EA Sports WRC Review

It’s in the game … WRC:

British game company Codemasters, known especially for its car racing games, has gained a special place in the hearts of game lovers with the games it has released since the mid-1980s. Some of the company’s notable popular car racing games are the DiRT series and the F1 series, which we all know very well. And most importantly, Colin McRae Rally.

WRC from EA Sports:

When it was announced that Kylotonn Games would no longer be developing official WRC games, and would instead be produced by the team behind Dirt Rally and Dirt Rally 2.0, I was extremely confident that I would be faced with a racing game that could be great again.

EA Sports WRC has as many cars as Dirt Rally 2.0 and the physics engine is the same, everything else is new. Codemasters has replaced the old proprietary Ego Engine with Unreal Engine 4.8. This has made a significant contribution to the fact that while the previous game had a 19-mile rally road, the new production includes more than 65 miles of roads.

In addition to 17 countries, 204 stages and 82 cars, there is a career mode, a car building mode where you can build your dream car, online game modes that allow daily challenges, and of course tournaments where the world’s best virtual rally driver will be crowned. To say that EA Sports WRC is rich or full of content would be an understatement.

The first thing that caught my attention when I loaded the product and started the practice laps was the advanced dynamic handling system. This system is a technology that simulates how vehicles react in different road and weather conditions. It realistically models the interaction of the vehicle’s tires with the road, the behavior of its suspension, and the overall weight distribution. A vehicle’s physical and mechanical properties, particularly its suspension system and tires, determine how it will perform on different types of surfaces – such as asphalt, dirt, gravel or snow – and in different weather conditions, such as wet, dry or icy.

In previous versions, controlling cars with powerful engines was much more challenging than in EA SPORTS WRC. However, this game convinced me that I could switch to top-level vehicles and complete the stages successfully. Although the handling and driving experience are satisfactory, I feel that the difficulty level of the game has increased. It is not possible to go at full throttle all the time in rally races. The fact that the wheels tend to slip even on a straight line slightly affected the perception of realism of the game.

The career mode, which was missing at the beginning of Dirt Rally 2.0, was introduced with the “Colin McRae Flat Out” update. With EA Sports WRC, Codemasters has designed a career mode similar to those found in Kylotonn Games’ WRC 10. The vehicle building mode, where we can create our own rally car, is a fun mode to offer a more detailed perspective on the intricacies of building a competitive WRC car. However, it was disappointing that vehicle construction was not subject to specific regulations and tended to create more fictitious vehicles.

One of the most important advantages of the career mode is that it offers the opportunity to experience the entire official WRC calendar. You can skip the stages you don’t want and become a part-time driver like Ogier and Loeb, or you can change the atmosphere of the race with historical vehicles and themed events. Sponsorships put a certain pressure on players, giving them the chance to set goals, which is a very functional mechanism; You can start comfortably because the initial entertainment level is not so low that you need to worry.

The presentation of the Moments mode can be a bit confusing. At the start, you’re presented with only three scenarios (two real-life and one fictional), where you’re expected to earn one of three different types of medals based on your performance. Even stranger is that the additional two scenarios are offered for an extra fee behind EA Play’s paid service. This mode gives players the opportunity to relive historical races or jump back into current races. It is also renewed daily to provide players with a new experience every day and the chance to test the game’s various cars.

WRC also has a Rally School for players who are confident and want to improve their racing skills; This is a section that encourages players to learn the intricacies of motor sports. Although it is not a direct licensing test, it has a similar structure with short-term tasks that will help you gain experience.

We said above that the game was moved to the new engine. This provides improved driving physics and greater detail in all stages. There’s a ton of greenery on every track, whether it’s grass, rocks, or trees. Draw distance offers the same level of foliage, with each location feeling full.

 

Conclusion:

EA Sports WRC marks two great returns, Codemasters returning to develop a rally-themed game and a driving model that closely imitates what was seen in Dirt Rally 2.0.

A change in the graphics engine and a new career made make this WRC game much better than WRC Generations. However there is no rewind feature and the game might be a bit more polished. If you like rally (and WRC) give this a game definitely a try.