This evening I received an invitation for iRacing from one of the fine gentlemen in the rFactor league I run with. When I first heard about iRacing a few years ago I was very excited. I ran in a Grand Prix Legends league for a couple of years, and it was my introduction to online sim racing. iRacing is made by the same people that made Grand Prix Legends, and they’ve been working on it for around the last 4-5 years (maybe more). iRacing is so radically different from every other racing sim, I don’t even know how to properly describe it. Let me put it this way: if you’re not a hardcore sim racer then stay away from this. It has a monthly subscription fee starting at $13, and it comes with very few cars and tracks to choose from. When you first purchase the game you start with a rookie license, and only 2 cars to choose from.
When I first found this out a few weeks ago I was appalled that you don’t get more for your money. But after spending the last 3 solid hours with this game I can fully understand what they’re doing here. This isn’t Project Gotham Racing. This isn’t Forza. This is a tight community where you have to earn your right to race. This works just like any form of real racing. If you constantly smash up your car you’re never going graduate to the next license level, and you won’t get the faster cars. You can purchase more cars and tracks, but that’s not the point of this game. This really is a simulation. With only 2 cars and a handful of tracks to start with it gives you the chance to figure out how each car works on each track, without being overwhelmed with dozens of cars to learn. Speaking of cars, this is my baby in iRacing: the #32 Pontiac Solstice.
So far I have only participated in 1 full race event, but it was intense. Every time you drive off the track, or make contact with another car you get points taken off your license. You need these points to progress through the different licenses, so you need to drive as cleanly as possible. My race took place at the Lime Rock Park circuit. It’s a decent beginners track with a short lap time of just over a minute and not very many corners. I managed to qualify 2nd and started on the front row. When the lights turned green I got the jump on the field and was in the lead by the first turn. I managed to hold the lead until I spun a couple of laps in. Oops, a spin cost me some points… time to ease off and finish in one piece. Once the dust had settled and the race was over I finished in 3rd place. I spun a few times and had a few excursions onto the grass, but I managed to earn points towards my license, so it was a net gain. I learned a lot from this first race, and I can’t wait to play again tomorrow night. 
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