For those who have spent the last few years locked in a cave, we remind you that like its predecessors, WRC 8 is the official game of the FIA World Rally Championship. This therefore means that all the content is fully licensed, and that it sticks perfectly to what you can see in reality if you diligently follow this discipline. On the root menu, always clear, we find the various usual components of the games in the series, with an additional box that allows you to resume the last activity done. We thus have the career, the simplified career (without the new management elements), weekly challenges, multiplayer (with splits, please), quick mode with the simple special (just to do a special), and that's it. Exit therefore the simple rally mode which allowed to participate in a complete event of the world championship by defining the parameters yourself. An oversight that is a task, especially since it is one of the most practical modes when you want to play a good time and you are not necessarily a fan of the career. From now on, it will be enough to do all the specials one by one, without having an overall classification of course. On this rather negative observation, we naturally move towards the career mode in order to discover the novelties, because there is a hell of a lot. The stage of creating your avatar is still not exotic, and only allows you to define what will be written on the window of your racing car; we are limited to providing surname, first name and a nationality, without even being able to choose a co-pilot for example.
THEME RALLY
Then, we are invited to carry out a test in order to define our level of driving, and to adapt the driving aids and the level of difficulty. The most experienced pilots can also skip this step and adjust everything by hand, since we find the classic assistances - ABS, TC, level of damage, level of opponents, etc.). WRC 8 also asks us in which category we prefer to make our debut. The most realistic option (and the most suitable for beginner players) is to go through the JWRC which puts the player behind the wheel of a Ford Fiesta equipped with two-wheel drive (traction) and equipped with a moderately powerful engine. . If you are experienced in rally games, it is also possible to start in WRC 2 at the wheel of a private R5 class car with all-wheel drive and a turbo engine. After choosing the latter option, we received offers from several teams based on our results during a test. For our part, we ended up at the controls of a Skoda Fabia R5 from a private team, with the aim of being able to integrate as quickly as possible a factory team evolving in WRC 2 Pro - that is to say a team aiming for championship victory. At this point, we get access to our workshop which is none other than the interface of the new game management system. Very inspired by what exists in the F1 series of Codemasters, WRC 8 now makes us take on the role of team boss, in addition to that of driver. The first aspect is therefore the management of our team, which requires hiring and/or firing staff according to our needs and our finances. It will therefore be necessary to build a large team made up of engineers, mechanics, physiotherapists, financial directors, meteorologists, etc.
Concretely, management becomes an essential component for victory, and without a good team, there is no salvation.
Each member has its use, and the more competent it is, the easier it will be to achieve victory. For example, the meteorologist will allow us to benefit from precise weather forecasts to choose the most suitable tires and perform on the track. With dynamic weather that offers up to three conditions per special, you will have to face some serious dilemmas. Thus, during one day, we had to take part in two specials for a total of 8 km on asphalt and 10 km on gravel, knowing that the first timed event was entirely on asphalt. Is it better to mount slicks and trace on the asphalt before dragging on the dirt, or else put tires cut for the dirt knowing that the latter will be very worn once on the asphalt? Concretely, management becomes an essential component for victory, and without a good team, there is no salvation. On the same principle, the mechanics will repair breakdowns more quickly in the closed park, the financial director will make it possible to earn more money, etc. Because yes, rallying is an expensive sport, and victory bonuses will have to be reinvested in the salaries of your employees as well as in mechanical parts; the provider will come to you with the pain at the end of each test. The more sheet metal has been folded, the higher the note will be, to the point of plunging the team into the deepest deficit. By dint of accumulating losses, it is even possible that the bank will put an end to your adventure, forcing you to start all over again.
BUDGETARY DERAPAGES
It will also be necessary to please its manufacturer. This one entrusts us with its brand image, and the fact of finishing last and showing off its completely screwed up cars is not going to do its business, nor ours. More concretely, a gauge of confidence varies, ranging from very satisfied (which opens doors for us) to very unhappy (which exposes us to game over and the cessation of support from our manufacturer). If this system is relevant when driving for official teams (WRC, WRC 2 Pro), it is however strange that it also applies when you are employed by a private team (which buys its cars). We will also have to manage the calendar, because if the rallies are irremovable, the empty weeks will have to be occupied. Here, WRC 8 offers six possibilities to boost our career or facilitate our season. The first is rest: nothing happens but our team can catch their breath, which avoids replacing exhausted employees. To win a lot of sorrel, you will have to participate in the Extreme Conditions events which require you to finish a special with a completely gunned down car, all in dantesque conditions. For a less juicy reward, the historical challenges allow you to compete in a special at the wheel of antique racing cars (the Lancia Fulvia, the Polo R, the Lancia Stratos and the Proton Iriz R5). Taking part in manufacturer trials, where the big brands put us behind the wheel of one of their cars (often of a higher category) in order to gain reputation and win a future contract, is also very useful. To repair our car and thus minimize the risk of mechanical breakage, we will have to pay and take part in maintenance tests (a special without a co-driver). Finally, the last option consists in carrying out tests, freely, on a site specially dedicated to this activity.
If most of the activities are welcome, the maintenances are on the other hand quite redundant and punitive. Indeed, we find ourselves paying a large sum of money in order to raise the general condition of our car which, however, should be impeccable since we already spend a fortune on spare parts at the end of each rally. . We have the feeling of paying twice for the same thing, without really understanding the interest of the maneuver. Another somewhat bizarre specificity: career progression seems dazzling. After a season in private WRC 2, we manage to win the championship, which pushes Citroën to offer us a wheel in WRC 2 Pro. During the first start, we realize that our car is displaying a small Norwegian flag and that our co-driver is none other than Torstein Eriksen. We are in fact in the car of Mads Ostberg, Citroën's No. 1 driver and championship leader, who is therefore no longer present in front of us. It also seems suspicious that a rookie is directly put in the seat of car number 1 as soon as he arrives. Likewise, after two seasons in WRC 2, the firm promoted us to the premier category, and there, again. At the start of the Monte Carlo, we note a car decked out with the number 1, and with Julien Ingrassia as co-driver. Once again, we are directly taking the place of the first driver, namely Sébastien Ogier, reigning WRC world champion, who is suddenly absent from the championship we are contesting. Same, we don't understand why we didn't inherit the second car (that of Esapekka Lappi), which would have been much more logical.
Sure, the whole thing isn't DiRT Rally-level, but this slightly more arcade-like approach isn't necessarily a bad thing, as it makes controller play much more enjoyable, and allows novice players to tackle the title with peace of mind.
Fortunately, we take advantage of a gameplay that has evolved quite well. The management of the tires has been greatly improved, and we will have to manage their wear quite actively to avoid finishing the stages on the rim or without any grip. In addition, the new active weather system proves to be particularly effective in catching the player off guard by drastically changing road conditions. We also notice work on the suspensions, with a car that offers more realistic mass transfers, and a little more unpredictable behavior when going through potholes, or when we are a little too confident. on the rope of a bend. Sure, the whole thing isn't DiRT Rally-level, but this slightly more arcade-like approach isn't necessarily a bad thing, as it makes controller play much more enjoyable, and allows novice players to tackle the title with peace of mind. The specials are also more demanding: the roads are narrower, which increases the challenge and requires more precise driving than before, knowing that the rallies take place over three days with two specials in the WRC, and twice two specials in the lower categories. The studio has also kept the ES (Special Stage), these famous particularly long sections (14 km and more) which can take a quarter of an hour or more, and are particularly immersive. Finally, it should be mentioned that the technique has greatly improved, with attractive graphics (on PC, in any case), and pretty light and water effects. You can thus find yourself blinded by a setting sun, or observe the drops of water which bead laterally on the windshield when you take a bend with a high load factor.
