We have seen our fair share of racing games over the past few years, from the likes of Rad Racer on the NES to Out Run on the Sega Genesis all the way to the current generation, where we clamor for sequels to the likes of Split/Second and Blur (just because they were so damn good). But what racing games really register as the greatest of all time?
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Well, Japanese publication Famitsu really wanted to find out, so it tasked its readers with listing the best racing games of all times. And they came up with quite a few inspired choices, including Ridge Racer Type 4 from the PlayStation era (it even beat out Gran Turismo 2 โ how’d that happen?), Sega Rally Championship 2 and F-Zero GX, a GameCube favorite.
But Mario Kart dominated the list with ease. The DS version, the 3DS version (Mario Kart 7), Mario Kart 64 (Nintendo 64) and the recent Nintendo Switch release Mario Kart 8 Deluxe all ended up on the list.
This audience is old-school at heart, though. Topping the list at number one, according to this report from NintendoLife, was none other than the original Super Mario Kart for the SNES. Yep, that beat out all the other entries handily, although some other favorites made their way on the list, with Sega’s arcade racer Daytona USA scoring an easy second place spot.
Let’s take a look at the full top twenty!
- Jikkyou Powerful Pro Yakyuu (iOS/Android) – 62 pt
19. Mario Kart DS (DS) – 63 pt
18. Chocobo Racing ~Genkai e no Road~ (PS) – 65 pt
17. Mario Kart 7 (3DS) – 73 pt
16. Pro Yakyuu Family Stadium (FC) – 74 pt
15. Sega Rally Championship 2 (DC/PC/AC) – 76 pt
14. Gran Turismo 4 (PS2) – 81 pt
13. F-Zero GX (GC) – 82 pt
12. Forza Horizon 3 (XB0/PC) – 90 pt
11. Kirby no Air Ride (GC) – 92 pt
10. Sega Rally Championship Plus (SS/PC/AC) – 104 pt
09. Out Run (MK III/MSX/PCE/MD/GG/AC) – 106 pt
08. Gran Turismo 6 (PS3) – 129 pt
07. Mario Kart 64 (N64) – 134 pt
06. Gran Turismo (PS) – 151 pt
05. Mario Kart 8 Deluxe (Switch) – 157 pt
04. R4: Ridge Racer Type 4 (OS) – 173 pt
03. Jikkyou Powerful Pro Yakyuu 2016 (Vita/PS4/PS3) – 181 pt
02. Daytona USA (SS/PC/AC) – 185 pt
01. Super Mario Kart (SFC) – 192 pt
Not a bad list at all, and there are some classics that are worth rediscovering. Who remembers Kirby Air Ride from the GameCube days?!