DiRT Rally 2.0

After getting 100% on this game, I'd give Dirt Rally 2.0 a thumbs up but with a because despite the game being technically solid with what it does, I can't bring myself to recommend it to anyone who isn't looking for a severely punishing racing experience.
I initially hated this game. In the Rally mode cars felt terrible, tracks were annoyingly complex, events took hours to complete and there was no excitement to be found in any of the presentation to even pretend this game was supposed to be in any way fun. I thought the Rally Cross mode would spice things up, and while I found it less frustrating, by the end of each event I felt unfulfilled and empty. It didn't help that there is absolutely no reason for this game to be always online and the prospect of losing progress because of that loomed in the back of my mind the entire time I progressed further. Crash after crash, restart after restart, I was having an absolutely miserable time. Had I known it was going to be this way I would have never picked up this game.
Despite that, the completionist in me pushed on. I decided to pick off what achievements I could before I couldn't stand playing this game any longer. Most were easy, but some would take several, sometimes dozens of hours to obtain.
At no point did this game get more fun for me, However, I did gradually get better at it.
What I would consider the most difficult achievement in the game, "...Flatout", requires you to go through the Colin Mcrae Career mode, which is a series of 30 challenges you have to complete on the hardest difficulty. Each one requires near perfection from you in order to complete them. Through determination and gritted teeth I would lock in and spend dozens upon dozens of hours beating these challenges. In some cases I would even punch the air in satisfaction after completing a challenge I though was insurmountable.
I bring this up because this was the mode that pushed me beyond what I thought I was capable of. I can't say the process of earning this achievement was enjoyable, It was an absolute endurance test. However the feeling I had after finally obtaining it wasn't nothing. I was not the same driver I was when I started this game and because of that, Dirt Rally 2.0 had earned my respect.
That being said, I don't think I'll be playing this game again out of choice. I would much rather play a game that cared more about me having actual fun. Though I hear the VR experience in this game is exceptional and I can see that, so I may come back to this game if I ever decide to get a VR headset.
This game isn't for the faint of heart. Only those looking for a big challenge, or the most masochistic of achievement hunters should consider picking up this game. If you're into more forgivable arcade racing games like me, perhaps consider skipping this one.
Oh, and for the record, I played on keyboard. So maybe that's why I mostly hated this game.

Okay, so, basically, the game is fun. BUT, it's hell on controller. Once you get to Pro level on rally career, the NPC times begin breaking the laws of physics, they'll take hairpins and square turns at like 100 mph, no joke, it almost becomes impossible, but I think that's the point. This game will infuriate you and FORCE you to learn, UNTIL... you finally start winning again. But then it's rinse and repeat. Enjoy, but be prepared to get pissed. (I also recommend starting in H1 FWD, H2 FWD, then go ahead and move up to R2, becomes a lot more fun but also more infuriating, then possibly group B so you start getting a feel for AWD, SAVE RWD FOR LAST, IT'S LIKE DRIVING ON ICE.) THE CARS DON'T F*****G TURN EITHER, NO MATTER HOW SLOW/FAST YOU'RE GOING.
EDIT: After nearly 40 hours in game, I wish I could get a refund.
EDIT 2: Whoever thought the Monte Carlo DLC was a good idea should be fired. Worst DLC IMO, avoid it if you can.

Very REALISTIC controls. I am a rally driver myself. I drove in WRC in 1999.

---{ Graphics }---
☐ You forget what reality is
☑ Beautiful
☐ Good
☐ Decent
☐ Bad
☐ Don‘t look too long at it
☐ MS-DOS
---{ Gameplay }---
☑ Very good
☐ Good
☐ It's just gameplay
☐ Mehh
☐ Watch paint dry instead
☐ Just don't
---{ Audio }---
☐ Eargasm
☑ Very good
☐ Good
☐ Not too bad
☐ Bad
☐ I'm now deaf
---{ Audience }---
☐ Kids
☑ Teens
☑ Adults
☐ Grandma
---{ PC Requirements }---
☐ Check if you can run paint
☐ Potato
☑ Decent
☐ Fast
☐ Rich boi
☐ Ask NASA if they have a spare computer
---{ Game Size }---
☐ Floppy Disk
☐ Old Fashioned
☐ Workable
☐ Big
☑ Will eat 10% of your 1TB hard drive
☐ You will want an entire hard drive to hold it
☐ You will need to invest in a black hole to hold all the data
---{ Difficulty }---
☐ Just press 'W'
☐ Easy
☐ Easy to learn / Hard to master
☑ Significant brain usage
☐ Difficult
☐ Dark Souls
---{ Grind }---
☐ Nothing to grind
☐ Only if u care about leaderboards/ranks
☐ Isn't necessary to progress
☑ Average grind level
☐ Too much grind
☐ You'll need a second life for grinding
---{ Story }---
☐ No Story
☑ Some lore
☐ Average
☐ Good
☐ Lovely
☐ It'll replace your life
---{ Game Time }---
☐ Long enough for a cup of coffee
☐ Short
☐ Average
☐ Long
☑ To infinity and beyond
---{ Price }---
☐ It's free!
☑ Worth the price
☐ If it's on sale
☐ If u have some spare money left
☐ Not recommended
☐ You could also just burn your money
---{ Bugs }---
☑ Never heard of
☐ Minor bugs
☐ Can get annoying
☐ ARK: Survival Evolved
☐ The game itself is a big terrarium for bugs
---{ ? / 10 }---
☐ 1
☐ 2
☐ 3
☐ 4
☐ 5
☐ 6
☐ 7
☐ 8
☐ 9
☑ 10

This game is great, but extremely difficult and unforgiving due to its realism. Not really meant for casuals unless they like a good challenge.

Oh hey! It's the EA WRC without denuvo, ea anticheat, performance issues, and with perfectly working vr support that's also cheaper! Just get this and don't touch whatever slop EA makes with a 10 foot pole

Just in case there are steam deck users contemplating buying this.
It DOES work