The top five asphalt stages in Richard Burns Rally

When Richard Burns Rally first appeared back in 2004, one of the things many critics praised was its stage design. 

Using real-world locations, Warthog Games’ artists used on-site photos to produce convincingly realistic stages; from the cambered curves of Chirdonhead to the hilariously steep jump found on Mineshaft.

However, the Rallysimfans mod (among others) consolidates a huge number of game improvements, cars and stages into one, easy-to-use (and free!) package, with many of the additional stages even surpassing the quality of the game’s originals.

With so many available, I’ve attempted to collate lists of what I think are the finest five RBR stages for each surface type: snow, gravel and asphalt, beginning with the latter.

Stay tuned for the top five snow and gravel stages coming soon!

5) Semetin

There’s no better indicator of the realism of an RBR stage than a real-world WRC driver using it as a training tool to prepare for a rally. And that’s exactly what Nikolay Gryazin did with Vaclav Šourek’s Semetin.

Ahead of the 2019 edition of the Barum Czech Rally Zlín, the five-time WRC2 rally winner Gryazin drove Semetin in RBR repeatedly, and such was its accuracy that the Russian driver took the fastest time on both runs through the stage, beating his vastly more experienced rival – and Czech rallying hero – Jan Kopecký.

The stage is a high-speed tour through the Czech countryside, featuring obscenely narrow roads, dangerous cuts and unexpected jumps. It all adds up to a terrifying but exhilarating experience, although it perhaps lacks the overall visual finesses of Biskupice and Gabiria-Legazpi (in fairness, it was released in 2013).

It’s still a quality RBR stage, however, and it definitely gets the Gryazin seal of approval!

4) Rościszów Walim

RBR modder Krzysiek Baran (Baran Tracks) has completed at least four high-quality stages thus far, with Rościszów Walim being the pick of the bunch for me.

Featuring supremely detailed road textures, believable vegetation assets and atmospheric lighting, Rościszów Walim provides a super-speedy ride through the Polish countryside.

As is the case with most of RBR’s best stages, Rościszów Walim is based on a real-world test, this time from the Rally Świdnicki Krause. At 8.5 Km long, its four-and-a-bit minute run time means it doesn’t outstay its welcome, with the final cobblestoned section providing a nasty surprise – it’s like driving on ice. You can at least pretend you’re in The Fast and the Furious: Tokyo Drift, however.

‘You don’t need friends when you got rally’, or something.

The good news is that most of the route is very wide and therefore very forgiving, with its hairpins rarely requiring the use of a handbrake. Although…

3) Valstagna

Valstagna is another real-world inspired stage, this time created by Italian modder RALLY Guru. Valstagna is part of Rally Città di Bassano in Italy and is a hairpin fan’s dream, featuring a winding ribbon of asphalt that climbs to an elevation of 921m.

It’s a long stage too, with your first attempt likely lasting over 10 minutes, but the journey is incredible. There are a few blind corners and sheer cliff edges, but the average speed is so low they shouldn’t present a challenge. It’s not as if rally cars often have issues like this… (cut to Roman Kresta’s Skoda Octavia hanging off a cliff, Ott Tanak firing off a hill and Tomas Kasperczyk dunting the barriers)

It can be difficult to learn such a long route but when you begin to piece each section together, it begins to click, with perfectly executed handbrake turns on Valstagna’s many switchbacks providing an unrivalled sensation of accomplishment.

If you make it through the bulk of Valstagna’s challenging twists and turns you’ll be treated to a fast section of road at its pinnacle, where you realise that the reverse version of the stage is a far more daunting prospect…

Impressively, RALLY Guru has also created a gravel version of Valstagna for some Pikes Peak-style vibes, with a historically accurate version (1974-1980) also available. Just watch out for the sheer drops…

2) Biskupice 2004

Biskupice is another real-world stage that has featured on Barum Czech Rally Zlín. Created by Martin Bujáček, Lorenzo Clerici, Silvio Kuhm and Jan Kadeřábek, Biskupice is based on the 2004 version of the stage, which, as you can see from the videos below, is bang-on.

Its accuracy can be attributed to the use of laser-scan data, with the authors creating an environment with superbly detailed textures and shaders that evoke the feeling of driving on broken asphalt typical of a single-track country road.

Its 7.59 Km expanse features long straights, tricky hairpins and some confidence-sapping blind corners, with its tree-lined sections requiring extra caution thanks to realistic damp patches.

Biskupice set a new benchmark for RBR stages when it first broke cover in 2021, something other modders have been keen to match since.

1) Gabiria-Legazpi 

Gabiria – Legazpi, a co-production between Come Over Gaming and the JLStages modding team, is also based on a real-world 2004 stage, this time situated in the Basque region of Spain.

Featuring extensive input by Jan Kadeřábek and Lorenzo Clerici, who also spearheaded the implementation of FMOD audio into RBR, Gabiria-Legazpi built on the visual excellence of Biskupice and is perhaps the most detailed-looking stage available today.

It has subsequently received a port to Assetto Corsa, which emphasises the tremendous job the original creators did, as there isn’t a massive gulf in quality compared to RBR.

The stage itself is classic Rally Catalunya fare, featuring huge cuts and pollution-filled sections that require a bit of caution. If you want to take fantastic screenshots in RBR, this is the stage to do it on, it really is the pinnacle of RBR’s asphalt stage selection.

Honourable mentions

There is a stack of other RBR stages out there that nearly made this list. 

In terms of stages that haven’t reached their potential, JLStages’ Zlín SS1 superspecial test is still a work in progress, with hopes high it will eventually join the likes of Biskupice and Gabiria-Legazpi as a five-star RBR addition. Even without some graphical fettling it looks incredible and impressively captures the essence of Zlín’s real-world streets.

Baran Tracks’ other efforts, including Zagórze Lubachów, Woliborz Jodlownik and Witoszow Zloty Lax, also match the quality of Rościszów Walim and are well worth trying out.

Then there are the likes of Komarov and Helfstyn that also deserve a special mention, as well as several others. Make sure to let us know which Richard Burns Rally asphalt stages are your favourites in the comments below!