GT Formula Championship

Summary

Strap into an open-wheel racer and take on a field of AI drivers across a selection of scenic circuits lined with rocky mountains. GT Formula Championship offers a laid-back take on formula racing that trades the planted precision of typical F1 games for a floatier, “car-like” feel, making it great for beginners and fun to throw around.

The handling is loose enough that you can yank the handbrake (which isn’t something you’d normally expect from a single-seater!) and get the back end out on tight corners, and you also get to rip a huge burnout from the start line.

Combined with a selection of cosmetic mods that would look more at home on a drift car than a formula machine, it’s a quirky, fun, and quick game that doesn’t take itself too seriously. However, it won’t offer too much of a competitive challenge for experienced racing fans.

GT Formula Championship features

• Release date – April 20, 2025
• Difficulty – Beginner
• Levels/environments – 3
• Number of vehicles – 3
• Vehicle customization/upgrades – Yes (cosmetic only)
• Multiplayer – No
• Mobile – Yes (but no on-screen controls)
• Developer – Breymantech

Physics

The cars feel floatier and less grippy than you’d expect from a typical formula racer. Where most browser-based F1 games opt for a glued-to-the-tarmac approach and handle like they’re on rails, GT Formula Championship’s cars sit higher and handle more like a road car. With that said, the steering lock is minimal (as you’d expect), so you’ll still need to brake into corners rather than trying to muscle through them, or you’ll likely end up in the barriers.

A fun addition here is the spacebar handbrake (which is super rare for a formula racing game). It kicks the rear end out and lets you take tighter lines through the corners, which is helpful if you’ve gone in with too much speed. Anyone who’s spent time enjoying our drifting games will appreciate the ability to get the back end out when the limited steering angle isn’t cutting it!

Graphics

GT Formula Championship’s visuals are decent for a browser game, especially with ‘Realtime Reflection’ cranked up to ‘High’ in the options. The car models have realistic open-wheel proportions, and each track brings something unique to the table, from bright Alpine scenery with mountains and balloons on Level 1, to a darker, moodier circuit on Level 2, and an autumnal course with red and orange trees on Level 3.

You will, however, occasionally notice glitchy patches of grass bleeding through the track surface, which is more noticeable from certain camera angles than others (and varies by track). It’s not a dealbreaker, but it certainly looks a little rough and unfinished in places. Overall, as far as browser-based driving games go, it sits somewhere in the middle. While it’s certainly not the worst, it won’t be competing with some of the stunning alternatives like Drift Hunters MAX and UNBOUNDED anytime soon.

Several camera views are available (toggled with the C key), including a bird’s-eye perspective, a nose cam, and the default rear-follow view.

GT Formula Championship controls

PC/laptop/Chromebook

• W/Up arrow – Accelerate
• S/Down arrow – Brake/reverse
• A/Left arrow – Steer left
• D/Right arrow – Steer right
• Space – Handbrake
• C – Change camera
• Esc – Pause/menu

The options menu also lists ‘Joystick’ and ‘Accelerometer’ control types, but we weren’t able to verify whether these work reliably.

Mobile/tablet (iOS/Android)

While the game loads on mobile devices, there are no on-screen controls, making it unplayable on touchscreens during our testing. If you were hoping to play on your portable devices, Grand Extreme Racing (arguably) offers the best formula racing experience, with full touch controls and way more content than what’s on offer here.

If you fancy something completely different, we’ve also got plenty of other mobile-friendly games that are well worth checking out.

How to play GT Formula Championship

Initial setup

The main menu gives you ‘Start’ and ‘Options’. Head to ‘Options’ first to crank ‘Realtime Reflection’ up to ‘High’ for the best visuals (you can drop it back down if performance suffers). You’ll also find toggles for ‘Display FPS’, ‘Position UI’, ‘Show Local Position’, and ‘Dynamic Camera’, along with a music volume slider.

‘Control Type’ defaults to ‘Arrow Keys’, which is the best option when using a keyboard. There’s also an ‘Accelerometer Sensibility’ slider (yes, sensibility, not sensitivity!) that adjusts tilt sensitivity for compatible devices, but since we weren’t able to apply the throttle due to lack of on-screen controls, we couldn’t test it.

When you’re ready, click ‘Start’, and you’ll see the three tracks on offer. Level 1 is free, Level 2 costs 1,000, and Level 3 costs 2,000 to unlock. Select Level 1, and you’ll be taken to the garage, where you’ll find the option to customize your ride, which we’ll cover in more detail below.

Getting started

You’ll begin at the back of a five-car grid. The HUD shows your position and lap count in the top left, with a rev gauge displaying speed and current gear (the gearbox is fully automatic, so don’t worry about shifting). Current driver standings are found on the right.

The races are three laps, and your four AI opponents (Alex, David, Harry, and Jack) are friendly enough (and maybe slightly disappointing) competition. Even with the stock car, you’ll likely pull ahead within the first lap.

At the end of each race, a first-place finish earns you 3,000, which is enough to unlock the most expensive car or both remaining tracks (the content really is that thin!). Try holding the throttle from the start line to rip a cool burnout and launch off in a cloud of tire smoke. It’ll cost you a bit of speed, but it’s totally worth it, and you’ll likely make it up soon after.

The AI is more unpredictable than fast, and they act like they’re trying to get arrested for DUI. They’ll often bash into you, swerve off onto the grass, and make sparks fly as you rub wheels.

Don’t panic – there’s no damage here, so you don’t need to worry about pitting or smashing precious aero components. If that comes as a disappointment, you’ll want to check out our Stunts & Crash games category, where you’ll find a selection of awesome games like Deadly Descent, where you’ll get to smash your car to bits and make it barely recognizable.

Alternatively, if you’d prefer to go up against aggressive and competitive rivals who’ll fight for every corner, check out Super Star Car. This F1-style alternative offers high-intensity wheel-to-wheel racing across 14 tracks with a full career ladder and real F1 team liveries.

Car list

There are three formula cars, each with a fixed color. The starter is free and comes in pale blue/purple. It’s perfectly capable of winning every race in the game, so don’t feel pressured to upgrade right away if you’d rather explore the tracks on offer.

Car two costs 2,000 and offers a classic red livery (which should be a little more familiar to F1 fans!).

At 3,000, the priciest option is… beige. Despite being the top-shelf car, it doesn’t really feel any different from the others. All three share the same cosmetic options, and performance is near-identical, so my recommendation is to go with whichever color appeals most.

Understandably, having three very similar cars won’t appeal to everyone. Thankfully, you can find many more car games at Drifted with garages dozens of times this size.

Customization

The garage lets you mod each car with three cosmetic categories and a suspension height slider, which stanced drift car fans will be pleased to see.

The confusingly-named ‘Ring’ lets you swap out the wheels with four options. They’re all oversized, multi-spoke designs that look more suited to a lowrider than a GP car (but honestly, it kind of works!).

‘Spoiler’ offers five rear wing choices, ranging from subtle to full-on drift-car wings that you’d expect to see on a Silvia rather than a single-seater.

‘Roof’ adds various vent designs, all of which are purely cosmetic (don’t expect too much from the aero in this game), with subtle differences between them.

The ‘Suspension’ slider is the most fun option. Slide it left to slam the ride height (it goes super low), or right if you’d prefer an off-road stance. We’d recommend setting it just above the lowest point, as going full-slam risks smashing the underside.

There are no paint changes, performance upgrades, or engine tuning options. However, if you’re keen to upgrade a Formula car, head over to Formula Traffic Racer, which lets you upgrade the engine and handling while having heaps of fun weaving through highway traffic at insane speeds.

Advanced tips & tricks

Don’t overthink your spending strategy

Since a single win on Level 1 will let you unlock a decent chunk of the game, there’s no need to grind away or replay races. Just spend freely and grab whatever catches your eye first.

Set the suspension just above the lowest point

While it’s tempting to slam the ride height all the way down (and it does look cool), going too low risks bottoming out on the track, which can slow you down at the most inconvenient moments. A slight slide to the right above the lowest setting typically provides the best balance of style and performance, while letting you use the kerbs to your advantage when aiming for perfection on the racing line.

Stick to the tarmac at all costs

Going off-track and onto the grass will destroy your speed if you put even a wheel on it, and the AI will happily cruise past while you’re stuck crawling back onto the asphalt. If another car pushes you wide, it’s often better to brake hard and fight to stay on the track than attempt to cut a corner through the greenery.

Unlock the later tracks before buying new cars

Since all three cars perform almost identically, consider unlocking the tracks first. If you can win on Level 1, you can unlock them both immediately with your earnings. Level 2 features a slippier track (thanks to recent rainfall) with more punishing off-track areas, while Level 3 brings a misty fall setting, making it harder to see what’s coming up as you blast your way through the autumnal colors on the trees.

Once you’ve squeezed everything out of this one, Drifted has tons more racing games ready and waiting. Polytrack is a must-play for anyone keen to prove their racing skills, offering an addictively simple low-poly racer where you’ll get to fight for a position on the global leaderboards.

GT Formula Championship FAQ