Richard Burns Rally

Warthog/SCi · released 2004 · discussed in 1,042 posts, 2003-2011 · overall tone positive

Posts per month

Timeline

2004-09-03 Richard Burns Rally was released for PC in the UK, following its Xbox release in the summer. thread post post
2004-09-18 Racer_S released RBRnet, a two-player internet and LAN multiplayer tool for Richard Burns Rally. post
2004-09-23 SCi released the Richard Burns Rally 1.01 patch. thread post
2004-10-01 A PC demo of Richard Burns Rally was released. thread post
2004-10-28 The Richard Burns Rally 1.02 patch fixed crashes and added a modding DLL. post post
2005-04-21 Richard Burns Rally gained online play. post
2005-11-25 2001 World Rally Champion Richard Burns died of a brain tumour. post
2005-12-17 Gizmondo Studios bought Warthog, the developer of Richard Burns Rally, and refocused it on mobile games. post post
2006-04-26 Official Richard Burns Rally patches removed SecuROM protection after the developer went out of business. post

Key threads

Richard Burns Rally impresses as a true rally sim 2004-07-08 · 40 posts
Damien Evans praised the Xbox version of Richard Burns Rally for its suspension model, surface feel and realistic grip, and others agreed it was the first serious rally sim. Discussion covered whether it can be played well with a gamepad, the centred console cockpit view versus the PC version, the detailed setup garage, the lack of real multiplayer and the September PC release. Rally Trophy was compared unfavourably.
Top five racing sims to buy with a G25 2006-12-01 · 86 posts
A real-world dirt racer asked for the best five sims for a co-worker buying a Logitech G25. Recommendations included GT Legends, GTR2, rFactor, Richard Burns Rally, NR2003, Grand Prix Legends and Live for Speed, with RACE also mentioned. A long dispute followed over whether ISI-engine cars feel like driving on ice, with David G Fisher insisting it was down to setup and others disagreeing.
Is r.a.s. dead without Papyrus? Sims, stock cars and bumps 2005-08-10 · 71 posts
A poster remarked that the group was dead, and Nick argued it was because regulars cared only about Papyrus and ignored sims like GTR and Richard Burns Rally. Others defended Papyrus's influence and praised the GTP mod, LFS S2 and the GTR Escort mod. The thread moved on to whether NASCAR is boring, and to a debate about bump modelling and car pitch in GTR and GT Legends.
Which current sims have the most realistic physics? 2006-04-17 · 50 posts
A user asked which modern driving sims have the most realistic physics. Nominations included GT Legends, Richard Burns Rally, netKar Pro, rFactor, NR2003 and the newly patched Live for Speed, while TOCA 3 was largely dismissed as arcade. The thread turned into a long debate between Jeff Reid and Larry over whether NR2003 oval and restrictor-plate racing online requires real skill, with its large online player numbers noted.
First impressions of Richard Burns Rally on PC 2004-09-06 · 47 posts
Andrew MacPherson called RBR the best rally sim he had tried, and others praised its realistic scenery, force feedback and driving school. Some found it took time to adjust, and a former club rally driver said it was as real as it gets apart from g-forces. Several users, including Uwe Schurkamp, struggled with crashes at startup, with suggestions such as lower graphics settings and DirectX 9.0c.
Which racing sim is the most realistic in 2005? 2005-10-09 · 44 posts
A returning sim racer asked which sims were most realistic, suggesting GPL, rFactor and Live for Speed. Answers varied widely, with nominations for GTR, Richard Burns Rally, NR2003 mods, rFactor and others, and debate about whether GT Legends shared GTR's engine and bugs. The thread drifted into grammar pedantry and jokes about The Simpsons Hit and Run.
Richard Burns Rally PC demo released 2004-10-01 · 40 posts
Neil Canning announced the Richard Burns Rally demo, and players praised its graphics, surface feel and realism while reporting light force feedback and controller detection problems. Owners of TSW pedals were told to rewire their pots. Mitch_A and others asked why the game had no US release, attributing it to distribution costs.
List of the best PC racing sims by category 2008-04-23 · 32 posts
Mr T posted a list of the most realistic sims in each category and asked for opinions. Suggestions included rFactor mods for F1 and GP79, Richard Burns Rally for rally, ARCA Sim Racing over NR2003 for stock cars, and Live for Speed. A side argument about buying ARCA by mail across borders turned into name-calling.
Richard Burns Rally patch 1.01 released 2004-09-23 · 26 posts
Andi Cole posted the RBR 1.01 patch, which made front wheels turn in replays and included its own no-DVD executable. Users reported it did not fix Radeon 9000/9200 flashing or TSW pedal configuration problems, and a couple found it caused crashes, one involving missing Immersion force-feedback files.
First Richard Burns Rally video stirs hopes for rally sim 2004-02-03 · 25 posts
Jason Moyer shared an early video of Richard Burns Rally and praised its terrain and suspension behaviour, arguing it looked far more serious than Colin McRae Rally. Others said they would only buy it with a proper in-car view, and a side debate compared ISI and Papyrus physics and sound. Jason also briefly leaked a beta of his CART mod for F1 Challenge.
Will GTR be the next GPL? 2004-10-15 · 22 posts
A poster asked whether GTR would be the next GPL. Most said no: GPL redefined the genre in a way no single later sim could, though some named RBR as the new benchmark and others cited its lack of opponents. Malc argued GPL's long life came partly from being hard to modify, which JP disputed.
Forza previews spark console versus PC sim debate 2004-09-01 · 22 posts
Previews of Forza Motorsport led David G Fisher to predict the next consoles would end PC racing sims, a view shared by some and mocked by others who cited CART Precision Racing's failure and gamepad limitations. Posters noted Logitech and Microsoft Xbox wheels were coming and debated whether Microsoft's shared Xbox-PC development would blend the markets.
RBR split-axis pedal problems with Hyperstimulator and TSW 2004-09-16 · 20 posts
Users of Hyperstimulator and TSW pedals found Richard Burns Rally misread split brake and throttle axes. Fixes included deleting the combined control in RBR, using the Hyper Profiler's reverse-axis option as Les Marton explained, a registry tweak, and swapping the red and blue brake potentiometer wires, which TSW's Dave Thomas reportedly endorsed. A patch was rumoured.
Troll post questions praise for Richard Burns Rally 2004-09-21 · 58 posts
cronik listed complaints about RBR, including menus, graphics, cockpit view, performance, bugs and steering lag. Others rebutted most points, praising its graphics, stability and steering, while Jan Verschueren puzzled over very slow stage loading on his own PC. Posters noted cronik had once called TOCA Race Driver 2 the most realistic sim, and a long side debate followed on whether a rally sim needs multiplayer.
Canadian struggles to buy Richard Burns Rally 2008-05-19 · 44 posts
Poky asked how to buy Richard Burns Rally in Canada and whether he was forced to pirate it. Others pointed to eBay, budget releases and online retailers, but he rejected eBay and PayPal, and the exchange with Roger Longcock descended into insults and accusations of piracy. He eventually said he would buy a cheap copy from a UK store.
RBR controller support versus Papyrus calibration 2004-09-17 · 35 posts
Kendt Eklund warned users with non-standard controllers not to buy RBR yet because of reversed brake axes. Posters shared DXTweak2 workarounds and argued whether the fault lay with high-end wheels, DirectInput or developers, with many praising Papyrus's own calibration routines. A side argument arose over Steve Simpson's claim that RBR beat NR2003 in physics.
Richard Burns Rally school time-attack video with gamepad 2006-04-20 · 28 posts
Chang Liu posted a video of his Richard Burns Rally rally school run, using a gamepad at low settings. Regulars teased him about his language and controller, and compared times on the Finnish stages. Others pointed him to the RBR online ranking for faster replays.
Negative RBR demo review rewritten after criticism 2004-10-01 · 28 posts
cronik posted a review claiming the RBR demo was less realistic than Colin McRae Rally. Members mocked the reviewer's evident gamepad use and ignorance of setups, and soon noticed the review had been completely rewritten to praise the game. cronik admitted he was trolling, and a side conversation covered cycling to work.
Toyota Corolla replay in Richard Burns Rally 2004-09-17 · 27 posts
Todd Walker shared a replay of his Toyota run, comparing RBR's learning curve to GPL's. Discussion covered graphics settings, v-sync and triple buffering, and a bug where front wheels do not steer in replays for some users, thought to depend on the game version. Black seams on the road with ATI cards were attributed to anti-aliasing and anisotropic filtering.
Fixing reversed TSW brake axis for RBR 2004-09-25 · 26 posts
BRH could not get RBR to read his TSW brake pedal correctly. Tony Rickard explained Windows sees split brake axes as reversed, and Bob Gee relayed that TSW's Dave Thomas recommended swapping the red and blue wires on the brake pot, which others confirmed worked at the cost of combined mode. Debate followed over whether premium pedals or the game were at fault.
Richard Burns Rally copy protection and Daemon Tools adware 2006-04-26 · 26 posts
Asked whether Richard Burns Rally used Starforce, users replied that its SecuROM protection had been removed by patches and noted its developer had closed, with its lead reportedly starting a new moddable sim. Discussion turned to Daemon Tools version 4 bundling adware, and Myst V.
Newcomer struggles with Richard Burns Rally on a gamepad 2004-11-04 · 25 posts
A new player using analogue sticks asked how fast to take corners in RBR. Advice included focusing on the road rather than the speedometer, using manual gears, numeric pacenote and cockpit HUD mods, watching Richard Burns's passenger ride, and getting a wheel with separate pedals.
Thrustmaster T2 wheel not working in RBR demo 2004-10-17 · 24 posts
Xander Vlasveld's old Thrustmaster T2 calibrated in Windows but did not respond in the RBR and CMR 2005 demos. Suggestions included new drivers, DXTweak2 and unassigning RBR's combined throttle and brake control. Marc Collins reported Momo problems in RBR that the 1.02 patch later fixed.
Richard Burns Rally on PC versus consoles 2004-08-26 · 24 posts
Jay J asked for comparisons between the PC and console versions of Richard Burns Rally and whether his modest PC could run it. Replies said the PC version allows proper wheels and a driver-side cockpit view, the GeForce4 MX would not meet requirements, and the Xbox version ran well at TV resolution though some found its controller too sensitive. The PC version appeared early in Swiss shops.
Will RBR run on an older Windows 98 PC? 2004-09-13 · 21 posts
Richard Beckett asked whether Richard Burns Rally would run on his Athlon 2400+, GeForce4 Ti4200 and Windows 98SE with a gameport wheel. Replies said it would be playable at moderate resolution, while Uwe Schurkamp reported crashes on SiS 735 boards fixed by a BIOS update and reversed TSW2 pedal axes. Tony Rickard suggested calibrating pedals with throttle half-on in Windows.
Minimum hardware for Richard Burns Rally 2004-09-06 · 21 posts
A user with a Celeron and Radeon 9200 asked about RBR's minimum requirements. Replies said it needs pixel-shader cards, so GeForce2 and GeForce4 MX cards will not run it, a GeForce3 Ti200 works at low resolution, and about 2GHz CPU is needed for decent performance. Discussion moved to upgrade value, with a Radeon 9800 Pro recommended over the costlier XT.
Getting Richard Burns Rally to run on Vista 2008-08-27 · 20 posts
Sean Black could not get Richard Burns Rally to run on a new Vista PC with an ATI 4850 card, which gave a Direct3D error. Suggestions included installing DirectX 9 runtime files and avoiding the Program Files folder, and some said games ran faster on XP. He eventually fixed it by installing DirectX 9 from another game disc and running RBR before patching.
Importing Richard Burns Rally to North America 2004-08-24 · 20 posts
Canadian and US sim racers asked where to buy Richard Burns Rally, which had no North American release. Members recommended UK retailer GAME, which shipped internationally, plus GoGamer and BHMotorsports, and confirmed the game supports multiple controllers including analogue clutch and handbrake. GAME listed the UK release as 3 September 2004.
AutoSimSport's glowing review of the BRD Speed 7 FF wheel 2005-07-15 · 17 posts
Tim Epstein highlighted AutoSimSport's very positive review of the BRD Speed 7 force-feedback wheel. Uwe Schürkamp said he had never liked force feedback, while others argued it was essential, especially for Richard Burns Rally. BRD reportedly had no plans for console support. Users explained how to combine Momo wheels with TSW pedals.

Busiest threads

Troll post questions praise for Richard Burns Rally (25 posts about it)
First impressions of Richard Burns Rally on PC (19 posts about it)
Top five racing sims to buy with a G25 (17 posts about it)
RBR split-axis pedal problems with Hyperstimulator and TSW (17 posts about it)
Thrustmaster T2 wheel not working in RBR demo (15 posts about it)
Richard Burns Rally PC demo released (15 posts about it)
Fixing reversed TSW brake axis for RBR (14 posts about it)
Is r.a.s. dead without Papyrus? Sims, stock cars and bumps (12 posts about it)
Richard Burns Rally patch 1.01 released (12 posts about it)
Toyota Corolla replay in Richard Burns Rally (11 posts about it)
RBR controller support versus Papyrus calibration (11 posts about it)
Will RBR run on an older Windows 98 PC? (11 posts about it)
Minimum hardware for Richard Burns Rally (11 posts about it)
Richard Burns Rally impresses as a true rally sim (11 posts about it)
Negative RBR demo review rewritten after criticism (10 posts about it)

Sentiment by year

Each post that discussed the sim was rated from −2 (very negative) to +2 (very positive).

Year	Posts	Positive	Negative	Tone
2003	12	9	1	very positive (+0.92)
2004	665	285	82	positive (+0.46)
2005	209	102	11	very positive (+0.67)
2006	106	59	0	very positive (+0.82)
2007	9	5	0	very positive (+1.00)
2008	30	8	0	positive (+0.47)
2009	8	2	0	positive (+0.25)
2010	1	0	0	mixed (+0.00)
2011	2	0	1	negative (-0.50)