The main online racing community system in EA Sports WRC, Clubs should be a thriving game mode. But for some reason or another, it feels sparse despite a great deal of potential.
The official game to the FIA World Rally Championship, it is fair to say that EA Sports WRC has had its fair share of trials and tribulations. Performance issues, update controversies, handling debates and frustrated users plagued the title right from the get-go. And whilst the title has come a long way since launch, there are still elements left to be desired today.
When we first gave the game a go upon release, we enjoyed the immersive nature of rallying in the title and appeared to be luckier than others with stuttering and framerate performance. However, there is no denying that gameplay can quickly get stale if you stick to the Career Mode and more recently, anti-cheat updates have left parts of the community unhappy.
EA Sports WRC needs some work. Image: EA Sports
But it is the Clubs game mode that appears increasingly frustrating with the title's equivalent of online racing seeming to fall short of its full potential. Rallying as part of a large community could be a fun, ever-changing experience. But there are elements that one can struggle to overlook.
Sadly, the Codemasters and EA-developed rally series has lost this rather important element in the last few years. In the move from DiRT Rally to the second of its name, the strange decision of removing multi-class online rallies was taken. The remnants of what was a surprising move remain in EA Sports WRC as, to this day, just one class of car can be run at any time.
Sure, this means greater competition within the same class. But the game does not offer the enthralling challenge of trying to cement oneself into an all-wheel drive field in a rear-wheel drive car for example. Nor can the tarmac monstering Kit Cars go up against top-flight WRC models from the 2000's. Lacking that chase of climbing through the overall standings, EA's Clubs mode is certainly worse off.
Though in all honesty, in its current state, it is a good thing you cannot take a gander through overall standings after each stage. In fact, the game at present makes finding the rally leader board rather difficult. Where most games show rally positions after each stage, EA Sports WRC restricts view to just stage results.
Therefore, if you want to know where you are on combined times or fancy finding out how much time you need to gain on the next stage, a long slog of menus, options and button selections await you. Even then, the table will undoubtedly require some scrolling to find your name.
Elsewhere, the simple thrill of getting to the next services or to rally's end is a core element of competing in any form of rally race. With hardcore damage selected, EA Sports WRC can certainly be almost as unforgiving as the now-20-year-old rally game, RBR. But following bugs from the past, that ruthless nature of rallying can get lost in translation.
Even this accident won't cost you much time if it's just before a Service Park.
In fact, at one point, damage meant nothing in these online rally events as, simply leaving the server and reconnecting would once repair all damage, providing the player with a fresh motor. Several updates since then have released, some of which attempted to resolve the issue. However, in some versions in the past, the bug has reared its ugly head at times, meaning we really will never know if the issue truly disappears forever.
One matter we believe is still poking around however is another damage-based bug.
In a recent Club event (that inspired this take), I suffered more damage than I could repair within the time frame during a mid-rally service. A near-undriveable car, I decided to take the few minutes' penalty and make up some time with a fully functioning model. Though after exceeding the allocated 45 minutes by over 10, no penalty appeared in the services menu, nor the leader board.
Yes, it seems that the game still fails to provide players with accurate penalties after spending too much time at the Service Park repairing crash damage. In a tight battle where any gain is crucial, this sort of bug severely hinders immersion, something EA Sports WRC usually does very well.
With the real world World Rally Championship now over halfway through its course, plans emerged for the incoming release of 2024 updates with new stages, locations and correct liveries. As with most content drops in the modern gaming era, we suspect this DLC to release alongside an update to the game meaning EA WRC will not remain at its current version 1.9 for long.
With that in mind, could there be any better time than upon the DLC's launch to revitalise player numbers within the game after their unfortunate recent plummet following anti-cheat-related controversies. Indeed, with some users struggling to even play the game following the integration of EA's newest software, surely the game needs a boost in the form of something other than simple content.
What do you make of EA Sports WRC Clubs in its current form? What would you do to improve the mode? Let us know on Twitter @OverTake_gg or in the comments below!
The official game to the FIA World Rally Championship, it is fair to say that EA Sports WRC has had its fair share of trials and tribulations. Performance issues, update controversies, handling debates and frustrated users plagued the title right from the get-go. And whilst the title has come a long way since launch, there are still elements left to be desired today.
When we first gave the game a go upon release, we enjoyed the immersive nature of rallying in the title and appeared to be luckier than others with stuttering and framerate performance. However, there is no denying that gameplay can quickly get stale if you stick to the Career Mode and more recently, anti-cheat updates have left parts of the community unhappy.
EA Sports WRC needs some work. Image: EA Sports
But it is the Clubs game mode that appears increasingly frustrating with the title's equivalent of online racing seeming to fall short of its full potential. Rallying as part of a large community could be a fun, ever-changing experience. But there are elements that one can struggle to overlook.
Missing Features In EA Sports WRC Clubs
Those that spend time in the other major rally game currently (well, still) popular among fans, Richard Burns Rally, will know just how fun and intense online rallies can be. The dynamic of looking outside of ones own class when gaining positions through the field is always an exciting prospect.Sadly, the Codemasters and EA-developed rally series has lost this rather important element in the last few years. In the move from DiRT Rally to the second of its name, the strange decision of removing multi-class online rallies was taken. The remnants of what was a surprising move remain in EA Sports WRC as, to this day, just one class of car can be run at any time.
Sure, this means greater competition within the same class. But the game does not offer the enthralling challenge of trying to cement oneself into an all-wheel drive field in a rear-wheel drive car for example. Nor can the tarmac monstering Kit Cars go up against top-flight WRC models from the 2000's. Lacking that chase of climbing through the overall standings, EA's Clubs mode is certainly worse off.
Though in all honesty, in its current state, it is a good thing you cannot take a gander through overall standings after each stage. In fact, the game at present makes finding the rally leader board rather difficult. Where most games show rally positions after each stage, EA Sports WRC restricts view to just stage results.
Therefore, if you want to know where you are on combined times or fancy finding out how much time you need to gain on the next stage, a long slog of menus, options and button selections await you. Even then, the table will undoubtedly require some scrolling to find your name.
Elsewhere, the simple thrill of getting to the next services or to rally's end is a core element of competing in any form of rally race. With hardcore damage selected, EA Sports WRC can certainly be almost as unforgiving as the now-20-year-old rally game, RBR. But following bugs from the past, that ruthless nature of rallying can get lost in translation.
Even this accident won't cost you much time if it's just before a Service Park.
Still Plagued With Issues
In fact, through the various updates EA Sports WRC has gone through since launch, the Club feature at one point lost a large part of its functioning damage system - more precisely, its damage repair system.In fact, at one point, damage meant nothing in these online rally events as, simply leaving the server and reconnecting would once repair all damage, providing the player with a fresh motor. Several updates since then have released, some of which attempted to resolve the issue. However, in some versions in the past, the bug has reared its ugly head at times, meaning we really will never know if the issue truly disappears forever.
One matter we believe is still poking around however is another damage-based bug.
In a recent Club event (that inspired this take), I suffered more damage than I could repair within the time frame during a mid-rally service. A near-undriveable car, I decided to take the few minutes' penalty and make up some time with a fully functioning model. Though after exceeding the allocated 45 minutes by over 10, no penalty appeared in the services menu, nor the leader board.
Yes, it seems that the game still fails to provide players with accurate penalties after spending too much time at the Service Park repairing crash damage. In a tight battle where any gain is crucial, this sort of bug severely hinders immersion, something EA Sports WRC usually does very well.
The Time For Change
Around a month ago, the previously suspiciously silent EA Sports WRC social media channels came back to life announcing new plans for the title into 2024 and beyond.With the real world World Rally Championship now over halfway through its course, plans emerged for the incoming release of 2024 updates with new stages, locations and correct liveries. As with most content drops in the modern gaming era, we suspect this DLC to release alongside an update to the game meaning EA WRC will not remain at its current version 1.9 for long.
With that in mind, could there be any better time than upon the DLC's launch to revitalise player numbers within the game after their unfortunate recent plummet following anti-cheat-related controversies. Indeed, with some users struggling to even play the game following the integration of EA's newest software, surely the game needs a boost in the form of something other than simple content.
What do you make of EA Sports WRC Clubs in its current form? What would you do to improve the mode? Let us know on Twitter @OverTake_gg or in the comments below!
