Paul Jeffrey

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Kylotonn Racing Games have confirmed this September will see the release of the next officially licensed World Rally Championship video game - WRC 8.


Imaginatively titled as always, the eighth instalment to the steadily improving WRC franchise of games is set to launch on Xbox One, PlayStation 4, Nintendo Switch and PC this September, and promises to be an all round improvement on previous iterations of the long running franchise.

New for WRC 8 will be a revised physics system across the many varied different racing surfaces within the game, plus the inclusion of what looks to be an already very impressive looking dynamic weather system, presumably adding a feature to allow the 100+ official WRC stages to be experienced in a variety of different weather conditions.

Of the new dynamic weather, Bigben and Kylotonn had the following to say during a brief press release to accompany the brand new announcement trailer:

"A new dynamic weather system has been developed to add random elements to the driving experience, but also to increase realism in the game. Managing the weather is a real challenge for the drivers: modified grip, car settings adjustments, tyre selection optimization, weather team relationship to ensure the best tips and information on the latest conditions. More than mere visual effects, climatic conditions become crucial, especially in the management of your career"

Of course with the title coming out toward the end of the year, the new WRC 8 release will replicate the 2019 FIA World Rally Championship season, including the latest cars and drivers from the official teams' of the category. Featuring over 50 drivers, including the returning multiple champion Sébastien Loeb in his new Hyundai, 14 different events across over 100 individual stages, WRC 8 certainly lacks nothing in terms of scale.

Most importantly of all for sim racers looking to get their rally kicks, Kylotonn have promised that "WRC 8 will go above and beyond WRC 7, especially in the steering requirements and the realistic physics of the vehicles" - one of the weaker points from previous releases.

As well as the class leading WRC cars, the new game is also set to feature a selection of vehicles from the WRC 2 and Junior WRC categories, alongside a number of historic cars. Team management is also set to play a role in the expanded career mode, with the player able to improve their car by way of upgrades and team developments, of which more details are expected to be revealed in the near future.

Exciting times for fans of sideways action.

WRC 8 releases for Xbox One, PlayStation 4, Nintendo Switch and Steam/PC September 2019.

WRC 8 Release 2.jpg
WRC 8 Release.jpg


Check out the upcoming WRC 8 sub forum here at RaceDepartment for the latest news, discussions and conversation prior to the big game reveal this September!

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Hands up, I don't own the game and I'm not a fan of the Epic exclusivity thing. I'm not sure whether I will purchase, but the general reception and ongoing support patches are encouraging to me after years of these games basically being abandoned straight after launch. I'm really happy playing DR2 (can't wait for the Finland addition), so don't feel I need to buy WRC8, but could be tempted into giving it a go.

I'm also not sure where the developers read threads, seeing as there doesn't appear to be any forums on Epic or on their own website, so will just make my point here. The lack of obvious comms channels isn't endearing.

Anyway, my point: each year, the WRC game comes out midway through the year and has all the entries that have been in the series up to the point of the game's release. However, this inevitably means that competitors who enter events from after that point are never included in game. In particular, this year's Rally GB entry list is one of the highest quality for years, and Spain has some interesting entries too. The complete omission of the MkII Fiesta R5 is a real disappointment.

In summary, the point I'd like to make is that I'd like to see the following liveries/drivers added to the game and wondered if there's any chance of it happening this year, or if it will be left as an incomplete ode to the 2019 season, just as the previous titles have been.

There are plenty, but some particular standout entries:

- Haydon Paddon - Ford (only drove MkII, so I guess unlikely)
- Petter Solberg - VW (WRC2 winner in Wales)
- Oliver Solberg - VW
- Eric Camilli - Citroen
- Marijan Griebel / Fabian Kreim - Skoda (1st and 2nd in Germany)
- Dominik Dinkel / Jari Huttunen - Hyundai (an alternative livery for the i20)

I'm also confused as to why some top competitors from this class have been left out - does anyone know why Nikolay Gryazin (WRC2 winner in Finland) and Pierre Loubet (current WRC2 leader IRL) aren't in the Skoda options? Would be strange if it's "licencing" reasons in this game, as I assume those rights are handed over with the entry (but could well be wrong).

Sorry for the long post, just a mind-dump, but wasn't sure where best to put it.
 
Does anyone have any career tips for WRC 8? What are the requirements for promotion? I thought that I did reasonably well in my first season but was only offered more WRC junior drives. Does anyone have any tips for skill tree management or personnel management? Thanks.
 
To get a drive in a higher class you have to increase the reputation level with a given manufacturer. You do this by completing manufacturer tryouts or challenges(they're different). Tryouts raise the actual reputation level where as completing the challenges actually get you the drive. As far as the R&D trees, in the JR WRC you can only upgrade 2 and I usually focus on the Crew side of it.
 
A couple of -ve comments on both.

WRC 8 Cons
  1. The Australian stage is terrible. The textures are ugly as hell. The tree textures have some kind of lighting issue, they just look unnatural.Tip: Don't use adaptive VSync as it stutters, use locked. DR2 looks much smoother visually, not as sharp and a little softer.
  2. Another issue with WRC8 is the vibration feedback. On a gamepad it is inconsistent on some stages. The Australian stage (again) feels too smooth. There are a lot of potholes that give no feedback at all which breaks immersion as you expect a thump as you go over them. Compare that to a stage like Turkey where it feels much more tactile again makes me think the Oz stage was thrown together by an intern at the last minute. DR2 gamepad feedback is much better.
  3. No VR ;-(
DR2 Cons
  1. Rain is bad compared to WRC8. Cockpit view in VR with rain at night is terrible. The lighting through the windscreen makes it look so bad I wonder how it got past QA. It's passable (just) if you go to an outside view, but not on the same level as WRC8. Snow has some issues with lighting too.
  2. Regularly Unreliable Racenet for single player. Seriously?
  3. The Weather isn't dynamic.
 
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Do we get a explanation how to install?
You have the CHUNK_0 folder with 2 files and a text document in it.
Just drop in the wrc8 folder?
And how to uninstall in case you don't like it?
 
Is anybody else having problems with the Epic games launcher? I tried to sign in but said the service is unavailable, so I tried uninstalling the launcher and reinstalling it but still no go. Also, tried resetting my password and get the same message about the service being unavailable.
 
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Got this in response to a support ticket "Our account services are currently down which will impact your ability to login to the Epic Games Launcher or the Epic Games Store. Any games you own that require online authentication will likely be blocked for play/access until we recover. We are working on resolving the issues as soon as possible but currently do not have an ETA for restoration."

Update: they must've fixed it cause I was able to log in and I'm downloading the game now
 
The Australian stage is terrible. The textures are ugly as hell. The tree textures have some kind of lighting issue, they just look unnatural.
Yeah, for the days I was thinking the same. It almost seems like, cause it's last (in the season) maybe they must rush it out, you know...:rolleyes: they had tight schedule to follow, game release date was determined a long ago...

Ok, it's a long shot but hey... who knows, right ? :D
I mean, really... look at the Mexico, Monte Carlo, Turkey and almost all the rest of countries... they all look like they come from WRC 9 or something. While poor Down under country looks like it's been made as a daily school project for 4th grades. :alien:


wrc-8-ps4-scr-17.png

Crisp and beautiful.
When you see it, you'll know it. It's not Australia. :unsure:
 
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