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DiRT Rally is the latest in the DiRT racing game series by the local developer Codemasters. The game is not like other racers out there which tend to be more arcade-like, it has it has both feet set in the realism of Rally racing. Personally, I’m not a big fan of racing games outside of Ridge Racer or Mario Kart, so how did I find this racing game which was far outside my comfort zone?
Game options: The game has no exhibition mode but you can create a custom event which works just as well. It also has several options under championship and create your own championship which include: Rally, Hillclimb and Rallycross. Word to the wise though – you do need certain cars to compete in Hillclimb or Rallycross, but you can play PVP events or play online for those courses you have access to.
You also have access to a garage where you can buy new cars if you have the credits available or change the colour of your current chosen vehicle. There are 25 cars to choose from including the famous fan favourite Subaru, which costs a lot. Credits are earned by participating in rally championships which provides a good incentive to motivate the player to keep playing.
There are 5 real world Rally maps which are in the locations of: Baumholder in Germany, Pikes Peak in the USA, Monte Carlo in Monaco, Powys in Wales and Argolis in Greece. Each area offers 4 tracks- and as much as I would usually think there is always room for more content this seems adequate for this type of game.
Gameplay: The game can be played with manual or automatic transmission depending on which you are more comfortable with. As a novice to the more serious, realistic racer, I chose automatic and I’m glad I did too! The rally circuits are based on real world rally maps and it shows with the amount of twists and turns on the off road track. You also have a co-pilot giving advice on upcoming turns, which keeps its grounds in realism, this is very helpful, especially if you know the lingo.
The gameplay is fun and very, very challenging! The way to improve your skillset is practice through play, which you especially need to do if you wish to earn those credits for cars with better speed and handling. Be pre-warned, however, that it is best to take care of your car in each track or you will find yourself needing to repair it, with repairs so marginal, in effect it’s like popping a plaster on a wound 10 times its size!
Another one to be careful of, when playing, is not to go off track or hit any spectators as you will be faced with a time penalty which will affect your placing on the leaderboard of each championship, which will in turn effect the amount of credits you win at the end.
Go to page 2 for more thoughts on the game plus conclusions.
Retro game fan, comic book reader, board game lover and film fanatic. I have loved videogames since I was 5 years old after visiting my first arcade, I have grown up with gaming since having my Atari 2600 then Commodore 64. I ended up building my own career crafting pixelised characters and have had the pleasure of meeting many of my retro gaming heroes who developed some of my absolute favourite games.