WRC 8: FIA World Rally Championship
WRC 8 was revealed as the official game of the 2019 FIA World Rally Championship in February 2019.[3] It features dynamic weather and an entirely redesigned career mode reminiscent of Codemasters' Formula One series.[4] The game also sees the addition of new classic cars, much like its main rival, Codemasters' Colin McRae Rally/DiRT series, including the Lancia Stratos and Renault Alpine. The game also offers more content than the previous game, with 102 special stages spread across the championship's 14 countries.[4][5] The game was released to Microsoft Windows, PlayStation 4 and Xbox One in September 2019,[6][7][8] and was later ported to Nintendo Switch on 31 October.[9]
WRC 8: FIA World Rally Championship
WRC 8 received "generally favorable" reviews, according to video game review aggregator Metacritic, with reviewers praising the major improvements made to both the game's physics and graphics.[6][7][8]
On the surface WRC 8 would look like a game made for rally fans, but it misses the mark by miles and with there being so many other fantastic rally and racing games already out there to choose from, I can only recommend that you go looking elsewhere.
Parents need to know that WRC 8 FIA World Rally Championship is a racing game for the PlayStation 4, Xbox One, Nintendo Switch, and Windows PCs. It has no objectionable content, though its online competitive modes are not monitored. The game also has a number of corporate logos on the cars and, to a lesser extent, the tracks, just like in real rally racing events, though most are for automotive products, instead of inappropriate items like tobacco or alcohol products.
In WRC 8 FIA WORLD RALLY CHAMPIONSHIP, you get to be rally race driver in a series of real-world events. With realistic physics and handling, and the ability to work with a team and to modify your cars accordingly, this is much more of a simulation than most off-road racing games. Along with one-off races, this has a deep career mode that has you entering multiple events as well as running a race team. That said, it does spare you any kind of story, and thus doesn't have the drama you might find in a story-driven racing game.
Though not everyone will enjoy this realistic driving game, fans of this series and this motorsport will appreciate the authentic recreation of races. In WRC 8 FIA World Rally Championship, players get to see what it would be like to be a professional rally race driver. Not only does this have the real events, racers, and companies, but you also have to manage your team and your car. Then there's the racing, which, like the real thing, has you and a co-pilot driving closed and narrow dirt paths, which are curvy and bumpy, in point-to-point races. All of which is made that much harder if it's raining or nighttime...or both.
Of course, being a rally racing game -- and a simulation at that -- does mean that this isn't for every race fan. Not everyone will appreciate that, in rally races, you're the only driver on the road, and winning and losing depends on your overall time, not pulling ahead of another driver. Some also won't appreciate having a co-pilot telling them where to go, assuming they understand the terminology. The game's realistic physics and controls are also unforgiving, even on the lowest difficulty and with all the assists turned on, while the game's depth can be overwhelming for those unfamiliar with this motorsport or similarly realistic racing games. But then, these are the same aspects that will delight fans of rally racing and racing simulations. Which is why casual Sunday drivers should go elsewhere, but rally lovers should really consider taking WRC 8 FIA World Rally Championship for a spin.
The car handling model in WRC 8 is serious simulator business and feels much less drift-oriented than is the case with many of its rally competitors; you'll need to get to know courses intimately, pre-empting where your car needs to be on the road at any given time, lining yourself up in advance to blast through corners, over jumps and through chicanes. It's exhilarating stuff; fast and exacting with cars that handle impressively differently from one another. Difficult to master even at easier settings, it's a racer that rewards patience and skill.
However, ignoring portable mode in this way isn't something that you should realistically be expected to do (indeed, if you own a Switch Lite, then you can't avoid it, full stop), so it's hard to properly recommend this compromised version of the game. It's a real shame because this is a supremely engaging title when it's firing on all cylinders; one that has a ton of excellent tracks and a riveting career mode to get stuck into, but the technical issues here put far too many barriers in the way of your unfettered enjoyment of these strong points to make it worth anyone but the most hardcore of rally fan's time.
Well it looks like I am just going to stick with V-Rally 4 on my Switch as my rally game for the console. I was hoping this would be better but now I won't bother. Thanks for the warning NintendoLife, these kind of reviews are why I keep coming back here. You just saved me about $50.
@BorderlineJon Yeah I mean luckily I somehow managed to get a great deal on it when I pre-ordered it so I consider it a decent rally game for the budget price I paid for it. WRC costs about twice as much and came out over a year later but it somehow looks worse. I know V-Rally wasn't the best game but I think it turned out to be fun and it satisfied my desire for a rally game on the go.
Never liked the WRC games. I've played several of them on the Xbox 360 and Xbox One. Coming from and being a real fan of the classic ColinMcRae series, I find the WRC games to be boring, have infuriating, unrealistic controls, and even on higher end systems, it's definitely not the bees knees of rally games.
@jarvismp hey I love my switch. Sold my xbox one x recently. But this is a rally game with no other cars on the road yet the switch can't handle it. I sold my xbox one x because I realized I really don't play the Xbox games or I don't have time to. That doesnt mean I am blind to the fact the Xbox looks more often than not like two generations in front of the switch. Games like Mario Kart 8 and smash ultimate are the rare games that fill my gameplay and graphics needs. But more often then not I get the gameplay I want but then have to deal with a poor resolution or framerate. And for me at least that's a big sacrifice since I rarely if ever play portable.
@JayJ ....same here, I'll be sticking with V-rally. I don't know why people put down V-rally, I've had a great time with the game, it had the best handling of any switch car games until Grid came out.
Noooooo, I waited so long for good rally game and gyro wheel controls in rally game, but Kylotonn fails again, now I have to wait even longer. I wish Codemasters will make good Dirt Rally port for Switch with motion control steering and analog stick gas pedal support.
Great game on literally any other platform. V Rally wins by virtue of not turning into a slideshow in portable mode. Shame that the best racer on Switch is still Grid Autosport, a 5 year old game with no multiplayer and graphics so downgraded that the crowds and car interiors are just 2d jpg cutouts.
In the end, WRC 8 offers some pretty fun modes for the rally enthusiast, and mechanically plays quite well. However graphically and visually, it leaves this release feeling like more of a miss than a hit. If you can manage to not care too much about the visuals then you might enjoy this game, especially if you are a fan of the past releases in this franchise. If you want or need that extra graphical oomph then you might want to look away because this one has definitely been downgraded for the Switch.
WRC 8 certainly looks the part of a rally racer. It appears the KT Engine is used again, which seems to be made with rally racing in mind. While Dirt Rally 2.0 may have the slight edge in graphics (especially environment detail), WRC 8 is no slouch. Specifically, weather effects are more believable in WRC 8. The extreme weather events, where the player is challenged to complete as much of a challenging stage in intense weather while using a crippled car, are showcase events that really allow the player to experience all that the KT Engine has to offer. Rain realistically falls on the windshield, which also quickly piles up and generally makes visibility an issue, as would happen in real life. Dynamic weather is perhaps less intense, but also realistic and can add a variable challenge to some stages.
These team members are also human, and they require breaks in between strenuous events such as rally races. Otherwise, they become exhausted and are automatically placed on reserve. So, using a highly skilled team member for a weekend of training and manufacturer tryouts may make them unavailable for an actual rally, which are the events that have the most impact on earnings potential. Thus, there is a balancing act of which events to choose to run through, versus when to simply take the day off and give your team time to recuperate.
Outside of the single player campaign, online multiplayer is also an option. Your mileage may vary here based on your internet connection and server status, but the very nature of rally racing means that asynchronous play is not only doable, but the preferred way to compete. Playing against others is essentially a leaderboard contest, as racers see who can post the fastest times. But then rally fans will expect nothing less.
WRC 8 is the latest rally title from Bigben Interactive, and unlike Codemasters' simulation series, it's officially licensed -- all the cars, teams, and tracks from the real world sport are present and correct. It's a neat advantage, but having an FIA sticker on the box doesn't guarantee a good time on the track.
The game opts for a sim-like model, but in practice is much more forgiving than DiRT Rally 2.0. It's not perfect; cars can be unpredictable, and sometimes spin out when it feels like they shouldn't. Overall, the driving is competent, and most importantly, delivers that thrill ride as you scream over treacherous terrain. It's a shame the presentation is somewhat lacking, because this is otherwise a solid rally experience. 041b061a72