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art of rally

From its incredible soundtrack to its unbelievably fun gameplay and striking visuals, art of rally is a genuine contender for 2020’s best racer.
86%Game Brain Score
graphics, music
optimization, stability
94% User Score Based on 7,148 reviews
Critic Score 79%Based on 13 reviews

Platforms

PCPCXboxXboxXbox Series X|SXbox Series X|SPlaystation 5Playstation 5Playstation 4Playstation 4WindowsWindowsPlayStationPlayStationNintendo SwitchNintendo SwitchLinuxLinuxMac OSMac OSXbox OneXbox OneSteam DeckSteam Deck

About

"Art of Rally" is a top-down racing game inspired by the golden era of rally. Compete in Career mode across 78 stages in various locations with a variety of vintage cars. Master different driving modes and take on daily and weekly challenges to hone your skills and move up the leaderboards. The Australia DLC adds six new tracks, four cars, and new music, among other features.

art of rally screenshot
art of rally screenshot
art of rally screenshot
art of rally screenshot
art of rally screenshot
art of rally screenshot
art of rally screenshot
art of rally screenshot
art of rally screenshot
art of rally screenshot
art of rally screenshot
+10

94%
Audience ScoreBased on 7,161 reviews
graphics1.2k positive mentions
optimization56 negative mentions

  • The game features a unique and beautiful low-poly art style that enhances the overall experience.
  • The driving mechanics are satisfying and rewarding, offering a challenging yet enjoyable experience for players.
  • The soundtrack is fantastic, perfectly complementing the gameplay and creating an immersive atmosphere.
  • The controls can feel inconsistent and floaty, making it difficult to maintain control at higher speeds.
  • There is a lack of a co-driver and pace notes, which can lead to confusion on upcoming turns and jumps.
  • The game has performance issues, including stuttering and lag, especially after extended play sessions.
  • graphics
    2,052 mentions Positive Neutral Negative

    The graphics of "Art of Rally" are characterized by a unique low-poly art style that many players find charming and aesthetically pleasing. The vibrant colors and minimalist design create a visually striking experience that complements the game's engaging soundtrack, although some users note performance issues and a lack of detail in certain areas. Overall, the graphics effectively enhance the game's nostalgic and relaxing atmosphere, making it a standout in the racing genre.

    • “The art style is beautiful, the driving is hard but rewarding to master, the track selection is great and even the open world maps collectibles are fun to gather.”
    • “Beautiful soundtrack and visuals, really brings everything together and gives it character a lot of other games don't have.”
    • “The art style is very vibrant and moody depending on the scenes and works well all across the maps that are in the game.”
    • “Bang average controls, insanely poor performance for how the game looks, graphic style is also garbage and doesn't actually look very good.”
    • “The graphics are not even 'retro' simple, they are plain lazy and lacking any effort or flavor.”
    • “This is a game with graphics that would be considered rubbish even on a 30-year-old PC.”
  • music
    1,581 mentions Positive Neutral Negative

    The music in "Art of Rally" has been widely praised for its exceptional quality, featuring a captivating synthwave soundtrack that enhances the overall gaming experience. Players appreciate how the music complements the game's aesthetic and driving mechanics, creating a relaxing yet engaging atmosphere that encourages hours of gameplay. Many reviewers highlight the soundtrack as a standout feature, often describing it as a perfect fit for the game's vibe and a significant reason to play.

    • “The music seamlessly weaves into the gameplay, creating an immersive experience that's both thrilling and euphoric.”
    • “What truly sets this game apart is its mesmerizing music that transforms each race into a symphony of speed and sound.”
    • “The soundtrack is fantastic, and makes the game super chill, whilst still being engaging.”
    • “Music is awful, and leader-boards don't work.”
    • “The physics are weird, the music is boring.”
    • “So overall i found this amazing to look at, a fantastic soundtrack but sadly it really let me down in the feel.”
  • gameplay
    784 mentions Positive Neutral Negative

    The gameplay of "Art of Rally" is characterized by its deceptively simple yet challenging driving mechanics, which are easy to learn but difficult to master, providing a rewarding experience for players. The game features a beautiful low-poly art style and a captivating soundtrack, enhancing the overall enjoyment while offering a variety of unique cars and tracks. However, some players have noted inconsistencies in mechanics and performance issues, which can detract from the experience, but many still find the gameplay engaging and addictive.

    • “Deceptively simple, with 'easy to learn, hard to master' driving mechanics that strike a nice balance between challenge and reward.”
    • “Fantastic gameplay and car feel; they all feel unique with a good difficulty range on the stages themselves.”
    • “The gameplay is satisfying to master, and there are plenty of maps to keep the rallies interesting.”
    • “Gameplay is lacking; there are no opponents, no co-driver.”
    • “The worst part for me was that the game started running at ~5 fps each time after ~1 hour of gameplay (on RTX 4080), which made the game unplayable and basically killed the current race.”
    • “Unfortunately, the most recent updates have introduced a mechanic that causes most unstable/peaky vehicles to randomly oversteer, seemingly out of the blue (even on straight sections).”
  • optimization
    216 mentions Positive Neutral Negative

    The game's optimization has received significant criticism, with many players reporting frequent stuttering, frame drops, and inconsistent performance even on high-end systems. Despite its low-poly graphics, the game struggles to run smoothly, leading to frustration among users who expected better performance. While some updates have improved the situation, a consensus remains that further optimization is necessary for a more enjoyable experience.

    • “On the whole, it is extremely well optimized though.”
    • “The low-poly art style is both beautiful and functional, allowing for smooth and consistent performance even on lower-end hardware.”
    • “I really like this game, and the recent update has resulted in much improved performance.”
    • “Even though I like it, I had to give a negative review for this game because of the stuttering; there was a lot of stuttering!”
    • “The game performance is quite disappointing considering that this is a low poly game, but it supports 21:9 display aspect ratio well.”
    • “This game is in desperate need of optimization as I (and judging from other community posts, not only AMD) and many others are experiencing massive lag spikes almost every 2 to 3 seconds, making this game frustrating as all heck.”
  • humor
    108 mentions Positive Neutral Negative

    The humor in the game is a standout feature, with players enjoying the witty and often tongue-in-cheek car descriptions that blend factual information with comedic elements. Many reviews highlight the amusing car names and the lighthearted approach to rally racing, making the game feel both entertaining and charming. Overall, the humor adds a delightful layer to the gameplay experience, enhancing its appeal to both casual and dedicated racing fans.

    • “The bios have some tongue-in-cheek humor as well, like one of the Italian cars being said to have an espresso machine installed in it to help the drivers concentrate.”
    • “Historic liveries and humorous little blurbs for each car add to this game's charm as a love letter not only to rallying, but to car culture as a whole.”
    • “The game doesn't take itself too seriously either, with several car names and descriptions being fairly humorous (such as the Volvo 'turbo brick').”
    • “The crowd's behavior makes no sense and it's not funny at all.”
  • story
    108 mentions Positive Neutral Negative

    The game's story is primarily focused on the evolution of rally racing, allowing players to unlock different eras and cars as they progress through various stages. While some reviews note that the narrative is minimal and not the main draw, others appreciate the way it highlights the history and lore of rallying, making it a charming tribute to the sport. Overall, the story serves as a backdrop to the gameplay rather than a central element, with many players enjoying the driving experience more than the narrative itself.

    • “The storyline takes you through the different ages of rally, which really makes unlocking newer eras with faster cars an accomplishment.”
    • “The way the game tells you the story of rally throughout the years is very interesting, and it highlights the beauty of rally.”
    • “A gorgeous tribute to the story of rally racing and the men and women who took on its challenge.”
    • “The story is kinda short especially considering there's no reason to play the game past that point.”
    • “Playing through the story mode was also a huge chore.”
    • “There's no story, just a bunch of different classes of cars which all handle differently and you merely have to finish the rally to unlock the next one.”
  • atmosphere
    96 mentions Positive Neutral Negative

    The atmosphere of the game is widely praised for its beautiful graphics, charming art style, and immersive sound design, creating a relaxing and enjoyable experience. Players appreciate the chill vibe, enhanced by atmospheric lighting and ambient sounds, which contribute to a unique and engaging environment. Overall, the game successfully combines aesthetics and gameplay, making it a standout in the racing genre.

    • “The atmosphere of each stage is phenomenal; the lighting, colors, dirt, and tarmac enhance the entire experience.”
    • “The atmosphere and sounds just absolutely nail the feel of rally.”
    • “The visuals and soundtrack really work together well and create a very chill atmosphere.”
    • “Especially in a game that emphasizes such an atmosphere and vibe, I don't want to be annoyed constantly.”
    • “For some reason, the trees took a while to load on the snowy levels, causing some lag and breaking the atmosphere.”
    • “This somewhat ruined the atmosphere.”
  • replayability
    56 mentions Positive Neutral Negative

    The game's replayability is generally praised, with many players highlighting the variety of cars and randomized career rallies that encourage repeated play. However, some users noted a decline in replay value due to missing leaderboards and events, which could deter those seeking ongoing challenges. Overall, for players who enjoy mastering skills and improving times, the game offers significant replay potential, especially at its affordable price point.

    • “With 4WD, FWD, RWD, as well as front, mid, and rear engine cars, the choice in car makes each map very replayable as you try to get gold in every career group and achieve better times in the time trials.”
    • “Amazing that it was made by a team of basically one person, and the amount of content and replayability, coupled with the fact that it's only $25 (or even cheaper on sale), makes for one hell of a steal.”
    • “The replayability makes this game totally worth the 20€, if you plan on improving your times in the long run.”
    • “I hit the thumbs up because it is a fun little time waster, but as of late the leaderboards, weekly, and daily events don't show up anymore, so the replay value is gone.”
    • “Still fun to go through the career mode, but if you're looking for replay value, unless they fix this, pass on it.”
    • “I suspect in order to find replayability past 100 or so hours in this game, you will also want to find something fun to focus on, like going for records or mastering all the cars in the game (of which there are many).”
  • stability
    51 mentions Positive Neutral Negative

    Overall, the game demonstrates solid stability, particularly on the Steam Deck and desktop Linux, where it runs smoothly with the Vulkan rendering option. However, players have reported occasional lags, freezes, and minor bugs, especially when transitioning between different countries in the game, as well as some visual glitches and menu freezes. Despite these issues, many users appreciate the developers' commitment to addressing bugs and improving performance through updates.

    • “Runs great on Steam Deck with the Vulkan rendering option turned on.”
    • “It looks fantastic, runs great, tons of content, and a steady flow of updates.”
    • “It's a solid game, not buggy and pretty realistic.”
    • “Even with 144+ fps, 40% CPU load, 30% GPU load, and 40 GB free RAM, you can experience lots of lags and game freezes after changing countries in the game.”
    • “There were a lot of minor bugs, mostly - menu freezing, weird car spawn positions, and visual glitches.”
    • “Then in-game it freezes at checkpoint finishes and crashes the entire PC.”
  • grinding
    48 mentions Positive Neutral Negative

    Players have noted that grinding in the game can be excessively tedious, with some achievements requiring significant time investment, such as completing 1000 races or driving 555 km with a single car. Many found the career mode long and repetitive, leading to a loss of enjoyment as they rushed through stages. While some players appreciate the challenge of grinding for track records, the overall sentiment suggests that the grind detracts from the fun and may require a considerable commitment to fully complete the game.

    • “You'll need a second life for grinding.”
    • “You'll need a second life for grinding.”
    • “You'll need a second life for grinding.”
    • “I 100%ed the game on epic - I don't really recommend it because of the 'complete 1000 stages' achievement which requires finishing career + 20 more hours of grinding unless you cheese it by dying.”
    • “The problem for me is that the career mode is long and 'grindy.' I found myself later on not enjoying the seemingly repetitive races: rushing through the stages just to move on to the next one and then the next one – it eventually became a chore to work through.”
    • “There isn't enough content to play more than 30 hours while that achievement might take an additional 30 hours of tedious grinding on top of the 25-30 hours of base game content.”
  • emotional
    30 mentions Positive Neutral Negative

    Players describe the game as a heartfelt tribute to rally racing, evoking nostalgia and emotional connections through its gameplay and design. The experience is likened to cherished childhood memories, providing a sense of wholesome fun and challenge, while also offering moments of frustration that ultimately lead to rewarding gameplay. Many find solace in the game during tough times, highlighting its ability to uplift spirits and create a deep emotional resonance with the rallying culture.

    • “It's hard to describe, but playing this game made me feel like I was 7 years old again, sat on the carpet in front of my granddad, watching rally with him.”
    • “When I first heard of this game I was having a pretty bad day and just thinking of it and playing the demo made me feel a lot better. Later on in the night I had a pretty bad breakdown and my friend bought me this game; it only took me learning of it having Group S and just playing it some made me forget all about my troubles.”
    • “This is a very emotional love letter to rally.”
  • monetization
    14 mentions Positive Neutral Negative

    The game is praised for its lack of microtransactions and internet connectivity requirements, offering a solid experience without scummy monetization practices. Players appreciate the variety of unlockable content, beautiful graphics, and engaging gameplay, all while enjoying a fully immersive racing atmosphere. Overall, the monetization model is seen as fair and player-friendly, enhancing the enjoyment of the game.

    • “No microtransactions, nice music, amazing racing physics (even better than most racing games) and they added legendary cars without paying for the licensing fees.”
    • “Beautiful graphics, lovely sound, music, great overall atmosphere, actually challenging, no in-game purchases, just awesome racing.”
    • “Not to mention, no scummy practices when it comes to DLC or microtransactions, just a damn solid game.”
    • “I especially appreciate the number of unlockable cars and skins in the game (with mod support) and no microtransactions in sight!”
    • “Game doesn't have dumb internet connectivity requirements or stupid microtransactions; it is filled with a variety of beautiful maps, passion, and a lot of fun!”

Buy art of rally

11h Median play time
15h Average play time
5-17h Spent by most gamers
*Based on 42 analyzed playthroughs

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