WRC 9 FIA World Rally Championship

79%
Game Brain Score Based on 394 reviews
  • graphics
  • gameplay
  • optimization
WRC 9 FIA World Rally Championship Game Cover
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WRC 9 is the official video game of the FIA World Rally Championship, featuring all the teams, drivers, and 14 rally events of the 2020 season. With enhanced graphics, realistic physics, and a deep career mode, it offers an immersive and challenging rally racing experience. Customization options, including liveries and vehicle setups, add to the game's appeal for both casual and hardcore fans of the sport.

  • Nintendo Switch
  • PC
  • Play​station 4
  • Play​station 5
  • Windows
  • Xbox One
  • Xbox Series X|S
  • Play​Station
  • Xbox
Genres & TagsPlay Modes

Reviews

79%
Audience ScoreBased on 394 reviews
graphics36 positive mentions
optimization6 negative mentions
  • WRC 9 offers realistic physics and stunning graphics, providing an immersive rally racing experience.
  • The career mode is engaging with well-thought-out challenges and car upgrades, enhancing the gameplay.
  • The game features a variety of rally locations and events, along with enjoyable online multiplayer options.
  • The management aspect of the career mode can be tedious and feels unnecessary for players who just want to race.
  • There are significant bugs and performance issues, including crashes and control problems, which detract from the overall experience.
  • The game feels too similar to its predecessor, WRC 8, with minimal new content and some handling issues that can frustrate players.
  • graphics74 mentions

    The graphics in the game are widely praised for their stunning detail and realism, often compared favorably to titles like Cyberpunk 2077. While many users appreciate the visual quality and atmosphere, some have noted issues with performance on high settings and inconsistencies in environmental detail. Overall, the graphics are considered a significant improvement over previous entries in the series, contributing to an immersive gameplay experience.

    • “The graphics are stunning, bringing each location to life with amazing detail.”
    • “Great graphics and atmosphere.”
    • “I loved this game graphics in 4k satisfying.”
    • “The game looks like it's from 2012; graphics are bad, even for being a few years old.”
    • “- stutters on 'high' graphic settings despite my rig meeting the 'recommended' criteria.”
    • “Waste of money - cannot get past startup - had to press the up-gear on the wheel to get past 'press enter to start', then the screen sits on pre-settings forever because it appears there are problems with NVIDIA graphic cards and Logitech wheels.”
  • gameplay26 mentions

    The gameplay is praised for its depth and mechanics, particularly in the career mode, which allows players to hire various support staff and manage upgrades. While WRC 9 and 10 offer improved gameplay and graphics compared to WRC 8, some users feel that the core experience remains similar across these titles. Overall, the game provides a comprehensive rally experience, appealing to both casual and dedicated fans of the genre.

    • “It is the complete package with good mechanics and progression with career mode.”
    • “This game is awesome as you also learn more about the external environment of a rally driver, like having a good mechanic, a weather man, etc. A must-have for rally gamers.”
    • “I like how the career mode goes in depth with hiring mechanics, finance advisors, and upgrade R&D.”
    • “WRC 9 feels almost identical to WRC 8, though with some rather decent upgrades and generally redone gameplay.”
    • “It's just gameplay.”
    • “The damage modeling is decent, mechanically affecting the car — difficulty options available.”
  • optimization16 mentions

    The game's optimization has received mixed reviews, with many players reporting significant performance issues, including frequent FPS drops and high CPU usage, even on capable systems. While some users noted instances of good optimization, the overall consensus leans towards a poorly optimized engine, particularly in comparison to better-optimized titles like Dirt Rally. Additionally, the game's menus have been criticized for their inefficiency, further detracting from the user experience.

    • “Dirt Rally, by comparison, has both real-world locations and a well-engineered, fully optimized physics model.”
    • “Tech/performance wise: ✔ very good optimization.”
    • “Almost all of the vehicles behave similarly in terms of performance and behavior.”
    • “This game eats your CPU cycles for breakfast and drinks your hot tears due to a badly optimized engine known for sudden FPS drops (CPU throttling) even on decent PCs.”
    • “Horrible menus and bad optimization.”
    • “NPC performance is always very low on settings.”
  • stability8 mentions

    Overall, users report stability issues such as freezes and FPS drops across various graphics cards, particularly with a 1070 and 1060. While some games like Dirt Rally 2.0 run smoothly on modest systems, WRC 9 is noted for being the least buggy among recent titles, with hopes that future installments like WRC 10 and WRC Generations will achieve similar stability.

    • “A modest system, but one that has given me many hours of fun in Dirt Rally 2.0, which runs great at medium settings.”
    • “But there are freezes and FPS failures on most cards (I have a 1070, P5 3600); a 1060 video card is recommended.”
    • “Engine sound can cut off or glitch on some cars, like the Fiesta R2.”
    • “WRC 9 is somewhat old by now, but in conclusion, it is a very good rally game. It feels the least buggy, and I wish that WRC 10 and WRC Generations were as polished or as bug-free as WRC 9 is.”
  • music8 mentions

    The music in the game is generally well-received, with players praising the tasteful soundtrack that complements the single-player career mode effectively. However, some users have noted issues with gameplay performance when using certain features, which detracts from the overall experience.

    • “Their single player career mode is very well executed and the soundtrack was tasteful.”
    • “Music fits great.”
    • “Much better music.”
    • “With WMR on, the music plays okay, the spotter's voice is okay, but the game is unplayable.”
  • grinding6 mentions

    Players find the grinding aspect of the game to be tedious and excessive, with some suggesting that the lengthy rally stages and extended career mode require an unrealistic time commitment. The shift from two-day to three-day rallies has been criticized for disrupting the game's pacing and making it feel unnecessarily drawn out.

    • “You'll need a second life for grinding.”
    • “In WRC3 and WRC2, the rallies last for 2 days, which creates a really nice pace. However, in WRC, the rallies last for 3 days, and in many cases, there are very long stages. Sometimes you will drive for 30 km in a single day, which basically destroys your car and makes the game feel tedious.”
    • “The career mode is not bad, but it feels tedious and unnecessary, in my opinion.”
  • story4 mentions

    The reviews indicate that the game lacks a story, with multiple users noting the absence of any narrative elements.

    • “No story.”
    • “No story.”
  • emotional2 mentions

    Users highlight the emotional aspect of the game as overwhelmingly positive, describing it as filled with "wholesome times" that evoke feelings of warmth and joy.

  • atmosphere2 mentions

    Reviewers consistently highlight the game's impressive graphics and immersive atmosphere, indicating that these elements significantly enhance the overall experience.

    • “Great graphics and atmosphere.”
  • replayability2 mentions

    Players highlight the replayability of the game through the time attack mode, specifically the ghost car challenge, which encourages repeated play to improve times and compete against previous performances.

    • “The time attack mode adds incredible replay value with the ghost car challenge.”
    • “The ghost car challenge in time attack mode really enhances the replayability of the game.”
    • “Engaging in time attack for replay value through the ghost car challenge keeps me coming back for more.”
    • “Time attack for replay value = ghost car challenge.”
    • “Time attack for replay value = ghost car challenge.”
Positive mentions (%)Positive
Neutral mentions (%)Neutral
Negative mentions (%)Negative

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