I dont think this score is fair.
It's more like a 7.5-8.5
Just like what happened to Hitman Absolution.
WRC 3 Review
WRC 3's lightweight handling and lack of diversity means it fails to hit the heights achieved by other racing games.
Alongside the regular rallies are special events designed to test specific skills and provide some relief from the intensity of simply driving as fast as you can. These include the block smashing Crash n' Run, the avoid-the-cones Rally School Contest, and races against aerial vehicles (including a helicopter and hang glider) known as Top Rally. Clearly, pages have been taken from the Dirt book of game design, but unlike in Codemasters' rally game, such events are more chore than charm in WRC 3.
The problem is that they just don't demonstrate enough inventiveness to get you excited; not once do you feel as though you're playing something you've never played before. Aside from the Drift Contest and block smashing stages, your goal is the same across all of these distraction events: drive as fast as you can. You can't help but feel that a massive opportunity has been lost to serve up some diversity. It's just another example of good intentions, but unimaginative construction.
Aside from Road to Glory, WRC Experience is your only other option in single-player. Select a car, select a series type (from single race to full WRC championship), and head straight out onto the track to race. The championship series is a serious commitment, with all the countries involved in the real-life WRC included, and each event is made up of either six or seven stages. However, this is also the only place where you test yourself against the likes of professional drivers such as Loeb, Araujo, and company.
If you've three other friends to play with, WRC Experience is the best way to set up and play multiplayer games, thanks to the inclusion of hotseat play. The nature of a rally means that hotseat is a realistic and welcome addition, rather than a lazy concession to local multiplayer. Whether you want to play a single stage or commit to an entire championship, hotseat lets you race against your friends and adds some spice to a game that lacks much in the way of genuine excitement.
Online multiplayer is also available, with up to 16 players facing off in the same events available in WRC Experience. Most interesting are the Super Special Stages, which see two drivers racing on the same track at the same time--the gimmick being that the drivers start on different portions of the track, crossing onto the opponent's side halfway through. It's fun in places, but no substitute for the excitement of playing against friends locally. Also, bear in mind that you need a GameSpy login to play online through your PC.
Where WRC 3 does show significant improvement over last year's game is in its visual quality. The terrible environmental textures of WRC 2 have been replaced by graphics that at least feel as though they belong in this generation and are no longer typified by fuzzy, low-resolution grass, trees, and rock faces. Despite the improvement, however, WRC 3 is still no match today's most visually impressive racers, such as Dirt and Forza 4, especially when it comes to the quality of the vehicles themselves and particle effects like dust and rain.
While there's no lack of passion for the subject, and there are some neat ideas on show, WRC 3's problems are in the execution. Tighter graphics, improved game modes, and more race types would help things greatly, as would a more refined handling model. As it stands, the series is the best it has ever been, but it's still not quite good enough.
55 comments
1 Like Fantastic RALLY game! this review does not do it justice, realistic cars and stages, great fast fun, and very challenging
This is a very poor review since the person doing this review is clearly not a rally enthusiast, but someone who would like to see game modes like rally cars playing soccer or rally cars firing rockets at each other etc... This is a pure rally game, and although I haven't played the game as yet, you're probably right about the feel of the cars, but remember using a controller on a console instead of a good steering wheel and pedals when playing a racing sim that was not designed to be an arcade racing game in the first place like the great racing sims Forza 4 and WRC 3, you will certainly get an inaccurate representation of the cars handling and the cars physics whilst playing the game.
Next time if you're going to review a racing or rally sim that is not an arcade game, maybe it would be wise to read some of the PC racing sim sites reviews that are setup for real fans of racing sims, like rfactor, forza 4, GT5 WRC3 to get a better understanding of what sort of audience will be mostly interested in the game. A good example are Flight simulators, now MS FSX is purely aimed for real flight enthusiasts and not arcade players who just want to crash a 747 into the ground to see how it's going to look, although it does have some missions that introduce the fundamentals of flight, for beginners that are interested in learning how to fly the aircraft in a realistic manner in the simulator.
Most gamers that are use to action games or other arcade games would get bored very quickly, and like any sports, you either like the sport or hate the sport, and this is the same with motor racing, you have fans of all types of motor racing sports like myself, and there's people who don't understand the fundamentals of motor racing, where in each class of motor racing, it's not just about getting behind the wheel of a car and driving around in circles, or as in rally driving going from point to point.
For example, to win a Formula One Race or a Touring Car Race, it's about strategy, professional team work, which involves co drivers and pit crew doing their best to keep the car out on the circuit for the entire race, and the Team's Racing Manager who decides whether or not you pit in at a certain lap for a tyre change and what type of tyres put on the car that will give the car the best grip for different weather conditions that affect the tracks surface.
Rally driving is no different, in which the driver has a co driver who he has to trust him with his life to get him through the stage in one piece, as well as the drivers crew in the service area that are ready to make the appropriate changes to the evehicle is needing repairs or adjustments made because of each stage may have a different surface etc..
I have played every version of Colin McRae, Richard Burns Rally as well as the original WRC 1,2 ,3 and 4 on the Playstation 1, and I still have every one of the games on my shelve. Now I do have to disagree with some simmers out there that rubbished the Dirt series by sayingthat they were not great rally sims, and that they were more of an arcade series, but I thought they were a fantastic rally series, as in graphics, car models.handling and physics.
The only thing I did find disappointing with the series is that there was not enough stages and countries in Dirt 2 and 3, where Dirt 1 had a great selection of countries including Australia and Japan. Codemasters Dirt 1,2 and 3 graphics and lighting on both the cars and environments, as well as the handling,physics and force feedback is amazing , especially if you have a Logitech G27 steering wheel or better!
InsideSimRacing is your only good source for racing sim games. This is just idiotic for a feckin' journalist to play a racing game made in Italy. Darin and Shaun will cover this for sure.
There has not been a good rally game since the old colin mcrae games and the richard burns game..
I really dont like the DIFT games or any games based off that engine the driving is just missing somthing..
I like the sound of what people are saying about this game and might just have to ignore this review and check it out.
2 Like this game is awesome. did not like the first 2 at all but this one is very good. the graphics are also very nice. dont see why they say the graphics arent good. i think they are very good. not as dirt 3 but very close. this game is better than dirt 3 in my opinion
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Bet you don't know how to drive a car. A Briton-Americano descendent who doesn't know the difference between games and a real thing. Besides, even though this is a sim racing game, we can't get the same feeling as the real car. I'm radically against Robertson for this. Go ahead by listening to Gamespot. Be blind as you want to be, you foolish stater.
6 Like I whole hearted believe that the reason this generation of gaming has become so uninspiring, narrowly-focussed and dumbed down is because of the big gaming review sites. They set out a criteria which they think all games must fulfil and if they don't fulfil those set criteria, they get labelled as bad games. So developers make games that stick to those criteria, and so we end up with 10 COD, DIRT/Forza/NFS/Skyrim clones and little else (aside from indie games). Any games targeted at relatively 'niche' markets (and 'niche' for this gen essentially means not every single person on the planet) are criticised as plain, unoriginal, lacking polish, and unuser-friendly.
I've actually noticed many worthy 'niche' games completely being ignored by review sites, who only seem to get out of bed for a 'Skyrim' or similar (look for IGNs reviews of the last two WRCs... there aren't any).
This game is a rally game, it's about rallying through normal roads and tracks from point to point, around the world. That's all you want from a RALLY game. It is not a bad game for not including gymkana, dashboard toys, red dot sight FAMAS, Magic dual-wield, or quicktime finishing moves.
All games don't have to do all things. You haven't marked down F1 2012 for not including a drift mode? FIFA 12 is clearly an awful game because there is no option to change careers and follow a new career as a tv pundit. And it doesn't have quicktime finishing moves (actually, that would be pretty cool).
WRC 3 is clearly much better than the last two games which, in my oppinion were pretty poor (maybe 5/10). For this game the visuals are massively improved, the handling is much more enjoyable, the sense of speed is fantastic, tracks are much more interesting and realistic, the environments feel like real places, and most importantly it's great fun.
I'm sick of these gaming sites reviewing games in a genre they clearly have no interest in or understanding of. Games that are meant to recreate a specific sport should only be reviewed by people who have a reasonable interest in or understanding of said sport (if that is who the games target audience is). I wouldn't review an NFL game because I know I don't know enough about it to judge it fairly, and would also be biased because I don't enjoy NFL fullstop.
I'm someone who enjoys several 'niche' interest areas (snowboarding, skiing, rally etc) and every single time a game is released targeting that audience it gets reviews from people who expect a mainstream 'please everyone' game, and who don't actually want a game that accurately depicts that sport in question.
Two be fair to Gamespot, they are better than other sites in many respects, and this review is more balanced than other sites, but it seems to be a general trend that I feel is corroding away the games industry and making it a more dumbed down, uninteresting place.
I hardly bother with review sites now. I might watch a video review so that I can see the game in action and make a judgement from that, but I pretty much always ignore the reviewer. I think independent reviewers on youtube are becoming much more popular because they focus on what really matters (is the game fun for its target audience?). Personally I watch CGR and a few others, and then look at the USER score on metacritic to get an idea of what a game is really like.
1 Like I also want to point out that I think COD, Dirt, F1, FIFA etc, are indeed excellent games, but I don't want all my games to be like them.
And I'm also not saying this game is amazing and a 9+ game, but it is certainly much better than the reviews it's been getting.
@tooplanx Your entire first paragraph is going into my signature on a local forum. Quoted, of course.
That's the essence of the gaming industry problems.
Cheers.
2 Like @Atrax2k8 @tooplanx Thanks, I sometimes wonder if I'm the only one who sees this.
I despair when I read youtube comments on some games that are full of (I presume) teenage 'hardcore' (whatever that means) gamers saying 'COD / Halo rip of!! Im nt buyin dis gaym. Fail...' etc. Sometimes it seems like all the majority want is COD / Dirt and nothing else.
I put my hopes in Indie devs and xbla, which have been the saviour of this gen in terms of creativity and fun. There you get creative games like Braid, as well as old school pure pleasures such as Rocket Knight and Trials HD.
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@Gelugon_baat @Atrax2k8 This is not about tolerating someone else, but it is lying about a game to the public. And this is not fair. Nobody tends to understand that these games are only enjoyable with a GOOD QUALITY steering wheel. This game requires it. For instance: Are u upset if you walk into a shop with no money and the shop attendant refuses to give you an XBOX 360 just like that. No you wont stop blaming Microsoft. See? Ohh and by the way, im going to be rude, but I doubt if Mr. John Robertson has a driving license, or if he can drive a car with clutch:)) car junkie gamers are supposed to test games like these. Cause it exists for them.
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FYI, this game is not even close to the real thing. It simulates the physics for the game and it will never get the same experience when you actually compete for the WRC. There are no TCS, ABS and SC in competing these races. They will get you kicked out for those.
Have you driven a go-kart or a real car? I have on both. Journalists get paid to do this, not us. I did play WRC2 and it's not as close to acclaim my criteria. Milestone (Who also did SBK) did Screamer in 1995 under Graffiti and I have tried Superstars V8 Racing on my computer. The car's handling is fair for me, but there are still misses as well. May I ask that do you think you will ever rely on video game review sites because they know video games than us? They're not really gamers, senorita.I don't think you ever tried one Milestone title, not even SBK. Sister, journalists are posers to play a game that suit their skills. They're on a noob level as IGN. Don't push me to see you disagree. These people will get us blind and be like the herd of sheep. Therefore, no one cares what you think.
@Gelugon_baat Dude, ask a plumber to fix you PC. :D The result will be more than disappointing. That is my point. ( Assuming that the plumber is 59 and he knows no more than using Google Chrome and playing spider solitaire)
It's not about not tolerating someone else's opinion.
It's about the fact that this review is a wrong approach to the game itself.
The reviewer did not "catch" the point of this game, does not understand the criteria these types of games should meet, does not understand the core values of these kinds of games.
That's the point.
I totally respect different opinion, but only if it is well argumented, legitimate, non bias and based on facts, not personal subjective view of the object in discussion.
That's the whole point, at least mine.
I will NEVER say that Dirt for example is a bad or low quality game.
I can point out the strong points of that game, and the bad ones.
In my non biased opinion, Dirt deserves 9 for what it is.
In my subjective opinion it is a waste of HDD space.
See the difference?
Just because I'm not fond of some game, doesn't mean it's a bad game.
That's the point of this discussion, and the fact that there are more and more reviews like this, and let's face it allot of people buy games according to reviews.
With that in mind, you can imagine the damage a bad review can produce for a good game.
But I guess if Milestone had sent a huge gift bag of promotional content to GS studio, the game would get a better review.
But that's a whole other beast to tackle.
1 Like oh and sry for the mistakes but you guys make me go nuts. This is a sim, and if you are not interested in simulators and you have no knowledge at all don't judge it. I'am very sorry that people enjoy only those games that needs no thinking concentrating and any kind of knowledge.
you said that it has to few race types.... OMG have u ever seen a real rally? I bet you did not, This is a wannabe simulator not some arcade shit. If you want to hit ponies while drifting to earn extra bounty than play DIRT 3. This game is about what a rally game should be about. And it is hard to learn? well buy a steering wheel, learn to drive, learn to shift, turn off the assists. Or go and play NFS and stop complaining. AND FOR THOSE who complain about the sound. WTF you want, the sond of a Ferrari? The cars have 4 piston engine with a huge turbocharger on very high revs. This is what a rally car sounds like these days. Get lost kids....
1 Like I played Dirt 3 and find it crap and boring, only good thing is the graphics is pretty decent, but after a few races, you will get bored. Dirt 1 I feel is much better. Even then, the best racing game for me is still Gran Turismo.
In a nutshell, gameplay wins graphics anyday. Can't believe the reviewer rates the game down due to difficulty and lack of novelty race type. Seriously? So this game should add in gymkana events like what they did in Dirt 3(which is one of the most annoying part of that game) Come on, this is a rally game.
"Steep learning curve".
Omg, detach yourself from Dirt man, it has brainwashed you.
This is a rally game, either you're good at it or you're not. What's there to "learn"?
I'm sick of that Dirt, specially third. Rally stages are like one minute of driving and you can go through ANY stage with using only gas and handbrake, actually you never have to even release the gas pedal.
And that's what you compare this game with?
Seriously.
1 Like I don't get this review.
This game's handling system beats Dirt in any aspect.
It's demanding and challenging, specially without driving aids and with a good controller/wheel (played with both, and with both it's very enjoyable).
To be honest, first installment of this game was rubbish, second was average, but this one is getting really close to a very good rally simulator.
Hey, GS journalists, Dirt is not a rally game, it's an arcade racer, you should know that by now.
On a good gamepad/wheel this game becomes very good simulator. If you're gonna play on the keyboard, might as well go with Dirt.
With every installment the game gets allot better.
Keep in mind that this dev studio (Milestone) has little or none experience in rally games. With that in mind, I'm sure the next installment will be really good.
Graphics wise, I mean it's not top-notch, but the cars look good, nicely detailed, lighting is fine, textures are sharp, it's not Ego engine but still it's more than I need to have in a racing game.
Dirt can slap on DX14 graphics for what I care, and I still wouldn't buy it, because that is not the type of game I want to play.
If I want an arcade racer, I'll just play Burnout.
Comparing this game to Dirt series is not even being close.
The journalism on this portal lately makes me sick.
This game deserves 7, but shouldn't be reviewed by someone who thinks Dirt is a rally game.
If Dirt is a rally game, Shift is a racing simulator.
Menu's look like they were designed in the 90's by a comic book artist, game doesn't drive at all well using a pad, seems to have been aimed at the 'sim only' crowd that have expensive steering wheel and driving seat setups... It's fine if you enjoy a tough, semi-realistic racer, (which I do if it's done well) but it's not a game for the beginner. Even your average player that enjoys the occasional race, but doesn't spend his/her life obsessing over the perfect setup or power to weight ratios, would find this game very frustrating. WRC 2 might have had worse graphics, but racing whise it was much better than this
Avoid, unless you're the sort that has no mates and enjoys a cup of Castrol GTX with your breakfast...
2 Like "Very steep learning curve for newcomers"
is...is that supposed to be a bad thing? pffff ROFL xD
2 Like I have the Xbox version ( still sealed as I was busy at the weekend ) but do think the reviewer missed the point! The previous 2 iterations were excellent and this sounds better still. Not without areas for improvement ( what game is ) but have to agree that the reviewer clearly doesn't understand the sport of rallying!
@SadPSPAddict Exactly my point. If you liked the previous games, you will love this.
Unbox that bitch and try it out, it's really good.
It's a rally game, people, not an arcade racer.
1 Like Codemasters so nailed it in Dirt 1 and it slid downhill from there. Now we have fps that aim for you and racers that brake and steer for you. I miss when they made games for gamers. I guess learning to play a game is too much like school for the public........
another crappy, underbudget game...i swear to god 1 in 30 games are worth playing these days, why do they churn this crap out
It's the best game in the series but it is fraught with problems. The cars do feel like hovercrafts, and alot of the stages feel completely uninspiring. I just drove 6 stages in sweeden for example, wondering if I'd hit restart by mistake as they all looked identical. Damage is badly done, you get dents in your bonnet from jumps which is just weird. Waaay too many hairpins aswell, they are a once in a while thing, but they never stop in WRC 3.
Have a look at the graphics for yourself!I might also add the damage model for this game is accurate and responsive, even through the steering wheel!
2 Like Guys, this review is missing the point entirely! This game is supposed to be about the ONE racing type. WORLD RALLY CHAMPIONSHIP. In this review you assume they designed the game for a wide audience - it is designed for the rally fans, of the likes of RBR or Colin McRae!. The game is supposed to be the exact same as the real 2012 championship. Comments such as "different game modes" really doesn't apply here, and in my opinion would ruin the game. If they were after an arcade style racer then go for Dirt 3. Milestone got this game right, one racing style with multiple tracks and changing locations. This is going to be a contender for one of the better /TRUE/ rally games of this generation. This fills in the spot where Code masters has left and gone on a tangent. It is true rally, not a mash of 20 different race styles and competitions. It is practically impossible to compare this to Forza 4 too (having just gotten that game - there isn't even a dirt track or rally variety... HOW CAN YOU COMPARE)!
This game has been a fantastic improvement from previous versions, and after having played it, it is the only rally game to play on computer. The graphics are fantastic, and on par with Dirt 3 - and althought Dirt does have slightly better graphics and particles, the true rally fans would be playing this in cockpit mode (which is stunning; movements on the G25 exactly matched by the game), the physics and handling are great (whilst they do need a little bit of work on the weight of the cars) - Using the G25 steering wheel is fantastic with this game. If you are after a true rally game, and are a big fan of Colin McRae or RBR, give this a try! You won't be disappointed!
@jamesdvhunt @mutley89 @andyandy48 Dirt 3 is bett3er for rally? Are you joking?
Dirt 3 is an arcade racing game, it has nothing to do with rallying handling wise.
CMR is history, RBR is not for everyone, so WRC3 is pretty good game in COD and GT/Forza times.
2 Like I can't believe people saying this isn't good. I'm really enjoying it as it feels like the old Colin McRae's
2 Like WRC fans want a realistic rally game, not this. How is it that Richard Burns Rally, a game that released was released last generation in 2004, is better than the official WRC title 8 years afterwards?
@PillyChickle You are right about that. RB Rally is to date a fantastic if not the best rally simulator, when it comes to handling.
But If Milestone devs keep up the good work, eventually they'll produce a great modern rally simulator.
Sigh, no that Codemasters don't do real rally games anymore this was my last hope for a new game in the genre. Will most likely pick up the Vita version later on for a cheaper price as I like these kind of games on the go.
The complains about the visuals and harsh difficulty curve don't bother me.
@JLF1MarkII Trust me, the graphics are very solid on a PC, and you should at least borrow the game and try it out. If you like rally games (not Dirt), you'll like this.
9 Like The only problem with Dirt is, that there's too little rallying in it. And putting Loeb and Araujo into one sentence just shows how little the reviewer really knows about rallying.
I tried the demo and it genuinely got me, a rally fanatic, excited.
2 Like i really hated wrc 2,but this is something very diferent.i just download the game,play few stages with the good wheel and its not so bed.graphic is ok,force feedback is great,loots of stages...with better physics this will be a really good game.good step for mileston.maybe in wrc 4...and how can you praise dirt?colim mcrea 5 was the last good rally game from codemasters.
3 Like What ever happened to the rally genre? On the PS2 there were rally games up the wazoo. :(
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WRC 3 supplies fans of rally games with a solid rallying experience that is entertaining. My darkzero review.
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