In March 2020, WRC 9 was revealed as the official game of the 2020 FIA World Rally Championship alongside WRC 10.[1] It features 14 different locations (reflecting the 2020 season as it was originally intended to be run before the COVID-19 pandemicresulted in many events being rescheduled or cancelled and new rallies added to the calendar),[2] including all three returning rallies, Safari Rally, Rally New Zealand and Rally Japan, with up to fifty official crews from WRC, WRC-2, WRC-3 and J-WRC available for the player to choose. The game also features fifteen more landmark vehicles from the WRC history.[3][better source needed]
Reception for WRC 9 was generally favourable among critics.[5][6][7] While troubled by smaller issues, improvements with car handling were noted in many outlets. Among critics, the game was scored at 80% by Push Square.[11]Pixel Bandits rated the title at 4/4, noting the fresh challenge provided to long-time fans of the series.[13]