13 replies to this topic

[Secretariat]

Feel free to see this thread as an open discussion on the genre past and present. What are your rally sims of choice? If you have one, what do you like about it?  What are deficiencies you see with some titles or the genre itself?

 

I still enjoy DIRT 2.0 and have not yet ventured in obtaining any of the modern EA WRC titles including the current one. However, I did enjoy the very old EA WRC stuff. I don't have many critiques of the driving physics and enjoy the audio and visual components of DIRT 2.0. I tend to have always played with no HUD (I don't know how people can physically use a HUD in a rally sim).

 

Oddly, I have never tried Richard Burns Rally which there is a lot of commentary about it still being the best rally sim out there thanks to the mod community, but not sure if I even want to.

Edited by Secretariat, 20 April 2024 - 09:36.

[NCB619]

I have quietly enjoyed EA's WRC - but then again, it's the only rally sim I've played with a wheel. I'll have to check if I have access to Dirt 2.0, etc through the EA Game Pass, might give them a go as well.

 

In the past, when I only used a controller on the Xbox - still loved Dirt Rally over the WRC series at the time.

[Secretariat]

I am willing to engage in the EA WRC game given it is my understanding it is basically the 2.0 successor. The initial launch issues is what has kept me away.

[messy]

I’m torn between DiRT Rally 2.0 and EA Sports WRC. Both are good, but EA WRC has issues, which is annoying because if they’d just built on DR2.0 it would have been perfect - instead they’ve changed to a whole new game engine which, in honesty I think was a massive error because it was a horrible stuttering, screen-tearing mess for months. It’s better now, but still doesn’t run as well as DR2.0. Or look as good. They’ve also done away with lots of the stuff like other cars in the stage, seeing crashed cars, animals crossing the road etc etc, which doesn’t sound like much but it’s stripped the stages of any atmosphere or character. Also the damage model is really annoying, your bonnet starts flapping around after hitting a couple of jumps and your car is held together with chewing gum.

On the other hand the car list is insanely good (just needs a Celica!), there are loads of locations and the stages are really accurate (and long, in places), the handling is definitely improved and feels much more satisfying. So both are good games, I just think if you added the new stages and cars to DR2.0 exactly as it was, I’d probably have liked it more.

The KT WRC games that came before EA are worth a look too particularly as they’re really, really cheap a lot of the time. They’re not as good, but the one thing KT get really, really right is that the stages are brilliant, fictional but beautiful scenery, feel alive, much better atmosphere, rollercoasters of different sections, surfaces, just really satisfying.

RBR - I can see why people love it. You can basically do what you want with it, there’s so much user-created content and cars, the handling and physics are excellent, which is its big selling point I think and I think you can basically just download it all at your leisure for free. But for me I think it feels it’s age (and certainly looks it) and there’s a massive amount of pretty ropy content alongside the good stuff so…..I personally think it’s probably at the point where it’s been left behind by the newer games, but still has plenty of people who swear by it and would probably punch me for saying this.

Edited by messy, 21 April 2024 - 21:12.

[Secretariat]

One of the details that I really like about DR2.0 is the overall audio but specifically the pace note calls. Phil Mills. The inflection of the calls, some calls seem to have a sense of urgency...really engaging when not using a HUD. From what I have seen of EA, its a generic co-driver? I will likely give EA a try soon.

 

As far as DR2.0 cars, I am perpetually using the 2001 Ford Focus WRC.

[messy]

Yeah they did away with Phil Mills for EA WRC which is a shame. That said I haven’t seen too many complaints about the pace notes so I guess they’re okay…..I’m not a massive pace notes expert, I probably should listen to them more tbh.

Forgot to say, EA WRC also lacks any British rallies, while DR2.0 has both Wales and Scotland. To be honest I think I’m still in the ‘DIRT Rally 2.0 is better’ but there’s definitely potential with the newer game. I hope that potential is built on with DLC rather than a yearly new game.

[Myrvold]

One of the details that I really like about DR2.0 is the overall audio but specifically the pace note calls. Phil Mills. The inflection of the calls, some calls seem to have a sense of urgency...really engaging when not using a HUD. From what I have seen of EA, its a generic co-driver? I will likely give EA a try soon.
 
As far as DR2.0 cars, I am perpetually using the 2001 Ford Focus WRC.

Yeah they did away with Phil Mills for EA WRC which is a shame. That said I haven’t seen too many complaints about the pace notes so I guess they’re okay…..I’m not a massive pace notes expert, I probably should listen to them more tbh.

Forgot to say, EA WRC also lacks any British rallies, while DR2.0 has both Wales and Scotland. To be honest I think I’m still in the ‘DIRT Rally 2.0 is better’ but there’s definitely potential with the newer game. I hope that potential is built on with DLC rather than a yearly new game.

 
For DR 1 with Paul Coleman and DR 2.0 with Phil Mills. They got strapped in to a rally car seat. Suited up with helmet where the mic was. The seat was fitted to a motion platform, and then they read out the pacenotes three times for each stage IIRC. One where the car was driven at a slow tempo, one with a more normal tempo, and one "alien" tempo. So the urgency that can be heard in the pacenotes in those games are genuine urgency to read out the notes quick enough when recording. How they programmed it to have the right note-speed when, IDK. But it is a cool thing. Which is also why you can hear Phil Mills clearing his throat in a couple of the stages in DR2.0. That's what he did at that point when reading the notes at that speed during recording.
 
EA WRC is, AFAIK, done the conventional way. Record. And put calls in the came at certain points.
 
Personally I play EA WRC and RBR still. Only when there is something online stuff I do.

So that is the RaceDepartment (Now Overtake.gg) Rally Club for EA WRC:


And then Sim Rally Masters in RBR:


Both have good and bad sides imo. I won't say that one is better than the other. They are just... different.

[Secretariat]

 
For DR 1 with Paul Coleman and DR 2.0 with Phil Mills. They got strapped in to a rally car seat. Suited up with helmet where the mic was. The seat was fitted to a motion platform, and then they read out the pacenotes three times for each stage IIRC. One where the car was driven at a slow tempo, one with a more normal tempo, and one "alien" tempo. So the urgency that can be heard in the pacenotes in those games are genuine urgency to read out the notes quick enough when recording. How they programmed it to have the right note-speed when, IDK. But it is a cool thing. Which is also why you can hear Phil Mills clearing his throat in a couple of the stages in DR2.0. That's what he did at that point when reading the notes at that speed during recording.
 
EA WRC is, AFAIK, done the conventional way. Record. And put calls in the came at certain points.
 
Personally I play EA WRC and RBR still. Only when there is something online stuff I do.

So that is the RaceDepartment (Now Overtake.gg) Rally Club for EA WRC:


And then Sim Rally Masters in RBR:


Both have good and bad sides imo. I won't say that one is better than the other. They are just... different.

Thanks for those details.

 

I agree. I rather not get into the what's "better", as people like what they like. However, interesting to talk about the differences such as the production choices of recording the pace notes.

[Rob G]

After playing Dirt Rally 2.0 for so long, I've been having a blast with WRC Generations on my Xbox Series X. The stages are gorgeous, and some of the cars are incredibly fun to drive. The main drawback is frequent server issues. I still like DR2.0 a lot, but I'm so familiar with the stages that I've wanted a new challenge. I also have WRC 7, but Generations is miles ahead of that. I'm looking forward to getting EA WRC and seeing how it compares, but I'm not ready to do it quite yet.

[messy]

My main problem with Generations is that it’s really restrictive in terms of what it lets you do with all the brilliant content it has.

i.e. not much. Want to use the classic cars to do time trials to get onto the online leaderboards? Yep sure. Want to compete against AI? Nope. Want to set up a custom rally to use any of them? Nope. It’s online leaderboards or nothing. You can do career/season mode and that’s fun as long as you get the AI levels right, which is impossible to do because you can’t practice to work out what your level should be.

When you’re actually out on a stage, pushing in the middle of a really long route, I think it’s possibly the best game out there still.

[Paahto]

I used to rally online a bit back when RBR had been the "créme de la créme" and I loved it. To me, physics and modding capabilities are what are highest on my priority list, followed by stage choice i.e. I like long stages, ideally copied from real-life ones or at least based on them rather than fictional ones. Having been out of the loop for so long, I can't comment on anything doing the rounds these days but I'm glad to see RBR still has its followers and, I must say, I'm rather feeling the itch to invest in a new gaming computer, wheel and a copy of RBR. God help me! Actually, no. God help her!

[Tenmantaylor]

Lol my mum had that nova in 1988. No way it would go round corners like that! She drove it onto a bush trying to park it on our drive with us in the back as kids few weeks after passing her test, out came the saw to chop the bush to get the car off. Good times.

[Rob G]

I picked up EA WRC about a month ago and was having a great time with it, but this past week the stuttering and frame rate issue that everyone complained about at launch has reared its ugly head. It really spoils the immersion and makes it very difficult to drive smoothly and confidently, because you never know when it's going to momentarily freeze. I'm playing on an Xbox Series X, so there isn't much I can do with reducing graphic loads like I could do on a PC. It's really aggravating.

[messy]

It runs smoother on the PS5 I think. But still. I’ve gone back to DIRT Rally 2.0, mostly. It just runs so much better, looks better and has not one but two UK rallies. The only thing EA Sports WRC has over it really is the bigger car list.