Updated September 2026
This is the ranking of the best Racing Games, sorted by NextGameLike Score: a 0-100 metric blending Steam reviews, IGDB ratings (community and critic), Metacritic, OpenCritic and the NextGameLike community votes into a single number. Unlike opinion-based editorial lists, this order is computed from real data and applies a Bayesian shrinkage adjustment so games with few reviews can't inflate the top of the chart. FlatOut 2, Mario Kart 8 and Sonic & All-Stars Racing Transformed Collection lead the chart — the highest-rated titles in the genre according to our data. The top-25 average NextGameLike Score is 85/100, out of 60 games catalogued. The ranking updates continuously as new reviews and votes come in.
Top 3
Top of “The 20 Best Racing Games (2026)”: FlatOut 2 (88.0/100). Close behind: Mario Kart 8 and Sonic & All-Stars Racing Transformed Collection.
Ranked by NextGameLike Score · 60 games catalogued
FlatOut 2 is carried by its players more than by its reviews. No other entry of the 20 has a higher share of positive reviews: 96%. That is why it tops the ranking.
With Mario Kart 8, the press was ahead of the public. Enough for the podium: number 2.
Players and critics agree on Sonic & All-Stars Racing Transformed Collection, which is rarer than it sounds in Racing Games. Enough for the podium: number 3.
No argument here: Rocket League® wins over players and critics alike. It is the most reviewed of the 20: 579,186 Steam reviews. That gets it into the top 10, at number 4.
Burnout Paradise has little in the way of ratings and a great deal of standing. Number 5, inside the top 10.
Super Mario Kart has little in the way of ratings and a great deal of standing. It is the oldest game in the ranking (1992) and still here. Number 6, inside the top 10.
Mario Kart DS has little in the way of ratings and a great deal of standing. Number 7, inside the top 10.
BallisticNG is here because of its players — they are who it won over. That gets it into the top 10, at number 8.
Burnout 3: Takedown has little in the way of ratings and a great deal of standing. Number 9, inside the top 10.
Forza Horizon 3 is more loved by critics than by the average player. It holds the best critic score on the whole list, 91/100. That gets it into the top 10, at number 10.
Crash Team Racing earns its place on presence rather than on a score. It sits at 11 of 20.
Players and critics agree on Need for Speed™ Most Wanted, which is rarer than it sounds in Racing Games. It sits at 12 of 20.
Mario Kart: Double Dash!! earns its place on presence rather than on a score. It sits at 13 of 20.
Blur has little in the way of ratings and a great deal of standing. It lands at 14 of 20.
Mario Kart 64 earns its place on presence rather than on a score. It sits at 15 of 20.
Need for Speed: Underground 2 has little in the way of ratings and a great deal of standing. It lands at 16 of 20.
Critics rated Mario Kart World higher than the public did. It is the newest on the list (2025), and has already earned its place. It sits at 17 of 20.
Critics were lukewarm on Re-Volt; players were not. It lands at 18 of 20.
Mario Kart 7 has little in the way of ratings and a great deal of standing. It lands at 19 of 20.
Mario Kart: Super Circuit has little in the way of ratings and a great deal of standing. It lands at 20 of 20.