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Colin McRae Rally 3 for PlayStation 2
Colin McRae Rally 3 for PlayStation 2 puts you in Colin McRae's Ford Focus. In the championship you work through a three-season contract with Ford Rallye Sport. You drive timed special stages and listen to your navigator's instructions. A quick run takes more than late braking: you must shift the car's weight, choose the right line and account for grip on tarmac, gravel or snow.
Between stages you prepare the Focus for the next part of the rally. Tyres, suspension and gearing affect how the car responds. The shakedown lets you test settings before the competition begins. A collision can damage handling or performance; the mechanics have limited time at each service. A controlled run therefore matters too. Seconds gained on the road can disappear later when you have to continue with damaged parts.
The championship is single-player. Individual stages also let you use unlocked cars and compete with two players, either simultaneously in split-screen or taking turns. Split-screen requires two controllers; a standard DualShock 2 is sufficient and a steering wheel is not mandatory. Championship progress saves automatically to a PS2 memory card. Alongside a longer rally career, you can therefore spend a short session practising a familiar stage.
Region and language
Our PlayStation 2 games are PAL editions and come with a Dutch or English box, unless stated otherwise. By default, you receive the version for the European market. We note it in the product details if the region is different or the box is in another language. In almost all cases, the game is playable at least in English, and often in the other five common European languages too.
Manual
Colin McRae Rally 3 for PlayStation 2 includes the manual unless the product title states otherwise. If the booklet is missing, the title says “No Manual”. This lets you see before ordering whether the game comes with a manual.
The manuals included with our games usually contain at least English and often around six European languages. The exact languages vary by edition, so Dutch is not always included. The booklet explains the controls and the main rules. You can use it to check how to control the game, which actions are available and how its different features work.
The history of Colin McRae Rally 3
Codemasters brought Colin McRae Rally 3 to PlayStation 2 in 2002. After the first two main entries on the original PlayStation, the series moved to a new console generation. The developer used that transition to present the rally car more clearly as an interconnected mechanical system. Suspension, tyres and damaged components worked together in its handling. The result built on the familiar combination of real car brands, spoken pace notes and point-to-point special stages.
The collaboration with Colin McRae took a particularly concrete form this time. The main event cast you as the Scottish driver during a multi-year contract with Ford. The Focus consequently occupied the centre of the championship, while other cars became available outside that career. Nicky Grist provided the English navigator voice. The original instruction booklet explained not just the controls but also shakedowns, telemetry and limited repair time. Codemasters thus made preparation a recognisable part of a rally weekend.
That fixed role defined this third entry's place in the series. Rather than assembling any garage you liked for the championship, you learnt one team's car over several seasons. Colin McRae Rally 04 would subsequently restore more freedom in car selection. Rally 3 therefore reflects a distinct development choice: combining one famous driver's career with increasingly precise setup and control of his competition car across changing surfaces.
Similar games for PlayStation 2
Colin McRae Rally 04 shares Rally 3's special stages, service stops and focus on grip. The main difference lies in the championship: 04 lets you choose several cars and categories, whereas here you remain with Ford. Challenges that earn new components also give 04 a different rhythm. Rally 3 focuses more firmly on learning the same Focus during a three-season contract.
Colin McRae Rally 2005 uses the same foundation of pace notes, damage and fast stages on different surfaces. Its extensive career takes you through varied vehicle classes and events. Rally 3 centres its main career on McRae and Ford. If you mainly want a continuous period with one team car, that produces a different structure from 2005's branching sequence of challenges and unlockable classes.
WRC II Extreme likewise has you driving a rally car along narrow verges and changing road surfaces on PlayStation 2. Its official world championship licence places the emphasis on WRC teams and calendar. Rally 3 chooses Colin McRae's personal Ford career for its championship. In both games, listening calmly to your navigator helps, but car selection and season presentation provide a different context.
V-Rally 3 combines special stages with a personal career in which contracts and results matter. That connects with Rally 3's longer-term progression. V-Rally's career, however, gives you a position you build yourself in the rally world; here you immediately take McRae's fixed role at Ford. Each series also responds differently to braking and weight transfer, so a familiar corner calls for a different approach.
Gran Turismo 3: A-Spec also features rally races, car settings and a clear difference between tarmac and loose surfaces. Most of that game, however, concerns circuit laps and expanding your garage. Rally 3 focuses on individual special stages with spoken instructions for the next corner. Your preparation here revolves around an entire rally and your Ford's condition rather than a broad car collection.
