art of rally, a top-down R.C. Pro-Am II alternative for desktop

Switch Online got R.C. Pro-Am II. Desktop players deserve the same

Nintendo just added R.C. Pro-Am II to the Switch Online library, and the response has been louder than the Rare reissue deserved. The 1992 NES racer still holds up because it does two things almost no modern game does: bird’s-eye camera plus bump-your-neighbor combat, with pickups you buy between races.

We picked seven R.C. Pro-Am II alternatives that live on desktop. Some are literal spiritual successors with top-down cameras; some borrow the arcade rhythm and just move the camera behind the car. All are on Steam or a publisher store, all run on Windows, and most have current macOS and Linux builds too. Prices reflect current listings; sales bring most of them well below the sticker.

Quick comparison

Game Best for Free demo Starting price Standout feature
art of rally Top-down rally Yes Under $25 typical Overhead camera, real WRC-style courses
Circuit Superstars Top-down circuit racing Yes Under $20 typical 3D top-down, seasons and career
Absolute Drift Score-attack drifting No Under $10 typical Isometric camera, tight controls
Horizon Chase 2 Retro chase-cam arcade Yes Under $25 typical Cross-platform online, split-screen
Speed Limit Frantic pursuit arcade Yes Under $10 typical Genre-switching, side-scrolling to top-down
Retro Machina Isometric arcade action No Under $20 typical Not racing, but pure Rare-style vibes
Wreckfest Contact-heavy racing No Under $30 typical Damage model, bump-and-drift heavyweight

What made R.C. Pro-Am II worth reviving

Three specific things stand out in the Rare Replay commentary and the Nintendo Life retrospective.

Top-down camera made the whole track legible

You never lost your car in traffic, you always knew where the next turn was, and pickups on the track were visible without needing minimap glances. Modern racers rarely try this angle.

Between-race pickup shop rewarded planning

The prize money went straight into missiles, oil, and better tires. Every race changed your loadout. Modern arcade racers hide that loop under season passes and grind.

Four-player couch chaos was the point

Rare built R.C. Pro-Am II for local multiplayer first. Modern desktop racing games often forget split-screen exists. The picks below either bring it back or offer online with matchmaking that actually works.

The alternatives

art of rally, best for the true top-down feel

art of rally is the closest thing to a modern R.C. Pro-Am on desktop. The camera sits overhead in a lifted 3/4 view, the cars are stylized WRC classics, and the tracks recreate real rally stages in Finland, Sardinia, Kenya, and Japan. Weather changes mid-stage, tires wear, and the soundtrack is legitimately great.

Where it falls short: No wheel-to-wheel racing; this is stage rally, so you race the clock. Multiplayer is asynchronous ghost times, not real-time.

Pricing:

Migrating from R.C. Pro-Am II: Overhead camera lands instantly. What you give up is the combat and item pickups; what you gain is real physics, tire choice, and stage design that punishes bad braking.

Download: Steam · Epic Games Store · GOG

Bottom line: Pick this if the overhead camera is what you loved and you can live without the missiles.

Circuit Superstars, best for wheel-to-wheel top-down

Circuit Superstars puts the camera back overhead and gives you real racing. Formula cars, GT cars, prototypes, and go-karts on 2D-ish tracks with 3D physics. Tire wear, fuel, and pit stops matter, and the career mode drops you into a season structure with actual championships.

Where it falls short: Small track roster at launch, though DLC seasons have added a lot. Online matchmaking outside peak hours is thin.

Pricing:

Migrating from R.C. Pro-Am II: Same overhead read of the track, same “cut inside on the apex” instinct. Difference is realistic physics; you cannot bump anymore without losing time.

Download: Steam

Bottom line: Pick this if you want wheel-to-wheel top-down racing with a real career mode.

Absolute Drift, best for pure precision

Absolute Drift is a minimalist isometric drifting game with tight controls, a score attack loop, and a soundtrack that hums along. There is no traffic and no combat; you learn one drift line at a time. The Zen Edition adds tracks, cars, and quality-of-life polish over the original.

Where it falls short: Solo-only, and the aesthetic is so pared down that some players bounce in the first hour.

Pricing:

Migrating from R.C. Pro-Am II: Camera angle is close but higher. Steering feels weightier. Give it an hour before deciding.

Download: Steam

Bottom line: Pick this if you want a short game to master over a week of evenings.

Horizon Chase 2, best for retro arcade chase-cam

Horizon Chase 2 is a spiritual successor to Top Gear and Lotus Turbo Challenge. The camera is behind the car, not overhead, but the arcade feel is pure early-90s. Split-screen for up to four players locally, cross-platform online, and a soundtrack from Barry Leitch, who scored the original Top Gear.

Where it falls short: Camera is not overhead like R.C. Pro-Am II, so purists will notice. Physics are firmly arcade; no rally-style simulation here.

Pricing:

Migrating from R.C. Pro-Am II: Not the same angle, but the same energy. Split-screen with three friends and a 90-minute cup arc gets you the couch-multiplayer part back.

Download: Steam · Epic Games Store

Bottom line: Pick this if you have friends over and want a couch cup on a big TV.

Speed Limit, best for genre-flip arcade rush

Speed Limit is a strange one: it starts as a top-down shooter, becomes a side-scrolling driving game, jumps to a plane sequence, then finishes with a top-down car chase. The top-down driving sections nail the R.C. Pro-Am camera and pickup rhythm, briefly. Full run takes about an hour.

Where it falls short: Not a full racing game; it is a genre showcase. Short.

Pricing:

Migrating from R.C. Pro-Am II: You get the overhead angle for one act. It is a tribute more than a competitor.

Download: Steam · GOG

Bottom line: Pick this if you want an hour-long arcade thrill and do not care that only part of it is racing.

Retro Machina, best for isometric Rare vibes

Retro Machina is not racing at all. It is an isometric puzzle-action game set in an art-deco automated city, and it plays like the games Rare made after R.C. Pro-Am II when they leaned into the Nintendo 64 era. Include it here because if you loved the overhead Rare aesthetic more than the racing itself, this is the closest thing to that mood on desktop today.

Where it falls short: Zero racing content. Cheating on the list on purpose.

Pricing:

Migrating from R.C. Pro-Am II: Not a race. If Rare Replay was a comfort playlist for you, this scratches that itch.

Download: Steam

Bottom line: Pick this if the Rare feel was the point and you want a break from lap counters.

Wreckfest, best for combat racing

Wreckfest is R.C. Pro-Am II grown up and behind the wheel. Bump, wreck, and drift your way through banger races, figure-eights, and demolition derbies. Camera is chase or hood, not overhead, but the physics and damage model deliver the bumper-car chaos R.C. Pro-Am II invented.

Where it falls short: No overhead camera. Not a subtle game; loud, messy, mechanical, and the online netcode has good and bad days.

Pricing:

Migrating from R.C. Pro-Am II: Chase camera takes 20 minutes to click. Contact-heavy racing lines survive intact.

Download: Steam · GOG

Bottom line: Pick this if you loved bumping your friends and the camera angle is negotiable.

How to choose

Pick art of rally if the overhead camera is non-negotiable and you like time-attack over combat.

Pick Circuit Superstars if you want wheel-to-wheel top-down racing with a career mode.

Pick Horizon Chase 2 if the couch multiplayer is what you actually miss.

Pick Wreckfest if the combat is what you miss and the camera angle can slide.

Pick Absolute Drift if you want a focused single-player game to master in a week.

Stay on Switch Online if all you wanted was to play R.C. Pro-Am II itself again. That version is the real thing, running exactly as it should.

FAQ

Is R.C. Pro-Am II on PC?

R.C. Pro-Am II is not officially on modern PC. The Rare Replay collection put it on Xbox One and Series consoles, and Nintendo Switch Online now streams the original NES version. No standalone Steam release exists as of 2026.

What is the best top-down racing game on Steam?

art of rally and Circuit Superstars split the crown, depending on whether you want stage rally or wheel-to-wheel circuit racing. art of rally has the wider genre reach; Circuit Superstars has the deeper career.

Are there any free R.C. Pro-Am 2 alternatives?

The demos for art of rally, Circuit Superstars, and Horizon Chase 2 all let you race for free. Epic Games Store, GOG Connect, and Prime Gaming have all offered art of rally at no cost in the past two years, and Horizon Chase 2 is on Apple Arcade if you already subscribe.

Do any of these support couch multiplayer?

Horizon Chase 2 has split-screen for up to four players on desktop. Wreckfest supports two-player split-screen on console but online-only on PC. The rest are single-player or online only.

Do these work on macOS or Linux?

art of rally, Absolute Drift, and Wreckfest ship native or well-tested macOS builds. Every game on this list runs on Steam Deck via Proton, most of them with the “Verified” or “Playable” badge.