Welcome to Rear View Mirror, your weekly racing game news roundup. Join us as we shift into reverse and look back at the last week of racing game news.
Want to know everything that happened in the world of racing games this week? Get up to speed in our latest weekly roundup.
This week saw Frontier reveal the first F1 Manager 2023 details, a major new tuning option added to Gran Turismo 7, and the WRC 23 release date leaked early. We’ve also been hands-on with F1 23 to find out how this year’s F1 game is fairing.
F1 23 hands-on preview
F1 23 is nearly here. This year’s official F1 game brings a new F1 World hub mode replacing F1 22’s F1 Life alongside the return of Braking Point and the new Las Vegas Street Circuit. Under the bonnet, Codemasters has also made significant improvements to the physics.
Codemasters says the car handling is more predictable and easier to play on a pad thanks to new Precision Drive technology.
To find out if these claims are true, we’ve taken an early preview build of F1 23 for a spin to try out the new physics. Find out our thoughts on F1 23’s revamped handling in our hands-on preview.
F1 Manager 2023 revealed
After it was announced a few weeks ago with a logo reveal, this week saw the full reveal of F1 Manager 2023. F1 Manager 2022 was a promising start for the series, but F1 Manager 2023 is set to improve on last year’s game in every way.
A new Race Replay lets you relieve key highlights of the 2023 Formula 1 season. Sprint races are also finally added along with the ability to hire Sporting Directors.
We’ve been hands-on with F1 Manager 2023 and came away impressed with the deeper management options.
Gran Turismo 7 May 2023 update brings buyable engine swaps
Gran Turismo 7’s May 2023 update is here. Along with adding three new cars including the 1967 Alfa Romeo Giulia Sprint GT Veloce, 1990 Nissan GT-R NISMO (R32) and Greening Auto Company Maverick, May’s update brings a long-requested tuning option: you can finally buy engine swaps for any eligible car.
Previously, engine swaps were only available by chance as you had to win them in roulette tickets, so this is a very welcome addition.
You can find out more in the Gran Turismo 7 update 1.34 patch notes.
In other racing game news…
It’s been a bumper week for F1 23 updates. As we get closer to release, Codemasters’ de;ayed F1 23 deep dive provided new details about Braking Point 2 and F1 World. We also got a first look at the new Las Vegas Strip Circuit in an extended gameplay video.
Coinciding with GT7’s monthly update, this week saw the release of the new Forza Horizon 5 Explore the Horizon Series.
Featuring an Overlanding theme, Explore the Horizon brings six new cars to Forza Horizon 5 including the electric GMC Hummer EV, plus new photo mode upgrades and customisation options. You can find out more in the Explore the Horizon patch notes here.
WRC 23 could be just around the corner. While Codemasters’ and EA’s first official WRC game hasn’t been announced yet, a datamine leak suggests WRC 23 will release in July a few weeks after F1 23.
PC players can also download a surprise free car in the latest Assetto Corsa Competizione update.
Forza Motorsport has been quiet for a while, but the cover cars have now been revealed.
In case you missed it…
After months of silence, KT Racing has released new Test Drive Unlimited Solar Crown updates in monthly newsletters. From the Solar Crown Hotel to dealerships and car customisation, we’ve gathered every recent TDUSC update into one handy video.
As always, you can check out our weekly guides on Forza Horizon 5’s festival playlist, Photo Challenge and Treasure Hunt, as well as the latest GT7 Daily Races.