Codemasters revving up DiRT 2

How many cars does it take to field a race? If the rate at which Codemasters is stocking up on racing games serves as any indication, the British publisher is looking to find out. In addition to subsuming Sega's castaway Racing Studio, Codemasters has this year alone snagged the rights to the F1 license as well as those for Asobo Studios' postapocalyptic off-roader Fuel.

And just because Codemasters is loading up on new racing properties, it doesn't mean the gamemaker is looking to move beyond its core DiRT and GRID franchises. Having taken 2008 off, Codemasters' DiRT franchise will return for another round of rally racing in 2009, the publisher announced today. The game will be available for the Xbox 360, PlayStation 3, and PC, with "further editions" also being released on the Wii, Nintendo DS, and PSP.

Formerly known as Colin McRae Rally, the franchise picked up its new branding beginning with 2007's installment. (The name was changed prior to McRae's tragic death later that year.) Along with today's announcement, Codemasters offered a quick look under the hood of its new racer, promising DiRT 2 would benefit from a tuned car-handling physics system as well as new engine damage effects. DiRT 2 has also receive a fresh coat of paint, with the publisher claiming cars and tracks boast twice as much detail as those seen in last year's GRID.

Vehicles, of course, are the main attraction in most any racing game, and DiRT 2 will feature rides from seven different classes. Codemasters notes that the opening class in DiRT 2 will be the Group N Subaru, which was the top-line option from the original game.