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ANOTHER CODEMASTERPIECE!  |  Arend D. Hart from StationPlay says (19/Mar/2003): | Colin McRae Rally 3 (Xbox)
Codemasters
Arend D. Hart – Chief Editor, StationPlay
Codemasters’ Colin McRae (CMR) series has long been the reigning king of rally simulations. No other racing series has matched Codemasters’ attention to detail employed in the CMR series – including Codemasters’ other tour de force , the TOCA series. Whether you want to consider the always stellar graphics, the incredibly realistic physics engine, the sublime sense of speed, or any of the titles’ other awe inspiring facets, it cannot be denied that the Colin McRae series has continued to trump the competition year after year. The newest release, Colin McRae Rally 3 (CMR3), continues this trend and save for a few slight disappointments, this title currently stands as the ultimate rally simulation on the market.
It’s pretty safe to say that CMR3 is not going to appeal to some racing fans. It should, but it wont. Please forgive me if that sounds slightly condescending, because it really wasn’t meant to be. It more addresses other people’s hang-ups regarding the question of what constitutes enjoyable motorsports. You see, I used to be pretty one sided myself. I used to make some fairly scathing comments about NASCAR and the like. I was a fairly dedicated WRC, Touring Car and F1 fan, and I was very vocal that everything else (i.e. NASCAR) was, well, for rednecks. I’ve grown beyond that now. I mean, we all know NASCAR is for rednecks, but I think I have come to terms with my own redneckedness and can now understand the allure of the speedway. Too bad that few NASCAR fans can see any merit in the rally racer; too bad for the WRC and too bad for rally titles in the USA , because they do not sell that well on this side of the pond and really, they should.
But you are here, and you are reading this, so apparently you are interested in this game. My recommendation? Buy it, live it, love it and never look back. CMR3 is a spectacular rally simulation. Let me tell you why…
Graphics
CMR3 has by-far the best vehicle graphics of any racing game available. The surroundings may be slightly barren or pixilated compared to the beautiful Rallisport Challenge, but no console has seen more detailed vehicles as you’ll see in CMR3. Where developers have historically made 3D models of car body shells, Codemasters developers have taken it a step, no a leap, further – making completely independent 3D models for each and every panel, door, hood, and hatch on these vehicles, and allowing each to deform realistically and independently of the other panels upon impact. It makes for an amazingly realistic visual experience. Sure, the Codies (as the UKers call them) have always featured remarkable deformation models in their racing games, but CMR3 takes the cake.
A slight disappointment, there is some noticeable visual pop-up on some levels. Not enough pop-up to ruin the experience, but still somewhat surprising for an Xbox title. The pop-up is more noticeable in the behind-the-car view, where your field of vision is much larger than in-car or hood views, and it is most visible in the slightly unnecessary special effects which makes its appearance somewhat strange. For instance, in the dusty Grecian levels, the developers wanted to recreate the dust haze hanging over the road left over from the previous vehicles to run the stage . Nice effect, for sure. Problem is, at curves (and these courses are all curves) you can look at the road around the curve and see crystal clear roadway, while in front of you, dust seems to appear from nowhere – and as you approach that previously clear area the dust magically. Generally on a less graphically powerful machine like the PS2 or PSone, you would never notice something like this because your horizon would be fogged (which would give a dusty appearance), but here it seems a bit weird. There is also significant pop-up on the Super Special night stages, which seemed to be the result of the questionable representation of headlight reflections in the distance. But in all reality, the pop-up is no more than an irritating distraction, and doesn’t hamper the amazing gameplay.
Controls and Physics
The control and physics are classic CMR, which means that they are marvelous. At first they may feel slightly loose to some, but I think that has more to do with the lackluster Xbox controller, which is better suited for shooting Covenant baddies than it is for controlling a high-octane racing machine. But it only takes a short while to get the right “feel” for the controls, and sooner than you think, you’ll be drifting through hairpins like a champion.
The physics engine is, as usual, spectacular. If there is one thing Codemasters knows better than any other game developer, it's their physics. The cars react like real vehicles to differences in terrain, acceleration and traction. CMR3 will give you the most realistic feeling driving experience of any racing title to date - including Codemasters other top shelf driving sim, Pro Race Driver.
There is only one control setup available, but it’s pretty universal. The face buttons are standard layout for a racer “A” for gas, “X” for brake, “B” is hand brake and “Y” is view. The triggers also do gas/brake as does the right thumbstick. It’s a pretty neat layout allowing you a variety of combinations never really utilized before. You can’t change the layout, which is fine for me, but I have heard of some fans taking issue with this especially with regard to driving with manual transmission – something I have embarrassingly never been able to master in a driving game.
On an aside, the very same day I received my copy of CMR3 in the mail, I also received an AceBox converter to review which allows you to use the PS2 DualShock controller on the Xbox. After many hours with my Xbox Controller-S, I tried the converter out with a DualShock controller, and I must say that the experience was, in a word – amazing. To have the precise controls of the DualShock combined with the visual strength of the Xbox was truly a treat. I will be writing a feature article on the AceBox , but I wanted to mention here that it made a huge difference in my view of Xbox racing titles in general, and really made CMR3 a blast.
Gameplay
Gameplay is an ill-fitting word, because CMR3 is far from being a “game” – it is a full-fledged rally simulation. As the title suggests, you take on the role of Colin McRae in his (former) duties as driver for Ford’s Focus WRC team for three rally seasons. Each rally is made up of a half-dozen or so single car, point-to-point stages and one Super Special two car intertwined loop stages.
You have full control over the vehicle setup, including the tranny, tires, springs, etc.. Damage will affect the vehicle’s performance, and only at certain repair stages will your car be repaired. That’s not a typo CMR2.0 fans, your car will “be repaired” for you. More on that later…
As with the past CMR titles, you will need to perfect your setup, master your technique and memorize your driving lines to make it to the podium in each rally. The competition is as tough as nails and will really put you through the paces as you try to keep ahead. Basically, CMR3 will grab you, slap you around for a while, and leave you in a bruised and sweaty heap on the floor – it’s that real. This title is as top-shelf as it gets.
And speaking of course design, the developers really went all-out with CMR3. I had been following the development of CMR3 for the past couple of years, and time and time again the developers kept telling us about the amazing detail they were going into with regard to the design of each stage and how the UK stages in particular were going to be mind blowing. The were absolutely right. All of the stages are amazing, but the UK stages will knock your socks off with their sudden changes in terrain, tight two-track forest weaving and cobblestone bridges.
Detailed
The CMR series has always been very detailed. From the visuals to the controls, from the physics to the sound, CMR titles will make you feel like you are truly a world-class rally driver. The CMR titles were some of the first to effectively cure the “invisible walls syndrome,” by opening up the off-course area more than most and bordering it all with fences and trees – not magical walls. Even so, it was always a bit strange to find a ribbon fence that could stop a rally car at full speed. CMR3 has made the whole experience even more realistic – now those ribbon and link fences don’t stand a chance to the petrol-fueled chariots and will tear and break accordingly. This allows you to easily get off course or even worse, lost, but that all adds to the realism. It’s much a much appreciated level of detail and makes listening to you co-driver all the more necessary.
Speaking of the co-driver, Nicky Grist is once again in CMR3 barking the pace notes in perfect cadence. Nicky and Colin parted ways during the making of CMR3, citing “irreconcilable differences” or something to that effect, so having the two represented together in this title one last time is a bit special. Couple that with the fact that Colin no longer drives for Ford, and CMR3 is like a bittersweet memoir of the days gone by. It’s like that NFL 2000 I keep as a memory of having Barry Sanders playing for my hometown Lions, or an old copy of Triple Play with the Tigers playing in Tiger Stadium – it’s history.
Lost in the Shuffle
But, that’s not to say that there aren’t a few things I do miss from the earlier CMR titles – aspects which made those titles slightly more rewarding than CMR3.
I miss my repair tent most. If you’ve ever played CMR2.0, you know about the repair tent. Every few stages, you were given a fixed amount of time to make any vehicle setup changes and/or repair the damage you had inflicted thus far. Each fix or change had a set amount of time to perform which ate away at your total allotted time. The catch was that for the most part, you never seemed to have enough time allotted to change of fix everything. So, much like an RPG, you were left having to prioritize and decide what problems could be dealt with for the greater good of the vehicle. This level of control really left a person with a feeling of oneness with the vehicle, the driver and the game as a whole. Sadly, except for basic vehicle setup options, the repair tent is no longer in your control and all repair decisions are made by the AI. There still is a limit on the time, as not all items are fixed completely as you find in most racing titles, but you are left with a feeling of detachment from the process. Codemasters has stated that they purposely omitted the repair tent to accurately reflect the job duties of the Driver, which do not include repair decisions. Bummer.
I also miss the ability to race through the season with a vehicle other than a Ford Focus. Granted, I generally ran through CMR2.0 with the Focus, but every now and then, I’d pick up the Peugeot 206 and play like I was Marcus Gronholm. CMR3, not only doesn’t let you season race as anyone other than Colin McRae (not even as yourself), but it doesn’t even feature the 206 at all. It’s been rumored that there was some serious licensing issues which caused the paring of the available vehicles, but it’s all being kept a bit hushed. True, it is called Colin McRae Rally 3, but it would be nice to have some freedom.
Finally, I miss the Arcade mode of CMR2.0 which featured rallycross-type multi-vehicle lap races. Sure, we all spent most of our time in the Championship mode, but quite often it was fun to race side-by-side, crashing a bashing with the AI cars. Recent competing titles like Rallisport Challenge offer awesome multi-car rallycross racing, and we were expecting that and more from Codemasters given the work they had done with CMR2.0. Sadly, the Arcade mode is gone for CMR3, and to add insult to injury, the multiplayer split screen modes may show all the vehicles racing at the same time, but each window only features one vehicle at a time as if everyone is racing on identical courses, but not together. Make sense?
In Closing
So now that you’ve read my gripes, I want to reassure you that even with all the omissions, I still absolutely love this game. CMR3 is an incredible title and if you are a rabid rally fan, I strongly suggest you pick this up ASAP. If you are new to rally, you may want to pick up the Platinum Hits title Rallisport Challenge first, as it caters a bit more to the casual racing fan and features a plethora of gaming modes not included in CMR3. I’m sure that once you get a touch of the rally bug, you’ll be running down to your local game store to pick up CMR3, and having both Rallisport Challenge and CMR3 in your library is like being in rally heaven…trust me.
Thank you Codemasters for another wonderful title.
Other Codemasters titles of interest:
Colin McRae Rally
Colin McRae Rally 2.0
Pro Race Driver
Jarrett and Labonte Stock Car Racing
TOCA 2
No Fear Downhill Mountain Biking
| the best rally game EVER! | | Brendan De souza from Canada Ontario Oakville says (7/Jul/2003): | i had all the Colin McRae rally games but i couldn't wait until the 2nd of colin mcrae rally i found out it was a amzing thing then when colin mcrae rally 3 came out i thought i was watching this the grapics are the best real time Damage but the best feature i've seen in a gameis the realstic wippers that are like real the grapics are stunning and the gameplay is the best i've seen in a game thank you codemasters for making this game the best
| Best rally game ever¡...... with one flaw | | Juan from mexico city says (5/Jun/2003): | this game is gourgeos¡¡ all rally fans will be pleased with the all rally experience, great graphics, great real rally tracks, the dirt, the rain, the snow, the damage, the gameplay... u sure buy this one¡ u must buy this one if u are a rally fan... or even if u arent.. u will be after playing this. the only flaw.. more cars¡
| Rallying At Its Best | | sum41 from penrith, England says (18/Feb/2003): | This is rallying to precision. The realism in the graphics is quite eplicit with exceedingly great detail made to the background. What can I say about the damage. Its so believable and realistic. If you hit a obstacle like a tree or rock, you see your bumper fly of, you can loose a wheel, loose your bonnet, quite sensational. The sound is uite superb. Sometimes i think i'm actually at a rally course, but that is just a fantay. I think the way codemasters have designed the game is brilliant. The championship mode is brilliant, being contracte to the ford rallye sport team. It makes it more of a challenge instead of just picking your favourite car. You have to unlock car parts through the season by finishing on the podium respectively. if you win the championship, you get rewarded with unlockable viechles including the subaru 445. All you rally fans, buy a game you won't be disappointed in. I've become engrossed to it and no doubt you will. Just buy it!
| colin mcrae 2 with less features | | mat sadler from brentwood, essex says (8/Feb/2003): | I love colin mcrae 2, especially the fact that you can compete in a championship against friends, and you can do it in the car of your choice. So when I played colin mcrae 3, i was massively disapointed. Yes, the graphics are better, the car physics seem more real, and the car damages a lot better, but why remove multiplayer championships, you have to do a stages thing if you wat to play multiplayer, with no car repairs, that jumps from country to country. And you are still limited to 4 players! why?you take it in turns to race.
Why force the player to be colin mcrae in a ford focus when doing a champoinship? I want to play as me in another car, it can't be that hard to inlude the option. They just seem to have removed a lot of what made version 2 good, when they could just as easily left it in. I just hope they sort it out for the pc version.
| Codemasters doing what they do best | | Sam Sedgman from Grimsby, England says (4/Jan/2003): | Well they certainly haven't let us down. I think the peeps at codemasters need awards and gratitude for their continual efforts on Racing Sims!. From TOCA, TOCA2, Colin McRae 2 to this latest edition they always produce goods worthy of ya hard earned wages! Building on top of CM2 they have simply refined, updated and tweaked to create an outstanding game. I don't think I can knock anything about this game...I mean, what isn't here. The graphics are nothing short of superb, the sound is so realistic you have to momentarly check out the window to make sure you dont live next to rally course, and the man himseld has just bezzed by in the Focas. Gameplay is realistic, its actually one of those games where your not really compremised by using the joy pad. So many levels so little time...I think this has hit the nail on the head and it will take some beating, they even include a making of the game! The only flaw I can personally find in it is for me there isn't much replay value, I amd not pulled into playing the game like others I own. But this is my own personal preference. This has to one of the top 10 games out at the moment. A must buy if you can afford, and enjoy the off racing sim, I dont think you will be dissapointed.
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