The game itself is good, getting it is another issue.
User Rating: 8.4 | Colin McRae Rally 04 PC
The good news is the game itself is quite good; the bad news is that there are a few things that may prevent people from buying it. As a rally game, Colin McRae falls more towards the simulation side as opposed to the arcade style such as Rallisport Challenge. It is both Challenging and highly addictive. There are four main classes consisting of 2WD, 4WD, Type B and bonus. The first two speak for themselves, the second two require a little explanation but it would suffice one to say that type B are really powerful and fast (they were banned in reality) and the bonus class are various cars through the history of rally racing. Each car within each class handles differently from others and various tweaks can be done to the car such as steering, tires, brake balance, spring adjustments etc. Once you are on the track it gets pretty fun. The tracks are well rendered and each country offers a completely unique driving experience – terrain includes tarmac, gravel (various types), mud, water, ice etc. However, I would have like to see a desert track perhaps modelled after the Dakar. The cars are displayed in fine detail and so are the tracks; however, it really takes one out of the experience as you pass “cardboard cut-out” fans along the track – therefore I would dock points for that. The sound is satisfactory and you can hear navigational information dictated to you by Colin McRae’s actual navigator through a thick Scottish accent. The multiplayer component can be quite enjoyable as you can compete with friends. Some may feel that it is annoying only seeing a “ghost car” in place of an opponent but a real car would not be true to the rally experience (although I would welcome real cars instead of the ghost cars). Moreover, you can have up to four players playing split screen. Now, let’s get to the bad parts. Firstly, there is a terrible marketing ploy to take more of your money where you need to phone for codes to unlock cars and tracks. I find that distasteful. Secondly, you can only purchase this online at the Codemasters’ website. And thirdly, the pc version is sold at full price where the xbox version sells at a budget price. Some may find that unfair although the PC version looks a lot nicer. However, there is little point in buying this while Colin McRae Rally 05 for the PC is out and can be bought at retailers at the budget price. So perhaps the ’04 version will get lost somewhere.
