Colin McRae Rally 3 Preview

The principle idea of a racing simulation is to push the limits of current hardware in order to make the driving experience in a video game as realistic as possible. When creating a rally sim, most designers tend to overlook this "simple" fact and settle for an arcade like experience instead. A good rally sim should let you feel every bump on the road and experience the horse power of your finely tuned engine. The cockpit should vibrate and shake just like it would in a real life race. Rally racing sims in particular are supposed to convey the sense of driving on a narrow dirt track against all kinds of weather elements; against the tricky curves of an unfamiliar territory with only your co-pilot's voice to guide you through the unfriendly terrain. If your car isn't completely drenched in mud and soot after the race, you haven't really driven a rally challenge. It takes great skill to drive a rally race and if a game cannot convey that, then, it's not really worth your time.

And, the crowd goes wild... Well, not too wild.

This is not the right way to take a left turn.

Many games have tried to achieve this sensation, but none have really tried to get into the crux of the matter - to understand what exactly would make us feel like we're inside a rally car. It's not just about the sense of speed, it's about thinking your car is vulnerable on the road, susceptible to the outside conditions, and could drive into a tree, or off a cliff at any moment - only your superb driving skills can keep you on the road to victory. Ever since Colin McRae 2.0 fans of the driving sims know that there is only one game that can come close to this feeling. Finally, in Colin McRae 3 PC gaming comes about as close at it gets, considering the boundaries of today's 3D technology. It seems that the PC version of the game pushes the hardware even more in terms of great physics and the richness of graphics and particle effect.

First things first, it may be fun to play this game on a keyboard, but if you really want to experience the thrill of rally driving, then, I suggest you seriously consider buying a force-feedback steering wheel. I mean, the gameplay switches into another gear when you tighten your grip around a cool racing wheel, and it starts to shake. Rally fans should most certainly do this. Colin McRae Rally 3 deserves nothing less.

There are three aspects of the racing genre where Colin McRae Rally 3 truly excels.

First, there is the visual and audio aspect of the game. The game looks better than any rally sim I've ever played. The car models are screaming with polys; the particle effects are simply awesome (rain drops, mud, snow flakes, etc.), and the backgrounds, while still rather 2D when you get extremely close, are good enough not to spoil the overall impression, and easy on your GPU enough to let the game run at decent frame rates. I played the demo in high-res, with max detail turned on and 4X FSAA, and it ran just fine.

Great graphics wouldn't be complete, however, without the amazing sound-effects. Switching to cockpit view lets you hear all the different noises that can be heard inside a top-of-the-line rally car: from the sounds of wipers when it's raining, to the screeching tires and the shock suspension being literally broken in two by the huge bumps on the road. But, all that wouldn't be complete of course without the engine sounds. They are not too high-pitch and they sound exactly like they should.

The visual and audio element doesn't have a purely cosmetic effect either. It helps the player become totally immersed in the atmosphere of rally driving. Snow will pile up on your windshield as you drive through the white Swedish countryside, and the bumps on the road will make the car jump all the time, making it increasingly difficult to keep sight of the track. You will have to rely greatly on your co-pilot, and in essence, this is what rally driving is all about.

Besides the eye-candy and the neat tricks that create the thrilling atmosphere, the programmers have paid special attention to the in-game physics. Most of the objects in the environment have their own physical properties. You can hit and move banners that lay beside the road, hit haystacks and damn nearly anything else that gets in your way and is lighter than your car. The physics model is the most believable one I've seen in a racing sim. The programmers have even included support for soft bodies, ala Splinter Cell. You can cut through red and white ribbons and they will sway in the wind and bend naturally as you hit them. Of course, doing all this damage with your car won't leave it intact - quite the contrary. The damage model is exceptional. It's still not totally believable but it's the best one I've seen so far. You can easily lose your front bumper when you hit a solid surface, dent your hood, and basically, twist the chassis in such a way that it makes the car look like one ugly mess. One other cool effect is watching sparks that are created when you scrape the side of your car against a metal surface. In addition, it's always good to see a muddy fender or two during a race. It helps create the sense that the road you're driving on isn't exactly freeway quality.

The most important aspect of the physics model is the way your car handles depending on the surface and the weather conditions. All I can say is, I've driven a car faster than 80MPH on a narrow muddy road, and as far as steering goes, this is about as close as it gets in a video game. Obviously, the team has had lots of help from the rally driving veteran, Colin McRae, in creating realistic handling for the Ford Focus (that's the car I got to try out in the demo).

Overall, Colin McRae Rally 3 is hands down the best rally game on the market. For maximum pleasure I suggest switching to cockpit view and getting yourself a racing wheel. Put some headphones on and you're going to feel like you are actually driving a rally race. Amazing stuff.