With the breaking news that Electronic Arts ditched the WRC licence last week, our community had its say on who it wanted to see take over the licence in the future!
After the news broke that EA Sports would be dropping the WRC licence moving forward, we polled our community to find out which studios they would like to see take over the licence in the future.
Colin McRae's 1999 WRC Focus. Image: EA Sports / Codemasters
With the idea of soft body damage and hardcore driving physics, the attention must be turned towards Richard Burns Rally, a title often labelled as the most hardcore rally simulator available on the market. However, the official rally mode was added in the most recent update to the softbody physics sandbox, BeamNG.drive. Consequently, this new highly anticipated mode has sparked a significant return to form for the player numbers,
It is no secret that BeamNG does its own thing. Their game has been in early access for over a decade now, and the entire ecosystem around the title is so individual and creative that not many other sims or titles can come close to offering what BeamNG can. However, this is the biggest downfall for the idea of the team taking on an official license. The game does not suit officially licensed content with the lore and environment building BeamNG has undergone in the past years, especially.
BeamNG's Civetta Bolide. Image: BeamNG
BeamNG was our community's top pick, and while it would be a fantastic addition to the rally mode, we can not see the developers throwing away all of their hard work building this alternate universe with their win cars and brands for the sake of the WRC licence.
With this loss, a further addition to the yearly release format that EA is well drilled in would not be enough to allocate the resources. The WRC licence appears to have become untenable for such a big company, like EA Sports, to take a risk on, with the future of the real series looking rather dim.
A studio suggested in the comments that could do something special with the license was KW Studios. One aspect that their original product, RaceRoom, does not have is any form of off-road-based racing or driving. This would give the studio an entirely new direction to try and create something new and from scratch.
The other big hitters, such as Kunos Simulazioni, Reiza Studios, Bugbear Entertainment, and iRacing, all have massive projects in their fields that, if let slip, could affect their fan bases. Piling on a WRC licence to something like Assetto Corsa EVO could be potential brand suicide, and the same could be said for Wreckfest.
Of course, this is part speculation as it currently stands. When OverTake reached out to Electronic Arts for comment, we received the above quote and a firm no to any further comment. As it unfolds, we will bring you the latest breaking news on the EA Sports WRC licence drama.
Renault Clio Rally3. Image: EA Sports WRC
The end product of 'Reducing some roles' could ultimately mean the demise of Codemasters as a publisher, a real kick in the teeth for those rally fans and F1 game fans from the 2000s and into the 2010s. Codemasters is an iconic name in the sim racing space, and if this really is the beginning of the end, then it has been a pleasure, Codemasters...
What do you think about EA Sports potentially dissolving Codemasters and moving on from the WRC license? Who is next in line to take over? Let us know in the comments down below!
After the news broke that EA Sports would be dropping the WRC licence moving forward, we polled our community to find out which studios they would like to see take over the licence in the future.
Colin McRae's 1999 WRC Focus. Image: EA Sports / Codemasters
With the idea of soft body damage and hardcore driving physics, the attention must be turned towards Richard Burns Rally, a title often labelled as the most hardcore rally simulator available on the market. However, the official rally mode was added in the most recent update to the softbody physics sandbox, BeamNG.drive. Consequently, this new highly anticipated mode has sparked a significant return to form for the player numbers,
It is no secret that BeamNG does its own thing. Their game has been in early access for over a decade now, and the entire ecosystem around the title is so individual and creative that not many other sims or titles can come close to offering what BeamNG can. However, this is the biggest downfall for the idea of the team taking on an official license. The game does not suit officially licensed content with the lore and environment building BeamNG has undergone in the past years, especially.
BeamNG's Civetta Bolide. Image: BeamNG
BeamNG was our community's top pick, and while it would be a fantastic addition to the rally mode, we can not see the developers throwing away all of their hard work building this alternate universe with their win cars and brands for the sake of the WRC licence.
The future of the real-life WRC
OverTake member @Rodger Davies raised a fantastic point in the poll comments about the state of the real series. Without any official confirmation yet, the top split of the WRC will likely be down to two manufacturers and, consequently, an even smaller pool of drivers.With this loss, a further addition to the yearly release format that EA is well drilled in would not be enough to allocate the resources. The WRC licence appears to have become untenable for such a big company, like EA Sports, to take a risk on, with the future of the real series looking rather dim.
A studio suggested in the comments that could do something special with the license was KW Studios. One aspect that their original product, RaceRoom, does not have is any form of off-road-based racing or driving. This would give the studio an entirely new direction to try and create something new and from scratch.
The other big hitters, such as Kunos Simulazioni, Reiza Studios, Bugbear Entertainment, and iRacing, all have massive projects in their fields that, if let slip, could affect their fan bases. Piling on a WRC licence to something like Assetto Corsa EVO could be potential brand suicide, and the same could be said for Wreckfest.
Of course, this is part speculation as it currently stands. When OverTake reached out to Electronic Arts for comment, we received the above quote and a firm no to any further comment. As it unfolds, we will bring you the latest breaking news on the EA Sports WRC licence drama.
Renault Clio Rally3. Image: EA Sports WRC
The end product of 'Reducing some roles' could ultimately mean the demise of Codemasters as a publisher, a real kick in the teeth for those rally fans and F1 game fans from the 2000s and into the 2010s. Codemasters is an iconic name in the sim racing space, and if this really is the beginning of the end, then it has been a pleasure, Codemasters...
What do you think about EA Sports potentially dissolving Codemasters and moving on from the WRC license? Who is next in line to take over? Let us know in the comments down below!
