You can hear the entire interview below along with my usual feedback.

RiMS Racing will release on Xbox S/X, PS4, PS5, PC and Nintendo Switch on 19th August 2021.

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So, on receiving the early code it came as an enormous surprise to see expectations not just met, but even exceeded. RiMS Racing has all of the potential to be a major player in the biking video game genre and in my video preview below, I explore this in greater detail.

In short, RiMS Racing is the most detailed super bike gamer ever made. From the bike construction, to the tuning, riding style, to the various career and options available to develop you as a rider. It may only feature 8 bikes but the range of content on there is simply a whole new level of detail and can potentially aid gamers learn about real biking in the process. Meanwhile real bikers can learn more and delve deeper into their passions. This approach also helps with developing a bond with your bike, taking the basic machinery and taking that forward step by step as you evolve as a rider and make your way through the game.

This is supported with a comprehensive Career Mode besides a wide range of racing circuits an open roads which expands the challenge and longevity. We’ll be keeping a close eye on developments with more preview coverage to follow.

RiMS Racing will release on Xbox S/X, PS4, PS5, PC and Nintendo Switch on 19th August 2021.

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50 years of rallying
To celebrate 50 years of the competition, WRC 10 offers a unique anniversary edition, bursting with new features and driving thrills. A retrospective mode offers players the chance to relive 19 events that have shaped the history of the Championship. These challenging special stages put drivers’ skills to the test by imposing conditions specific to each era. Drive six historic rallies, including the legendary Acropolis Rally (Greece) and Rallye Sanremo (Italy), with over 20 of the WRC’s most iconic cars: Alpine, Audi, Lancia, Subaru, Ford, Mitsubishi, Toyota… With more content than ever, fans will love WRC 10 and its homage to 50 years of rallying.

Even more immersive
The physics, which have already been praised by critics and drivers in WRC 9, have been further improved to offer players an even more realistic experience. Control of aerodynamic forces, the turbo and braking have received particular attention on all surfaces, so that WRC 10 recreates ever more accurate and intense driving sensations. Immersion has also been increased with a completely reworked audio design for this new edition. Experience rallying as if you are there!

Create your own team
The hugely popular Career mode has also been improved with a new livery editor and the chance to create your own team. You can now apply your own colours to championship cars to complement the 52 official teams of the 2021 season. Take up the challenge with your own custom team!

So, lots to look forward to, rounding up the key details:

6 historic rallies, including Acropolis, San Remo, Germany, Argentina…
Over 20 legendary cars, including Alpine, Audi, Lancia, Subaru, Ford, Mitsubishi, Toyota…
4 brand-new rallies: Estonia, Croatia, Belgium and Spain
52 official teams of the 2021 season (WRC, WRC2, WRC3, Junior WRC)

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We first saw Drive-Buy at EGX 2019, the game delivering fast, frantic vehicle combat against friends or online and includes cross platform play for gamers on Nintendo Switch and Steam for PC. This is a great addition and should be a key focus for any indie developer to maximise their installed base, especially if that player base is spread thinly over different formats.

Glitchers describe Drive-Buy as being inspired by legendary games like Twisted Metal, Rocket League, Vigilante 8 and Mario Kart. Though I also see some Crazy Taxi and Driver in there, all buried within the fast’n furious action. Drive-Buy is positioned a short-session multiplayer vehicle combat game with a delivery twist, a mix of high-speed combat and rivalries with larger than life characters and quirky or potentially mind-bending power up combos.

“At its heart, Drive-Buy is a vehicle-based party game with intuitive, pick up & play controls, we wanted to create an experience which avoids the frustration of track-based racing games – hence a street-based delivery battler was created!” added Hugo Scott-Slade, co-founder “We want everyone to be in with a chance of winning – so even the player in last position can turn it around and steal a last-minute victory. Or they can flood the leader’s screen with emotes and emojis to get revenge”

Game Features:

• 4 Player, head-to-head Online Battles
• Seamless AI Play designed to auto fill the roster during play
• 3 game modes –
Delivery Battle – Hustle the most deliveries and shake down rival drivers with powerups found around the map. Strategic, unpredictable & full of surprises.
PayDay – Hold onto the most coins on the map whilst dodging power ups left, right & centre
Piggy Bank – Tag… with a Pig! Hold the pig to earn coins, other players hunt you down keeping the action really focused and players tight.
• Choose from 6 diverse characters with more added in each season update.
• Vehicles have unique handling and stats so make sure you pick the best for each mode.
• Find and unlock an array of Common, Rare, Epic, Legendary and even Special Giftable Cosmetic Items for every character

So far so good, though there are questions over longevity and lack of variety, especially with what appears to be a limited or similar range of play areas, only played at night. We’ll ber sure to grab a hands-on a later build, Drive Buy will launch for Nintendo Switch and Steam for PC on 12th March 2021.

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Firstly, pre-order packages, PlayStation 4 and Xbox One players who pre-order Monster Jam Steel Titans 2 now will receive the Monster Jam Steel Titans 2 base game plus the (apparently) popular, Inverse Higher Education truck. This will increase their in-game fleet of drivable trucks to 39 of the most popular Monster Jam trucks of all time. While PlayStation 4 and Xbox One players who pre-order the Power Out Bundle now will receive 24-hour early access to the Monster Jam Steel Titans 2 base game, the Inverse Higher Education truck plus the original Monster Jam Steel Titans and three DLC truck packs. Truck packs include Fire and Ice, Bakugan Dragonoid, and Gold Truck Bundle, totalling 17 additional Monster Jam trucks to race! Grab this massive pre-order bonus here (insert link to pre-order page). So, a solid pack, especially for the Power Out Bundle. Check out the trailer below and lets see the game in action.

“We’re thrilled to start 2021 with a quick preview of what our loyal fans can look forward to playing very soon!” said Jeff Bialosky, Senior Vice President of Global Partnerships, Feld Entertainment. “Monster Jam Steel Titans 2 honors the history of Monster Jam with the addition of many fan-favorite trucks, as well as expands the Monster Jam universe with the introduction of new worlds inspired by popular truck designs. Fans can also look forward to competing with their friends and family in online multiplayer challenges for the first time!”

“Monster Jam Steel Titans 2 represents a massive expansion to the Monster Jam video game experience and we’re thrilled to finally be able to reveal some of what we’re doing to the legions of fans,” said Lenore Gilbert, CEO, Rainbow Studios. “Monster Jam Steel Titans 2 is a huge step forward for the franchise – we can’t wait to see the fans react to seeing trucks like Higher Education, Backwards Bob®, Grave Digger® and Ice Cream Man in brand new worlds!”

Monster Jam Steel Titans 2 is certainly shaping up nicely with the expanded roster of trucks numbering 38 and including a range of fan favorites such as Sparkle Smash, Megalodon, Higher Education, Avenger, and Backwards Bob. There are five, brand new, in-game worlds which expand on the Monster Jam universe, providing exploration,  from head-to-head stadium racing to freestyle competitions to waypoint challenges. All supported with new online multiplayer up to six players. Scheduled for release on March 2, 2021 across PC, PlayStation® 4 computer entertainment system, Xbox One Consoles, Nintendo® Switch, and Stadia.

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We’ve also got our initial video selection, this going into various aspects of the game, as we explore the different elements and give initial impressions. Check out our video gallery below and subscribe to Team VVV on YouTube to keep updated on the latest news and follow my streams on Twitch.

Finally check out the launch trailer and let us know your impressions in the comments.

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Monster Truck Championship aims to be a full simulation, supported with competitions in 25 stadiums and circuits spread across the United States. So, a decent range to see and do, Race, Time-Trial, Drag Races, Freestyle, and Destruction besides detailed customisation. We’ll investigate all of these modes further in our review and video content below.

In part 1 of our preview videos I focus on many of the core game elements, along with a few clips from my GoPro gameplay videos. The large triple screens giving a greater impression of scale. While the customization it surprisingly in-depth, with some great details and spot effects on the various trucks.

For part 2, I’ve taken the time to respond to community feedback, look more closely at the controller play, various rear wheel control methods, more in-depth handling analysis, a deeper look at customisation and generally exploring the game further. Clearly there’s a lot more to Monster Truck Championship than first meets the eye. More coverage will follow on our streams https://www.twitch.tv/teamvvv so follow us at to keep updated.

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From the official information supplied; any player who pre-orders the game will receive the Patriot Pack, which includes the Sergeant Chaos livery and the Patriot truck model. Fans can also buy a deluxe version, called the Rebel Hunter Edition, which includes special livery, an exclusive stadium, and three truck models: Magnum, Victory and Frantic. So, if you’re a dedicated fan of Monster Trucks, there really is no substitute, the Deluxe Pack seems to be the way to go to maximise the package.

The game will contain 16 vehicles and five types of event with championships spread across 25 stadiums and circuits in various cities across the United States. This means there will be a fair sized package to explore as players develop their skills and work their way to the top. Monster Truck Championship will be available on 15th October 2020 on PlayStation®4, Xbox One and Steam, and on 19th November on Nintendo Switch. To see the game in action, check out the latest Contact Trailer below.

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The World Rally Championship is arguably the most challenging racing series on Earth, crossing the globe with rough and unpredictable terrain, the journey is epic in scale and tests both man and machine to the limit. It is something many of us will never get the chance to experience, the intensity of driving on the edge of adhesion with nothing to protect you but a reliance on your own skill at the wheel.

Rally games have been around almost as long as gaming itself, with various highlights over the years, but as technology has developed, so the resource required has expanded exponentially. Given the scale, replicating a full WRC season has been extremely challenging and 2020 represents just the 9th game in the modern series that has attempted to simulate that experience effectively. Now we’ll look back a few of those titles besides a more detailed breakdown on the recent progress by NACON and Kylotonn Studio.

We’ll begin by looking at that journey to WRC 9, understanding the challenges in developing a modern rally game, and discovering the passion of development that makes for those little details while exploring the latest game before we move onto our full preview. So, let’s start this journey in the rugged and open lands of Kenya, the location returning to the WRC calendar this year, and see that transition from WRC 9 right down to, WRC: FIA World Rally Championship Arcade on the original PlayStation, and as you can see, we’ve come a very long way.

The more memorable WRC: FIA World Rally Championship arrived in 2001 was developed for PlayStation 2 using cutting edge technology as an exclusive first party title for the PlayStation via Evolution studios. The teams accurately generating stages that could support draw distances far beyond the current standard, however handling was limited and formed as more of a tech demo of things that were to come. With various improvements to WRC II Extreme, WRC 3, 4 and WRC: Rally Evolved. However, despite the series being much loved among rally fans this official series concluded, the WRC brand disappearing from gaming for some 5 years before being picked up by Milestone.

Milestone entered the world of WRC in 2010, resetting the franchise and producing WRC – FIA World Rally Championship. The game was enjoyable to play but lacked the realism and investment to deliver on the vision. It was clear that producing a rally game to a modern standard would be a huge undertaking. WRC 2 released in 2011 built on the original by adding additional stages with improved modelling, while the 2012 release of WRC 3 was a complete relaunch, a re-envisioning and a huge improvement over previous attempts, 2013’s WRC 4 built on this again before yet another change in developer, it was time for Kylotonn to enter the stage.

Kylotonn were given an almighty challenge, develop one of the most colossal automotive championships in just 1 year, an almost impossible task, yet the team rose to that task and built the foundation of the technology that would need to be developed.

WRC 5 was the biggest production Kylotonn studio had ever undertaken, its first time taking on a development of this scale. Having previously come from producing a range of different titles and genres, Kylotonn also provided technical solutions and elements for the automotive industry, working with companies such a Renault. WRC 5 also came at a challenging time during the transition from PS3 and Xbox360 to PS4 and Xbox One. Transitional hardware and utilising an engine not traditionally used with automotive gaming. This meant developing physics from the ground up, a focus on getting the basic simulation elements across all surfaces, all of the global locations and developing a wide range of content in miracle time. Another significant challenge was to create an Esports competition worthy of the brand and fanbase. Esports and racing were still not as popular as they are today, but the goal was there to run a championship in parallel with the real rally events, a vision of the future and the foundation for Esports developments to follow.

WRC 6 introduced another 1-year development, this gave time to further improve physics, these enabled more precise driving and the construction of narrower more realistic stages along with the introduction of super special stages. Again, building on the WRC Esports and considerable growth with an expanded world finals competition.

WRC 7 would see a marked progress in quality and a huge leap for the series despite just the usual 1-year development cycle. This period included extensive changes to the development team, enabling big steps forward on the creative and artistic elements. An overhaul in the development of stage design, all new physics and an altogether more ambitious vision for the series including epic stages up to 15 minutes long. The key to improvement was in understanding the philosophy of rally design, not just building a stage but considering the real environment, what it is actually like to be there and how can that atmosphere be captured. Industry veterans from the world of gameplay development combined with new unique vision. Pushing the production to make everything the best it can be with this new level of detail. WRC 7 put the series back on the map, it made gamers sit up and take notice, WRC was back and anticipation for the future of the series would reach a new high.

WRC 8 was the first title in the modern series to receive two years of development, and the use of that time was obvious to see. This included a complete review of the entire production, and progress to this point. Again, there was extensive work on improving the physics, while graphics were taken to a new level of excellence, including the introduction of technology that aided the production of 1:1 scale environments. This supporting bigger, more ambitious, and more realistic stage design. Introducing Argentina, Turkey and Chile, all supporting incredible views and vistas. These new stages were combined with the introduction of stunning lighting and volumetric weather effects from the new dynamic weather system, enabling transitions in weather within a stage, surface textures and impact on tyre choice with resulting impact on physics. This added a more detailed driving element along with strategy calls dependent on the expected weather.

A significant focus was targeted at an all new and highly comprehensive career mode, this developing the players as a rally-drivers and informing on the process behind all aspects of rally. WRC 8 was also the first WRC game to introduce historic rally cars, while new sliders were added to make the options more approachable for players new to WRC. Again, improvements to controller play and the Esports support, team championship, revised structure of the Esports championship. Everything took a step forward, breaking new ground, a revolution for Kylotonn.

WRC 9 is almost upon us and to the take the next steps, feedback from the community and real rally drivers was key. The aim to develop a full simulation means taking feedback from as many opportunities as possible, but above all Drivers are happy that WRC 9 accurately captures the feel of driving. Without any training, real drivers jumped onto WRC 9 and were virtually on the pace of the Esports Professionals, the driving was intuitive, the tyre physics felt natural and for the first time in the history of the franchise, there was unanimous support amongst real rally drivers at the progress made.

Improving physics is always on-going, the physics designers at Kylotonn even going to the extent of testing the real Hyundai 2019 rally car. This aided in getting the feeling of the car, using information from real rally drivers and combining that with personal experience to quantify that articulation of driving into a realistic model. Understanding the performance of the suspension, brakes and tyres all coming together to provide that feeling of almost floating when drifting through a corner. WRC 9 has seen significant changes to physics, weight transfer and sensation of weight is key, add to this the affects by weather, track conditions, speed over jumps, even air pressure on the car via aerodynamic parts is now calculated. How the cars perform at speed and the impact on the physics model is now factored in taking the driving to a whole new level never before accomplished.

Community feedback would also help with various gameplay elements, or fixing aspects such as interaction with peripherals, wall riding, which now featuring increased friction and various other gameplay elements. Meanwhile enhancements have been made to the career mode, this providing a more balanced improved experience.

WRC 9 introduces new locations such as Kenya, Japan and New Zealand, along with club mode, custom championships and new historic cars. WRC 9 will also support a co-driver mode, this will enable a friend to connect online and read the notes to the driver, the driver and co-driver will also be scored on their proficiency. WRC 9 will add a range of free DLC updates, these will include a photomode, new version of the Finland rally, various news cars and other elements, we’ll look at all of this in more detail in our upcoming preview.

WRC has been an evolutionary process. For Kylotonn every iteration adding something new, technical innovation and moving the boundaries. In just 5 games they have developed their technology to incorporate vast 1:1 scale landscapes, dynamic weather and environments, a comprehensive single player mode and Esport elements, now with the new additions we’ll see that all move a stage further.

So, join us on the journey of WRC 9 as we delve deeper into the game and the series on our in-depth preview to follow.

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This week Lion Castle and GS2 Games announced Speed 3: Grand Prix, referred to as an ‘action-packed arcade track racing game’ with a release date tentatively set for the end of 2020 on Nintendo Switch with conversions for PS4 and Xbox One to follow, no date for those has yet been given.

In terms of circuits, it appears to be just the three, though that could be locations, they are American Wastelands, German circuit and Tokyo. The game also features a split-screen multiplayer option, but given the limited nature of the details supplied it does appear this will be rather bare bones. Speed 3: Grand Prix will be distributed by Mindscape in Europe, rather interestingly the Japanese and Asian versions will be published by EpicSoft and distributed by SEGA.

Let’s face it, the trailer is basic, the gameplay shown is pretty dire and it looks like Speed 3: Grand Prix will quickly drop without trace when it hits retail. I certainly wouldn’t want to be holding onto physical stock past week 1. But that’s just my initial impression, what do you think of the game so far? Let us know on the comments or via our social media.

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