Is EA Sports WRC Coming To PS4 And Xbox One

On the heels of a successful launch of F1 2023, developer Codemasters are turning their attention to the next racing game release, EA Sports WRC. This latest iteration of competitive rally racing sees the studio using the Unreal Engine to entirely rebuild the game “from the dirt up” for the best off-roading gameplay experience possible.

What has caught the attention of rally gaming enthusiasts is the confirmed platforms for which the game will be made available, but no word on a PlayStation 4 and Xbox One release. We’ve discussed whether Codemasters are planning a PS4 and Xbox One port for EA Sports WRC.

Will EA Sports WRC Be Launching On PS4 & Xbox One?

This is rally.#EASPORTSWRC is coming on November 3 🎮

Pre-order to play 3 days early 📆 https://t.co/dRhPshgw6bpic.twitter.com/Qyru4s19b2

— EA SPORTS WRC (@EASPORTSWRC) September 5, 2023

Racing game enthusiasts will have plenty of motorsport racing escapades to seek out, with multiple racing games set for release in the latter half of 2023. While F1 2023 and The Crew Motorfest are enjoying the spoils momentarily, EA Sports WRC and possibly its direct competitor, Forza Motorsport, are still slated for release this year.

In the official announcement post, developer Codemasters confirmed that EA Sports WRC will be shifting its gears onto consoles and PC on 3rd November 2023 with an Early Access period available three days early for pre-orders. Speaking of its console release, players noticed that the rally racing game will be heading to PlayStation 5 and Xbox Series X|S consoles, but not PlayStation 4 and Xbox One.

According to a GamesIndustry.biz interview with Senior Creative Director for Codemasters, Ross Gowing, he explained the reasoning behind the studio’s decision not to launch EA Sports WRC on last-gen consoles. He said it boiled down to the development team “working extremely hard to define the future of rally on PC and the latest generation of consoles.”

This corroborated a leak from early this year where a YouTube video discovered that EA Sports WRC will be a new-gen console release with no plans for a PS4 and Xbox One version in the future. While this may be a slight deviation from the studio’s previous release, F1 2023, which will be available for PS4 and Xbox One as a result of the engine powering the game, the move will see them take advantage of advanced technology such as Ray Tracing for more realistic shadows and lightning.

Additionally, technological advancements in CPU and GPU, which are outdated for last-gen consoles, allow the consoles and PC to take advantage of more realistic imagery and powerful gaming performance. With SSD for faster game loads and letting you continue your gaming experience much quicker, this decision is ultimately a smart move of Codemasters to focus on bringing the game to the latest gaming hardware.

Lastly, it doesn’t appear that the studio will be making a port for the Nintendo Switch, as there has been no confirmation yet as to whether this will be possible. Nevertheless, players can start their engines three days early with Early Access when pre-ordering the digital version of EA Sports WRC for PS5, Xbox Series X|S, and PC today.