A roller-coaster ride of heated action and excitement, Dirt 2 firmly sets the standard for offroad racing games.
(-) no in-game soundtrack music / sometimes one-strike-you're-out online modes / like most offroad racing games the handling has a small learning curve
Racing your own custom path across the boondocks can possibly be the most thrilling event of one's life. It's hard to describe the overwhelming feeling of joy and excitement as you watch the speeds distort your vision into a mere blur, but with suppressed caution because you'll never know what's coming ahead if you give in to the clutches of your speed. You want that first place trophy so bad you can taste it, you've fought your way through the turns and corners through every fellow racer in the pack, and you believe it will be a clear finish. But still, you can't hide your uncertainty, but that doesn't stop you from being confident. You think you're the best, and you've set an example of who the other racers should look up to. And you're pondering how you're going to spend the prize money when it's all said and done. But out of nowhere, the balance of your Mitsubishi Lancer Evolution X, then you panic as the car tumbles in a roll, then crashes across a balcony while your other racers make you the but of their joke.
Being a professional offroad racer isn't easy, but its a mighty awarding experience. But instead of risking your life in a radical but humiliating tumble down that you could gloat about the rest of your life, a very acceptable alternative to the rush of the sport is here in Dirt 2. Everything from the game's incredible presentation, sharp controls, cutting edge graphics, and longevity scream a game that's unrivaled in its class, and if the thought of racing through a jungle or desert has ever struck your fancy, even for a minute, then put those fantasies to life with this great game.
Even before you enter your first race, you're probably going to be wowed by the game's unique way of presenting itself. Even while you're doing something as simple as checking through the menus, as you look at your alternatives, you realize that you're looking in first person view through someone sitting in a trailer. Looking at the table and a map of the entire world can be found, which is actually where you select your events. Then you step outside, look at all the nameless people shooting the breeze with each other, seeing a ticket stand where you go to purchase new cars, or maybe adjust your in-game view by moving over to where your car's sitting. The game has a great sense of style, and even the mundane tasks of sitting through loading times can be forgiven when you watch a number brim with color and explode once you've gained a ranking from your experience points, and countless other small touches that add up overtime to make Dirt 2 one great presentation.
And that level of focus extends to the heart of the game. You'll be a participant in this festival, making a name of yourself and earning the respect of other racers as you tour from country to country, like Asia, Europe, Africa, and North America. The career mode is very fleshed out and lengthy, hitting you with a seamlessly endless amount of new events every time you complete one, so completionists are going to marvel over what Dirt 2 has to offer. In one minute, you'll be in a standard race of eight, fighting through rugged terrain and smooth pavement alike to reach the finish line first. Then you'll take on some very different challenges, like racing through a point-to-point trail in trail blazers, where you're encouraged to disregard direct competition and focus on smoothly driving through some very challenging tracks, with the aid of someone giving you detailed instructions on where to turn or how to drive like a GPS system. Or maybe you're playing one of the special modes on offer like Gatecrashers, which is essentially a time trial which crashing on gates scattered on the track will add to your time limit.
You'll earn experience the more you complete events, even higher as you raise the difficulty, and you'll be filled to the rim with awards for your troubles, like many amusing but unnecessary toys, a ton of liveries, a cash bonus, and occasionally an additional car for your use. If you impress some other racers, they might become friends with you, therefore adding to your quest of popularity, and if you continue to impress them even further out, you'll be legend status. Add some occasional one-on-one challenges by other racers and a constant spew of brand new events, countries to unlock, and even intense tours of racing cups that circulate all over the world, you get a great sense of progression every time you race, without feeling overly complicated and lost in the midsts of it all. This makes the career mode for Dirt 2 practically a nicotine addiction, given you're constantly rewarded for your winnings and the racing is always fun and exciting, regardless of how many hours you've already been occupied for.
But while things certainly get better as you play, like many games of this type, things never seem to start strong right away, especially for those who've never played an offroad racing game, or those who are more used to the arcade racers. The vehicles do tend to feel a tad bit floaty at times, and the tracks do demand a minimum amount of experience before you can race them without slipping and crashing all over the place. But for those who are resistant and don't give up right away, the vehicles control exactly like they're supposed to. It's incredibly easy to cycle between acceleration and breaking when they're both assigned to the back triggers, and as you learn to shift the weight of your vehicles especially after the occasional jump, you'll become a pro before you know it. And because the action is so addicting, you'll aspire to get better, perfect your times on the tracks and be the very best racer you can be, beating the odds of the mocking other drivers and maybe even try to hone your skills online.
But the occasional crash will still happen, which it can be comical to watch a car tumble around and around across the road, and wrecking your ride does feel appropriately major, but unlike most racers, there's an actual damage meter in Dirt 2. You can slightly damage your tire, therefore, you'll feel a very meager but noticeable tug to the side as you clearly try to drive straight. Your car can usually take quite a bit of punishment before it becomes unusable, the rims will fall off, ledges may collapse, the front or back hood will collapse making a great demonstration of the hell you put your car through. But if you total your car by falling down a canyon or crashing full speed onto a way, then you're done for. For some reason, the game provides a flash-back feature that's supposed to allow you rewind time and give you a second chance to amend the mistake, but there's a very steep limit and it's often not enough to fully lose excess speed and keep you from harm's way. This means you'll often need to repeat races to win certain events, which can be frustrating at times, but the game is challenging but every bit as fair, so if you devote perseverance then you'll make your mark on the track.
Racing through different countries gives each track a distinct feel, though the basic turning and cornering designs rarely change. But the tracks are still very good, and there's plenty of different ones to race on and enjoy. Whether your blazing through a fixed circuit track in the city with spectators watching in amazement, or taking a more rural approach and racing off into the wilderness, the track designs are great. Some of them can be occasionally problematic, at times it can be difficult to see a sharp turn immediately after a large jump, and some purists can believe it's immoral for a game that's supposed to be offroad racing but you'll spend much of your time on cement roads, but it all works exceptionally most of the time.
And once you've put in over 10 hours into the career mode and snagged a few trophies along the way, you might try your hand on some online competition, which is a bit of a mixed bag. If you've nailed your practice in the single player festival and feel you've conquered your goals, and once some more intense competition, then you're in luck. The game only offers basic ranked (pro-tour) and unranked (jam session) matches, making some randomization between different race types. An interesting difference between the more restrictive ranked sessions is other players are visibly present but transparent, relieving a problem that can occur when there's too many racers on one single segment of the track at any given time, and can also levitate the obvious annoyance of another player spinning you out. However, the other alternative has solid cars, interestingly when there's really no ranked competition going on. But no matter what online mode you choose, you're going to have an exhilarating and fun experience at times, and maddening and frustrating vents at others. Lag isn't much of a concern, matchmaking is quick and easy, and you have a separate level progression system that has a monumentally high level cap to keep you interested for a long time. The only problem is, when you have a deviant crash in the race, chances are, it's over for you if the majority of the rest don't make the same mistake. You can easily lose by making just one foul move. And though its understandable that the flashback feature was removed and you cannot retry, you only have the option to either give up the race and retire, or try pushing forward despite your dwindling chances of making a decent place. It also doesn't help that most of the average competitors online are those who've seen every nook-and-cranny, received every trophy, and had years and years of practice and just want to throw down everyone they are racing against. But if you can tolerate that, the online mode is a great alternative for lasting entertainment value, but pity that a basic split-screen feature is nowhere to be found.
Dirt 2 is without question an amazing looking game by any standard. The car models look vivid and detailed, they break apart real nicely in wrecks, but the real star of the show are the tracks. Every bit and piece of sharp as a knife in visual clarity, the draw distance is practically infinite, the sense of speed often pushes to an exciting degree, and the look all around is strong. There are some occasional frame rate quips though, but they're never severe enough to make any serious impact. The brief voice samples from the other drivers are pretty forgettable, if only the developers placed a higher priority on the rocking soundtrack. It's dubious for a modern racer not to have in-game music, you can clearly here the attractive licensed punk and rock in the menus, which will fit the bill nicely for the on-screen action, but there isn't even such an option. Not a big problem, but hopefully that gets resolved in the sequel. There's nothing wrong with the engine roars, and the music would have to turn down so you can hear the intercom in the trailblazer events anyway, but still the lack of in-game music is really weird nonetheless.
A roller-coaster ride of heated action and excitement, Dirt 2 firmly sets the standard for offroad racing games. There's simply no better option available if you seek a fix of taking off the city streets and getting dirty in some races against others on the hard rugged ground. The enormous amount of content in the single player adventure, smooth online play, pin-point vehicle handling, and stunning graphics make this an exciting racer that's absolutely worth a place in your PS3 collection if you enjoy some action packed racing.