What is the most realistic driving game?

I recently recieved a full wheel, shifter and pedal set as a gift from a friend and I'm wondering what game would be the most realistic on it?

Forza? Driveclub? Project Cars? Dirt Rally?

What do you suggest?

Well, the most realistic game would probably be iRacing on PC, but it requires a subscription to play, and there's lots of DLC, so watch out. You could also look at Assetto Corsa.

The games you mentioned are arcade sims as are most racing games that come out it seems. Of those you mentioned I'd put Project Cars at the front of the pack followed by Forza or DriveClub. I haven't played Dirt Rally, but past Dirt games felt like good, casual racing fun.

Thanks, friend.

Racing wise I would say Grid Autosport is the closest thing to real racing. On the hardest difficulty the racing is hard but mostly fair, with the AI behaving as you would expect on track. I've stuck mostly on single seater/touring car racing on it, but have been very surprised by how challenging the races can be, sometimes just getting on the podium can be an achievement in some races. (This opinion is based on myself having raced motorcycles/rallycross at national level)

Been a while but GTR2? Pretty much a simulation of driving instead of a game of driving.

Gran Turismo 6.

It has the most realistic driving physics. The cars behave like they are supposed to like in real life.

The biggest thing I notice is you can actually feel your cars weight being shifted in GT when you turn. Other games just turn. There is no weight in other games.

Those other games you listed are not as good.

Mario Kart? Lots of cheating and crashing. Sounds realistic to me...

Gonna jump on the Gran Turismo 6 answer. That's always sort of been that franchise's schtick, trying to be realistic racing. I remember it being fun, but I'm more of a Sonic & Sega All-Stars Racing Transformed kind of person, so I might not know of a better one if it exists.

PCARS, Assetto Corsa are the 2 I would suggest. I've heard iracing is good but I've yet to play it, I don't like the idea of paying a subscription fee to play a game.

PCARS has given me so many racing thrills every race is adrenaline filled and gaining a position is a real achievement when you've been trying for 5 laps to pass the car in front.

What wheel set did you get?

What console do you own?

No. It doesn't and they don't. All of Gran Turismo's "physics" are mostly tricks to make you THINK they are realistic. The actual calculations are very limited compared to games like iRacing or GTR2.

I remember when Gran Turismo 4 first came out and introduced visual body roll. Compared to GT3, it was a massive step forward for recreating a more "realistic" performing car game, but it was just an aesthetic difference. PC sims will always trump console games when it comes to actual realistic physics, because there is no processing limitations on PC.

And are you, TC, looking for racing or driving? Because the two are different and unfortunately, driving is not as well fleshed-out as racing is in the sim game area. The most realistic racing games have already been mentioned, but for driving, personally out of those I've played, Driver: San Francisco is one of the only recent games I can think of that actually tries to make it more down-to-Earth while still offering some over-the-top action as well.

Not sure it's compatibility with wheels mind you.

The question is, do you prefer normal race or rally? Because you have three choice right, Grid Autosport, Dirt Rally or Forza series.

I've played lots of Gran Turismo, and since switching to PC, quite a bit of Race Room Racing Experience and Assetto Corsa. I'd say the handling in all three is very similar. The difference is the collision physics - in Gran Turismo you can drive straight into a pack of cars and probably bounce off them and end up ahead of them. You can also sideswipe somebody when passing them at high speed and it has no effect on your car. In both Race Room and Assetto Corsa, that sort of thing will send you spinning off the track. It makes a huge difference because you actually have to wait for the opportunity to pass, instead of just shoving your way past everybody.