Australia's slippery gravel stages require just as much flat-out rallying, whilst the mountainous asphalt events in France and Italy set the scene for some of the most technical and intense driving you'll ever do on a PC. The good news is that whilst the Finland stages were good, most of the other stages in the game are simply superb. Whilst most rally titles apply a stereotype to each country's stages, those in CMR2 get very close to the mark - the developers must be real rallying enthusiasts. The special stages are what make rallying the sport it is, and many stages on the FIA world championship are real classics with a very distinct character. This was my main memory of a brief playtest on the CMR2 beta last month. Make sure you listen very carefully to navigator Nicky Grist - 'Six left and flat right over six crest, flat right over jump and six left over jump, and flat right tightens, over jump.' Problem is, flat isn't easy flat - you need to position the car very carefully, which is not simple at the best of times with the wonderful new physics model, let alone when you're doing 120kph over blind crests, on stages where the slightest deviation off the line will see you bury the car into the nearest tree.' Ultra fast sweeping roads, perilous jumps and lots of trees all combine to give you a totally unrelenting driving experience. 'The stage based on the classic 'Rally of 1000 Lakes' plays true to form.

GDR has been following the development of CMR2 and the impressions have been good, but it's now time to see if the final version lives up to all the promise. Now Codemasters have stamped the name of the world's fastest rally driver onto a feature-packed sequel that we've been eagerly awaiting all year. This was always going to be the biggest racing release of the year, but is it a case of leaving the best till last? Two years ago, Codemasters produced the groundbreaking and hugely popular Colin McRae Rally, but since then Rally Championship and Rally Masters have raised the standard.

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