GRID Autosport

In Grid Autosport, the player acts as a racing driver with opportunities to start and build their own racing career via the single-player Career mode, enter competitions with fellow players on the web via the multiplayer Online mode, customise their racing experience (vehicle, circuit, race type, difficulty, etc.) to their own tastes via the single-player Custom Cup mode, and play against each other via the multiplayer Splitscreen mode. It was also considered the first video game of the GRID series not to feature Vehicle Customization this time in single player career, as only featured in online mode.

The Career mode is divided into seasons during which the player has to choose between offers from the game's racing teams each time. Most teams, including the best-in-the-business Ravenwest, are making a return from Race Driver: Grid – each have different season objectives and sponsor objectives, the achievement of which earns extra experience points (XP) for the players besides those received for their results. Online racing is conducted via RaceNet, Codemasters' community hub on which players can form racing clubs, earn XP and cash as they race and fulfill sponsor objectives, then use their earnings to purchase and upgrade vehicles. Soon after the game's release, they were also presented with sets of specific challenges, called RaceNet Challenges, announced by Codemasters.

Grid Autosport was announced on in April 2014 via the official Codemasters Blog, less than a year after the release of its predecessor, Grid 2. Producer Toby Evan-Jones revealed in an interview that the development of the new title began as soon as the development of Grid 2 came close to a finish, which occurred in the spring of 2013. Evan-Jones had this to say on the short development cycle between the two games and the general intentions with Grid Autosport:

Historically we've kind of alternated between [the Dirt and the Grid series, but] when we put [Grid 2] out we stood back and took stock and there was a lot of stuff the dev team wanted to have in there in terms of optimisation, new features and generally improving things. At the same time there was a fair amount of feedback from the fans with regards to what they wanted, so additional touring car content, the return of cockpit cam and more of a nudge back to simulation rather than arcade. We though [sic] (…) we'd keep it rolling.

The game received generally positive reviews. Metacritic gave it an aggregate score of 78/100 for PC and 75/100 for PlayStation 3 and Xbox 360. Critics especially praised its more authentic handling model as well as its stripped-down approach to racing and excellent damage system.

The Career mode gained widespread approval for being "simply about winning races and mastering various driving styles" with the ability to switch between disciplines letting the player "go as focused or as broad as [he or she] likes". GamesRadar+ felt that having a nominated opponent provided "a decent sense of rivalry (…) which gives races more meaning (…) and the experience is richer for having clear rivals to beat". Eurogamer called Online mode "a comprehensive suite", one which "a series of [car] mods and upgrades lends persistence" to. Game Informer said that it "offers slightly more freedom [than the Career mode]" and its feature set is varied. The online playing experience was considered "smooth, with no drop outs or lag experienced".