Dakar Desert Rally is the sequel to Dakar 18, which was sadly not as good as we had hoped. This new episode is clearly not perfect but the studio has improved their formula, even if it means they have made the game more accessible. The Sport mode is indeed very reminiscent of the old arcade games like Fuel or Motorstorm (and even Forza Horizon more recently) while the Professional and Simulation modes are destined to those of you who want navigation to be as realistic as possible (get ready to get lost). Vehicle handling does not change between modes though and it remains arcadey (so don't expect the game to be Snowrunner Racing). AI can be a bit annoying in Sport mode as the rubber banding effect seems to be back and opponents sometimes drive like maniacs (which can lead to accidents involving you...). Performance isn't perfect either, whether on PC or consoles, and it's a bit of a shame in a racing game. That said, this title has a lot of potential, and considering its cheap price tag, it might be worth your money if you're aware of its shortcomings.

With WRC Generations and Dakar Desert Rally, October should keep off-road racing fans happy. Saber Interactive's game will be the first on the starting line on October 4 and we can't wait to give it a try.

Now published by Saber Interactive, Dakar Desert Rally aims at proposing an authentic Dakar experience in a vast open world and with a dynamic weather system. The game will be playable alone or online with other people and it will have to be more convincing than the previous episode. The studio behind the game is actually still the same although they are now called Saber Porto so we hope they can use their experience and that of Saber Interactive with Snowrunner to improve the game's physics engine and the handling on the different surfaces.