Welcome to Rear View Mirror, your weekly racing game news roundup. Get up to speed on all the latest racing game news from the past week. From a new Forza Horizon 5 Series to the latest F1 22 update, here’s everything happening in the world of racing games.
Forza Horizon 5 Donut Media Series revealed
After months of rumours, Playground Games revealed the next Forza Horizon 5 Series will be dedicated to the popular automotive YouTube channel Donut Media.
Revealed during November’s Forza Monthly, the Forza Horizon 5 Donut Media Series will feature a new Horizon Story campaign where players work with Donut Media’s James Pumphrey and Nolan Sykes to upgrade cars and take on challenges at the Donut Media Test track – a brand new location in the series.
In addition, the Donut Media series will introduce new reward cars including the 2020 Lynk & Co #62 Cyan Racing 03, 1965 Morris Mini-Traveller, 1946 Ford Super Deluxe Station Wagon, and 1953 Morris Minor Series II Traveler.
F1 22 update 1.15 brings better car models
A new F1 22 rolled out this week, with update 1.15 bringing more accurate car designs and liveries as part of the Sports update.
That wasn’t all, as the update also adds Portimao and Shanghai to select in season 2 and beyond in Career Mode and My Team along with numerous bug fixes.
You can find out more in the F1 22 update 1.15 patch notes here.
Exclusive cars and cosmetics revealed in Need for Speed Unbound Palace Edition
This week saw yet another Need for Speed Unbound info drop, this time focusing on the Palace Edition.
As part of a collaboration with Palace Skateboards, the deluxe edition of Need for Speed Unbound will feature four exclusive cars, decals, and driving effects along with clothing items for your player avatar.
In other news…
As well as revealing the Donut Media Series, Playground Games teased Forza Horizon 5 Expansion 2 during November’s Forza Monthly. Unfortunately, we won’t be playing the second Forza Horizon 5 expansion this year.
After months of speculation, Sony finally confirmed the PlayStation VR2 release date and pricing – and it costs more than a PlayStation 5 console. Not only is it a pricy peripheral, but we’re also worried about the lack of racing games in the launch lineup confirmed so far.
In other racing game news, Dakar Desert Racing received a much-needed patch update improving the AI opponent behaviour, bike handling and wheel force feedback.
Max Verstappen is also competing in the Le Mans Virtual Series this week in Round 3 at Spa – only in sim racing will you see Verstappen take on IndyCar star Romain Grosjean.
In a surprise announcement, RaceRoom is also entering the world of truck racing for the first time.
In case you missed it…
WRC Generations is out now, marking the end of an era with KT Racing losing the WRC license. Does it end the series on a high? Find out our verdict in our WRC Generations review.
It wasn’t a smooth launch, however, as frustrated Xbox players were unable to play the Fully Loaded edition early as advertised. If you’re just getting started on your WRC journey, our WRC Generations beginner’s guide is filled with essential tips to help you get the perfect start.
We’ve also gone hands-on with Thrustmaster’s new T128 entry-level wheel. Find out why it’s the perfect Christmas present for younger players who want to make the jump to sim racing in our Thrustmaster T128 review.
We also look at what Codemasters needs to learn from F1 22’s disappointing reception.
This week also saw some exciting F1 Esports races, with Lucas Blakeley winning his third race of the season at Monza and a heated battle between Ronhaar and Rasmussen in Mexico. Catch up on all the action in our race reports for Round Seven and Round Eight of this thrilling season.