Car and Driver Announces Partnership with iRacing to Launch Console Simulation Game in 2025

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The company that operates the subscription simulator iRacing announced on Thursday a new agreement with NASCAR. They plan to launch a simulation game suitable for consoles in 2025. This will be the first independent game produced by iRacing.

Accompanying this announcement is another one where Motorsport Games, the creators of the recent NASCAR console game series, have sold their rights to iRacing. This means that iRacing will now produce the titles for this franchise. The latest installment, NASCAR 21: Ignition, received mixed reviews upon its release two years ago.

Since 2008, iRacing has been known for its subscription-based simulator for PC gamers. While NASCAR has always been a priority for them, their service offers a wide variety of other vehicles and tracks, promising realistic races with great participation, whether with single-seaters, sports cars, or even dirt ovals.

The current iRacing platform already includes many core elements of a console game, such as modern-day NASCAR cars, an AI rival, and a full schedule of licensed tracks. These assets should make it easier to develop the new game compared to other studios that would have to start from scratch. However, modern expectations of a sports video game will make the final result on console very different from what iRacing players currently enjoy. The game should be closer to a traditional NASCAR title, with a full grid of cars and teams resembling reality.

Although the iRacing team has only worked with this simulator, they have their origins in the former Papyrus Design studio. They produced highly acclaimed games for over a decade, with the last one being NASCAR Racing 2003 Season. A small but dedicated community still plays this game, which is considered the reference in this subgenre. If all goes well, the 2025 release could be seen as its spiritual successor.

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