Recent reviews by paskowitz

The good news: The physics, FFB, and overall driving feel (especially the road cars) is great. There are some quirks like throttle mapping and odd shifting behavior... but each car feels distinct and all are fun to drive. The car models are also very very good. I would say better than Forza, but not quite as good as Gran Turismo. Finally, the sense of speed during gameplay is subtly excellent. The 296 GTB feels properly fast. A promising start in those departments.

The bad news: Literally everything else. I have a 14900K/4090/7200mhz ram/OC'd to the moon... and the game still runs and looks like crap (compared to AC with all the gfx mods). The headlights and under car shadows are especially bad. 3440x1440 ultra settings with DLLS quality and I'm 60-140fps with a full grid in the rain. I can't even imagine what it's like for those on lesser hardware. The UI already feels dated. Controller support out of the box is abysmal. Control mapping is a hassle. Rain feels very rudimentary. It's basically a visual effect with a grip reduction value. No dynamic water accumulation. This is early early access. If something could come before an alpha, this would be that.

The only reason I'm not refunding this is I want to support Kunos.

This game should put all of the sleazy, money hungry, low effort, management driven, same crap every year recycling game studios on notice. For $40 Helldivers 2 offers more complexity, gameplay depth, content, polish (unexpected popularity killing the servers for the first week or two aside), and just plain fun than the vast majority of AAA online service games released in the last 5 years. And it's only a month old. $40! "Season passes", which as of now don't seem to have content that is meta defining, are $10 and contain a decent amount of content. The studio has claimed they will take a measure approach to MTX, which could change, but ATM they are saying all the right things. HD2 and Battlebit are how online games in 2024 SHOULD BE!

DiRT Rally is perhaps the first, and only early access game I have played that consistently increases the quality of the overall game and the content there within. Unlike Assetto Corsa and Project CARS, Codemasters has done a terrific job with their releases for DiRT Rally. I have yet to experience any "game breaking" bugs. Performance is terrific. The content added is also nothing short of amazing. The tracks have amazing detail and depth. The cars each have their own unique personality and are all enjoyable to drive. The physics and FFB are good, but IMO could use some room for improvement (and they have drastically improved since the initial release). Overall, DiRT Rally feels more like a full game than early access. It is polised, features great content and is just plain fun.

Assetto Corsa is by far one of the most enjoyable racing (simulations) out there. There is already a huge mod community developing content. This game gets the basics dead on: menus, load times, UI, hardware optimization, open platform, etc. It also gets the complex stuff right as well: Game physics, graphics, sound, etc. Physics are the real standout. If you have a racing wheel, you are in for a special experience.

Is it perfect? No. Sounds could be better. Graphcis are not going to blow you away. And some nice features like day night cycles and weather are not planned. (keep in mind this is a small team building this game)

If you want a fun racing sim with a great mod community that does everything well, then AC is your best bet.

Do not listen to Metacritic. This is a good game, I do not care who you are. I have a smile on my face. I was entertained. That is all that matters. Not "graphics", "gameplay mechanics", etc. I could easily see this type of "silly sandbox" become a new genre.