Colin McRae: DiRT

Paul gets dirty

Whenever a franchise cuts loose from its original moorings and changes its name, a little skepticism is always justified. For years Colin McRae stood Codemasters in good stead, but what would have been Colin McRae 6 or possibly even Colin McRae 2007 is now DiRT. To make matters worse, there is that annoying lowercase I shoved into the name (and now I've started it I suppose I should carry on throughout). Now, a game is a lot more than its name, and it is understandable that Codemasters would seek out a name that was friendlier to worldwide audiences who may not be as familiar with our sadly departed Scottish rally driving hero. DiRT is the series first outing on the new consoles, so as well as its new name it has plenty of expectation to live up to.

The first thing that strikes you about DiRT is that there has been a substantial widening of the racing material it looks to imbibe. Whereas previously things were strictly paired down to the classic rally off-road formula, here we find a greater selection of races, courses and vehicles. The sheer volume on offer is enough to make a casual racer balk, but for those of us that are energised by those sublime petrol fumes this is all wind in the sails.

Before we get into the nuts and bolts of the game, we need to make blatantly clear that this is an absolute stunner of a game looks wise. The game engine provides a believable game world that not only looks great but also exhibits some of the best damage modeling we have seen to date. At times it is tempting to run into the nearest solid object just to watch the cars slowly fall apart. This is then complemented by varied interesting environments that manage to avoid the generated feel of so many franchised racing games. These tracks and courses all do their best to stick themselves to the car, so that by the end of a race you are literally splattered with all sorts of debris.

Most impressively, given all this hard work done by the game, is that the developers manage to provide perhaps one of the smoothest experiences on the PS3 so far. Whilst other developers have complained over the amount of investment needed to get even a reasonable frame-rate, Codemasters seem to have mastered the beast. Whilst generally on a par with the other versions, there are certainly times when the PS3 game seems to stick a lot closer to its 30 frames per second than either PC or 360.

We could go on talking about the rest of the game's superb presentation, but you probably get the idea by now. It's hot looking. Maybe it is because the graphics are so good that the audio doesn't seem to quite deliver. The various engine and track sounds rarely add anything substantial to the experience. This is a real shame as other games have shown how essential good, accurate car sounds can complete the driving experience. In our play we often failed to notice tell tale audio cues that should have had us changing gear or easing off as our tyres lost traction around a corner. That is not to say the sound is poor by any means, it just doesn't quite keep pace with the rest of the package.

This is all well and good, but now we really need to move on and talk about the driving. This after all, is what the game purports to be all about. Whatever your driving discipline of choice you should find something here to tickle your fancy. Rally, rally cross, hill climb, crossover, rally raid and CORR modes provide an impressive array of options. Each of the different race types are well introduced both with instructions and some more sedate early levels. Once you have the hang of each mode though, the game doesn't waste any time before it turns up the difficulty. This provides more of a challenging field of opponents and starts to take away some of the driver aids. Before too long a slight touch on a hording will send you flying and write-off your car for the remainder of the race.

In terms of where DiRT fits in with the cohort of up and coming racing games, it is certainly more towards the arcade aesthetics of the likes of Sega Rally. This maintains more of a soft contact between car and track compared to the hard and fast simulation of games like Gran Turismo. The action retains a somewhat cartoony feel throughout, which although no bad thing, does jar a little with the ultra realistic damage modeling.

Overall the driving is a success and provides an experience that is both fun and quick to pick up. Longer sessions also reveal that there is a fare amount of depth here as well. Shaving seconds off lap times certainly brings you back for just one more go, right into the early hours. The only downside that has to be addressed is that all the action is essentially man against track. None of the race modes pit you against other real life drivers head to head. You are always simply trying to get the fastest lap time. Although this sounds odd, it does of course fit with the rally genre, and there is a comprehensive career mode that provides enough structure to distract from this shortcoming.

Overall, this title has bucket loads of quality and a game structure that should keep you happily driving for many hours. It is a shame that multiplayer didn't make it in somewhere (even in online, it's all time trials). The impressive parts of the game easily manage to outshine any failings. This is a franchise we expect to mature with age, so if you are not a real petrol head perhaps you should wait a year. If you are into your combustion engine powered automobiles though, you really shouldn't miss this one.

79%

By Paul Govan