Sports & racing have been merged for a while now when creating the best of and most anticipated lists. The reason is simple; they are very niche genres. Even more so than Strategy & Simulation, I can almost always find enough to fill a list and pad out the honourable mentions of that list. This year, for this list, it’s looking very lopsided.
We know certain games are coming even without official announcements. Annualised titles like Football Manager, FIFA, and F1 can feature based on the performance of the previous title. Last year FIFA missed the list as FIFA 21 wasn’t good; this year, it will feature. PES, on the other hand, is dead until further notice. 2K’s games won’t feature because I don’t have a gambling category.
So, without further ado, and to round off January, let’s look at our most anticipated sports and racing games of 2022. What’s left of it, anyway!
Check out Wccftech’s other Most Anticipated of 2022 lists: Fighting, Shooter, Action, Horror, Adventure, Indie, RPGs, Strategy/Simulation.
Genre: Racing. Platform: PlayStation 5.
It’s been a long time coming. Gran Turismo 7 was the first game on last year’s most anticipated list, though it never launched within 2021. Fortunately, we know that it’s coming in 2022, and it’s coming soon. Before I write this next paragraph, I want to clarify that I’m a big Gran Turismo fan. I have been from the start. I have many happy memories with my dad, taking turns on the endurance events on GT3 & 4. That and Gran Turismo 3 had one of the best soundtracks in gaming history.
Why do I say this now? Because after Gran Turismo Sport and how dull some gameplay videos have been, I’m simply living in hope. Some of the right noises have been made, we know there are over 90 tracks and 400 cars, and with it being a numbered entry, you can only assume it will be the same simcade style of racing that previous core Gran Turismo titles had. Will I be reviewing it? I don’t know, but even if not – I’ve already preordered the anniversary edition, and I rarely preorder.
Genre: Racing. Platform: PC, Xbox Series S/X.
This was another preemptive entry onto last years list, though I only really added it to fill in space. This year, it’s certainly more likely to be a presence on the market. The release of the magnificent Forza Horizon 5 last year helps to set up Turn 10’s redevelopment of the core series after many recent missteps. Here’s what was said about the game when announced.
With Forza Motorsport, we’re taking the lessons and evolutions of the entire history of Motorsport, and building an all new Motorsport experience that takes full advantage of the speed and immersion of Xbox Series X. That means you can expect stunning visuals and tech, such as ray tracing, native 4K, and 60 FPS, and some brand new game concepts, all intended to connect players to the Forza universe, and each other, like never before.
A launch in late 2022 would mark a five-year development cycle for this new entry. With Forza Motorsport 7 pulled from sale and the Game Pass last year, as well as the news that development and feedback playtests had been happening with the public, the timing is looking good for this new entry. With Gran Turismo 7 coming in just a few months, I wouldn’t be surprised to see Forza Motorsport coming towards the end of the year.
Following their acquisition by EA, it was easy to write Codemasters off. The list of companies EA have bought and then used to do things the companies aren’t suited for is a mile long. That or EA decided to force these companies to do something that the games they create aren’t suited for, ruining both franchises and developers as they did Dead Space and Visceral Games.
It’s far too early to see how EA will destroy Codemasters; the afterbirth is barely off of the acquisition. Thanks to that, the quality that is Codemasters gets to see two titles on this list. EA also joins with the first of this year’s anticipated sports games.
F1 2022
Genre: Racing. Platform: PC, PlayStation 4, PlayStation 5, Xbox One, Xbox Series S/X.
There’s not a lot that I can say about F1 2022. It hasn’t been announced yet, but it’s coming. It comes every year. Following last year’s fantastic push into creating a narrative, it’s hard not to be excited about what Codemasters will do to push this annualised series further forward.
The quality of racing has only improved. Aesthetically, F1 is always up there with the best, and fully utilising the new consoles for this year’s release will only improve matters. With only a few minor issues last year, one can only assume F1 2022 will be the best.
GRID: Legends
Genre: Racing. Platform: PC, PlayStation 4, PlayStation 5, Xbox One, Xbox Series S/X.
A game that wasn’t on the list last year? I am shocked. Following the triumphant return of GRID in 2019, it wasn’t a huge surprise to see a follow-up on the cards. Indeed, this will be another title that was in development before EA absorbed Codemasters into the collective. Early looks at GRID: Legends are favourable too, giving it the same feel as the previous title and offering even more development in the narrative, having brought on one of the Ghosts of Tsushima writers.
You can read my preview of GRID: Legends here.
FIFA 23
Genre: Sports. Platform: PC, PlayStation 4, PlayStation 5, Xbox One, Xbox Series S/X.
Last year, neither this nor PES got more than an honourable mention. FIFA makes a reasonable return, even though it’s still preying on children and other susceptible individuals. While I am still hoping and praying for the day that loot boxes and gambling practices in games get regulated worldwide, I still can’t deny that FIFA is most likely going to be the better Football Game of the coming year.
Following Konami’s capitulation, it’s up to EA if they become complacent or not. After the Alex Hunter trilogy, EA has been more focused on including alternate game modes like Volta. We honestly don’t know what FIFA 23 will bring, but I would be bringing in more management options if I were in charge. Granted, this would likely eat into Ultimate Team, so I doubt it’ll ever happen.
Genre: Sports (Simulation). Platform: PC (and others).
I intentionally left this out of my Strategy and Simulation list because I knew this list would be thin on the ground. It’s another annual title that isn’t officially coming out, but we know it is. With the series only improving year after year, I’ve come agonisingly close to giving the series my third 10/10 review score in over eight years of writing reviews, with only very minor issues keeping me from doing that.
While it may not be in this year’s version of the game, we know that the women’s leagues are in development, and Miles Jacobson & Sports Interactive want to ensure it is on the same level as the men’s leagues. Knowing Sports Interactive, there won’t be a single corner cut.
Sports and Racing games of 2022; A Year of More
The reality is that Sports and Racing games are very niche. This list has always been challenging to make, with increased necessity on padding through the inclusion of annualised titles. While there are solid potentials for the longer future, such as a return to the Skate franchise and
Honourable Mentions:
In theory, I could include WWE 2k23 since that series hasn’t been a digital casino like the other 2K sports games, but following the previous two WWE titles, it’s hard to know what will come of this release. The reality is that Sports and Racing games don’t have a massive amount in the pipeline, at least not the ones I’m aware of. Still, those that are coming soon show some promise.
