When Assetto Corsa Rally slipped into early‑access last November, it was a quiet surprise that left many fans astonished. The game is a full‑blown rally title built on the beloved Assetto Corsa franchise, and it has been delivering a polished, realistic experience for the past six months.
Behind the scenes, the project is a collaboration between Supernova Game Studios and Kunos Simulazioni. While Supernova handles the core development, both studios share technical support and resources, ensuring that the game benefits from Kunos’s renowned physics expertise.
Assetto Corsa Rally runs on Unreal Engine 5, providing stunning visuals, while the physics engine remains the same Kunos Simulazioni Physics Engine used in Assetto Corsa EVO, guaranteeing the same level of realism that fans have come to expect.
My delay in writing this piece had nothing to do with rumors about Kazuma Kiryu, and everything to do with gathering enough material to give you a comprehensive review.
Comparing it to the legendary Richard Burns Rally (Warthog Games, 2004) and its thriving mod community, the latest Codemasters title, EA Sports WRC (2023), stands out as the current benchmark for the genre, especially since EA and Codemasters hold the official World Rally Championship license through 2027.
In recent coverage of the DiRT Rally series and, in particular, EA Sports WRC, I’ve highlighted how the difficulty of rally simulators over the past decade has reached almost impossible levels. Yet for those who prefer a less punishing experience, a suite of driving aids—automatic gear changes, traction control, ABS, and crash‑damage mitigation—continues to make the games more approachable.
However, the challenge isn’t confined to vehicle control alone; it also evolves dramatically over time. Modern cars, from 2010 onward, come equipped with factory‑installed electronic stability, traction, and ABS systems, resulting in smoother, more precise handling compared to vehicles from the previous century.
Indeed, the difficulty lies not just in the cars but, more importantly, in the tracks themselves. Compare any gameplay footage of Colin McRae Rally 2.0 (Codemasters, 2000) with EA Sports WRC, and you’ll see the former feels like a nostalgic arcade with wide, gentle turns, whereas the latter’s courses demand razor‑sharp precision, punishing even the slightest mistake.
Supernova Game Studios’ latest title distinguishes itself by pushing visual realism to new heights. I’ve never before felt the illusion of reality so convincingly rendered in a car simulator. While the effect isn’t constant, there are moments when the Unreal Engine completely deceives the eye, creating an immersive experience that feels almost tangible.
EA Sports WRC’s recent transition to Unreal Engine 4 felt like a visual step back compared to Codemasters’ proprietary Ego engine. However, Epic’s latest Unreal Engine 5 has dramatically outpaced its predecessor, delivering richer environmental detail and jaw‑dropping weather effects that truly elevate the driving experience.
Assetto Corsa Rally currently offers three meticulously crafted locations: Alsace in France, Wales in the United Kingdom, and Monte Carlo in Monaco. Each locale features two stages, with a total of eight to fourteen variant routes, all laser‑scanned from real-world sites. The game also includes the icy, snowy circuit of Livigno in the Italian Alps.
The roster of 15 cars spans five decades—from the 1964 Mini Cooper S to the 2022 Škoda Fabia RS Rally 2—excluding the 2010 models. Highlights include the 1973 Alpine A110 1.8, the 1984 Lancia Rally 037 Evo 2, the 1993 Subaru Impreza S3, and the 2003 Citroën Xsara WRC, among others.
Like its sister titles, Assetto Corsa Rally incorporates a progression system based on Events. Each event presents a specific stage, vehicle, weather condition, and target times. Events are grouped by location and unlock as players earn medals, providing an effective way to master track layouts and their climatic variations.
While the December 2023 update (v0.2) introduced snow with the Livigno circuit, it wasn’t until the February 2024 release (v0.3) that track progression truly arrived. With Monte Carlo added, I could start a clean stage and finish it with the road and surrounding terrain entirely blanketed in a thick, gleaming layer of white. The transition feels astonishingly realistic, especially when compared to the artificial rain in long F1 simulator races—this is the first time I’ve experienced such an organic weather shift.
And now for the core of the experience: the driving feel. I must admit, mastering rally cars has become increasingly challenging. It’s no longer just about completing a stage; it’s about maintaining optimal health—both physical and virtual—throughout the race. Keeping control on surfaces that shift from asphalt to mud to gravel, and that can instantly toggle from wet or frozen to dry, demands constant adaptation. Add to that the vehicle’s drivetrain (rear‑, front‑, or all‑wheel drive), traction or brake control systems, gearshift type (sequential or H), and steering wheel degrees, and each minor detail multiplies the variables to an almost infinite degree.
News Source: Irrompibles
assetto Corsa Rally sounds like a promisin bend of classic physics and modern visuals, dfeinitely worth checking out for rally fans.
nani?! Assetto Corsa Rally in early access with Kunos pysics and Unreal Engine 5 sounds like a winning combo for rally fans!
sugoi! Assetto Corsa Rally sounds like a promising blend of Kunos’s physics and Unreal Engine 5 visuals, definitely worth checking out!
sugoi! Assetto Corsa Rally sounds like a promising blend of Kunos's physics and Unreal Engine 5 visuals, definitely…
Totally agree, that combination is a recipe for an incredible rally sim experience. chincha? I need this
Early access for a rally game built on Assetto Corsa’s physics sounds promising, but I’ll wait for the full release to see if it truly delivers.
Early access for a rally game built on Assetto Corsa's physics sounds promising, but I'll wait for the…
skool! I totally get tat, waiting for the full release often pays off with a more complete and polished experience.
Assetto Corsa Rally souunds promising with Kunos physics, but early access can be a gamble, even with established devs.
Assetto Corsa Rally sounds like a promising blend of Kunos’s physics and Unreal Engine 5 visuals; excited to see its full potential.
a new Assetto Corsa rally game with Kunos physics and UE5 visuals sounds like a winning combo for sim racer
a new Assetto Corsa rally game with Kunos physics and UE5 visuals sounds like a winning combo for…
i agree, though I’m keeping my expectations in check. The news for Assetto Corsa Rally Launches Early is promising, but the actual launcch is what matters. I will keep an eye on performance. in my opinion
aigoo, finally. Assetto Corsa Rally sounds like a promising blend of Kunos’s physics and Unreal Engine 5 visuals, definitely keeping an eye on its development
Assetto Corsa Rally in early access sounds promising, esppecially wiith Kunos’ physics and Unreal Engine 5 visuals.
aigoo, finally. Assetto Corsa Rally sounds promising with Kunos physics, but early access can be a gamble, even with a known dev
assetto Corsa Rally sounds like a promising blend of Kunos’s physics and Unreal Engine 5 visuals, definitely keeping an eye on its development.
interesting to hear about Assetto Corsa Rally’s early access and the collaboration between studios. gomawo
Interesting, so it’s a rally game bult on teh Assetto Corsa engine with Kunos’ fysics.
interesting to see a rally title built on the Assetto Corssa engine, especially with Kunos’ physics expertise
Slipped into early accesss sounds like they’re trying to hide something; hopefully, the rally physiccs are as good as the original. arigato gozaimasu.
Assetto Corsa Rally sounds like a promising blend of realistic physics and stunning visuals, leveraging that familiar Kunos expertise.
Asestto Corsa Rally sounds like a promising blend of Kunos’s physics and Unreal Engine 5 visuals, definitely worth checking ou! mashallah, finally!
Slipped intto early access sounds like they’re trying to hide something; hope the rally physics are as good as AC’s road racing.