Summary: I don't see myself playing any other rally game anytime soon. Highly recommend this title. (NOTE: current version is 0.4)
Background: As a Linux (proton) user, with a Logitech G29 (923), my rally game experience consists of Dirt Rally 1 and 2. The later Codemasters titles have some anti-cheat spyware nonsense, which meant no WRC or later titles for Linux users. <Shrug> I'm happy to vote with my dollar.
This game is taking some getting used to compared to DRx, mostly to tweak controls and get accustomed to a lower field of view in the default camera settings. This can make tight turns feel slow/sluggish, and it takes used to braking at "low" speeds because you're probably going faster than you think. So far I'd say that turns "3" or tighter feel little less grippy than I'm used to in DRx, and definitely require more deliberate braking. Even so after a little while I was holding my own in dry conditions based on my DRx experience, and by that point there was basically no turning back. [b]Everything is better.[/b]
The DRx menus could be navigated almost entirely by using my G29 wheel, which is not so much the case with ACR. That said, I've come to like the ACR menu system better and their tuning system laid out nicely and has good descriptions. (NOTE: Setting handbrake power to about 1.44 will roughly match DRx handbrake settings, but this is a car-specific tuning setting. It would be good to have a global multiplier.)
Dry tarmac and gravel conditions just feel like ::chef's kiss:: in this game, They feel just right and I have no complaints there. Even RWD vehicles just feel way better to drive than the death traps I knew from DRx. The map selection for "unlocking" cars feels a little redundant at this point, but the maps are very high quality so far. (I haven't even played all the locations, but this gripe pertains only to the car trial stages.)
[b]I always felt that DR2 consistently rubbed in your face that you weren't the fastest driver on the planet. You complete a stage feeling great about how you did, and you're placed 24/30 against super-AI or placed 121th out of "the world". I'm sure there are some crazy good DR2 players out there, and maybe I'm not one of them, but basically every race was ended with a reminder that I actually suck compared to the best DR2 players out there in the world, and I can basically forget ever "winning" again. It gets old.[/b]
So far my experience with ACR has been rather a pleasant surprise. The "world records" results are in a separate page, and your single-player stage times are basically compared to reasonably good, but not impossible AI. In most cases I've found it possible to place highly against the listed times. I'm sure I'll never set a world record in this or any rally game, but for once it feels good to be able to "win", dammit. A fast stage with no mistakes will probably win a "gold" medal, and that's actually a pretty simple and effective reward system.
My main complaint is that wet and snow conditions, as of 0.4, seem WAY too slippery. Maybe this is some consequence of the camera settings, or maybe the developers actually live in a place that rains KY Jelly instead of water, but rain just feels *wrong* in this game. If real life was like ACR, it would be a driving apocalypse every time it rained with accidents everywhere. Ford Mustangs would literally explode the very minute traction control is turned off and any precipitation hits the car. In these conditions I'm content to move on with "bronze"... maybe later versions will improve.
Overall, easily a 9/10 game and I only see it getting better. The only way they can ruin it, IMHO, is to add anti-cheat spyware nonsense. I hate to even utter the phrase because the idea might take root and lay eggs, but it's a horrible idea. [b]DEVELOPERS, for the love of God if you want to add anti-cheat then fine, but at least preserve the ability to play "offline" / single-player on Linux without it.[/b] I couldn't care less if my results never get uploaded, I just want to drive with my Penguin co-pilot and enjoy a great rally game, on Linux, and ACR checks all the boxes. Please don't break that.
