Codemasters is back with DiRT 2, the seventh iteration in the Colin McRae franchise. After a successfully launching the series on the Xbox 360 with the original DiRT, Codemasters are crossing their fingers that they strike gold twice with their rally racing series. Could DiRT 2 continue their run of triumph on the Microsoft console or will it stall at the starting line? The final result of DiRT 2 is a beautiful racing title that pits gamers in a variety of lush environments all across the globe. From Japan to Morocco, the Career Mode is extravagant and keeps players behind the wheel in remarkably entertaining races. Players will start out a level one and work their way up to earn new liveries, new races, horns, cash to buy new cars, new dashboard materials and much more. Providing an excellent menu design that gives players the chance to walk in and around their RV, DiRT 2 has one of the most inviting career modes on the Xbox 360. Within the RV itself, players are able to jump into multiplayer matches, go to the options and extras menu, and drive their career race.
Once players step out of their RV, they are eligible to buy new cars and customize their current car while tourists walk around a ringed area that helps put forth a realistic approach to the career mode. Starting out as a rookie, each race the player wins rewards experience, money and unlockables such as the liveries I mentioned earlier. By performing in-game missions/tasks, players will earn extra experience points to further their career along to make new professional friends, receive an invitation to the X Games (Level 8 for the first invite) and a whole bunch more that keeps gamers coming back. Starting out at the Amateur events, players won’t begin with too many cars to race with, but after a few races, they should have enough money to buy their second car. Before they know it, they’ll have a whole set of cars to choose from and kits to apply to them for each discipline. In addition, there are six difficulty levels that alter how many flashbacks (the ability to rewind from a crash or screw-up) and how much money is won from each race.
The moment that I realized DiRT 2 was a special game that should be cherished by all racing fans was when the first Morocco location was unlocked and I was able to race through the gorgeous terrain that has small DiRT paths, tiny villages, and astounding foliage. The visuals are at the top of the list of reasons to play through DiRT 2. There’s damage to the car models, destructible environments, and, oh yeah, great looking cars! All around, DiRT 2 is magnificent to see in motion. There are other racing types provided in the game besides the usual Rally variances. Trailblazer has players riding solo without a co-driver (which are another unlockable asset in career mode). There’s the Gate Crasher game type pits players in a mode where they must, for the lack of better terms, crash through gates (or as like I to call them, small signs) to add more time to finish the selected race. The Raid event allows players to drive trucks through death-defying obstacles and Land Rush is an off-road gametype.
One gameplay addition to DiRT 2 that takes it to the next level is the incorporation of a rewind feature called Flashback. Players can use the rewind feature to view the last few seconds throughout the race and perform adjustments such as perfecting a corner or correcting a mistake that caused a crash. At first, I avoided using the Flashback since I wanted to be a “professional” and try to finish the races without the “cheating”, but before too long – especially in the races later on in the career – Flashback became a godsend. Players have the option to decide how many Flashback opportunities they want by way of the difficulty level (five with Easy, Normal with four, etc.). DiRT 2 is honestly one of the year’s best surprises in the sense that it surpasses expectations. The multiplayer this time around is improved by leaps and bounds since it now supports up to eight players competing to cross the finish line. Even for gamers who don’t appreciate the racing genre, there’s a lot of fun to be had in DiRT 2.
