The most talked-about racers on mobile have a tendency to be flashy 3D games from sizable AAA developers. That said, there are a ton of great 2D racing games that offer just as much fun as the likes of Asphalt 9 and CSR Racing 2.
They tend to be very arcadey, silly, and full of intentionally ludicrous physics – the perfect blend for a good time. Some of these games are from developers that later went on to do huge projects, which is a target the creator of our first pick has their sights on.
And so, without further ado, let's take a moment to think about five of the very best 2D racing games for iOS and Android.
Before No Man's Sky, indie studio Hello Games was best known for its work on the Joe Danger series. In them, you play as stuntman Joe Danger, whose daredevil antics are now the stuff of legend.
You'll work your way through an extensive career mode, earning stars and unlocking new characters as you go. The whole thing is bursting with personality, and everything from the visuals to the physics system is polished to perfection.
Also, the runner spinoff Joe Danger Infinity could just as easily have ranked on this list.
Hill Climb Racing 2 is a terrific follow-up to Fingersoft's chaotic 2D racer. It serves up a great mix of silly humour and destructive arcade fun, with tons of upgrades for each of the game's weird and wild vehicles.
The physics system is intentionally ridiculous, though you'll gradually learn to master challenging jumps with relative ease. The courses are all fairly distinct, ranging from farmyards to snowy mountains.
To top it off, the character customisation is varied and surprisingly extensive, offering up a number of fun costumes to collect.
FRZ Racing is a comic-style retro racer that allows you to race through various tracks, controlling where your car goes, collecting coins and more. This racing game has a top-down viewpoint, which does change things up a bit. Sometimes there are even bridges and land that obscure your view of the road from the top, adding more intense moments into the game.
You can find a handful of different cars and bikes, but tons of locations and terrains to race through, as well as a multiplayer mode to fight against your friends.
Pumped BMX 3 is much more about performing impressive stunts than racing opponents to the finish line.
It's from the mind behind the recently released Trail Boss, which is also excellent, and it sees you gradually mastering your bike skills and completing a vast number of challenging courses.
The amount of control you have over the bike and your rider is super impressive, and it just feels amazing to pull off jumps, spins, and grinds so effortlessly.
Grand Prix Story is less of a straight-up racing game and more of a management game, where you attempt to manage an auto racing team! Your team needs to become the best of the best when it comes to racing - so you will need to manage them by training your drivers and collecting sponsors so that you can afford upgrades.
It's a simple game, but a very fun twist on the racing genre!
