Racing games are a hard sell now.
- They're all starting to look / feel / sound the same
- The routine releases of them are beginning to feel like releases of Madden, with just roster updates (in this case, minor car updates --- but it's essentially the same famous cars)
- They aren't all pick-up-and-play anymore. Even Burnout, which does have some sort of learning curve unless you enjoy crashing over and over. Whenever i play a racing game where they drop the manual transmission option, I weep a little, because I know that was done to improve sales (and basically kill gameplay)
- They don't make the same numbers as shooters like Call of Duty
- Player-base seems to drop very fast for online racers. Basically every racing game has 15 losers and 1 winner, so imagine how frustrating that must feel (unlike a 6v6 shooter where 6 guys win, 6 guys lose)
- Racing games are degenerating into a first-corner-crash fest. No developer wants to tackle implementing fair rules or a flag system, maybe because it is impossible, or maybe it's just too damn hard, or maybe it just makes it less fun.
- I think lag has an effect on who wins races, though this is really subjective. Whoever is in the lead usually has a massive one and this is even if only one lap has passed. It's just so hard to tell if it is lag causing it or not, so it just adds to the frustration factor.
Whether arcade (like Burnout) or sim (like Forza), I think these points apply to all of them.