Are you ready for The Hardest Racing Game Ever?

Hard as nails. That's Richard Burns. Not the man (we've no idea if he can 'handle' himself), the rally game. This is the real deal, the full enchilada; the closest you'll ever get to actual rallying without strapping on a helmet and taking out a five-figure life insurance plan. And sweet Lord Satan and his little wizards, it's tough...

Now before we tell you how impressive Richard Burns Rally is, heed this warning: if you're looking for a pick-up-and-play slice of rallying fun then for sanity's sake get Colin McRae Rally 04. Richard Burns Rally is only for hardcore automotive masochists who think Gran Turismo is a girls' game and love it when you slightly edge off the track and go into an uncontrollable spin that ends with the car on its roof. If you're one of those crazy people, you'll think this is the absolute business.

To give you an idea of just how demanding this game is, it doesn't even let you get stuck into the main season mode until you've completed your lessons at the Forest Experience Rally School. Here, Burnsie tutors you in driving skills, including acceleration, braking and taking the correct racing line. Sounds like a piece of piss, but many gamers won't even be able to get past this section and gain access to the main game. Seriously.

This may all sound a little negative, but it's for your own good. See, we've mastered McRae, tossed his Focus through every rally from England to Australia and taken our rightful place on the winner's podium, a bit sweaty but not quite a nervous wreck. By the time we'd completed Richard's driving tests, on the other hand, we had to go and get some fresh air and calm down with a can of Special Brew.

This game leaks realism out of every busted hydraulic line and that's why it's both so difficult and so compelling. Where Colin McRae lets you get away with constantly flooring it, skidding through bends and banging into obstacles like a wino in a wheelchair, here you have to keep an eye on the speedometer, brake for nearly every bend and, if you do stray off course, even slightly, you'll come a cropper. Blame Richard Burns for this. The game has been designed to his specifications and makes absolutely no compromises in delivering an incredi-accurate replication of the rally world.

The realism extends far beyond the behind-the-wheel action. The courses are much narrower, more claustrophobic and therefore truer-to-life than we're used to. Damage accurately affects your car's performance, so if you smash into a tree and knacker the radiator you can expect the engine to overheat, leaving you crawling around the remainder of the stage at 40mph. And for those of you with a mechanical bent, the tuning options are horribly in-depth, enabling you to tweak everything from the Helper Stiffness to the Wheel Axis inclination (sadly, you can't manipulate the Lumpy Camshaft).

Did we say it was hard? It's so damn hard that it'll make you want to run into the street waving a rusty spanner at passing cars while softly weeping hot tears of frustration. But it's also eye-bleedingly fast, ultra-realistic and totally exhaustive in its dedication to bringing you the full rally experience. Richard Burns Rally is a game you can readily admire and respect but not necessarily like. PS2's equivalent of Arsene Wenger, in other words.

Graphics 70%
Detailed and impressive, if a bit muted.

Sound 60%
Awful music and the FX are quality.

Gameplay 80%
Rally driving at its most stimulating.

Lifespan 80%
It'll take forever to master this swine.

Overall 80%
A rally sim that refuses to compromise. Like riding a bull in a catsuit, only hardcore maniacs need apply. Heed this warning.