WRC 23: Leak: Rally game only in autumn and only for next-gen

Now that the WRC license is known to be in the hands of Codemasters, rally fans are eagerly awaiting the new game. But that could take a little longer.

As of this year, the fortunes of the World Rally Championship are no longer in the hands of KT Games, but in the hands of Codemasters, who have quite a bit of experience in the genre – see DiRT Rally. There have already been rumors and speculation that the game should be released in July. But without an announcement it doesn’t look like it.

A friend Leaker now claims that there has been a delay internally, albeit without giving a reason. It is now assumed that WRC 23 (or whatever it will be called) will not be released until autumn 2023, but probably before November 1st. The leaker also wants to know that for the first time for a Codemasters title, the game will no longer be released for the old generation of consoles, but only for PC, PS5 and Xbox Series X/S. There will be two editions of the new game, a Standard Edition and a Champions Edition with access to the first five seasons after launch.

What makes the whole thing quite believable is that the achievements of the new rally title were also leaked along with the said information. Among other things, it talks about a career mode as well as Time Trial, Championship Mode, Rally School, Clubs and Quick Play Online.

Furthermore, four vehicles will be named for the time being (MINI Cooper S, Lancia Stratos, Citroën Xsara WRC, Subaru Impreza 1995), as well as some rally events (Monte-Carlo Rally, Rally Italy Sardinia, Vodafone Rally Portugal, Rally Sweden, Iberian Rally). , Rally Mexico, Rally Estonia). The previously known achievements are as follows:

• Achieve 5 Gold medals in Moments

• Create your own team in Career Mode

• Complete your first career season

• Win a WRC Championship in Career mode

• Finish on the podium at every event in a Championship Mode season

• Complete 5 Moments

• Beat a Personal Best time in Time Trial

• Download and beat a Ghost in Time Trial

• Complete a regularity rally stage with 0 penalty points

• Drive 100 Miles (160km) on Asphalt

• Drive 100 Miles (160km) on Gravel/Dirt

• Drive 100 Miles (160km) on Snow

• Drive 1000 Miles (1600km)

• Build your first Vehicle Builder car

• Build 5 cars in the Vehicle Builder

• Complete at least one stage using a vehicle from every vehicle Class

• Complete a lesson in the Rally School

• Finish on the Podium of a Custom Championship, in a Vehicle Builder car, with a custom livery

• Finish on the podium of an event at Rallye Monte-Carlo in a MINI Cooper S

• Win a Regularity Rally event in Rally Italia Sardegna in the Lancia Stratos

• Win a stage at Vodafone Rally de Portugal that you started with heavy engine damage

• Win an event at Rally Sweden in the Citroën Xsara WRC

• Win an event at Rally Iberia in the SUBARU Impreza 1995

• Finish an event at Guanajuato Rally Mexico without any severe mechanical damage

• Complete a Quick Play Online event at Rally Estonia

• Compete in a Clubs event at any location

This all sounds quite plausible, also given the scope and diversity of the information. However, there is still no official announcement, which is not unusual for sports and racing games from EA and Codemasters. In any case, it will be interesting to see what Codemasters will build from the strong DiRT Rally series in connection with the official license.