After a dramatic season last year, Formula E returns this week. In what promises to be another thrilling season, the first 2022 Formula E World Championship race kicks off on 28 January in Diriyah, Saudi Arabia.
Codemasters releases a new Formula 1 game every year, with F1 2022 expected to launch this July. Formula E fans, on the other hand, are left out. The all-electric race series started in 2014, but apart from the Formula E High Voltage blockchain management game, there is still no officially licensed Formula E racing game.
Thankfully, Formula E cars feature in plenty of racing games to show what it’s like to drive these powerful electric race cars at the limit.
Forza Motorsport 7
Formula E cars made their console racing game debut in Forza Motorsport 5 back in 2014. While FM5 only featured one Formula E car as a free download (the Renault Spark SRT_01E). Ten Formula E cars from the 2014-2015 season were available in FM6 at launch in 2015.
In FM7, you can get behind the wheel of Formula E cars from the 2016-2017 season and race for teams including Mahindra Racing and Panasonic Jaguar Racing. FM7 also features a shortened version of the Long Beach E-Prix track from the 2014-15 and 2015-16 seasons.
Unfortunately, the Forza Motorsport back catalogue is now delisted, the only way to play the game if you don't already have it is to buy a second-hand copy.
rFactor 2
For PC players, rFactor 2 offers the most realistic, comprehensive, and up-to-date Formula E experience in a racing game. Introduced for the 2018–19 season, rFactor 2 lets you race the more powerful Gen2 Formula E cars. With 250 kW of power, Gen2 cars can accelerate from 0-62 mph in 2.8 seconds and reach a top speed of 174 mph.
2021 liveries were added to rFactor 2's Formula E cars last year. The update also added Attack Mode and energy management. Let’s hope the 2022 liveries for Season eight come soon.
As for tracks, rFactor 2 has a raft of official Formula E Championship street circuits to challenge you from Diriyah to Hong Kong.
Thanks to its realistic driving physics, some Formula E drivers use rFactor 2 to practice their skills. rFactor 2 is also used in Formula E: Accelerate, the official Formula E eSports championship. 24 of the world’s fastest sim racers battle it out on the virtual track in six races to win a chance to test drive a real Formula E Gen2 race car and a share of a minimum €100,000 (£112,923) prize pool.
Real Racing 3
You don’t have to own a PC or console to take a Formula E race car for a virtual spin in a racing game. Available on iOS and Android, Real Racing 3 lets you put the Gen2 Formula E car through its paces around tight and twisty street circuits in Hong Kong, Berlin and New York.
There are also race and time-trial challenges as well as an energy regeneration test requiring you to complete a lap with a fixed amount of power. Like rFactor 2, the Gen2 car was updated with Season 7 liveries for the 2021 season.
Motorsport Manager Online
Free to play on iOS and Android, Motorsport Manager Online lets you manage your own Formula E team.
You'll make important team decisions from hiring drivers and upgrading cars, to implementing race strategies ordering drivers when to push hard and use Attack Mode. All official teams and drivers from the 2020/21 Formula E season are included.