Project Motor Racing Review

Incredible Foundations Undercut by Frustrating Decisions

The sim-racing world has been waiting for a genuine new contender on Xbox — something bold, authentic, and built on a true understanding of what makes motorsport thrilling. Project Motor Racing, with its rich pedigree and loud ambitions, seemed poised to fill that gap. It promised razor-sharp physics, real-world circuits, deep vehicle dynamics and a career mode shaped around authenticity and progression. On paper, it’s the kind of release petrolheads dream about.

But while the ambition is clear from the moment the lights go out, the execution often falls short. Project Motor Racing is a game defined by two clashing identities: a brilliant, rewarding driving model wrapped inside a presentation layer that feels unfinished, with design choices that frequently hinder rather than enhance the experience.

This is a racer with enormous potential — but it also demands a level of patience most Xbox players simply won’t have.

Handling & Physics – The Game’s Biggest Triumph (After latest Patch Update)

Let’s start with what Project Motor Racing does exceptionally well: the driving.

From the moment you take your first corner, the game’s physics engine makes its intentions known. Cars feel heavy, planted, and reactive in ways that echo the best sim experiences on PC. Weight transfer is beautifully conveyed; understeer and oversteer appear naturally; braking points feel intuitive; and throttle control really matters. Push too hard and you’ll pay for it. Nail a corner sequence and the satisfaction is immense.

Every car class — from historic GT machinery to modern hypercars and prototypes — has its own character. Differences aren’t cosmetic; they’re mechanical, audible, and tangible.

This is the closest the game comes to greatness, and anyone who loves sim handling will instantly recognise the pedigree behind the wheel. It’s deep, rewarding, and punishes sloppiness with the kind of brutal honesty sim fans adore.

For players using a steering wheel, the experience is even better. Force feedback is detailed and textured; you can feel tyres load up or give way. Project Motor Racing, at its best, delivers an outstanding wheel experience.

If the entire game matched the quality of its physics, we’d be talking about a serious rival to the giants out there in the world of Sim Racing.

Career Mode – Great Concept, Poor Execution

Unfortunately, the quality dips sharply once you move away from the on-track action. Project Motor Racing’s career mode, while ambitious on paper, is simply not ready for primetime.

The idea is excellent:

• Start as a low-budget amateur

• Manage finances

• Choose sponsors

• Pick events strategically

• Progress through racing categories

• Deal with long-term consequences of mistakes

It should feel like a real racing journey.

But in practice, the mode feels flat and lifeless. Presentation is basic, menus are bland, and the progression structure lacks personality. There’s no sense of drama, no build-up to major events, no off-track flavour. Everything blends together, and races arrive one after another with minimal narrative or excitement.

To make matters worse, the user interface feels dated and under-designed. It’s functional, but lacks the polish you expect from a modern sim. It doesn’t elevate the experience — it merely functions.

Racing is supposed to be thrilling. Career mode should reflect that. Here, it rarely does.

Difficulty Settings – A Decision That Hurts the Entire Game

One of the most baffling design choices in Project Motor Racing is the rigid approach to difficulty.

Once you select your difficulty setting at the start of your career, you cannot change it later.
There is no mid-career adjustment.
No event-by-event flexibility.
No way to fix a mistake without restarting the entire mode.

If you find the AI too easy? Tough.
If you’re stuck because they’re too difficult? Also tough.

This lack of flexibility feels outdated and discouraging — especially in a sim built around improving your skills. Players evolve as they learn. PMR doesn’t allow for that growth, forcing an all-or-nothing mindset.

Combined with inconsistent AI, this rigidity damages the career experience more than any other flaw.

AI Behaviour – Unpredictable Across Race Scenarios

AI opponents in Project Motor Racing are a mixed bag.

Sometimes they behave well:
• Braking realistically
• Holding proper racing lines
• Offering genuine strategic challenge

Other times, they’re erratic:
• Braking far too early
• Divebombing in illogical situations
• Weaving unpredictably
• Ignoring your positioning

This inconsistency can ruin longer races or championship events, especially when the AI’s behaviour feels disconnected from the otherwise excellent physics model.

AI is notoriously difficult to perfect, but PMR’s inconsistency stands out — and rarely in a good way.

Presentation & Visual Polish – Failing to Match the Physics

Where the gameplay excels, the visuals… often don’t.

Project Motor Racing simply does not look like a polished next-gen racer. Trackside details lack depth. Lighting is flat. Weather effects struggle to impress. Even car reflections — usually a sim-racing highlight — can appear muted.

Additionally, menus and HUD elements lack style and clarity. Everything feels functional but uninspired, undermining the game’s atmosphere.

Given the effort clearly poured into the physics, the presentation feels noticeably dated, even unfinished.

Achievements & Authentic Mode – Excellent Idea, Deeply Disappointing Execution

Perhaps the most frustrating aspect of Project Motor Racing is its achievement structure.

A very large number of achievements — including some major progression ones — are locked exclusively behind Authentic Mode, the game’s hardest and most restrictive way to play. Authentic Mode removes assists, increases physics severity, tightens rules, and demands near-perfect control.

While this mode is a wonderful option for hardcore sim players, tying so many achievements to it is a fundamental design mistake.

Authentic Mode is brutally difficult — not just for casual racers, but even for highly skilled sim drivers. Some reviewers and players have already suggested that completing the achievement list is genuinely unattainable for 90–95% of the Xbox player base.

Achievements should:
✔ Encourage experimentation
✔ Reward progress
✔ Celebrate success

They should not:
✘ Punish players for choosing a reasonable difficulty
✘ Force every player into the hardest mode
✘ Create a barrier most will never realistically overcome

This decision alienates far too many players and casts a shadow over the game’s progression system. It feels exclusionary, unnecessarily punishing, and misaligned with how Xbox audiences typically engage with achievements.

The idea of Authentic Mode is excellent — but the achievement design is one of the game’s biggest missteps.

Online Racing – Where the Game Shows Real Promise

Despite its offline frustrations, Project Motor Racing shines when you’re racing real people.

Online racing feels dynamic, intense and rewarding. With crossplay and structured events, PMR creates competitive moments where its physics engine really comes to life. Clean racing matters. Mistakes matter. Wheel-to-wheel battles become thrilling chess matches.

With future updates and better matchmaking structures, PMR’s online mode could become a key part of its identity. Right now, it’s already one of the game’s strongest pillars.

Verdict – A Brilliant Sim Trapped in an Unfinished Shell

Project Motor Racing is a game of contradictions.

Its physics are outstanding, offering one of the most satisfying driving experiences available on Xbox today. Its car classes feel distinct. Its tracks are enjoyable. Its wheel support is impressive.

But everything surrounding that driving model — career mode, presentation, accessibility, AI behaviour, achievement design — simply isn’t ready.

There is real potential here. With updates, patches, and refinements, PMR could grow into a top-tier sim racing title. But at launch, and after a hefty Patch it’s a game that feels more like a promising foundation than a complete package.

For now, Project Motor Racing is a sim with brilliance under the hood, and frustration everywhere else.

“Project Motor Racing delivers exceptional driving, but its surrounding systems desperately need work before it can challenge the best on Xbox.”