EA SPORTS WRC - the all-new official video game of the FIA World Rally Championship is coming 3 November!
Electronic Arts is excited to introduce EA SPORTS™ WRC, the official game of the FIA World Rally Championship coming to PlayStation®5, Xbox Series X|S, and PC via EA App, Epic Store, and Steam on November 3, 2023.
We’ve known that Codemasters, and subsequently, EA, secured the rights to the WRC games for over three years now (Codemasters secures WRC license). And the assumption from then has been that our dream of seeing Dirt Rally 3 would be replaced by the hope that we would be seeing the best bits of our beloved but dated DR2.0 being incorporated into a brand new game. And that new game would have the added benefit of being an officially licensed WRC game.
Flash forwards a few months from that announcement to another: EA acquiring Codemasters. (Codemasters Bought by Electronic Arts). Suddenly the worry that the plucky and fiercely independent studio being swallowed by the corporate behemoth that is Electronic Arts would negatively impact the new game.
We’ll need to wait until 03 November to find out exactly what real impact EA has had on the game. And to decide if it’ll become the MEWRL replacement for Dirt Rally 2.0 - a hard act to follow!
EA SPORTS WRC FEATURES
MAKE YOUR OWN: Design and drive your dream rally car with the debut of Builder mode.
REWRITE HEADLINES: Get behind the wheel and overcome recent events alongside real-world highlights and nostalgic throwbacks in Moments mode.
DYNAMIC HANDLING SYSTEM: Codemasters’ renowned multi-surface handling model is improved for WRC. Tailor it to match your skill level and put it to the test on surface degradation.
IMMERSIVE: Revel in euphoric moments as you battle the elements across dirt, snow and asphalt in the pursuit of the perfect run.
AUTHENTICITY: Built on the foundations of over 25 years of rally-game heritage, drive the WRC, WRC2, and Junior WRC cars, with drivers, teams, and liveries from the 2023 season.
JOURNEY THROUGH WRC HISTORY: Challenge yourself behind the wheel of epic WRC cars and travel through rallying history with a variety of 70 authentically recreated historic vehicles.
AROUND THE WORLD: From Monte Carlo and Portugal to Kenya and Japan, battle 17 current and former WRC locations with over 200 stages at launch.
THE COMPLETE EXPERIENCE: Career, Championship, Time Trial, Cross-platform Multiplayer, Regularity Rally, a detailed livery editor, and more.
Compete across 18 classes in 78 of the greatest rally machines ever made, covering the entire history of the sport. Take on the toughest roads with world-famous manufacturers, or forge a new path by building your very own rally car.
WRC
Ford Puma Rally1 HYBRID
Hyundai i20 N Rally1 HYBRID
Toyota GR Yaris Rally1 HYBRID
WRC2 *
Citroën C3 Rally2
Ford Fiesta Rally2
Hyundai i20 N Rally2
ŠKODA Fabia Rally2 Evo
ŠKODA Fabia RS Rally2
Volkswagen Polo GTI R5
Junior WRC
Ford Fiesta Rally3
World Rally 2017-2021
Ford Fiesta WRC
Volkswagen Polo 2017
World Rally1997-2011
Citroën C4 WRC
Citroën Xsara WRC
Ford Focus RS Rally 2001
Ford Focus RS Rally 2008
MINI Countryman Rally Edition
Mitsubishi Lancer Evolution VI
Peugeot 206 Rally
Seat Córdoba WRC
ŠKODA Fabia WRC
SUBARU Impreza 1998
SUBARU Impreza 2001
SUBARU Impreza 2008
Rally2 *
Ford Fiesta R5 MK7 Evo 2
Peugeot 208 T16 R5
Rally4
Ford Fiesta MK8 Rally4
Opel Adam R2
Peugeot 208 Rally4
Renault Twingo II
NR4/R4
McRae R4
Mitsubishi Lancer Evolution X
SUBARU WRX STI NR4
S2000
Fiat Grande Punto Abarth S2000
Opel Corsa S2000
Peugeot 207 S2000
S1600
Citroën C2 Super 1600
Citroën Saxo Super 1600
Ford Puma S1600
Renault Clio S1600
F2 Kit
Ford Escort Mk 6 Maxi
Peugeot 306 Maxi
Renault Maxi Mégane
Seat Ibiza Kit Car
Vauxhall Astra Rally Car
Volkswagen Golf IV Kit Car
Group A
Ford Escort RS Cosworth
Lancia Delta HF Integrale
Mitsubishi Galant VR4
SUBARU Impreza 1995
SUBARU Legacy RS
Group B (4WD)
Audi Sport quattro S1 (E2)
Ford RS200
Lancia Delta S4
MG Metro 6R4
Peugeot 205 T16 Evo 2
Group B (RWD)
BMW M1 Procar Rally
Lancia 037 Evo 2
Opel Manta 400
Porsche 911 SC RS
H3 (RWD)
BMW M3 Evo Rally
Ford Escort MK2 McRae Motorsport
Ford Sierra Cosworth RS500
Lancia Stratos
Opel Ascona 400
Renault 5 Turbo
H2 (RWD)
Alpine Renault A110 1600 S
Fiat 131 Abarth Rally
Ford Escort MK2
Hillman Avenger
Opel Kadett C GT/E
Talbot Sunbeam Lotus
H2 (FWD)
Peugeot 205 GTI
Peugeot 309 GTI
Volkswagen Golf GTI
H1 (FWD)
Lancia Fulvia HF
MINI Cooper S
Vauxhall Nova Sport
Builder Cars
WRC Builder Car
WRC2 Builder Car *
Junior WRC Builder Car
* All WRC2 cars can compete in the Rally2 car class.
Pre-order EA SPORTS™ WRC to receive five VIP passes, each containing additional post-launch content, three vanity packs consisting of liveries and apparel, and up to three days of early access starting October 31, 2023.
Ahh, but that’s the thing though… Once WRC is out, all other rally games will become redundant, obsolete, and irrelevant. It will be the One Rally Game to Rule Them All!
One thing I’ve always wanted in Dirt 2.0 is a proper practice mode. Imagine being able to endlessly loop a tricky corner. Even a rewind mode would help. I haven’t seen anything like that mentioned here.
With the MEW Dirt Rally season coming to an end, and this new game destined to replace the now aging Dirt Rally 2.0, I’ve started digging around for any info on how the new game will deal with clubs and leagues. So far not too much has been revealed, and very little seen.
All that has been said so far is in the original press release announcement:
Greater Multiplayer Connections
EA SPORTS™ WRC brings our fans together with 32 player cross-platform multiplayer, allowing for competition between friends and the wider rally community. Using EA Racenet, EA’s racing companion app, Clubs serve as community-built hubs offering custom multi-surface tournaments with racing at any location and time of year.
If nothing else, that at least does confirm that we should be able to keep our existing club friends links making it a little easier to establish a new club in the new game. For the rest, we’ll have to wait a little longer to confirm.
The full list of cars has been released. I’ve updated the EA WRC Car List post up there . Some interesting new cars on the lists, and some new screenshots to go with the reveal too.
Also found this list of Rally Locations on the Insider Gaming site. It is not confirmed officially yet, so apply a suitable number of salt pinches. (Tom Henderson is a pretty reliable source though.)
Described behind-the-scenes as “the biggest rally game we’ve [EA] ever made”, EA Sports WRC is set to bring 18 global locations and 78 different vehicles.
EA Sports WRC Locations
Each of the locations in WRC will have 35 km of unique track, taking the total playable track length within the game to over 600 km. Each of the non-snow locations will also be available to play in four seasons throughout the year.
Locations:
Chile
Croatia
Estonia
Finland
Greece
Iberia
Japan
Kenya
Mediterraneo
Mexico
Monte Carlo
Oceania
Pacifico
Portugal
Sardinia
Scandia
Sweden
Central Europe (as a free update post-launch)
Curious about why four of them have generic names (Mediterraneo, Oceania, Pacifico, and Scandia). Also notice there’s nothing listed for the UK which seems odd. No Scotland or Wales?
For reference, here’s the official 2023 WRC calendar of 13 events:
I see that there will be a 5 hour trial with EA play. Not sure why they are being stingy and not allowing the usual 10 hours but at least it will be enough to test it out and then wait for the discount to come eventually.
The next Wednesday video is a Gameplay First Look - it’ll be live at 17:00 on Wednesday:
Stay tuned for the EA SPORTS™ WRC Gameplay First Look video, where rally driver and game designer @JonArmstrongRallying takes the wheel to tackle three of the game’s locations.
