DiRT: Colin McRae Comes Clean      

December 22nd, 2007

Colin McRae has come up with another winner. DiRT gives you an experience that has enough variety to keep you racing for quite a while. Everything about DiRT looks extremely well thought out ands executed. Where DiRT fails to continue the overall excellence of the McRae line is in the lack of effective multi-player game play. When you are with a few other racers, your options are limited to random assignments of cars and tracks and the time limits are, well, limiting.

With several racing modes (Rally, Crossover, Rallycross, Rally Raid, CORR and Hill Climb) available, you can keep returning to this game for a different look. The cars look fantastic, while exhibiting different handling characteristics, and the racecourses have enough variety to keep them interesting. The real bonus comes from the damages sustained and how they look and affect your choices. Bumpers fly off wildly, tires roll bounce like no tomorrow, and your viability realistically rises and falls with the amount of damage you incur.

The handling is another matter. On the more difficult settings, you will free as if the car is part of the river way at a water theme park, drifting through turns without any feeling of being solidly in touch with the track. Also, there seems to be a problem with the turning focus. With front and rear wheels, turning should feel linear or close to it. The cars turn as if they are stuck on a stick that rotates as a whole, instead of the back wheels following the front.

DiRT is a great looking game that needs a bit of tweaking in the handling and multi-player areas. Keep it up, Colin.

Entry Filed under: Game Reviews