RalliSport Challenge

My first impressions of RalliSport Challenge were good. It has very impressive graphics (just check out the suns reflection on the ice roads!). The cars handle well (using the triggers for braking & accelerating works really well). You start of with a few cars and a few events to enter them in. This is the "Challenge" in the title, and it does become challenging, as you realise you need to race through a competition again to try and get a few more points, or you struggle to control the Group B cars in the "Classic" stages. To unlock more cars and competitions you need to gain points, which you get based on your position, time, top speed, damage (the less the better) and lap time (if it applies).
The events you take part in are always against 3 other cars (not many i know), these events are:

Traditional Rally: short stages, like short versions of CM stages.

Hill Climb: the name says it all really, you use big powerful motors to get up a hill.

Ice Racing: my fave part of the game, the circuits really encourage sideways driving, you won't make it round these corners through careful braking!

Rallycross: fast-paced circuit racing.

The game is really good fun to play, something lacking from other rally games, and the added bonus of making your own music playlist adds to the whole package. If you want a simulation, then don't get this, but if you enjoy sideways driving and don't care about complicated car set-ups, then this is the game for you.

Graphics - 9.5. When I first popped the game I knew the graphics were going to be good, but good doesn't even express it. Holy COW these are the best graphics I have ever seen! With the "real time" reflection, the grass, the particles effect, the environment, the tracks (the ICE), and even the spectators! They even had birds! It's really cool to see the trees sway in the wind. Its jaw dropping. There are some aliasing issues on the cars, but its not THAT noticeable. I also really liked the way the dirt or snow slowly ac***ulated on the cars, it really added some realism.
Sound - 9.0. I really enjoyed the sound effects, tires skidding, glass breaking, engine sounds, and the descent sound track. I wished they balanced the background music with the environment effects, because I enjoy the revving of the engine more than the background music.
Gameplay - 9.0 It's not 100% simulation, those you bought the game for the sim aspect your not going to be happy. I say its 40-50% sim type. The career mode is difficult yet fun. I started on beginner and I'm slowly starting to see that the times get faster and faster. I can't wait to see what Normal is like. Time attack and single race are great ways to shave seconds of your time. You have to learn the tracks; you have to know when to apply the handbrake, and when to apply the throttle. I would have given it a 10 if you could have saved replays, that was one feature I was looking foward too.
Control - 9.5. Those who don't like use the handbrake, I have bad news, you HAVE to use the HB in this game. I would like to thank the dev for the customized control setup, because I'm an amputee I can't use both triggers at once and steer at the same time.(Yes, I can play Halo, Legacy setting) I use the A= gas , X-= brake and B= HB setup. It took me awhile to get the powersliding down, but it took me about 10 minutes to understand that powersliding was an important role in the game. At first the controls were abit touchy, or sensitive, but like I said, you need time to get the hang of it. I gave it a 9.5 because of the touchy controls at first.

Overall. Great job DICE!!! Can't wait for Dice's next game!

I didn't feel it took enough advantage of Xbox's graphical prowess, the lack of antialiasing (rough edges on stuff) is quite noticable and the cars control leaves something to be desired, they are powerful cars But slide around with a level of generic uncontrollable frustration.

All in all a very solid game slightly marred, -the auto reset also puts cars back on the road far too aggressively, you only have to drive of course a little bit (easy with such slippy cars) to be reset on the road...

...Annoying as hell, the physics often seem strangely floaty as well.

A decent enough arcade style rallying game.

Promised much, didn't quite deliver all of the goods.