Forza 3 and/or NfS Shift

I would get Forza 3. It has been out for over a year now, and you should be able to find it fairly cheap at this point. It is a really great game. The handling of the cars, the sounds, the livery editor, photo mode, etc. There is a lot to like in that game. Forza 4 isn't going to be coming out until much later this year, so between now and then you could get a lot of good time with Forza 3.

Shift, on the other hand, is a weird game, in my opinion. It falls into this weird in between zone for racers. It isn't really a full-on arcade racer, but it isn't a super realistic sim racer either. And that is the biggest problem I have with it. I like both arcade and sim racing games, but this one just feels off because it tries to be both at once. Now, granted, I haven't played a TON of the game, but what I have so far is not really that fun, personally.

If you want an arcade racer, you really can't go wrong with either of the recent games from Criterion; Burnout Paradise or NFS Hot Pursuit. I own Paradise on PS3 and Hot Pursuit on 360, and they are both very fun games. Unlike Shift, both of those games KNOW they are arcade racers, and fully exploit that with excellent gameplay. Paradise is fun for all those classic "Burnout" elements; speed, boost, crashes, drifting, etc. The online mode is excellent as well. Hot Pursuit is an awesome throwback to the NFS games of old. You can race as either Racer or Cop, and both have their own specific event types. The online mode in it is excellent as well. Either of those games would be a good purchase.

So, my suggestion would be to buy Forza 3 for your sim racing needs, and then either Burnout Paradise or NFS Hot Pursuit for your arcade racing fix.

Dr. McKay said:

NFS Hot Pursuit : I'm sure it's a great game, but the lack of a cockpit and/or hood view is a deal breaker for me.

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I always play racing games in "Front Bumber Cam" but I play Hot Pursuit in "Chase" cam mode. It was a little odd at first, but its the best view for controlling drifts and avoiding objects. But if you are dead-set on wanting a cockpit or hood view, then yea, skip it.

Dr. McKay said:

And what about Project Gotham 4 ?

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I've only played small amounts of PGR4, but I know many people rave about it. It is more arcadey than Forza, and as it has been out for quite a while, I'm sure it can be found for next to nothing these days. Probably worth picking up just for its low price.

Other than that, I haven't played too many more racers on the 360. I did play the BLUR demo when it was out, and that game was quite fun. It is essentially Mario Kart, but you are racing in real cars, not go-karts. Sounds weird, but it was quite fun. Though, if you say you don't like Burnout games because of the crashy nature of them, you might not like BLUR, because with all the weapons and powerups, you do crash a lot. Just a thought.