Opinion: Why there should be a new Isle of Man TT game

The Isle of Man TT is the type of event we rarely see these days. Run on public roads dotted around the Isle of Man, the TT regularly claims the lives of its competitors, all of whom seek the thrill of threading their motorcycles along a narrow ribbon of asphalt as hedges, street furniture and brick walls loom menacingly in their peripheral vision.

With average speeds now rising above 136 mph, you can understand why this is one of the world’s most intriguing and dangerous events. If you’ve ever wondered what it’s like to triumphantly wheelie your way down Glencrutchery Road, or slide haplessly on your back up the Gooseneck, then this is the game for you.

However, Traxion understands there are currently no plans for a sequel to 2023’s TT Isle of Man: Ride on the Edge 3, which as a huge fan of both the game and the TT, comes as a great disappointment to me.

With the 2025 races only a few weeks away, here’s why I think we need a new TT game.

Unfulfilled potential

ROTE 3 marked an interesting waypoint in the approach of publisher Nacon. Dropping the developmental talents of Kylotonn in favour of Italian firm RaceWard Studio seemed like a harsh move at the time, but given the Milan firm’s work on RiMS Racing, a brutally visceral motorcycle sim, it was understandable.

RaceWard managed to make ROTE 3 more sim-focused than its two predecessors, but a lack of content sadly let the game down. In many ways, it felt rushed, and this was most apparent with its semi open-world ‘Open Roads’ mode.

Although Open Roads allowed players to explore the island, there was very little to do, with zero traffic and no multiplayer compatibility. And if you try to ride anywhere on the Isle of Man during TT week you’ll know the roads are anything but quiet…

The 37.73-mile Snaefell Mountain Course was, however, recreated in glorious detail, with the satisfaction of completing a full lap an almost unrivalled feeling in sim racing. It’s trickier than a Michael Dunlop visor change.

However, frequent graphics issues, including choppy framerates and the appearance of bizarre artefacts, took the sheen off the overall experience, with PlayStation 4 and Xbox One versions proving to be particularly buggy.

But the riding experience for me was a clear step above Kylotonn’s TT games. Bikes felt weighty and were a tremendous challenge to hustle around the island, especially with all assists turned off. 

Rider models and images were a bit off too; John McGuinness had the same body type as the whippet-like Davey Todd, for example. Even the legendary McPint would concede his rider model is not quite anatomically correct.

DLC later gave us the full lineup of bikes and riders from the 2023 event, although a promised esports competition failed to materialise. Since December 2023, there have been no significant updates to the game, with seemingly little hope of future progress.

Ride 6 solution

ROTE 3 showed promise, and a sequel may well have fixed most of its issues, especially regarding content, so why is a follow-up unlikely?

Well, judging from the number ROTE 3 players on Steam there are perhaps simply not enough people playing the game to make it worthwhile. 

Even during TT week in June 2024, ROTE 3 only had a peak of 59 players (console figures will likely be higher but are unavailable). The game’s all-time peak player count is just 238 too, which doesn’t scream ‘commercial success’.

It could be that many players were happy to play previous TT games; they included the TT course and more content than ROTE 3, after all.

So if there are no TT games soon, would it make sense for the Snaefell Mountain Course to appear in another title? 

Well, Milestone’s Ride 5 includes other road racing mainstays like the North West 200, Southern 100 and Ulster GP circuits, while Ride 4 also contains the Macau street circuit. Perhaps the TT course may find its way into an all-encompassing motorcycle title like Ride 6, if and when it’s confirmed.

Given we don’t know the intricacies of the Isle of Man TT’s license agreement with Nacon (née Bigben Interactive), we can only speculate, but many road racing fans would love to see more of the discipline in video game form (side note: Jester Interactive’s TT Superbikes: Real Road Racing Championship was a comprehensive road racing game released in 2008).

With the TT continuing to provide ultra-competitive racing, record-breaking feats (including Michael Dunlop becoming the most successful rider ever in 2024) and a bigger audience each year, it deserves an accompanying video game.