*Disclaimer: This review was completed using a Dualshock 4 controller, not a wheel peripheral as this game almost certainly is meant to be played with.*
My first few hours with Dirt: Rally provided the same routine: speed up, slide into a wall, flip my car and then recover, all the while listening to my partner rattle off various driving instructions in a thick accent. After several hours, I needed to set the controller down and walk away. I always have considered myself a pretty good player in the racing game genre, so why was I having such a difficult time with Dirt: Rally? That’s when it hit me: Dirt Rally isn’t meant to be played like other racing simulators. I’m meant to have a sense of uncontrollability and uncertainty going around a track. There are no paved roads in Dirt: Rally, and the ones that are there are in shoddy condition. Players won’t find nice, pristine tracks that their cars can stick to like glue. Instead, you’ll find dirt, ice and plenty of sharp corners. That’s when I realized the most genius part of the game: to go out and have fun. Many racing simulators fall victim to dull and repetitive tracks, and lack a lot of genuine excitement. Once I got confident in my driving skills with whatever car I selected (the Renault A110), I found that taking hairpin corners and knowing exactly when to brake was fun and exciting, even though the majority of my lap times were terrible.
Gameplay
While Dirt: Rally offers plenty to the racing genre, it does seem to fall short on features. There are only three racing modes; Career, Leagues and Custom Events. Within the Career mode, players will be treated to several racing options including Championships, Online Events, PVP events, and Custom Championships. Each of these unique career modes offer players a chance to race to earn credits to build out their garage. Online events are events offered by Codemasters daily, weekly and monthly, and offer plenty of challenge for players to keep coming back to earn more credits. Personally, I found the PVP events to be most enjoyable as I was pitted head to head with other online players in a game of racing wits. The “League” mode allows players to join and create leagues with their friends to view stats and daily events.
But let’s get down to what everyone looks forward to in a racing sim: the actual racing mechanics. Dirt: Rally offers some of the most complex, detailed racing mechanics out there. Players must learn the most basic rally racing techniques such as when to brake and accelerate, to some of the more complex mechanics such as how to take hairpin turns. As I stated in the intro, Dirt: Rally doesn’t want players to approach races in a traditional sense in that you go as fast as you can into a corner and drift. Rather, it trusts players will use their common sense and know that using your brakes is almost certainly necessary. The way one car performs over another is very drastic as well. The Renault A110 (a very basic beginner car) definitely did not perform as well as the Subaru WRX STI in offload races.
Another great feature I found was the addition of a co-pilot either in your car or on the side of a track. These co-pilots will rattle off several instructions as players traverse tracks, and will need to quickly adhere to those instructions to make it through the track in one piece. Of course, players have the opportunity to spend their credits in building a better team and ultimately having a better “Crew Chief”. With leveling up the Crew Chief, players will gain more accurate instructions as they roar through tracks, allowing for a better overall knowledge of what lies ahead of them on the track.
Ultimately, when it comes to gameplay, there isn’t much else I could ask for in Dirt: Rally. It has all the bells and whistles I look for in a racing simulator.
Visuals/Audio
The visuals for Dirt: Rally are pretty good, in different aspects. The car models themselves look fantastic, and the way damage appears on the vehicles is also very dynamic and even plays a role in the gameplay of that vehicle. If your Crew Chief says that you have radiator damage, that more than likely means you’ve sustained a lot of front-end damage, and is reflected on your vehicle. Your Crew Chief say that your back-left tire is punctured? Expect that tire to blow shortly.
The audio of each of the cars is beautiful, and offers an awesome experience when wearing headphones. I’m not sure if Codemasters directly captured unique sounds for each of the vehicles, but each vehicle sounded different. There is also some ambient noise when racing as well, such as the sound of dirt tossing up and grass being torn apart. All of which should be expected in a racing sim.
