#DRIVE Rally is currently my go-to rally game, and not just because I’ve been playing it a lot to review it, but I’ve been playing it a lot because I love it. Art of Rally is aesthetically pleasing, WRC 10 is realistic and visceral, Sega Rally is arcade-perfect, and #DRIVE Rally takes a bit of each – not to perfection, but enough to stand out.
This wasn’t expected, as having played a demo by Pixel Perfect Dude during a Steam Next Fest, it looked the business, but the Arnie-like commentary and loud music (from memory?) were off-putting, and the Early Access title gave the impression that it was a glorified mobile game. Coincidentally, give the mobile game a look. I’m not a mobile gamer, but I have been tinkering with this a few times, and it’s pretty fun.
Anyway, all rally games need to get to the point fast. What’s the handling like, and is there enough variety are the two immediate questions to ask. While the handling isn’t perfect and takes some getting used to, it has just enough arcade quality to coast on the accelerator and slide corners without tapping the brakes. #DRIVE Rally has a fair amount of vehicles, if a little samey, but the tracks are great for tearing up.
#DRIVE Rally Review
From the menu, you’re thrown into racing without any faffing about with qualifying. There are three main views: dash, third-person, and a cinematic chase cam, and there are a few other options, such as reducing the enthusiasm of your navigator or removing HUD elements like the remaining distance and time difference.
Generally speaking, first-person is my go-to when knuckling down, but with #DRIVE Rally, the third-person views were helpful and added a fun, cinematic element to it (when not pushing for stage records). The graphics are bright and engaging – as if you’re hooning around the parks of Firewatch. The scenery is so inviting that you could get out and stroll in the undergrowth.
Interestingly, you can do just that (within the car), as there’s a free roam mode where you have to locate hidden cosmetic items and indirectly learn the terrain. I didn’t understand how the cosmetic items work until I played this mode. In campaign mode, you unlock new parts for your car, but there’s never an option to configure the settings or look. Of course, once you play through each campaign (there are numerous drivers and locales), you can play free roam using the models awarded.
When Ghosting Is Good
Yes, #DRIVE Rally looks the part and is fun to play, but the two elements that seduced me were the navigators and the ghost drivers. Both of these are staples of a rally game, though I often switch off to what the co-driver says and instead look at the icons on the screen. They don’t appear here, so hearing ‘right one’, or ‘left hairpin’ makes a huge difference, and without any poxy music playing in the background, the visuals and audio are perfectly balanced and intuitive.
Every stage race has a set bot time. They’re fair, and you’ll likely come first each time, though there will be a few restarts here and there when you inadvertently clip a sign, fence, or small child you thought was breakable. The real player ghosts were a great incentive, however, as they helped raise the bar and standard of driving. Hitting the top of the leaderboard against bots is easy, doing it with other racers is brilliant.
Rally games are typically my favourite style of driving game, though the majority of them get a little monotonous when doing the same thing, or the damage control is too unforgiving, or race tracks are too arduous to enjoy. #DRIVE Rally isn’t innovative, yet the balance is spot on and one of the many reasons I kept pushing through the campaigns: they were fun!
#DRIVE Rally Review Summary
#DRIVE Rally flirts with gimmicky in some respects, like Parking Garage Rally Circuit. However, this is left in the dust with the rest as it’s a proper pick-up-and-play arcade racer with plenty of tracks, vehicles, and customisables that deliver entertaining gameplay. Again, currently my go-to rally game.
