5 Assetto Corsa Rally Alternatives You Forgot Were This Good

While Assetto Corsa Rally is receiving plenty of rave reviews from gamers, some are hesitating to click the buy button just yet. The increasingly common trend of Early Access releases with limited day-one content doesn’t suit everyone, and we totally get it.

AC Rally has opted for a quality-over-quantity approach for the initial rollout. While they’ve done a great job with the launch so far, there’s no getting away from the fact that there’s a lack of content for the time being. There are 10 licensed cars, four rally stages, and five game modes, no official VR (although there’s a third-party workaround), and it’s still a work in progress.

If you’re looking for a complete, full-package while you wait 12-18 months for AC Rally’s Early Access to finish, these alternatives are our top picks that deliver everything you need (and often more) right away.

Whether you’re after a casual game to play anywhere on your mobile, or a hardcore sim that’ll punish every mistake, there’s something here for every type of rally fan.

5 – art of rally

Platforms: PC, PlayStation 4/5, Xbox One/Series X|S, Nintendo Switch, iOS, Android
Current price on Steam: $24.99 / £19.99 / €24.99 (Typically $7.99 / £6.99 / €8.49 on mobile)

art of rally is a fun, relaxing pick-up-and-play indie rally game you can enjoy on the go, backed by an awesome laid-back soundtrack.

Unlike the more serious rally racers in this list (like AC Rally), the delightfully minimalist, stylized visuals give a nostalgic throwback to rally’s Group B glory days (along with the daredevil fans!).

It’s not as basic as it looks, either. You still get a full career mode, free roam maps, and daily/weekly challenges, but there’s no pressure to nail every corner or listen to a co-driver yapping in your ear.

The top-down camera will likely take a little getting used to at first, and might feel a little odd, but once it clicks, you’ll likely end up losing hours to it. In some ways, art of rally fills the same gap for rally fans that FR Legends does for drifting fans on mobile. It might be simple, but it’s super satisfying, too.

For chilled-out, enjoyable rallying you can enjoy with the whole family, at a bargain price, it’s well worth checking out.

4 – WRC 10

Platforms: PC, PlayStation 4/5, Xbox One/Series X|S, Nintendo Switch
Current price on Steam: $49.99 / £39.99 / €49.99

Unlike art of rally, WRC 10 takes things more seriously, along with official WRC licensing, which is admittedly a little outdated now since it’s from the 2021 season. If that bothers you, consider skipping to EA Sports WRC below.

WRC 10 celebrates 50 years of the WRC, and you get to choose from a wide selection, including modern Rally1-style machinery to legendary Group B and Group A icons. There’s also an in-depth career mode where you manage your team and staff, handle research and development, and work your way up the ladder.

The handling is more sim-based, but with a bit more simcade feel than AC Rally, so it’s not totally unforgiving. It’s great on a controller, but you’ll want to consider a wheel to make the most of what it offers.

It’s a little rough around the edges in places, especially on the Switch, but for PC and consoles, it’s still a solid all-rounder for those who want real-world stages and cars without needing to adjust a million settings to perfection.

3 – EA Sports WRC

Platforms: PC, PlayStation 5, Xbox Series X|S
Current price on Steam: $49.99 / £39.99 / €49.99 (Included with EA Play)

EA Sports WRC is often the go-to choice for those looking for the latest official WRC game, optimized for the newest hardware.

Created by Codemasters using their popular Dirt Rally handling model combined with Unreal Engine 4, it’s more sim-focused, but you can make it more of a simcade by turning on more of the in-game assists.

With the latest 2024 Season Expansion, you get much more content, including the full roster of Rally1, WRC2, and Junior WRC cars across both the 2023 and 2024 seasons, and a big selection of classics. There are also some of the longest and most demanding stages on the official calendar, including Rally Poland and Rally Latvia.

On top of that, there’s a good selection of game modes, from a full career to ‘Moments’ challenges that let you recreate real-world events, and a builder mode where you can design your own customized car from scratch. There are also online clubs if you’re looking to compete in a league to prove who’s top dog among your buddies.

On a wheel, it feels rewarding once you dial in the FFB, with the classic “one mistake can ruin the whole stage” feel that many rally fans crave, while still being playable for those who aren’t as experienced on a controller if you nudge the assists up.

A common complaint among fans is that Unreal can sometimes have performance bugs and stutters on some PCs and consoles, but if you adjust the settings, it’s a great all-around package.

2 – DiRT Rally 2.0

Platforms: PC, PlayStation 4, Xbox One
Current price on Steam: $19.99 / £17.99 / €19.99

If you’re after more of an unforgiving rally sim, many serious gamers still consider DiRT Rally 2.0 to be the best pick.

Unlike the arcade-influenced titles, the handling is much more realistic here, and you’ll get the familiar punishing frustration when you don’t nail a corner with pinpoint precision. I know that doesn’t sound like much fun, but I’m sure any die-hard rally fans will agree it’s also weirdly addictive.

DiRT offers a great career mode that includes a selection of rally and rallycross events, plus a chunky car roster that covers everything from classic ’70s rally cars and Group B monsters through to the more modern R5 and World RX weapons.

The stages tend to be shorter than those in EA Sports WRC, but more challenging, varied, and still long enough to keep you on the edge of your racing seat, especially with the realistic damage turned on.

To make the most of what it offers, you’ll want to experience it in VR on a PC, where it’s about as close as you’ll get to the real thing.

DiRT Rally 2.0 absolutely deserves a spot in any dedicated rally fan’s library. There’s only one game we feel is a strong contender, and it’ll likely feel familiar…

1 – Richard Burns Rally (with RallySimFans mod)

Platforms: PC (base game available on PlayStation 2/Xbox)
Price: Free on PC (via RallySimFans)

RRB is the rally OG, which still sets the benchmark for many who have been comparing it to AC Rally since its release, despite this poor rallying granddad being 21 years old.

While you can play the original on consoles, it’s the RallySimFans mod that makes RBR unlock its full potential, and you can only experience that on PC.

Don’t go thinking this is just a basic 21-year-old game, either. Check out this video to see the true potential of what RBR offers with the RallySimFans mod installed:

Okay, he’s using a ridiculously high-end rig, but you get the idea of what can be achieved.

While the visuals might not match the top-end titles, underneath is a brutally realistic physics model that offers the ultimate grip, weight transfer, and surface changes in far more depth than most recent alternatives. It’s these physics that have ensured it’s stood the test of time among sim heads (and even some real rally drivers) as one of the most realistic rally games out there.

With the RallySimFans mod installed, you get an all-in-one launcher, along with a huge list of modern and historic cars, laser-accurate stages, and online championships, transforming this old-school game into a refined, modern-day platform.

The best part is you can download the game completely free over on the RallySimFans official site, and they’re still pushing out frequent updates, with the most recent being just last month.

As you probably guessed, it’s a full-on sim rather than simcade, with a harsh learning curve where mistakes are punished hard. We highly recommend using a wheel, as you’ll feel much more connected to the car, which is where it really shines.

Assuming you’re happy to spend a bit of time installing and faffing around with mods (I assure you it’s worth your time) and you want the most challengingly rewarding rally experience out there, RBR paired with the RallySimFans mods easily earns its place at the top of the list.

If you’re interested in seeing how it stacks up against AC Rally from a long-term RBR fan perspective, we’ll leave it to the expert by recommending you check out this video: