DiRT Rally

DiRT Rally is Codemasters' return to hardcore rally simulation after previous entries in the series had drifted more and more toward arcade fun and festival atmosphere. On PlayStation 4 the game arrived after a period of tuning on PC, and it brought a handling model that mercilessly punishes any lapse in attention. Cars float on gravel, grip changes literally from corner to corner on asphalt, and any mistake in weight transfer ends in a guardrail or a tree, with the damage staying with you all the way to the service area.

The core of the game is made up of long special stages where it's just you, the car, and your co-driver's voice. Working with the pace notes is crucial, since you can't learn the track by heart, and the player has to trust what they hear and brake accordingly before they can even see the corner. Between stages you manage damaged parts with a limited number of mechanics and a limited amount of time, so a decision to sacrifice the gearbox in favor of the dampers can decide the whole rally. Besides classic rally, the game also offers rallycross on closed circuits and the famous Pikes Peak hill climb.

Technically it's a solid piece of work, at its strongest in the track surfaces, the dust kicked up behind the car, and the cockpit camera behavior, which conveys bumps and imperfections beautifully. Sound is one of its greatest strengths; engines sound raw, gravel rattles into the wheel arches, and the echo changes in enclosed spaces. Music is practically absent wherever it would be distracting, which only helps concentration. Critics received the game excellently precisely for its uncompromising approach, and many consider it the best rally game of its generation. The success of this approach led the series to later split into two branches, one staying with the more fun-oriented take and the other continuing this hardcore simulation line. Even today it's a title that demands patience from the player and a willingness to run the same stage ten times in a row, but it rewards you with a feeling you won't find anywhere else. It shines brightest with a wheel, though even on a standard controller you can get very far with a feel for the throttle.