I’m terrified of hurtling down the frozen highways of Finland at triple digit speeds, let alone just driving there at 10 km/hr. But I lose that personality when I open Dirt 3. I’m able to floor the pedal of my ’95 Subaru Impreza WRX STI rally car and just kill the opposition without having the thought of crashing in a burning fireball and losing my life. I’m a different person in Dirt 3. But that’s not because of my driving skills. It’s because of how the game is built. The game is set out over tracks in Finland, Michigan, Norway, LA, Kenya, and Monaco, with Finland being my favorite. Every turn feels like the real thing even if you’re driving on the frozen ice highways of Norway to the slippery, sticky forest trails of Finland.
The driving in Dirt 3 feels tight and just the right dose of responsive. The vehicles respond according to how hard you press the keys. It doesn’t make way for moments when you tap the brake key but instead the brakes just makes your car spin out. Dirt 3 isn’t too easy but it isn’t also that hard. The only thing you have to be careful about is the brakes. Once you have that mastered, you’re practically a god. This is not a game to be taken lightly. In some rally games you can perform well on the ice even if you have gravel tires on your vehicle. This is not one of those games. Every little part of your car has to be tweaked to that teeny tiny little sweet spot. This is the best looking Dirt game to date. Watching splendid sunsets and beautifully crafted snow trails as you blast across the roads and some subtle details like spectators moving away from the road as we come crashing all add to the little things that make this game great. The tracks have also been meticulously crafted. In older rally games, the frontrow of the trees were detailed and the ones in the back looked like trees from Minecraft. But that’s not true for this one. Each tiny detail such as leaves has been beautifully constructed. The development team at Codemasters has really worked their a* off to bring us this beautiful game.
In Dirt 3 a few rough edges here and there tarnish an otherwise awesome game. The superb racing and off roadeyness should never be missed. The tight gameplay, a plethora of tracks and events increase the wow factor of this game. You guys should definitely try this.