Apply opposite lock and accelerate.

Colin McRae Rally Mac is the equivalent of Colin McRae Rally 2005 by Codemasters and has been ported over to the Mac by Feral Interactive. Even though this game is now quite old, Feral Interactive knowingly, or mistakenly ported one of the best rally games of all time.

Paying homage to the Colin McRae, the game menu is subtle and stylish, and you can choose any one of the different game modes. Career, single rally events, or just rally stages, the choice is yours. Once you choose your car and stage, the player can make car setup changes, and you do have to be smart, as the setup can win you the rally, or trash your car.









Once you start playing, you start to realise that you can't mess about. The cars are a handful, the tracks are punishing, and unless you give your 100%, you just can't play this game. But put in the effort, and keep pushing all the way through the stage, the rewards are huge. With your co-driver's instructions, you have to navigate your way through different terrains, beautifully detailed landscapes and lush surroundings. The physics are superb, and you really do have to drift your way around the course to maintain your average speed and keep the momentum going. The damage is punishing, and you cannot afford to play loose as the damage severely affects the cars performance. And the game expects you to keep pushing even if you lose a wheel or two. To help out amateurs, the game has two damage settings. But even the more forgiving setting is extremely punishing. With a wide variety or cars from different era's and classes, Codemasters has put in the effort to make every car sound and feel different. From the Group B Audi Quattro, to the classic Mini Cooper and the modern Subaru's and Mitsubishi's, every car is brilliantly detailed and you can feel every little twitch and bump the car endures. The weather makes a catastrophic difference. When it rains, the car is almost impossible to drive. But if you persevere, it is immensely satisfying.




Winning your first rally is fantastic achievement, and the game really does make you work for it. In the career mode, unless you're pushing every single second, you could lose by a few tenths and a small shunt could plummet you down the order. The damage you cause to your car carries over to the next stage, so you can't push it to the absolute limit as you have the same car throughout the rally.

Additionally you can also play multiplayer games via GameRanger, but you cannot race head to head as rallying is a timed event, which might dissuade some.

This game is an intense experience, and meant for racing enthusiasts. Although it certainly is enjoyable for casual gamers, they might not be able to progress far in this game. So certainly, arcade racing fans should keep away. But this game is worth every penny, and till date, very few games can match up with the experience Colin McRae Rally provides you with.

4.5/5


On a personal note, this is one the last games that you can actually enjoy a proper rally experience on your Mac. The successor to this game, Colin McRae: Dirt 2 shifts its focus toward the more modern forms of rally, such as rallycross and the X-Games. Colin McRae has been replaced by Travis Pastrana and Ken Block.