Project CARS is the first racing sim to claim No.1 in UK retail charts since 2013

Bandai Namco’s long-anticipated crowdfunded driving game has zoomed to number one in the UK charts.

Project CARS shot to the top in its debut week, making it the first four-wheeled racing sim title to take the position since Codemasters’ GRID 2 two years ago in 2013.

Launched on PS4, Xbox One and PC, the Slightly Mad Studios-developed game is also the very first boxed product to hit retail with support for 4K resolutions and upcoming VR headsets Oculus Rift and Project Morpheus.

Project CARS’ chart-topping success brings to an end Mortal Kombat X’s three-week run at the top, with the title falling two places to third on the back of a 35 per cent drop in sales.

Meanwhile, Grand Theft Auto V maintained its solid second place, sales staying largely stable with only a three per cent decrease week-on-week.

Further down, Activision’s sci-fi behemoth Destiny jumped back into the Top Ten from 16th place the prior week, thanks to retail promotions.

No other new release managed to crack the Top Ten last week; the next-best debut launch was seen by Nintendo’s Wii U effort Kirby and the Rainbow Paintbrush, which came in at number 21.

The only other fresh face in the Top 40 was 3DS compilation Puzzle & Dragons Z + Super Mario Edition, scraping in at number 32.

Two EA titles re-entered the Top 40: Skate 3, sales up 15 per cent to land it at number 38, and The Sims 4, which climbs back to 33rd.

Despite being released half a decade ago for PS3 and Xbox 360, Skate 3’s sales in 2014 and 2015 now account for almost a quarter of its lifetime sell-through.

Here is the UK retail Top Ten, according to theUkie Games Charts, compiled by GfK Chart-Track,for the week ending May 9th:

1. Project CARS (Bandai Namco)
2. Grand Theft Auto V (Rockstar)
3. Mortal Kombat X (Warner Bros)
4. FIFA 15 (EA)
5. Dying Light (Warner Bros)
6. Call of Duty: Advanced Warfare (Activision)
7. Battlefield Hardline (EA)
8. Minecraft: Xbox Edition (Microsoft)
9. Halo: The Master Chief Collection (Microsoft)
10. Destiny (Activision)