DIRT 2 Review

The Colin McRae series -- until a few years ago dubbed 'DiRT' -- has always been safe bet if you're out for a decent racer. One of its chief features that helped set the series apart from countless other games in the genre, was Codemasters' incredible knack for making a truly realistic driving sim. For as long as I can remember, the developers managed to bring forth a convincing rally simulation. DiRT made made a bit of a design detour and took the series slightly towards the arcade racing genre. Mind you, it did maintain a suitable degree of realism, staying true to the formula. More importantly, it introduced competitive racing with multiple cars on the same track as a refreshing gameplay element for the long-running series. The sequel to DiRT has been in development for a long time, with Codemasters promising a whole range of new stuff, on top of major multiplayer improvements and serious visual step-ups.

It gets easier than this.

Shiiiit, mustn't... harm... squirrel!

Speaking as an experienced CMR player, the first sight of DiRT 2 and the initial races didn't quite live up to expectations. The interface received a complete makeover as have all the events, races and challenges. The new-fangled teenage-flavored spirit of the game, as well as the new soundtrack, leans towards younger gaming audiences, which, quite frankly, pisses me off a bit, but what can you do, right? It's all an attempt to appeal to a new generation of gamers, so I guess it's justified. However, that's not my main beef with DiRT 2. What really bugged me was playing for one week straight and I kept returning to the same tracks that were on offer at the beginning of the game. When progressing in the first DiRT game's Career Mode, players unlock an amazing variety of new tracks. That's essentially one of the most appealing aspects of the original DiRT (for this gamer, anyway). What's more, the number of vehicles has also been reduced somewhat, which, again, may not please CMR enthusiasts.

This time around, the focus remains on the events, challenges and multiplayer, all of which are engaging and extremely fun to take part in. The developers really went to great lengths to make the tracks work with all the events you'll be going through. So, yeah, while we're talking about a reduced number of tracks (when compared to the previous game), it's still great to see that they've made the most out of each one. Each event provides a unique challenge and represents the ultimate test for your driving skills, particularly if you have the guts to yank the difficulty all the way up to 'Extreme' or 'Hardcode.' You'll notice that the physics are still realistic, so each win requires attentive drivers. In addition, customization is detailed, allowing gamers to adjust suspension, downforce, brakes, gearing and more. Still, it may not be appropriate for hardcore racers. This is another aspect the devs. wanted to acclimatize for casual gamers. No arguments there.

Teaming up with other drivers (player or CPU-controlled) is an interesting addition to the gameplay. It makes racing a bit more dynamic than before. For that reason, I'd sooner recommend you play this one in multiplayer. Otherwise you may not get the full effect if you stick with the Career Mode. The previous game made if possible for 100 people to take part in online racing. The major bummer was that you couldn't compete with others on the same track. Now, each event in the game can be experienced online against or with up to seven other players. Getting into the races this way, literarily changes the overall appeal of DiRT 2, making it one of the most enjoyable driving games I've played in a long, long time.

I'm winning... no I'm not.

No squirrels were harmed during this race.

The visuals are nothing short of breathtaking. Simply put, there isn't a driving game currently on the market that looks better than DiRT 2 (save perhaps Gran Turismo 5 Prologue - or so they say). The developers clearly spent a lot of time polishing the tracks and car models until they were brought to perfection. Every little detail in the background was created with care, from the mud-covered tracks and flying mosquitoes in Malaysia, to the desert region in Utah. The quality of the audio is not far behind either and they brought back the Scottish co-driver, which is a nice moment for me.

DiRT 2 marks Codemasters' attempt to create an in-depth multiplayer-oriented racing game. Their work paid off and I think this may have actually prolonged the life of the series and introduced it to a wider audience. However, if you consider yourself a devotee of the traditional CMR series that strongly focuses on rally events and solo play, you may not enjoy this one too much.

Again, I say this as someone who's been playing the Colin McRae games ever since the first one came out; DiRT 2 is still a great racing game. While it doesn't deliver the kind of comprehensive single-player like in earlier CMR titles, it certainly stands on its own and adds many welcomed elements to the license (hence the higher mark).