WRC 10... Reviewed!

Shout out to Nacon & KT Racing for the copy of WRC 10 for this review, my opinions are my own.

WRC 10 builds on the previous installments with a 50th Anniversary mode, which is great, but... is it burning rubber for all the right reasons? Let's jump in the driver's seat and find out. Skkrrrttttt!!!!!!!!!

Features:

This year the career mode pulls up with a livery editor in the passenger seat, so you can design your own cars and team. You know it's on for the racing game fanatics out there. Multiple fans have purchased the game after we had the opportunity to discuss it, the review wasn't even done yet, so... this mode is sure to put a smile on their faces to finally have the feature available in... WRC.

To celebrate the 50th anniversary of the championship, WRC 10 is offering the brand-new Anniversary edition which allows you to relive the most intense moments from 1973 to today. WRC 10's History Mode puts your driving talents to the test through 19 historical events that require you to adapt to racing conditions of each time period. So you can expect different experiences because the cars of today aren't built like the ones a decade ago (duh of the day) and... the decade before that... and... you get the idea.

The never before seen content for WRC includes:

• 4 New 2021 rallies: Estonia, Croatia, Belgium, and Spain
• 6 Historical rallies that include Acropolis, San Remo, Germany, and Argentina
• 120 Special stages
• 52 Official teams from the 2021 season: WRC - Junior WRC
• 20 Legendary cars from Alpine, Audio, Lancia, Subaru, Ford, Mitsubishi, Toyota + More!
  
  

The WRC 10 UI is different from WRC 9... which stood out to me immediately. I liked the WRC 9 UI, but... I don't have a problem with the one in WRC 10, it's functional. You're able to go to different categories in order to access the different modes and options.

WRC Mode

Life

• Online Events
• Daily Challenge - Take part in this daily challenge and try to reach the top of the leaderboard. The conditions vary which keeps the challenges fresh, and you can go here to improve your badge level.
• Weekly Challenge - Give your best on the Monte Carlo stages.
• Special Challenge - No special events are available at the time of this review.

• News Feed
• Unavailable at the time of this review.

Solo

• Career: Your career allows you to start in Junior WRC (Unlimited Tryouts) or WRC3 (3 Tryouts). Junior WRC limits you to one car (all participants use the same FWD car), no need to test in order to join the WRC Junior Championship. WRC3 allows you to take part in the WRC3 championship choosing from several 4WD cars, but it's less forgiving and you're taking on the pros. In WRC3 you have to impress recruiters first.
• I haven't taken on the WRC3 yet, but going the Junior WRC route, you can select a contact where you decide to utilize a crew or a team.
• You get 3 save options for your different careers (which can be deleted at any time if you want to start over).

• Quick Play
• 2021 Special Stages: 12 Different locations that allow you to decide on the time of day, weather, car category (Junior WRC - Legends + Bonus cars + New liveries), etc.
• Anniversary: 7 Different locations that allow you to decide on the time of day, weather, car category (Junior WRC - Legends + Bonus cars + New liveries), etc.
• Extras: Unavailable at the time of this review.
  
  
• Season
• The season allows you to enjoy rallies without crew management.
  
  
• Livery Editor
• New livery: Customize a car
  
• Livery collection: Access your custom cars 
  
• Sticker editor: Create stickers 
  
• Sticker collection: Access customer stickers

Multiplayer

• Clubs: Gives you the option to create a club and join up to 3 others.
  
  
• Online Multiplayer: In this mode, you can compete against players from all over the world. Find or create online games by choosing the category, rally, special stage, vehicle, and weather conditions.
  
  
• Leaderboards: You can view the current championship, driver, and manufacturer standings here.
  
  
• Co-Driver
• Co-Driver Quick Game: Join an event as a driver and co-driver crew
• Find Co-Driver Lobby: Join a game to play a special stage as a driver and co-driver crew
• Create Co-Driver Lobby: Create a game where a driver and co-driver crew attempts to win a special stage

• Split Screen: You can play with a friend on the same screen. You are free to choose the rally, stage, cars, and weather conditions.

Skill development

• Challenges: In this mode, you must accept a challenge with a car selected for you.
  
  
• Test area: Drive freely to improve your driving skills and adjust your car's set-up in real-time.
  
  
• Training: Perform training exercises on a closed track.

50th Anniversary Mode: At the time of this review... this mode was unavailable to me.

• Rally Sweden 2004: The Last Nordic Bastion
  
  
• Rally New Zealand 2007: A Boxer Behind the Wheel
  
  
• Rally Sweden 2011: Co-Drivers Can Drive Too
  
  
• Rally Catalunya 2018: The Boss is Back
  
  
• Rally Catalunya 2019: Combo Breaker

Drivercard

The driver card is... freaking extensive. Up top, it shows you your level and the XP needed to reach the next level, along with your SN and all that good stuff. To the upper right, you get to see where your skills are the strongest. Mine is primarily versatility, which may stem from me not allowing myself to remain stuck for too long, or if I'm facing backward I'll floor it in reverse and spin to get back on the right track.

My Coach: This area basically gives you suggestions on how to improve, so I'll show the current suggestions I have from my coach. You're able to click on these suggestions to jump right in.

• Overall: Try the Skoda Fabio Rally2. You can learn a lot from getting out of your comfort zone.
  
  
• Offline: It might be time to try TRAINING A2 in Training mode. The track is ideal for focusing on a specific skill.
  
  
• Online: Looks like you've accepted 16.667% of Weekly Challenge events. Consider doing more Challenge events; they are great practice!

My Rewards Room: This section shows you the rewards for each rally.

My Driving History: This shows all the stats from (you guessed it)... your driving history.

Showroom: Shows off the recent car you selected and gives you the option to take pictures, view the car in different camera filters, go into Livery editor to edit, etc.

Options: Another duh of the day

• Gameplay Settings: In this settings area you can Configure ABS, TCS, Starting assist, change the transmission, switch the damage effects, change the speed units, etc. There is a section for the co-driver too that allows you to turn on color-blind mode, change the driver's voice, gender, timing, and Immersive voice.
• You also have a H.U.D. that allows you to add or remove things like the Speedometer, Timer, Progress bar, etc.
• Controls: This allows you to change the options for the connected peripherals, whether it's your keyboard, controller, and things like a racing wheel.
• Audio: Audio settings
• Video: Graphics settings
• Credits: Who made the game go vroom vroom
• Data: This is where you go to erase all your data (there should be a migrate mode so owners of previous installments can transfer their data).

Quit: Third duh of the day.

Visuals:

Visually, hmmm... I think WRC 10 looks damn good... but it's also safe to say it hasn't gained much ground over WRC 9 in the looks department. You can compare the visuals in the Safari Kenya rally to see some of the biggest visual enhancements, but I still can't say it's major-major. It's all good though, visually... a big leap isn't going to happen all the time, and that's why there need to be other areas where you can truly see ground gained (in terms of features).

WRC 10 PC Requirements:

Video Card
Minimum: Nvidia GeForce GTX 650, 1 Go | AMD Radeon HD 7770, 1 Go
Pixel Shader 5.0
Vertex Shader 5.0
Dedicated Video RAM 1024 MB

CPU
Minimum: Intel Core i3-2100 | AMD FX-4350

RAM: 
Minimum: 4GB

OS
Minimum: Windows 10

Gameplay:

Why talk about the gameplay when you can check it out for yourself? Press play!

The gameplay feels great as always, and for newcomers... the more you play, the more you will get a feel of the tracks and begin to adapt your racing style to get from start to finish. Driving on the different tracks you will get adjusted to the different terrain. Like everyone else, my goal is to get from start to finish in record-breaking time, but... I try to keep a steady pace without losing control of my vehicle.

I still have a lot of ground to cover before I get on the level of an eSports competitor, but... I'm pretty sure I can do it if I put in the time and got nice and comfortable with a racing wheel. Speaking of eSports, this is a video from the (WRC 10) Live WRC eSports Final 2021:

Before I jump into the pricing, I definitely have a standing suggestion that I would like to see in WRC. I want to see some fantasy tracks. Say what you will, but I wouldn't mind a fantasy track or something for a change of scenery sometimes. I hope to see it one of these days.

Price: Price-wise... WRC 10 rolls in at $49.99 on the PS5, $39.99 for PS4 & Xbox One, $49.99 on PC, and eventually the game will be released on the Nintendo Switch. They should consider offering up a racing wheel bundle one of these days or a discount if you purchase both the game and the official peripheral.

Career Mode 4

Visuals 5

Gameplay 5

Price 5

4.75 out of 5 Cool Points

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First 30: WRC 10

 

WRC 10

To celebrate the 50th anniversary of the championship, WRC 10 is offering a brand-new Anniversary edition, packed with new content and sensations. Relive the most intense moments from 1973 to today! WRC 10 History Mode puts your driving talents to the test through 19 historical events that require you to adapt to the racing conditions of each time period.

Never-before-seen content for WRC:

- The 4 new 2021 rallies: Estonia, Croatia, Belgium and Spain

- 6 historic rallies including Acropolis, San Remo, Germany and Argentina

- 120 special stages

- 52 official teams from the 2021 season (WRC, WRC2, WRC3, Junior WRC),

- 20 legendary cars from Alpine, Audi, Lancia, Subaru, Ford, Mitsubishi, Toyota, and more...

Career Mode, unanimously hailed as one of the best-developed and most complete in a racing game, has also been comprehensively upgraded and now includes a livery editor, so you can create your own team and add your colours to contemporary cars!

With a hyper-realistic and ultra-precise physics engine, WRC 10 has made the feeling of driving even better, with better aerodynamic force, turbo and braking management, on all surfaces. The sound design has also been revamped to reinforce the immersion.

A particularly competitive eSport, with daily and weekly challenges, and clubs so you can create your own competitions, drivers can measure themselves against the community at their own levels.

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WRC 9... Reviewed!

Shout out to team Nacon for rolling through with another installment of the FIA World Rally Championship and... showing us love by dropping off a few copies of WRC 9 to review! On that note... let's burn some rubber and jump right on in (skrrrrrrttttt)!

As some of you know, we suited up to hit the rugged terrain in WRC 8... and what an experience it was (rollovers, crashes, and all) so when it comes to reviewing WRC 9, I was curious to see what was new.

Before I jump into the full review, I want to point out the feedback from the controller... it feels amazing. I love the way you can tell you're off the road or rolling over the gravel... because you feel it in the controller. Not just a standard vibration or rumble, it feels really good... so I salute whoever's responsible for that. The feedback from the acceleration feels the best.

Career Mode: In career mode, you take part in the usual rallies, but... you also manage a team in this mode for the complete experience. So not only are you hitting the tracks but you are also making sure that your car gets repaired, you're hiring the right people on your team, budgeting, and more.

Speaking of team members, not all are available from the start... you have to unlock them in the skill tree area. Members consist of engineers, meteorologists, mechanics, physical therapists, agents, and financial advisors (which I recruited recently). Don't look at your team members as some sort of fluff in the skill tree... because you'd definitely be underestimating them.

For example, when it comes to the financial advisors... they deliver better offers + letting you know how the investment in those upgrades will truly translate in terms of performance. You will ultimately save money, and gain money with the help of your advisors.

Agents help you with career management, which helps you with manufacturers and... their expectations. The agents are where your offers come from, and help you level up in your career + they make an impact on publicity. Physical therapists, meteorologists, and team members like that are pretty much self-explanatory... but I wanted to point out agents and financial advisors because they may not appear to hold much significance if you aren't aware of their impact.

Anyway, when it comes to the career mode... you get a similar experience in WRC 8... minus the 3 new rallies found in WRC 9. These new rallies take place in Kenya, Japan, and New Zealand.

There is a Career Starter Upgrade DLC available that delivers a more experienced team from the start, if... you want such an upgrade. I think it's more satisfying to work your way up, but... for those who want a better team, I don't see this as a pay to win because it won't make or break your skills on the track (your performance is in your hands although you can improve certain things in the skill tree).

Visuals: WRC 9 looks great, and the team maintained the realistic look... which is easy on the eyes. Lowering the specs will rob you of realism in your trees and so forth, but for the most part... still looks pretty good. I love driving around just looking at how realistic the cars move, the rocks, and the overall physics in the sim. I noticed some areas where the shadow looked a bit off while in the showroom when the ground was wet... but that's the only time I saw that (not on the track).

By the way, the wear and tear is real... and you will not only see and hear the damage, but your car will also perform based on the damage (if the settings are more than just cosmetic).

Gameplay: In WRC 9, the goal is to top the ranks with your performance on the track.

As always you're racing against the clock whether you're attempting to make the best time, or complete a track under extreme conditions before the time runs out. What also comes in the new WRC 9 are 100 special stages and over 15 classic cars.

WRC 9 doesn't venture too far away from what made WRC 8 an awesome experience, but the team did make some slight changes to improve realism while driving. Being a simulation game, you will have some challenges starting out or going back into sim racing (if your skills went cold)... but you will get a feel for it as you continue to frequent the cockpit.

I still have yet to get a good grip on the handling, but you have to make everything work in unison to maintain a good speed and accuracy. Flooring it might seemingly decrease your time, but your control is decreased also... which could cause you to roll over while making a hairpin turn or going over the slightest bump. Even a slight turn of the wheel at top speeds can cause you to spin out and flip, so if you want the best results... go with the method that gives you the most control because you will make better time if you aren't losing time thanks to a respawn or manually getting yourself back on track.

Speaking of handling, one thing that some of you will appreciate is the... test area, this gives you the ability to test your skills and even tweak your cars handling.

The test area is different from the training mode. In training mode, you take on closed courses... whereas in the test area you're free to roam from asphalt to gravel, to dirt and back again so that your performance in the rallies isn't a result of you jumping right in.

When it comes to challenges... you get 50 that I see that consist of tracks with varying conditions, and cars that you don't choose yourself. You have to navigate the terrain in a timely fashion with what you're given or place the best time to get bronze, silver, or gold.

As far as multiplayer action goes, you can take on other players in online events + leaderboards, and split-screen action as seen in previous WRC installments. Split-screen is a plus if you lack a solid internet connection.

When it comes to the clubs, you can either join one of the available clubs or start your own and they can either require registration or be open to everyone. If you're unsure of what club to join, you don't have to worry about being stuck in just one... you can join up to 3 clubs + start your own.

In season mode, you take part in rallies without crew management. At times you just want to race and be a part of rallies... so you have the option of choosing either. You will see 3 save slots in career mode, but don't get these confused with the season mode's 3 save slots... one will not overwrite the other. I think it was smart to deliver a simpler mode because some gamers don't jump in that deep.

I have not played this game with a steering wheel yet, but it's an experience I'm looking to dive into.

One thing I'd like to see (even though I know it's a licensed game targeting the real experience) is a combination of tracks created by the dev team that are totally made up.

Price: WRC 9 comes in at $49.99, which is a price from the PS2 era for a next-gen game... no arguments from me. Overall, WRC 9 delivers solid gameplay... and the replay value is intact by way of improving your skills, achieve badges, unlocking skills, and taking on the competition... in one of the best rally games I've ever played.

Career Mode 4

Visuals 5

Gameplay 5

Price 5

4.75 out of 5 Cool Points

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