racing 
Platform: Nintendo 64
Release Date: 2000

Well another racing game that is just easy to control and fun to play (sort of) in the Nintendo 64 era. The problem with the old school design is that they put a timer for each checkpoint which makes the gameplay very frustrated. You have 30 seconds for each checkpoint and you need to precise. That's about it. The game have the usual troupes like realistic cars, tracks all over the world. This is a good game for an afternoon. Overall B rank 

Mario Kart 64

The first of many modern Mario Kart 

Game no: 520
Genre: Racing   
Platform: Nintendo 64
Release Date: 1997

So this is considered the fist game in the Mario Kart series. It has all the modern game mechanics that makes up what we know and love in Mario Kart today. (Techically this is Mario Kart 2). You start with 8 characters and 16 tracks. The track ranges from easy to downright hard.

What I liked about this game is that the racing is fast paced. If you get left behind you can catch up by the power ups. I think the most useful powerup is the lightning since it provides a significant boost for you to catch up. There is a blue shell but that doesn't seem to do the same thing as in the previous Mario Kart. The karts handle very good. There is a slide button but you rarely use it since it always tend to understeer and you'll end up going off track. 

What I don't like about this game which I think they improve on it after previous iterations. The main thing I don't like about this game is that the moment you get hit by something the reaction time is slow. You'll end up in a 10 second or more slowdown and it is going to take you a long time to catch up. That really hurts the game experience since newer Mario Karts you'll be right back in the action. Another thing is that even at 100cc the game is relentlessly hard. The AI opponents will always catch you no matter how far you are and the weapons have a lag time every time you want to fire it.

So I finish all the cups and enjoyed my time with it. Mario Kart is a suitable game but not for solo players. It is fun playing with another 3 people. That said this game is really enjoyable. I don't know when I get to play any current gen game but this game is really one of the best so far this year. A-Rank for me 

F-Zero X

The first game finished for 2024

Game no: 519
Genre: Racing   
Platform: Nintendo 64
Release Date: 1998

F-zero has always been one of the fastest racing games out there. Everything is done with split second decisions. One wrong move and you will be send down crashing and it makes it a very exciting race. They made one of the Nintendo 64 and I really enjoy it. You play as one of the racers and each cup there is 6 different racers. The way the game is design is that you are given an energy meter and with each hit (by the wall or other racers) you will lose health. On the second lap your boost will be activated and you have to balance when to boost or protect your ship. Once you crash or your energy becomes zero. You will lose and you will have to restart the game again. So that is basically the game in a nutshell. Couple that with a great soundtrack, awesome track you got yourself an amazing classic racing game.

The only reason I don't like this game is that this game is freaking hard. Even on novice difficulty it is still a struggle to get into the top 6 place. The tracks are challenging enough but isn't too difficult to navigate. Other than that this game is a instant classic. I love it. I finish all the tracks on novice and call it a day. You need to go to standard and expert to get all the other racers but I am not that good on the track. Overall I gave it an A-Rank.

Diddy Kong Racing

First game of the year. 

Genre: Racing 
Platform: PC
Release Date: 1997

So using my Odin pro to play old retro games. I played some Diddy Kong Racing. This game is really fun. Since this is a collection of Rare mascots the only characters from the DK series is only Diddy Kong. What makes this game unique than the rest of the normal kart series is that. There are 3 types of vehicles to choose from. There is normal kart, a plan and a hovercraft. The weapons are also have a cool upgrade mechanic where if you hit 3 of the same weapons in a row it will upgrade it to the ultimate version. So this game does offer a bit of strategy in it. The only problem I find is that a lot of the tracks are lock behind a progression system which is a bit confusing to navigate. After a while I didn't even know where should I go and I am missing a balloon to proceed further. That was a big negative in my book. Other than that it was a good game. I'll give it a C rank.

Horizon Chase 2

Last game of the year.

Game no: 518
Genre: Racing   
Platform: PC
Release Date: 2023

The first Horizon Chase was an incredible racing game. The game is face paced, simple and the art style is reminiscing of the old 16-bit era games with just updated graphics. Now a couple years later Aquiris has returned with a sequel which has some improvements over the old game as a well as some things that I didn't quite like. 

First of all Horizon Chase 2 still maintain the same game mechanic with the first game. You race around the world in tracks while collecting tokens. This time the difference is
that you car can earn XP in order to upgrade the stats. So for every 5 racers you can upgrade the cars abilities. Besides that, the tracks has been significantly improve. Tracks have a lot of  branching paths and as well as a lot of environmental effects. If you go in a snowy area by the last lap the whole track will be covered with a blizzard. There are also sprint tracks where is a long a winding 1 lap track. The racers are fast paced and I enjoy the chase. The AI is good enough to let you get to first place without it being too challenging. The customizable options available for each cars with different body, paint and rim configurations 

So now I told the parts I like, I will tell you a couple parts I don't like about this game. I know they design the game with
in mind but once you get all the tokens and win the race there is very little reason to get back. That means you won't use any of the other cars due to it not being upgraded as your starting car. They did fix it buy the new cars that you earn that comes with it being partly upgraded. 

Overall the game is enjoyable but after you finish all the racers there is little incentive to come back unless you want to 100% the game. I love the first game better than this one but this is still worth a play. A-Rank for me 

Cruis'n Exocita

Another generic N64 racing game 

Game no: 516
Genre: Racing  
Platform: Nintendo 64
Release Date: 2000

Another game, another janky racing by the Nintendo 64. Well this game is somewhat enjoyable. The only thing I can say that gaming in the 64-bit era needs a lot of work. The psychics are too clunky. So controlling the car is like controlling a brick. This game is fun though. I still don't understand why old games require a timer since we bought the game to play. Probably just for added tension. I give this game a C-Rank.

Carmageddon 64

The PC port is better

Game no: 514
Genre: Racing  
Platform: Nintendo 64
Release Date: 2000

Well another game which is barely serviceable. It not the same as the pc port even though a lot of mechanics are there. I don't know why the controls on the N64 feels like I'm driving a brick. If you push too much on the analogue you are going to hit the wall. Again racing games are the only saving grace here. This game is so-so I guess. Overall I gave this a C-Rank. Not that great but I did played it so it counts. Technically 

California Speed

Nintendo 64 games are really clunky 

Game no: 513
Genre: Racing
Platform: Nintendo 64
Release Date: 1998

Well I need to finish my obligatory retro games. I tell you that the Nintendo 64 console is a weird one. Games don't look great. They control terribly and for some reason most of the sucks. But there is one genre that is at least playable which is racing game. California Speed is a generic racing game. There are a lot of different type of cars. The tracks are long and interesting enough. The controls are clunky but its okay. Overall in 98 it would be the bomb now it just meh. Overall is it a B-Rank. 

1080 Snowboarding

A racing game with really wonky physics 

Game no: 511
Genre: Racing 
Platform: Nintendo 64
Release Date: 1998

This game is about racing from the top mountain until the bottom. During that time you need to avoid obstacles, jumps and curves from the mountain. And that is about it. The game makes it easier if you pick a snowboarder (each of them come with different stats) that has a max speed to max. The reason is that the CPU really is unforgivable. Other than that, this game has no other thing. That's it. Very arcade like. I give it a B-Rank.

Sonic R

Rose tinted glasses I assume 

Game no: 508
Genre: Racing 
Platform: Sega Saturn 
Release Date: 1997

I remember playing this game on my pc like crazy. I manage to get all characters, got all the shortcuts and the chaos emeralds. I think I played this game for months and enjoyed every moment of it. So what happened? Well when I got this game I was 13 and 20 plus years later this game really doesn't hold up. The controllers is so loose that controlling the character is like running on a banana peel. Each character has their own unique abilities which is nice. But other than that this game doesn't have any redeeming features. B-Rank for me.

Sega Rally Championship

Game is fun arcade port 

Game no: 505
Genre: Racing
Platform: PC 
Release Date: 1995

I have this game on the pc way back then and I thought that this is the best arcade game ever. But after playing it again this year. This game is really a rip off. This game only have 3 tracks. And that's it. That is the game. 3 tracks. The ripoff in my mind is that the game has a timer. I get it is the design of games during that time because it is just an arcade port. I don't see how to win this game since the timer makes it impossible to get first place. I did manage however to finish the game with 5 place which I think that is the best going to be for me. Overall this game is a C Rank. You can play it once but after that you will get bored of it 

Forza Horizon 5 Rally Adventure

Final DLC for this game 

Game no: 504
Genre: Racing
Platform: PC 
Release Date: 2023

My favorite genre is racing and in racing my favorite racing game is rallying. So you can imagine my joy when my best racing game combines those two together. Forza Horizon 5 Rally Adventure is their attempt of making a deep rally gaming but with a different twist. There is a new map which have a lot of hills, slopes, forest (fully breakable) and and dunes. Basically every rally category they got you covered. The objective of this game is to beat 3 of the Rally masters by completing their set of challenges which is like any normal Forza game. The challenges include racing and stunts.

What makes this different than normal Forza is that all the race tracks are rally tracks which means its just a sprint from A to B. Plus they have two options which is Rally and Race. Race is the normal mode where you race against 12 players but Rally is the fun one where you need to beat other players in the getting the best time. Since Rally is usually done in teams of two. The way Forza does it by having you co-pilot in a helicopter calling the road. 

I love this game, everything about this game is awesome. Since Forza is already my game that I go to it weekly. I don't see nothing to hate about this
game. The only one complaint I can say is that the Hoonigan Ford Focus 10 car is way OP (overpowered) for this game. I played this whole game with just one car since this car controls well, it handles the corners and drift perfectly. I did try other cars to but it wasn't as satisfying 

Overall if you love arcade racers and rallying this game is definite must check out. This is so going to be in my top 10 game of the year. I keep saying that but it's just April there are still more games to be played. S-Rank for me.

Daytona USA Championship Circuit Edition

500th game finished 

Game no: 500
Genre: Racing  
Platform: Sega Saturn 
Release Date: 1996

Finally moving on to the Sega Saturn. There are not many games on the Saturn that are consider worthy to play. But this game is a classic. I've played on the arcade and the home port controls exactly like the arcade version. Super hard. The cars handle poorly and one mistake will make you lose the race. Overall it is still and enjoyable game to play. Too bad after you play all the 5 tracks you are practically done with this game. I wonder do people last time have to play full price when buying games only to be short change on how short this is. B-Rank 

Top Gear Pocket 2

This is really fun

Game no: 498
Genre: Racing  
Platform: Gameboy Color 
Release Date: 1999

Love this box art when I saw it at EGM and I think this game must be fun. This game for it's technical limitations is a fun game to play. The tracks are varied and you can upgrade the cars when you win a race. Single player is just a race in different season and that's about it. I give this game an A-Rank