WRC 3 is the official rally game of the 2012 FIA World Rally Championship featuring licensed cars, tracks and drivers. The game consists of three major modes: WRC Experience, Road to Glory and Multiplayer.
In WRC experience mode, the player can choose to race a single stage, participate in a single rally or try their hand in the championship. In championship mode, the player can choose a car from one of three categories (WRC, Class 2 or Class 3), then select a driving crew to control from a roster of real-life teams. The player can also configure their championship which can consist of up to 13 rally events set in different countries with varied climate conditions and road types.
Road to Glory is the career mode where seven drivers from around the globe are chosen to participate in an ultimate competition to decide who will become the next rally rising star. The player is one of these drivers, and they need to beat the others in their respective countries (grouped into 7 geographical areas) and then ultimately face the real rally pilots in a series of super-special stages.
Aside from classic rally events, there are contests to test the player's skill such as drifting, gate contest, rally school, survival contest and top rally contest. Each geographical area in Road to Glory mode comprises two countries with unique rally events:
American area: Mexico and Argentina;
Anglo-Saxon Area: Great Britain (Wales) and Germany;
Scandinavian area: Finland and Sweden;
French area: Monte-Carlo and France;
Mediterranean area: Italy and Greece;
Pacific area: New Zealand.
To track the player's progress, Road to Glory mode uses reputation points (represented as stars) which can be obtained by showing good results in rally events and contests or by pleasing the crowd. These points are used to unlock new events, cars and upgrades. Cars available in Road to Glory mode are in several categories: WRC, Class 2, Class 3, 2000's, 90's, 80's, 70's, 2WD Pro and 2WD Rookie.
The cars can be upgraded, re-painted and modified. Fine tuning is available before each race, although there's also an option to tune the car automatically. If participating in rally events, the car may be repaired between special stages within a 60 minutes time limit.