Rally Stars 3D

Sadly the world of Rally Car Racing has lost some of its most foremost drivers in recent years, namely the renowned Colin McRae.

But if this hasn’t put you off driving like a speed-demon around suburban and rural routes and get back to the basics of man and machine (unlike the rather more flamboyant counterpart F1), then you could well be delighted to get to grips with Rally Stars 3D.

Your mission is as simple as it gets, finish first or don’t bother finishing at all! You have three modes to leave your mark on. For those of you with a passion for full throttle fast action you can dive right into the ‘quick race’ mode. In this setting you have a handful of opponents who give you a bit of a challenge and more often than not will gang up on you to ensure that they cross the line before you. Your objective is to finish first after three laps.

Championship mode is for those of you who have a bit more time on their hands. You must try and finish first (or at least as high as you can). The more points you gain the more secrets you get to unlock and enjoy. For example you can get the keys to a hot new set of wheels (which don’t only look great, but have advances in speed, acceleration, handling and so on). Arguably as important, if not more so, is the ability to unlock new courses for you to sink your tyres into. This for me is a great aspect to this game than many others out there which I could mention, as the addictiveness and challenge presented by having new courses available to you means you have loads more furiously-fuelled fun!

Lastly, you have the option to try your luck at the ‘Endurance Race’ mode. Unlike my initial thoughts that this was going to be a 24-hour Le Mans style game where I’d be having to explain to my teacher that I didn’t do his homework for doing an ‘all nighter’, this actually is much more like the arcade versions of racing games (where you must try to get to checkpoints to get more time). If you fail to cross the checkpoint in time your game’s over and you’ve got nothing other to do than try again and this time shave those valuable seconds and improve your handling to beat the clock.

In the end then this game provides something for every petrol-headed boy or girl out there. If you want a quick fix, a race against the clock or a chance to carve out a career – you’ve got it! Simply rounded up then, this game is a definite must have which focuses on the fun element more than the realistic aspects. Of course, some racing purists out there may think this isn’t ‘real’ enough, but those of you would seriously be missing out! My advice, give it a go – you’ve got nothing to lose other than 1^st place!

Rating 86%

Positives

Good graphics and entertaining replay mode (so you can view your slick moves/accidents)

Good vibration option which helps make what you see on screen more realistic

Challenging and plenty of mileage in this title

Negatives

A little too easy in some ways (e.g. no way to total your vehicle)

The rival cars seem to always find ways to work together to ruin your record lap-time

Controls are sharp but a little heavy at times (no option to handbrake turn is a shame)