Master Rallye (2001) - Every PC Rally Game
0Master Rallye by Steel Monkeys / Microids, 2001.
Master Rallye was a real-life 5000km event that took part between Paris and Moscow, and this game covers it. It's sort-of like Paris-Dakar, but going a different direction!
Whilst many of the vehicles in this game are almost standard off-road 4x4 machines, there are a few powerful buggies, like a couple of the Schlesser cars.
The graphics are a little washed out and low-key for a 2001 title (it feels like a PS2 port, which it is!). The locations don't really feel like France/Germany/Spain/etc, as they all blend into one another. Vehicle damage is okay though, and it plays quite like a rally racing game (except the co-driver is reduced to the odd symbol on screen.
I turned off the music, so you can hear the somewhat warbling engine noise. Amusingly, on the replays, the gear shift sound plays full volume, even when the vehicle is far away!
This game is difficult to run on modern machines, as the menu gradually slows down and down, taking minutes to change screen. Workarounds are to run it in a window, then you can click the top bar to refresh the menu instantly, or (as I had to do) alt-tab about 3 times in-between each screen transition, to load it faster! Not ideal!
This is part of the Every PC Rally Game playlist, which you can find here: https://www.youtube.com/playlist?list=PLYDobL0b26ugFuXASCIC9qmFb9_k4_fqU