DiRT 2: now with new extra dirt

Generous demo is out now with two sample tracks which can be played online or off. Looks and feels slightly better than original DiRT, maybe?
Real online play seems like it will add a lot, thank God. Menu system is extremly slick - though option to replace pop punk soundblast would be nice.

The full game is being released September 8th in North America and September 11th in the UK, officially kicking off the fall season of too many racing games & decisions, decisions.

god can't wait for this, loved the first one but it was a very old release and was showing it's age already when Grid came out which improved on a lot of things.

At least it should be better than the rather lacking Fuel, and annoying Pacific Rift.

Picked this up tonight and so far I'm loving it (have only finished a few races though). Grid fans will be pleased to know the rewind feature has returned. Graphics seem improved & control (with the MS wheel) seems excellent (which is a surprise) and really fun. Wish all these racing games were a little more spaced out though!

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=JSbfRfesG2A

Played another half dozen or so tracks and events, and I'm liking the variety a lot.

My one real complaint so far is that, like Grid, the game makes you input a name and calls you it throughout the menus and before, during and after races, so I'm getting "Hey Jeff" sometimes three times in four sentences. A bit overboard with the fake personalization.

One thing I really appreciate about the games is the dynamic difficulty. No more grinding through easy levels to get to a challenge. Right away I set it to "serious" (i.e. medium, I think) and I'm getting a real nice race out of it. Not getting blown away, but not winning much yet either. Feels like the game will last, and I've yet to touch online.

haha i loved the 'hello steven' on Grid.

nice one though Jeff, should be getting this tomorrow if the post people get it right.

but what's with the unskippable vid clips and bollocks chatter? !

yeah - sometimes it feels like you spend more time in the menus than in the races

i'm struggling with this so far, lol have to put it on easy just so i can at least win some cash. I'm gradually increasing the difficulty as I go.

there's lots here though, even if some of it is just silly add ons like winning new dashboard toys and horn sounds. Seems to be an endless amount of competitions to enter as well.

control of the cars seems a bit too slippy, and sometimes I feel the connection between road and tyres is a little lost. This isn't a problem with in-car view of course.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=z3obxPwn6QE

haha 1:57

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I've been playing this game a lot again this last week. Even though I had to shrink down my screenshots to post them on ILX, I think you can still see how fucking amazing the graphics are (PC version). It's not just the graphics that are amazing though (best looking racing game ever?), but I really love the feel of the racing, the different car classes (especially the buggys), the long rally tracks and small stadium events & the online set-up. Such a fun game!

sounds good; might see if I can pick it up cheap

did you buy either split/second or blur? and are you picking up joe danger?

I got the PC version for $10 US, thanks to a steam sale. When split/second or blur hit that price, I might pick them up too. I enjoyed the blur demo, but not for $60.

right there with you :)

wowee, dirt 3 really is something else. i recall thinking dirt 2 was beautiful but i found the presentation fairly obnoxious tbh - this is much simpler, clean menus compared to that caravan thing they had going on with the last one. the weather effects and night driving is all great, plus i am letting my rally nerd flag fly with all the classic old cars. really it's all down to the handling though, still got that mcrae chuckability about it without getting ridiculous.

the class with the pikes peak hillclimb specials is so warp-speed fast - and with no pacenotes - that it's verging on the unplayable. so satisfying when you do it right though.

ok so this new DIRT w/ the demolition derby vibe might be 10 tons of awesome for me. demo is pretty straightforward, but sells it pretty well.

before i got and look this up elsewhere, i just want to say how awesome this sounds

actually i remember in GRiD the stock car level, i really enjoyed that.

Wish all these racing games were a little more spaced out though

Interesting - got me thinking what the racing equivalent to horseback riding in RDR could be. Would there be any way to make a leisure driving game not boring?

GTA?

alternatively, http://www.somegamereviews.com/2010/03/uk-truck-simulator-pc/

burnout paradise
fuel
nfs underground 2

and isn't the new Ridge Racer conforming to the 'roam around driving' formula now?

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=W73RG6d6B7Y

Just got round to D3 after finally completing D2 (that I've had on a shelf for yonks). I started it on Level Noob and was like "WTF THIS IS SHIT!" as it was controlling my braking and throttle for me o_O. On intermediate now and it's much better - feels once again like a McCrae game, good meaty steering and rewarding feedback on the powerslides.

These two unskippable fuckers talking me through every menu option is killing me. Just take me to the next fucking race!

Not sure about getting Dirt Showdown - I never really got on with demolition derbies.

awaiting console release of dirt rally very eagerly - looks so dead-on. the welsh stages look terrifying!