DiRT 3
Also known as one of the finest racing game trailers ever made. DiRT 3 was the next step in a racing series I absolutely adored. Unfortunately Codemasters took a step in a direction somewhat away from what made the first two games so fantastic. At the same time though, they did try to change the game up a bit in an attempt to make it fresh and not just recycle the same rally franchise. Even if that's all I really wanted to see.
Dirt 3 needed a new face. And whereas the previous games were actually extensions of the existing Colin McRae Rally series, after his death between the release of Dirt 1 and 2 it seemed like Codemasters needed to switch focus. I'm not sure why exactly, but the jump from a Scottish WRC champion to an American showoff seems odd to me. Maybe they just couldn't get Sebastien Loeb on board, or maybe the growing popularity of the American Gymkhana just made X-Games champs Travis Pastrana and Ken Block more obvious choices. (Ken Block's 43 Ford Fiesta flagshipping the game, as seen above.)
This also explains the big focus on Gymkhana over some of the other rally disciplines in Dirt 3. Gymkhana being the rally sport, or more a drifting sport really where the driver 'shows off' in an arena; earning points for style like some kind of tarmac-ballet. In concept I was really excited for this, but in play I found it got frustrating and boring quickly. And unfortunately it just took away from the other elements of the Dirt racing series that I was so fond of. On the upside, Dirt 3 has once again topped it's predecessors graphically and in game engine performance overall. It was still more rally and some fantastic cars that are a blast to drive in easily my favorite rally racing series of all time.
Truth is I still need to go back and give DiRT 3 some more time. I got stuck during a lot of the Gymkhana sections and it really turned me off playing the rest of the game. I still prefer the choices of disciplines from the previous two games, but sitting down and playing any Dirt game is like putting on a well-worn hat; it just feels right and I can jump into these games at anytime and it comes back to me like anything else I do naturally.
Dirt 3 needed a new face. And whereas the previous games were actually extensions of the existing Colin McRae Rally series, after his death between the release of Dirt 1 and 2 it seemed like Codemasters needed to switch focus. I'm not sure why exactly, but the jump from a Scottish WRC champion to an American showoff seems odd to me. Maybe they just couldn't get Sebastien Loeb on board, or maybe the growing popularity of the American Gymkhana just made X-Games champs Travis Pastrana and Ken Block more obvious choices. (Ken Block's 43 Ford Fiesta flagshipping the game, as seen above.)
This also explains the big focus on Gymkhana over some of the other rally disciplines in Dirt 3. Gymkhana being the rally sport, or more a drifting sport really where the driver 'shows off' in an arena; earning points for style like some kind of tarmac-ballet. In concept I was really excited for this, but in play I found it got frustrating and boring quickly. And unfortunately it just took away from the other elements of the Dirt racing series that I was so fond of. On the upside, Dirt 3 has once again topped it's predecessors graphically and in game engine performance overall. It was still more rally and some fantastic cars that are a blast to drive in easily my favorite rally racing series of all time.
Truth is I still need to go back and give DiRT 3 some more time. I got stuck during a lot of the Gymkhana sections and it really turned me off playing the rest of the game. I still prefer the choices of disciplines from the previous two games, but sitting down and playing any Dirt game is like putting on a well-worn hat; it just feels right and I can jump into these games at anytime and it comes back to me like anything else I do naturally.
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