Assetto Corsa: Rally - Gravel or Drivel?

Assetto Corsa: Rally (AC:R) burst onto the scene in a spectacular way, shocking Rally fans, with its announcement in mid-October. That doesn’t seem that long ago - mainly because: it isn’t. There hasn’t been a long tenuous ‘Chinese water torture’ style drip feed of information - heck we’ve already been playing it a week! 

Allow me to drag you through my thoughts on this curious little gravel-slinging excursion. Consider this less a ‘review’ and more a detour down a forest stage with questionable pacenotes. Whether we’ll end up in a ditch or at the finish line is, frankly, anyone’s guess. It is early access after all - no, not me, the game! 

The “Is That It?” Problem

Settle down, settle down. I can already feel the AC:R discord sharpening their torches and lighting their pitchforks.. 

I was, however, guilty of thinking “is that it” when the announcement was made. Four stages (two of which are the same, but backwards) and ten cars does seem a bit measly, on first inspection. A promise that “more is coming!”—which is a sentence we’ve all heard from developers, landlords, and overly optimistic online dates, is never a heart-warming sight (I’m looking at you, Evo). 

Rally fans are used to driving 30km stages while juggling tyre temps and swearing at co-drivers. Expecting a bit more meat on the bones isn’t unreasonable, especially considering Unreal Engine 5 has a large emphasis on how easy it is to ‘paint in’ landscapes, quickly create worlds and procedurally generate terrain. 

The title is obviously intended to be a simulation of both past and present rallying, so I understand having real courses is integral to that. Part of me did think that a few “quick” fake stages could pad out the initial experience.

I will hold my hands up here: I was wrong. For the price of entry, you get a reasonable amount of content. Currently it’s available for £17.99 on Steam, and I have 20 hours in the game. You can't complain about spending less than £1 per hour, can you? This ratio is only going to get better, surely.

The stages are all laser scanned, and very impressive looking, the vehicles are incredibly detailed; it’s easy to imagine how long they must take to create (hence my UE5 procedural and made up stages side note.) As long as development keeps happening, at the moment, it seems like an absolute steal - my only worry is how long laser scanning stages will actually take, and the effect it will have on the roadmap. Maybe I have that wrong, however - Supernova Games, please do correct me.

Controllers, Wheels, and the Great Input Identity Crisis

In theory, a rally sim should let you use whatever control device you have at hand: wheel, gamepad, flight stick, toaster, whatever. AC Rally, however, seems to occasionally treat input devices like uninvited guests: completely ignored and left crying in a corner. Some players have been fixing this by disabling Steam Input. Others, by sacrificing a USB hub to the hardware gods.

Again; it’s early access. You’re paying to test the game (wasn’t that a paid position back in the day? Ah, I got old, didn’t I?) there are bound to be connectivity issues. While I had a wheel issue on day one, this was fixed in less than 24 hours. I wanted to make this point NOT to put a bad mark against the developers, but to emphasise their quick work and dedication to a hotfix. Well done - that incites a glimmer of hope in this going to go in the right direction.

The bigger issue, for me, is the current state of force feedback. Controllers have been reported to twitch and wobble like you’re steering through jelly. Wheels offer force feedback that ranges from “whispering gently to your fingertips” to “does this thing even turn?” 

When I say whispers, I do not mean seductively - it's not the delicious tones of, say, Liam Neeson, it’s more akin to a barely audible squeak from Ralph Wiggum. 

Sim racers are, by nature, very emotional about force feedback.  AC Rally’s FFB inspires the full spectrum of emotions: awe, frustration, confusion, “why is my wheel numb?”, and “why does the tarmac feel like custard?”

Some settings work beautifully. Others don’t. Some wheels feel great. Others feel like someone unplugged reality for a moment. It varies. A lot. And consistency is the holy grail of sim racing. 

On gravel, the feedback is disguised sufficiently to have a seriously fun time. It’s not good feedback, but it's something. Tarmac, well, it's somewhere between the absolute basic minimum feel, and just un-usable.

I’ll keep this short (as I intend to do a deeper dive into the FFB itself): Force feedback on a sim should transmit enough information to you to make a controlled and judged reaction to the car. Currently, especially on tarmac tracks, you need to predict what the car may do - you get far too little information to make that active driving reaction effectively. This is frustrating. Especially as Evo gives far more feel. Come on, let's get this sorted! 

There are a few other nuances I will talk about in other scrawlings: the braking feel; lateral grip; and regaining traction when you pass the limit; all feel odd currently - however these do seem to be noted in official channels. Perhaps we shall see some movement in a positive direction.

Having put a downer on things, I think it is very important to say that while it’s messy, it’s fixable. The base physics look incredible however, which is a massive part of the battle. If they look right, the information coming from the game to compute rebound, bounce, slides etc, can’t be totally wrong. The vehicles are all stunning in how they manoeuvre across the gorgeous terrain, soaking up bumps, undulations and, occasionally, a tree when I get distracted.

I have spent a lot of time looking at rally cars (and cars in general) slipping, sliding, crashing, winning and everything in between. Ignoring any graphics settings, monitors, the fact I’m not wet and cold in Wales, this could be a real rally. That gives me plenty of hope that we will get the feel and transform that Ralph Wiggum into a Liam Neeson, so we can drive a real rally.

Performance: UE5 Is Gorgeous, But Also Hungry

The performance of this game is actually far better than I expected. Currently the minimum requirements are an i7 10700k, or Ryzen 5 3600 with a 2080 8gb or RX6650 XT 8gb. However this is for running on medium settings at 1080p - I can confirm you get a playable experience with a much older system (i7 8700k with a 1080 8gb) on low to medium settings at 1080p. 

CPU usage does sit around 50-60%, so the scope to up performance (or settings) is definitely there when played on low - and it doesn't even look too bad. Of course, the more desktop horsepower you have, the prettier your virtual horsepower will look!

Stability wise, I have not had a single crash, complaint or hiccough with the game. I have read a few horror stories, however I can't really comment on those. Hopefully these issues get ironed out, and they get to join in the fun soon! 

Communication: “You have to listen to my calls Samir, please”.

The developers are updating the game. But if you’re not on Discord, you might feel like you’re listening to patch notes shouted from the other side of a canyon.

For example, the roadmap included on the official website is as follows.

Helpful, I suppose it isn’t wrong?

A clearer roadmap, a bit more direct communication, and maybe fewer “join our server for details!” nudges would go a long way for the community - especially one filled with people who like precision. 

Heck, some form of roadmap may even help sell a few more copies! People like to know what they are getting into, even if it’s a general overview. I’m not talking about specific dates, but knowing we can look forward to four new cars, and two stages will give a sense of anticipation and encourage that longing from the fanbase. 

We like to be excited, and maybe Supernova Games have taken learning from Kunos in how not to launch a game, and keep delaying features (where’s my Nürburgring free roam Kunos?), but “hey, look, a vague plan” would be a nice addition. 

So… What’s the Verdict?

Honestly? It’s a fascinating launch. The core is brilliant - the physics look brilliant, the driving is demanding and fun (especially on gravel), and the stages feel alive in ways most rally titles don’t even attempt. But the scaffolding around that brilliant core is still being assembled in full view of the audience.

If you’re a hardcore wheel-using sim goblin, you might love it already. If you’re casual, on controller, or expecting a full rally experience from day one… well… grab a coffee (I’d offer, but as always, budgetary constraints), sit back, and let the patches roll in.

I think this will shape up to be a brilliant title - if this shapes up to be half the game it proposes to be, purchasing it now will be an absolute steal. As always, with an early access title, it’s a payoff between trust and reward.

Let’s hope the reward pays off.