Try this. Close your eyes and think about the most iconic car that you have seen in a video game. Does it resemble the shape of a 2001 BMW race car with blue and silver body wrap? Or does it wear a Nissan badge? Now we are talking.
The car culture has vastly benefitted from pop culture, giving us some iconic one-off vehicles that brought out the best of those icons on wheels. Be it Paul Walker’s legendary Toyota Supra, the Bullitt Mustang, the Back To The Future Delorean or the countless Nissan sports cars of the era driven by movie stars in various other films and TV shows, these one-off ‘hero’ cars have given enthusiasts something to look upon.
Video games have contributed equally to this cause. Creators have showcased their love for automotive icons by either featuring them in stock or custom variants, the latter achieving cult status most of the time. Need For Speed Most Wanted (2005) gave us the iconic BMW M3 GTR, a vehicle whose fan following led to countless reappearances in subsequent instalments of the series. It even led a handful of BMW M3 E46 owners to recreate the car in reality.
On the other side of the spectrum, we have seen several sports cars in their stock iteration putting smiles on the faces of millions of young gamers. Cars like the Nissan GT-R have allowed its manufacturer to join hands with video game developer Sony to create GT Academy, a unique racing championship that puts gamers behind the steering wheel of race-bred sports cars.
But the Nissan GT-R and the BMW M3 GTR aren’t the only cars we are fond of. There are more.
Hence, we curated a list of the best cars in video games that have inspired millions of fans across the world and fostered an ever-evolving community of car lovers.
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Best cars in video games
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Games: Need For Speed Most Wanted (2005)
The BMW M3 GTR E46 was born a race-bred icon in 2000 but Electronic Arts gave it the legendary status in 2005’s Need For Speed Most Wanted. This iconic car wearing the sliver-blue body wrap took over every car enthusiast’s imagination and continues to be worshipped two decades later.
Although the Most Wanted version was portrayed as the fastest car around the city streets of Rockport (a fictional city), the real-life version helped BMW dominate the American Le Mans Series in 2001. After the regulations banned it for the following season, the race car went on to dominate European tracks for the next few years. As part of the homologation requirements, BMW created 10 road-legal versions under the guise of the BMW M3 GTR STRASSENVERSION, using the same race-bred V8 engine. The road version had to be detuned to 350 hp but BMW didn’t offer radio, air conditioning and no rear seats.
(Image Credits: BMW)
Games: Need For Speed Underground 2
The Nissan 350Z achieved its cult status in the mid-2000s after several movies and video games featured it as a drift-happy two-door sports coupe. It was, however, the Need For Speed Underground 2 custom rendition that most video game fans go gaga about.
The Rachel-spec green 350Z with a custom wide body kit and a huge spoiler made this car such a great visual spectacle in the game. While it never achieved the cult status of the Most Wanted BMW M3 GTR, the Underground 2 350Z has been a part of several DLC packs in future versions of NFS games. Nissan gave the 350Z a powerful 3.5-litre V6 engine and a finely balanced chassis that made it an instant hit with enthusiasts, long after its discontinuation.
Games: Driver San Francisco, Need For Speed Carbon, Forza Horizon and Motorsport series
The Dodge Challenger R/T needs no introduction. Throughout the several past decades, the Challenger R/T has been a raging hit on the streets of prominent US cities and drag strips. While it became frequently visible on TV shows and movies, it made it to the cover of Driver San Francisco.
Unlike the Need For Speed versions, Driver San Francisco stuck to the stock version of the car and never encouraged modifications. Need For Speed Carbon didn’t feature it as its hero car but the 1970 Challenger R/T allowed it for extensive customisation and performance upgrades. Later releases in the Forza Motorsport and Forza Horizon series also included the vehicle in stock conditions.
Games: Gran Turismo series, Need For Speed series, Forza Horizon and Motorsport series
The Nissan Skyline GT-R R34 is one of the most popular video game cars to have ever existed. Be it the legendary Need For Speed series, the iconic Gran Turismo series, Forza Motorsport and Horizon series and various other lineups, the Skyline GT-R has always been a vehicle you choose to win races.
While it wasn’t pretty, the R34 was sought after for its legendary RB26DETT 2.6-litre inline-six engine that was not only durable but tuning-friendly. Coupled with Nissan’s performance-centric all-wheel-drive system and an easy-to-use digital access interface, this car continues to be a highly sought-after vehicle in the street and professional car racing scene.
(Image Credits: Nissan)
Games: Need For Speed, Forza Horizon and Gran Turismo series
Ever since its introduction in 1964, the Ford Mustang took the world by storm and dominated the streets of most developed nations worldwide. Its impact on pop culture has been huge and through several generations of the car, the Mustang remains an icon in the hearts of enthusiasts. It was, however, the 2005 generation Mustang that dominated the video game scene for over a decade.
The 2005 Mustang regularly featured in racing games from the mid-2000s and made it to the cover of Need For Speed: The Run in 2011 in its Shelby GT500 guise. It went on to be featured as the default choice for cop cars in several PC and mobile racing games. Once Ford released the 2015 generation, the Mustang and its beefy Shelby variants continued featuring in popular racing games on all platforms. The latest generation Mustang and its Dark Horse variant have already made their way into Forza Horizon 5.
If there’s a racing game on your PC or phone, chances are high that you will find a Mustang in it.
(Image Credits: Ford)
Games: Need For Speed series, Gran Turismo series, Forza Horizon and Motorsport series
Is that a Supra? Oh yeah!
Unlike the Nissan Skyline, the Supra’s popularity came from the motorsports scene and pop culture lapped it up soon after. The car rose to superstar fame in The Fast and the Furious (2001) and soon after, video games started featuring it as a tuner-friendly car that can be modded beyond imagination. The Supra has featured regularly in games from the Need For Speed series, Gran Turismo series, Forza Motorsport and Horizon series, Assetto Corsa and more.
The legendary 2JZ engine from Toyota has proven to be a reliable motor that can be modified with forced induction to extract higher power output, thereby resulting in more performance.
(Image Credits: Toyota)
Games: Forza Horizon 5, The Crew Motorfest
The Ford Bronco was resurrected from the dead as a big 4×4 off-roader and sure enough, the video game world couldn’t contain itself from giving it the hero status. Featuring on the cover of Forza Horizon 5 alongside the Mercedes AMG Project One, the Bronco is portrayed as a high-performance two-door off-roader capable of taking on challenging terrain.
The Bronco in the real world is a rugged off-roader providing the versatility to remove its roof panels, just like the Hummer EV. Although the standard model features a 2.3-litre EcoBoost inline-four-cylinder engine, the more sought-after powertrain is the 3.0-litre EcoBoost V6 engine making 418 hp and 440 pound-feet of torque. The Bronco Raptor with its four-wheel drive system and the V6 engine can take on any terrain drivers throw at it.
(Image Credits: Ford)
Games: Need For Speed series, Gran Turismo series, Forza Horizon and Motorsport series
When BBC Top Gear journalist Jeremy Clarkson tested the Nissan GT-R around the test track, it almost tore off his face with its unmatched grip and insane acceleration. Hence, ever since the GT-R arrived on the scene, it was seen as a furious sports car designed to go lightning fast.
Since then, the Nissan GT-R has featured in almost all popular racing video games as the vehicle you usually choose to win a race easily. Future Nismo variants raised the ceiling of performance to astronomical levels and in the hands of master tuners, the V6 engine along with advanced forced induction could make close to 1,000 hp.
The Nissan GT-R is now on the verge of extinction owing to emission regulations but the world of car enthusiasts expects Nissan to give us another GT-R with hybrid technology to obliterate Tesla’s lightning-fast EVs.
(Image Credits: Nissan)
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(Hero and Featured Image Credits: Courtesy Electronic Arts)
