Yeah, the rear-wheel drive cars can be a handful in DiRT Rally 2.0, even more so than in the original DiRT Rally. They really nailed the throttle modulation aspect in 2.0, so you want to be careful how much you are on the throttle sliding through corners and how soon you get back on the power when straightening out. Some RWD cars are easier to get to grips with than others, the Stratos can be easier to spin due to it’s mid-engine design and how much power it can output.
I found that the Renault Alpine A110 1600 S happens to be a good car to start out with in the H2 RWD category. The engine is located in the back over the rear axle, helping keep weight located over the rear wheels to assist with tyre grip levels. What it might lack for in straight up performance numbers like BHP against its class competitors it makes up for in the weight savings, rear-engine design, and its handling\maneuverability characteristics. Which kind of apes the real life history of the car in rallies, it might not have been the most powerful in terms of BHP but it sure made up for it in other areas.
In both the Ford and the Renault I can now (after much tinkering with controller setups and changing my driving style) finish most stages without crashing or spinning, but still it’s hard to place better than 10th and it’s really unusual to actually win a stage.
In general, technical sections I can do very well and come on top of the fastest lap about 50% of the time, but straight fast sections still kill me.
I think eventually I’ll be able to beat the Clubman H2 rally, but the Pro H3 will for sure be impossible for my skill level.
You start off with the two cars. The Lancia Fluvia and the Porshe something something. After finishing that first championship, I got promoted to Clubman, and like Juan I made the mistake of using a RWD car for the Clubman championship (in my case, I didn’t buy a new car, I took the Porsche).
The best I’ve placed in a race so far in about 20th place.
Driving that Porsche 911 is like hitting myself in the balls over and over.
Sigh. I need a break. It hurts so much.
After driving it a few hours in Poland, I finally figured out how to turn the Porsche on gravel. So you’re going in a straight line, there’s a gentle turn to the right. If you turn your steering wheel, gently to the right while still going forward and accelerating, the car will not turn. It will keep going in the direction was going. What about if you let go of the acceleration? Nope, still won’t turn. So how do you turn a Porsche on gravel? You gently apply the brakes, which shifts the weight to the front tires, and turn the steering wheel gently, which turns the car. It also slows it down. I haven’t figured out a solution for that last part yet, but at least I now know how to take 6 and 5 turns in the Porsche. Phew.
I was in last place in New England, my objective in Poland was not to come in last place, but it’s not going so well. I’m in 25th place, everyone behind me is disqualified. The guy in 24th place has a 30 second lead on me, but I still have 3 more stages to try to catch him.
I think the H2 RWD might be less punishing to get a hold of (and they are super cheap to buy). I no longer crash much, and I’m using a controller (only assist is automatic change)
Yeah, career. I just figured I’d use the two free cars they give you. It was a bad idea. I suppose I could abandon the championship.
But on the other hand, this is only Clubman difficulty. This is the easiest that this Porsche 911 is going to be to get competitive times against the AI who can drive RWD cars.
Yelp. The game seems tuned so that only 0.1% of players reach the top difficulty, let alone beat it.
I think some of the issue is with wet stages. The AI outperforms me heavily there.
I’ll try some tuning tomorrow to see if there’s something I can do about it in general. It seems you need about 3 podiums to have a chance at advancing to the next level.
Well, that’s good to hear at least. I’d hate to advance from Clubman level if Clubman is so hard. As long as they keep me here, I can do all the different RWD classes in the game and get it out of my system.
Looking forward to picking up this game on sale someday. Never been much of a car game guy, but I got the first Rally free with my video card, and it’s pretty awesome.
I’m going into the last stage in Poland for the Porsche 911 only 7.4 seconds behind the guy in 26th place (I’m in last place at 27). I just want to beat that guy. 7.4 seconds, I can do this! Come on!
Hmmm, well, I came in last place. BUT! The guy 7.4 seconds in front of me didn’t finish and was disqualified. So I came in 26th place after all! Only, with the disqualification, 26th place was the new last place. So this doesn’t feel like a victory.
Smashed out some R5 time trials through Poland on the Czarny Las (Dry) stage with the Citroen C3 today. Managed to crack the top 200 so far with a 3:09:959, so now I’ve just got 20 freaking seconds worth of improvement to find to challenge the front runners. Might be a bit beyond me though, think my limit at the moment is closer to a 3:05 if everything goes perfectly rather than a sub-2:50. Seriously, those guys are incredibly fast and controlled through some of those corners in ways I can’t yet master without wrecking often.
Also, obligatory screenshot of my Citroen C3 going around some Polish hay bales.
I’m playing on an Xbox controller and it plays great (I did tweak some input settings).
As for arcade racing fan… it’s definitely not super arcadey, but it’s not a hardcore sim either. Most stages are fast and furious. I don’t like racing games myself, but I love this.
You know, I normally would have said no, but when the first DiRT Rally came out, there were others here who only liked arcade racers who enjoyed the first game a lot. I’m a racing fan though, so it’s hard for me to judge what will appeal to those who are not.
I can tell you that I’ve never played it with a steering wheel, only with the controller.
I’m primarily an arcade racing fan and I loved the first DiRT Rally. It sort of comes off as a survival game in an odd way - it’s more about pushing the limits of caution and trying not to wreck yourself than about going fast. It’s certainly no arcade racer, but it doesn’t feel like a finicky, overly-technical sim either.
I will throw in the caveat that if you do play, try to stay away from Rear Wheel Drive cars. They are honestly really tough to drive in both DiRT Rally and the sequel. The game really does feel like a finicky, overly-technical sim when you’re in a RWD car. And I can sort of dig that, but others will find it torturous.
Last night, my Championship went to Spain, so I’m finally driving the RWD Porsche 911 on tarmac. Phew. What a relief this championship has been so far. I’ve used up all 5 of my restarts, because it’s easy to make a simple mistake during the long tracks and end up in 25th place, but using those 5 restarts, I’m still hanging in there, I’m in 7 or 9th place overall, only about 40 seconds behind the leader, with two more stages to go.
Unfortunately, I’m all out of restarts. Which means that tonight after work, whenever I do those last two stages, I’m only going to have one shot at them, so any mistakes will be pretty disastrous for my overall time. I wish I could spend money to buy more restarts.
