Rallisport Challenge

Additional Screenshots

Rallisport racing has been a huge sport all over Europe. If you have never got the chance to take a visit over there, you can always enjoy hardcore Rally racing with Microsoft's Rallisport Challenge.

Graphics are the High Point

The one thing that is really great about Rallisport Challenge is the amazing graphics. When you are blowing by an opponent at 130, you can always use your behind button to watch as the AI battle it out to try and catch up to you. Light reflections are outstanding, and foliage is beautiful. When you are beginning a race and need to select a car, all of the models on display look beautiful; excellent detail, great reflections, and nice paint jobs. The tracks follow this pattern as well. Sidelines are interesting, crowds cheer you on, and the road texture is realistic.

How the Game is Divided

Throughout the entire game, you race through career mode to try and qualify. Once you complete a career circuit, you will be able to advance to the next circuit, and as you complete more races, you will unlock more cars. There are usually about 4 different races per circuit, so you might be racing for awhile. Aside from career mode, you can compete in single player races, time trials, and play against ghost racers.

SHARP RIGHT!

As you are driving in your car, you will be able to hear your navigator shout out at you directions, on account of the fact that you don't have a map. Indicators will also pop up telling you if the next turn is a sharp left, easy right, medium left, etc. etc. Having these voice commands really makes the game seem more real. If you turn up your speakers loud enough, the roar of the engine, burn of the tires, and commands from your navigator will make your neighbor think he is in the middle of a race track.

Car AI

Like I mentioned earlier, the AI is excellent. Opponents will make smart tactical moves to try and out maneuver you, and even after you have passed them, they will try and pass other opponents.

Replay Options

The game also features thoroughly detailed replay options. If you just finish a race and want to watch your victory over in celebration, use the simple replay tool to watch over the entire race from start to finish. You can change camera angles, fast-forward, rewind, go in slow motion, and pause. The only option I didn't find was a snapshot button, which would have allowed you to save an image to your hard drive.

This is a Hard Game

When you are getting down and dirty in the mud in your car, you will have to beat some pretty sharp times to advance to the next race. Even for users who are familiar with the Nascar Racing series, this game is a real challenge. Drifting is a must, and since most of the time you don't have a map, you will have to make turns quickly once your navigator tells you. It might take awhile to become a pro, but once you get it, it will be hard to stop.

Multiplayer with IP Connect

Multiplayer is not the best thing in the world. You can race with your friends over LAN or the internet in any of the game's maps. The only thing is that you need to know the IP address of your friend to play, so you cannot use a Gamespy like program to connect to an internet server. Guess that leaves off playing with complete strangers...

Overall

Rallisport Challenge is a great racing game. It has excellent graphics, AI, detail, and cars. The only problem is that there is nothing more to the game. There are no interesting objective type missions like in Midtown Madness. I was expecting options that would be more out of the ordinary, but no, we don't have any. Instead, the game is just plain racing. If you want this game for just Rally races, you've come to the right place, but if you are looking for more then that, take a sharp right and veer off to Midtown Madness.