iemptyyourwalleting.

Is it expensive yes? But it's all the money worth if you are looking for the ultimate Multiplayer racing experience. Players off all skill levels are racing against equally skilled racers thanks to the iRating system.

Remember that the subscription only gives you the base content. All cars are priced at 15$ and tracks at either 10 or 15$

Everything is laserscanned and done down to the finest detail so it's the most accurate sim you can get hold of.

Do not buy this unless you have a wheel and pedals! THIS IS NOT FOR CONTROLLER!

The best multiplayer racing sim out there with the weakest engine sounds!

Motorsport isn't for everyone, when i was younger i only liked fast cars because i thought they were sexy.
Now after years of watching various Motorsport series' and Sim Racing along the way my perspective has changed.
iRacing requires a change of perspective, you cannot come in as a fan of race cars and expect excitment.
You have to be a fan- no, a follower of Motorsport. Someone who holds that passion at heart for Great racing.
The more you love Motorsport the better iRacing will fit into your life and becomes a Hobby that trandsend general gaming in terms of long term enjoyment.

In the beginning for me the buisness model was very odd, after buying stuff like rFactor, Race07-Evo etc then playing those over time it was the weirdest thing to pop up and i was one of the decenters. "WTF is this- etc"
Then after a few months things became shockingly clear, rFactor, Race07 etc weren't updated.... iRacing was.
Simply as that my mind changed as i realized they were in it for the long haul, every season iRacers get an update, Big or small it either adds content after months of development or more functionality with tweaks etc.
Every $ i've spent in iRacing has been worth it, over the years we got pieces of content bit by bit and with so much more to come the list is getting bigger. To look at iRacing now with fresh eyes the money added up must be daunting, for me i waited impatiently for months and years in some cases for a Track/ Car to the point that the $12 i payed for them over the course of months was nothing. Anyway.

iRacing at its core is a Motorsport Simulator, so excitment comes in spikes just like watching F1 these days.
The first few laps are crazy and exciting then things settle down a bit with some sparatic fighting with a decent climax at the end.
When you are the one in the car this dynamic is the same but there is an added challenge, getting er done.
You're responsable for the outcome of your race, if you make a mistake you suffer the consiquences, if you're slow it's up to you to learn more and improve.
Everything is up to and on you.
As a result overall it's a fantastic challenge, to start from the very bottom and make your way up that ladder, from fighting scrubs to meeting people on your level then above. Over time iRacing becomes less and less of a gaming dynamic and more of a forum for personal improvement.

Either way in the end as a fan of motorsport, facing the same challenge as the drivers i watch on track has added a fantastic dynamic to my life. To watch F1 then run a race with 35 people from all over the world at the very top is superb.

Challenging, Exciting and Fulfilling.

Honestly the only real competitive racing sim out there. It has it's downsides, like being too expensive, but you really get what you pay for.

If you just want to hotlap some cars and try stuff out, play with your friends on the weekend, there are better options.

But if you want to truly compete and feel like you are progressing your career as a "virtual race car driver" this is the one and only game you could play.

First off, I've had iRacing for years now, and I was one of those in the early days of owning it to blow my load on all of the content, so I do know where I am coming from here.

I vote no, the price is NOT justified, it's actually a WORSE physics experience than Assetto Corsa for a start, but lets give a full list of the reasons why I would NOT recommend this game.


1. The Physics : Whilst they are more realistic than most of the games people are used to this can barely be called simulation, whilst things have improved and continue to improve, the game lacks fundamental tire model elements that would define this title as a simulation. Fundamentally the iRacing engine is based off the Nascar Racing 2003 game engine, which in turn was based off the Grand Prix Legends engine of 1997.

So in a nut shell this core engine is almost 20 years old. The company themselves and most definitely the players and community like to believe the simulation models tire wear which it doesn't, all it models is that an overheated tyre is a slippy tire so basically one or two sideways moments in a lap, requires potentially 5 corners afterwards on knife-edge oversteer to let the tires cool down again [exactly the same game engine tyre properties that were there on GPL] - which in real life just isn't the case and if you're used to real life racing physics and simulation you will be fighting the car on corner entry as braking and turning on iRacing seems to overwhelm the game engine and generally send you into a low speed spin, again something that wouldn't happen in real life. Despite these short-falls they are more interested in variable weather conditions than fixing the core issues of the game engine.

2. The Price : Under no circumstance is the price of this title acceptable. Not only does it require monthly subscription but also the purchase of tracks and cars. Enjoy racing the skip barber on the North American circuits? Well next time they release a new track you can be it will be on the skip schedule almost forcing you to buy it. You don't 'purchase what you want/can' you end up being forced to make purchases whilst being given the impression it was the customers choice. 300$ plus change for all of the content. For a game? You'd expect such a price for a high end commercial simulator, but it's not, it's a nigh on 20year old game essentially and for this, it's a joke. The tracks are the service's most acclaimed piece, but realistically they botch their laser scans, the Monza oval for instance is in no way in a scanable condition, so they have essentially just created a track on the fly, not to mention the 'tech tracks'. Lets not forget, iRacing aren't the only ones who laser scan tracks now, do Assetto Corsa charge extortionate amounts because they laser scan their tracks? And IMO do a better job of it.

You can get just the same enjoyment at a tenth of the price with Assetto Corsa, or even rFactor 2 if you find a private LEAGUE to race in, rather than just trying to join some public server full of wreckers and then complain about the community of that game. Anyone who tries justify the price I garentee has most, if not ALL of the content and feels that natural urge to protect their investment [I mean nobody wants to feel like an idiot for spending 300$ on a video game do they?] which brings me on to point 3 .

3. The cult : After spending so much money on iRacing for all of the necessary content people in the community then have this natural defense mechanism on their 'investment' and will defend iRacing on all levels unjustly, refusing to listen to logical critique and hyperpraising things such as the tracks [one of the things they love to do is pretend that iRacing models tire wear, which it definitely does not].

tl;dr you pay 300$+ to get the less overall enjoyment with substandard physics than you would in a private rFactor 2 or Assetto Corsa league with. Do not confuse immersion with simulation guys! Shiney tracks and a decent public service still do not justify the price!

Best online driving by far but once you realize you can only do 1 track/race without starting on your first of many many many many purchases that you need to buy to progress in any way shape or form, basically the game costs about £1000 to buy all the content, you can't earn it you can't progress to it you must buy, From a game that charges a monthly fee??, it is the biggest con i have ever seen. Please don't bother with this. We should never encourage blatant extortion. The people behind this game are the most greediest individuals the world has ever seen and should never be encouraged,

also the fact they don't make it clear that your monthly fee will only let you do 1 track that they pick at a time. Is nothing short of criminal. Fact is they know its a con that's why its not made clear when you first subscribe that your goanna have to pay pay pay to do anything worthwhile, total con shame on you for taking advantage

"Internet racing is a fun, easy, and inexpensive way for race fans, simracers and gamers alike to enjoy the thrill of the racetrack " - This is iRacings description of their game. I'm going to break it down.
Fun: YES! The level of courtesy and professionalism of drivers in this community is unparalelled. It makes for very fun, competitive, and thrilling racing. Even in the Rookie leagues, the number of drivers that care about the safety rating system is absolutely untouchable by any internet racing community. AC is good, but not this good.

Inexpensive: ABSOLUTELY NOT! Talk about a money pit. It's not only a monthly/yearly subscription, it's also a LITERAL F*CKTON OF DLC. Once you have ascended from the Rookie ranks in this game, the cost increases dramatically. As of yesterday, the total for all content in Rookie Class and Class D is $580.61 (including a $193.54 multi-purchase discount). Class A, B, and C continue to add to the DLC money pit, but I'm going to skip the calculation. Granted, there are a few cars and a few tracks that come with the subscription. However, the price of each track or car is between $12 and $15. For instance, the 2007 version of Daytona Intl Speedway is included with subscription, but the 2011(?) version is not. Nurbergring Nordschleife and the Grand Prix Strecke are separate $15 purchases. But remember, it's only $99.99/yr, which is more than some racing sims without subscription fees and all DLC combined. For that amount of money, they better have something better than the terribly clunky and slow web UI they currently implement (Read: it launches sessions from a website). The fact it's based on a game from 2003, which has been continuously modified. Also, if you want to race against your friends - for fun - you need to rent server time from them, or just hope you get matched in the same race. Absolutely no fun for those who want to race with friends.

Easy: No. Just no. Winning is not easy. Driving is not easy. Proper car setup (not done in Rookie class) is not easy. The tracks and drivers are challenging. VERY challenging. With that challenge comes reward, if you do well.

Race fan, Sim racer, and Gamer alike: I don't recommend playing this game with anything but a proper racing wheel. Not for the gamer who just wants to create spectacular crashes. This game is for the serious racers and the community reflects that. If you're into just watching, they have a youtube channel that broadcasts the races, and they could really use some of those sale profits to increase production quality there. It sounds like 12-15 y/o kids trying to sound like overly professional and dry race announcers - except one is in the studio and the other is voice chatting over skype. You watch the races from the same cameras and jerkyness that comes from the instant replay cameras that you get in game (like a single person is just operating it to watch the race). They desparately need someone who has worked in broadcast to help ramp up the production value. Words cannot describe how terribly boring and unprofessional these really are.

Overall: 2/5. The community and safety rating system are the only things holding this game together, imho. Besides them just now (March 2016) updating to DX11, the cost of DLC, terrible web interface/sever load, being based on a game from 2003, bad broadcast production quality, inablity to race with friends, and subscription costs are enough for me to hate the game. I got a yearly subscription on sale for $30-something, will not buy any DLC due to cost, and own a racing wheel. When my year is up, or I get bored of the provided content, I will cancel this subscription (again). The only reason I ever come back is to race with people who aren't starting wrecks like bored children.

Edit: Added costs. Emphasized sh*tty server load/webUI. Added comments on (not) playing with friends. Lowered overall score. I also recently purchased an HTC Vive - it seems that iRacing has completely removed their VR support (even oculus), so that is yet another deal breaker for me. Technically no racing sim supports the Vive, but that's not to say I don't have some of them working.

Edit 2: They've finally re-enabled VR support... For Oculus. There are many trying to get it work on the Vive with ReVive injector, to no avail. For those wondering: Assetto Corsa (with ReVive), Live for Speed (native), and Project Cars (native) are all working with the Vive at this point. All are much cheaper ways to race.

After a very long wait iRacing is finally on Steam and im very happy especially them giving out keys to existing members.

This game is subscription based which I don't mind by having a subscription it shows that the members are serious about sim racing I normally do my subscription for one year when they have there subscription's on special.

http://steamcommunity.com/sharedfiles/filedetails/?id=400282537

Content - you do start out with some cars and tracks i personally can't remember what you start with its been so long but iRacing has uploaded some pictures on the store page of what you get, is the content expensive yes it can be if you buy all the content like me, but if you buy only what you like it's not so bad, but keep in mind all tracks are laser scanned so from every bump right up to every building is modeled into iRacings tracks, this also goes for the cars they take hundreds and thousands of photos video and sounds to bring cars too life.

I have been a member for over two years and easily have over 1000 hours of driving time plus I own every piece of iracing content all cars all tracks and this includes tech tracks.

I won't sugar coat it this game takes a very high level of driving skill and great deal of time to master it's not easy especially someone who is coming from an arcade game this game is pure simulation.

I used to use iRacing for practice when I had my real race car and iRacing was good place to practice, Now I no longer race in real life I still play iRacing its great challenge with a great large community.

http://steamcommunity.com/sharedfiles/filedetails/?id=400288772

I personally recommend using a wheel and pedal set to play iRacing but you can use it with keyboard or game pad etc I personally find it near impossible with keyboard and you can achieve good results with game pad with practice.

The racing is as close to real life as possible and some times your lucky enough to brush door panels with real famous race car drives, there is a full licence structure and also system to report deliberate rammers if you find one, in two years of play I have had three rammers.

You can personalise your cars to make them who you are and using Trading paints you can upload custom paint jobs for example maybe upload replica of your favorite race car or create your own in Gimp or photoshop or use pre made ones on Trading paints or use there in house paint system possibilities are endless.

Car setups are highly detailed and represent their real life counter parts this takes time and practice to learn sometimes the smallest adjustment can have great change, but if your unsure about setups when starting in rookie you can visit the forum and grab a pre made setup from a fellow raceror use iRacing pre made setups or race in fixed setup race's.

I recommend this game only if your into full simulation racing but I think iRacing should offer one month free so people can try before they buy
http://steamcommunity.com/sharedfiles/filedetails/?id=400306912

So, it's not often I'm wrong, but I have to admit how wrong I was.

After giving the game another 5 or so hours under the tutelage of a veteran player who showed me the ropes, its quite honestly a marvel of a game. Thats not to say there arent some issues, as there are, like a dated graphics engine, in game purchases for expanding tracks and drivable vehicles as well as having a limited pool of cars to drive. But all in all, an excellent Simulation that doesn't pretend to be anything its not. You just have to give it some time and love and it will give back.

50 hours in: Had a number of issues purchasing iRacing content through Steam. iRacing support very helpful. Steam support completely lackluster. Been running the Global Challenge series in the Cadillac. Looking at working back through the Skip Barber series and on up to the Star Mazda series. Also, to get the most from this game, you "have" to use a steering wheel and pedals. Controllers just dont cut it!

Original review included for posterity, "Pretty average game. Confusing web interface that keeps asking for steam approval. Waste of $39."