Computer games offer a chance to experience life through a different and inconsequential lens. As sim racing continues to grow in popularity, the level of realism is becoming frighteningly close to reality, and Assetto Corsa has been at the front of this drive for accuracy.
In the last few months, the world of digital racing has seen the emergence of a new platform. It’s impressively accurate, ruthlessly difficult, and so picturesquely perfect that we had to give it a try. Assetto Corsa Rally might be in its early access phase, but if this is only the start, the world of online rally racing is getting excitingly real.
One of the greatest variables that has improved the racing game experience since its inception is the visuals. What started as a scroll that moves the world around the car in games like the 1984 Pole Position has become a near-perfect display of photorealism thanks to tech advancements such as Unreal Engine 5 and stage scanning.
Loading into the simulator, the scenery surrounding the rendered car is so ridiculously sharp and bright that on the occasional zone-out, I’d find myself taking in the views when hurtling through a ‘five right’ at 180km/h. It’s an experience from the visuals alone, and to think that the full game has yet to be released means it’s expected to look even sharper and further refined with the coming updates.
What impressed me most was the level of effort put into the experience. NPCs, or non-playable characters, line the edges of the stages, with the occasional hooligan running onto the road ahead of the car. It’s a small touch that encapsulates the spirit of rally racing and enhances immersion with a human element.
In its current early access state, there are four locations to choose from. The biggest selling point here is the impressive depth of the road layout. Each stage has been laser-scanned, and using photogrammetry, it provides an exact 1:1 model of the real-world stage. This means that each centimetre of road, dirt, elevation, bumps, trees, obstacles and visuals is exactly the same as the real thing.
Of course, the main focus for any Assetto game is the accuracy of car physics. Which is the most important element of any sim racing platform? The team from Kunos Simulazioni, who, with Supernova Games, develop the hyperrealistic physics engine for the Assetto Corsa franchise, combined their industry-leading understanding of physics-based reality in circuit racing to provide a new type of physics-based driving in rally games. Through ruthless tweaking and extensive input from real rally drivers, the brand has achieved a sense of realism not replicated in any rally game to date.
AC Rally is ahead of its time. It’s the most accurate, most ruthless and most visually stunning simulator I have experienced by some margin. And considering it’s still under development means it is only going to get better. It balances excitement, driving skill, and a genuine understanding of physics. For those looking for real rally racing on a sim, I can’t recommend this enough.
