EA Sports WRC (2023)

The new DLC is definitely worth checking out if you're a fan of the original game. It brings new ways to have fun on unpaved surfaces in powerful contemporary and historic machines. The game has certainly improved technically in the year since its release. The strong audio, good driving feel and FFB (when playing on a steering wheel) are definitely worth mentioning. Unfortunately, the visuals are getting weaker and the very poorly designed menus slow things down unnecessarily and detract from the overall experience.

Codemasters' first shot at the WRC license is underwhelming. Despite a responsive driving model and decent rally stages, EA Sports WRC offers an awkward career mode with shallow team management. Even the presentation quality is inconsistent, with some bothersome stuttering.

EA Sports WRC is the first of its kind and although the result is bittersweet, it has solid foundations that could take the franchise to a better level. The legacy of Colin McRae's installments is there, Codemasters was a guardian of it for 2 decades and, of course, there is a vote of confidence for what they will do in future editions. Unfortunately, this debut is not what was expected and amounts to a bump in the road after a period of good results in their racing game launches. EA Sports WRC isn't unplayable, nor is it a disaster, but it's far from great, although there is room for improvement with the passage of time and updates, so perhaps you could consider it for later.

EA Sports WRC is a solid title that lays a strong foundation for the future of official World Rally Championship games, inheriting the best aspects of the DiRT Rally series. There are a few minor flaws, and the graphics are a bit dated, but these can be easily overlooked thanks to the enjoyable and satisfying gameplay and well-built career mode.

You may have sounded a little disappointed when describing many of its sections, but as sometimes this is about sensations and not so much about striking features that each studio marks in bold in their press releases, EA Sports WRC is a great Rally game. It's nothing more and nothing less, what we expected from Codemasters, a Dirt Rally, but licensed. The problem is that it doesn't go any further or surprise those of us who follow the launch of the annual WRC. It has some details, such as being able to create our own WRC, but the rest smacks of having already seen it, something that graphics technology doesn't exactly help.