DiRT is a bold new direction for the Colin McRae series of racing games from Codemasters. It eschews the hardcore roots and ultra-difficult mechanics of the previous entries and instead reinvents the series as the premiere game for speed freaks who prefer to race off the beaten track. Whether you enjoy the challenge of taking a 900-horsepower Celica up the Pikes Peak International Hill Climb, racing a Super Buggy on the dirt tracks of the Championship Off-Road Racing (CORR) circuit, or spending quality time with your co-driver through the winding trails of the game's numerous rally races, there's something here for everyone who grew up playing in the mud and wouldn't mind a bit of fun in the dirt.

It's Like the Future

Fire up DiRT and you'll see some of the best-looking visuals on the Xbox 360. The cars and tracks all look phenomenal, especially when you consider how each environmental object becomes part of the gameplay thanks to realistic surface physics and damage modeling. There are nine different vehicle systems that can take damage during your races, and each system has a different effect on how your vehicle will handle. For instance, significant body damage will result in increased wind resistance, while tire damage will hobble you and get the car leaning where it shouldn't.



There are 46 cars to eventually purchase and race, including off-road buggies and massive trucks, each customizable with a variety of colorful liveries to buy. Check out the realistic interiors of the cockpit view for each car as well. You'll want to get your windshield to crack with a bump or two, or slam into a wall to make it shatter in order to get the full experience. Then use the replay system to watch it in slow motion and wince a second time.

The user interface deserves special mention. It's a slick work of art reminiscent of the cascading windows features of Windows Vista, and to a lesser extent, the holographic projection screen used in "Minority Report." Not only does the UI put pretty much every game we've seen to shame with its gorgeous moving panels and modern virtuosity, but it's also highly functional thanks to integrated audio help from Travis Pastrana and your in-game co-driver that can guide you through every aspect of the game. Every race type is explained, every course is covered in detail, each car is profiled, even the individual parts of your vehicle are given a few seconds of personal touch via recorded voice. Even if you don't know the first thing about off road racing, DiRT will turn you into a pro in no time.

You Don't Even Need a Driver's Permit

DiRT's accessibility is definitely one of its greatest strengths. The aforementioned help dialogue works wonders, but the game's five difficulty settings are also well-tuned and nicely implemented. You can win your first few races with little to no practice at all on the lower settings, but you'll need to master each course and your car's handling in order to compete at the highest levels. The addition of other game types besides traditional rally racing make this a more appealing package than previous Colin McRae games as well, since events like CORR, Rally Raid and European Rallycross make for exciting multi-car competition when you're not in the mood to challenge the point-to-point rally events. Best of all, you're never really stuck in a tedious, never-ending series of laps. Each event is broken down into bite-sized stages that are easily digestible in short play sessions.