You've heard of the most advanced racing simulator on the market. And now, your curiosity has peaked and you want to know, is iRacing Free? You're probably familiar by now with the iRacing membership system.
But here's the thing, iRacing technically is free to own, but not to play. Since you don't pay anything for the game itself, rather the membership and services it provides.
So, let's take a look at iRacing and what users will expect
The iRacing membership
As we discussed before, with no base price to pay for the game, iRacing's primary pay wall lies in the membership subscription. The players pay for the subscription getting access to cars, circuits, the members' site, and of course, playing the game.
So in reality, the answer is no, iRacing costs a monthly subscription, much like PlayStation Plus being required for you to play online.
The iRacing membership grants you some additional goods. It grants you a number of cars and tracks for free! You can find the list of cars and tracks here. Each additional track however costs between $11.95 or $14.95. And each additional car costs you $11.95. Surprisingly, each is around the price of one month of subscription, at its standard price of $13.99!
The good and the bad
On one hand, this kind of membership system means that loyal fans and iRacing enthusiasts will be spending a lot of money, but more casual players can get to experience the game for less than the price of an average game! That is considering they subscribed for one or two months.
This kind of system is also a good way to gauge the current interest of the player base in the game. Subscriber growth would be an indication that they are heading in the right direction. This a really good way to tell how good they're doing at managing the game and keeping the content fresh!
iRacing is not free
At the end of the day, paying for a monthly subscription that is mandatory kind of makes you disregard the fact that getting the game itself is free. It's essentially, just not really of any use.
On the bright side, however, is that iRacing conducts discounts, bundles, and deals, on their website. All of which help you play your favourite game without setbacks!
All in all, the iRacing experience is rightfully said by many to be quite costly. On the bright side, iRacing accommodates its fanbase by keeping the games easy to run. So you're only one paywall away from playing your favourite racing simulator!
For more news, opinions and inquiries on iRacing, make sure to tune in here again at Racing Games!