I don’t know why this is a retro racing game, but it is. Parking Garage Rally Circuit came out on September 20th, Golden Lap comes out tomorrow, Victory Heat Rally comes out on October 3rd, and today – today – is the Steam Early Access release of #Drive Rally, an unfortunately hashtagged arcade racing game that tries to recapture the “spirit of the 90s.”
Ed enjoyed the demo earlier this year, and after playing it briefly in Early Access, I second his comments on the handling. It’s forgiving, with every car I tried having significant grip and low stopping distances. It’s nice to be able to press the gas pedal and not have to wrap every car around a tree at once.
This first version already includes a ton of driving environments – forest, swamp, slippery icy world, desert – and each one is a gigantic area that can then be carved out into multiple tracks. Nature tourism is one of the biggest draws of rallying for me, and I hope that at least one of these tracks has a mountain I can fall off of.
The game’s creators say they hope to keep Drive Rally in Early Access for a year, with modern content and balance changes made based on feedback. “This includes adding new cars to expand our garage, new maps and tracks to race on, new pilots to drive, and additional parts and items to customize your cars,” according to the Steam page. Based on my low time with the game, the pilots definitely need work. They’re a throwback to the ’90s in more ways than one, as the advice they give you is nearly useless, and they occasionally chime in with some snide commentary about your driving delivered in a stereotypical accent.
If you’d like to see his angular, shaded cars for yourself, is now available on Steam.
