Trackmania 2 Stadium © Nadeo

From Gran Turismo to Forza , the top racers are some of the most beautiful games available today. With their breathtaking graphics, iconic circuits, classic cars and lifelike physics, these top driving simulations offer high-speed thrills to millions of gamers around the world. Yet, on the eSports circuit, they're relatively pedestrian.

When it’s time to crack the champagne out, it is Ubisoft’s lesser-known TrackMania that holds pole position in eSports. The breakneck speeds and gravity-defying courses combine to offer a player and viewer experience perfectly crafted for the eSports world.

From this Friday in Paris, the world's best players will line up at the Electronic Sports World Cup (ESWC) to fight for the TrackMania 2 Stadium title. With thousands of fans expected to rock the rafters, an exciting weekend lies ahead for competitors and spectactors. But why is it that fans would rather watch the best virtual racers play TrackMania than its high-budget rivals?

“TrackMania was designed for eSports,” explains Florent Castelnerac, founder of the game's creators Nadeo. “And it's made for the spectator to be capable to feel the thrill. The speed of the cars and the intensity of the tracks reveal the skill.”

On the right track

Trackmania 2 Stadium © Nadeo

Despite seeming like the perfect competitive genre, racing games have struggled to find an audience on the eSports circuit with the racing blockbusters hardly featuring in regular tournaments.

Admittedly, big racers like Project Gotham Racing, Gran Turismo, Need for Speed and Forza have all featured at international tournaments such as World Cyber Games, Championship Gaming Series and even ESWC, but these games didn't have the staying power of TrackMania, and disappeared from the scene after a year or two.

Florent Castelnerac has learned from past failures. “Our patience and the community are two pillars to the success of Trackmania over other racing games," he said.

It certainly took a while for TrackMania to feature at a major tournament. "We made a spectator mode in 2004," continues Castelnerac. "In 2005, when I saw Need for Speed at the World Cyber Games, in Shanghai, I told myself that our game could be better than this for eSports. And TrackMania became the racing game at the World Cyber Games in 2008 and 2009.

"CarlJr is the last world champion of ESWC 2013, while Carl was the first in ESWC in 2006. In between, we kept the gameplay but released a lot of updates. And we intend to release others in the future as well. It's said that you need a vision, values and will to succeed. And I think that the Nadeo team has this, and I hope it will continue to bring them success on the long term.”

Florent is right to talk up the the gameplay as it’s what makes TrackMania stand out from its realistic rivals. You see, a lack of realism in the racer actually makes for a slicker, more exciting racing experience for spectators. The short running time of each race can also add to the excitement. One slip up and it can all go horribly wrong in a major tournament.

Ghost in the machine

Trackmania 2 Stadium © Nadeo

Lightning-paced, TrackMania offers unparalleled entertainment for viewers, not something that’s shared by Gran Turismo and Forza. British star Andy ‘Sabre’ Wilson explains the game's appeal.

“TrackMania has stood the test of time because you can not replicate the sliding mechanic, loops and the like in real life. TrackMania also has Ghost mode, which means that there are no collisions between cars during rounds.

“This adds suspense as players pushing the racing lines to the limit within TrackMania are aware that the other racers - if they haven't made a major error - can almost be on top of their own car, resulting in a very exciting spectator experience. I think most of the top eSports have the unique quality of providing an escape from realism, while having key features which make the game both incredibly demanding for the players willing to put in the time and effort, and for the spectators who are drawn in by the title.”

The inclusion of Ghost mode is not actually unique to TrackMania but it is largely unique to tournament play. When the Championship Gaming Series featured Forza, players had to adapt their tactics to account for others blocking their path or smashing them off the course. It made for a totally different gaming experience and one that was largely disappointing for the fans.

With Ghost mode on, Nadeo emphasised the manic pace by making roads tighter and speed quicker, giving the viewer a greater understanding of the technical skill required to be a top TrackMania player. This, in part, is down to Nadeo building the game for eSports.

The best of British

Trackmania 2 Stadium © Nadeo

This is also one reason why TrackMania has endured while others have fallen away. Some players have suffered, though. The UK has produced some of the world’s best racers, with players like Picasso, Stune, Live and CGS MVP DaveySkills all enjoying international acclaim and glory when games like Forza and Project Gotham were briefly eSports hits. A lack of competition has subsequently forced them into retirement.

Instead, it’s up to players like iGn's Andy ‘Sabre’ Wilson, together with Leo Falcomer-Dawson and Team Dignitas' Jonathan 'Jonno' Holmes to compete for Britain in this week’s TrackMania 2 Stadium competition, a prestigious event which Falcomber-Dawson calls the "Trackmania World Championship."

TrackMania was a game that caught Falcomer-Dawson’s eye because of its crazy level design and colourful graphics, but it was the competitive edge that has kept him playing since 2011 when he played his first tournament with the Swedish team Hot. However, ESWC will be his first offline tournament. He is hoping for personal best lap times in Paris.

“My goal for the tournament is to play the best TrackMania I can, and, after the last match I play, be happy with how I performed. While I am fairly confident that I will be able to avoid dropping out of the competition early, it is LAN, and anything can happen.”

It’s a sentiment shared by Team Diginitas’ Jonno who expects the standard to by high. “The players that are attending are insanely good, so I don't expect any player will head to the tournament expecting to win. I'd love to make the Lower Bracket Semi-final, just to play on stage, but I'll need a lot of luck for that and some very fast times consistently! It's not impossible, but it won't be simple. This is Trackmania, anything can happen. One mistake can cost a whole match.”

Given that this is the first time that Jonno, Andy and Leo have competed at ESWC, they are playing catch-up with their European rivals this weekend.

Ubisoft Nadeo's Florent Castelnerac revealed his favourites for the weekend: “CarlJr is a favourite, of course. I really like Yoyo from France. And I would be really happy that HakkiJunior wins as well, thanks to the experiments carried out by Red Bull toward the eSport with this player.”

Indeed, back in 2012, TrackMania World Champion HakkiJunior was lucky enough to compete against Red Bull drivers Sebastien Vettel and Mark Webber at the Red Bull Gridsters event at The Goodwood Festival of Speed. He thrashed Webber but lost to Seb. Perhaps, he won’t face as tricky an opponent as a four-time Formula 1 winner this weekend.