For the Love of Mud
DiRT 2 does its predecessor one better in every single way, and establishes the series as one of the breakout next-gen racers.
Published: October 6, 2009
It's not absolutely perfect, of course; there's a bit of tearing to contend with, and the framerate can bog down in more heated clusters of cars, but for the most part it's all pulled off with aplomb. Hell, even the loading screens are done well, seamlessly pulling into and out of pictures that are scattered across a map showing where you're currently staying. It's all damned impressive, and I'm floored at just how self-assured it all is. If you're looking for an example of how HD does more than just add better textures, there's nothing more gripping than seeing just the transitions around the various aspects of DiRT 2's menu system.
The audio, too, is absolutely fantastic, though most of the kudos go to the team that worked on the sound effects for the car. Different types of terrain sound fantastic and are modeled differently depending on whether you're in a car our outside it; driving into a tunnel amps up the reverb; the engines are throaty and belch power when they should and sound perfectly tuned where appropriate. One of the biggest reasons why the Trailblazer events give you the sense that you're tearing ass across a flat-out stretch of land is hearing the turbo whine kick in as you really start to bury the needle. Hearing things like clutch pop and shifters locking in and tires squealing and engines fighting grip all add to a heady, raucous kind of aural experience that absolutely, positively needs a good sound system and speakers for. If you aren't hearing this game in at least 5.1 (especially with the great separation among channels), then you aren't really hearing it, and you're robbing yourself of a major part of the experience.
That said, the inclusion of the option to have all the other pro racers that you'll eventually befriend say your name ends up backfiring rather early on. They say your name constantly -- nearly every single tap or pass or overtake or race won is commented on with your name specifically by another driver. At first, it's cute and actually rather engaging. After you've heard the same comment for the 100th time (no, that's not an exaggeration), you'll come to hate the fact that your name was injected so obviously into the pro drivers' scripts. Still, I can appreciate that they took the time to record so many names. Just wish they weren't spat out so many times you'll come to hate yours by the time you've finished the career mode.
Ah, but single-player isn't the only part of the equation. Codies' went nuts with the online part of things too, allowing you to do the normal race-for-points and rank-up stuff that we've come to expect from other racers, but you can also track stats for online races, befriend other players and party up with friends and stay with them between different races, The races I ran were damn near flawless, and kept up the sense of speed perfectly. It really is the last little missing part of the game that needed shoring up, and Codemasters did it admirably, giving you something to break up the near-tedium of a hundred offline races with some progression and play with friends online.
DiRT 2 is one of the best racing experiences of the year. Hell, it might actually be the best racer of the year. It's certainly mine, and while I can fully understand that some might not dig the decidedly arcade bent that the Colin McRae (RIP) series has taken, the sheer amount of variety and longevity that you're given for your sixty bucks is flat-out fantastic. Combine that with a ridiculous sense of speed, some wonderful variety to the race and vehicle types and the single most impressive menus I've ever seen in a game and you'll understand why it'll take just those first 15 minutes to fall in love. Trust me.
