A classic PlayStation series returns for another worldwide run. Disappointing graphics and a lackluster (and often annoying) soundtrack detract from an otherwise fun and varied racing game. Fans of the series and fans of professional rallying will feel right at home, and even newcomers can get the hang of drifting with some work.

Track design, off-road arcade driving and nice scenarios make V-Rally 4 a game worth trying; unfortunately, asphalt races, career and Buggy/Rally Cross are much less enjoyable.

At last a new V-Rally game is a reality. Maybe V-Rally 4 is not the definitive rally experience that some players would have dream for but, in the other hand, it's a fine tuning rally experience suitable for a great number of users.

V-Rally 4 has some good ideas and a solid base, but it seems that we are always close to something excellent, before being disappointed by a disruptive element, as it will probably remain limited to racing enthusiasts.

Ultimately, V-Rally 4 is a solid if comprehensively unremarkable rally racing game. It offers neither the simulation depth of Dirt Rally nor the arcade racing hijinks of Dirt, straddling the line somewhere between the two. It can be moderately entertaining despite its dry personality, but up against stiff competition, it’s an all too forgettable entry. Perhaps V-Rally was best left in its nostalgia-fuelled haze.

While visually very appealing and with a highly varied career mode, V-Rally 4 is plagued by a poor control scheme which can't decide whether it wants to be an arcade racer or a race simulator. Paired with very long load times the end result is a game which could and should have been far better than the end result. V-Rally deserves better.

With so many great rally games already available, V-Rally 4’s poor handling and inconsistent AI just can’t compete with its competition. It should have stayed as a fondly-remembered retro series.