by Badger Nimahson
Dirt 5 comes flying to PC and consoles in a few days and by Nimah is this a way to end the PS4 generation! I feel it would be doing Dirt 5 an injustice to call it AAA title. This is without a doubt a legacy title.
Born out of the Colin McRae Rally series that launched in 1998 Dirt 5 is the 14th title in the series and the 8th game in the series to carry the Dirt name. That is a hell of a lot of history and pedigree to live up to, but after playing Dirt 5 I can honestly say Codemasters have absolutely nothing to fear as they have created a possibly the greatest entry in the series with Dirt 5.
Graphics
The first thing to hit you in Dirt 5 is the colours. They are so vibrant and contrasting. just the title screen alone screams energy and fun. In-game graphics are just phenomenal.
From the detail of the cars to the environmental factors of the racecourses everything is sublime. My favourite track by far is the Yulong River in China. It has beautiful forest scenery all along the course that gleams in the light before dropping into shadow. Amazing water effects in the puddles on track with both the reflection on the water as you approach and the giant splashes that pepper your opponents with mud as you drive through the water. The banners fluttering in the wind and along with the light show, traditional archways and coloured smoke as you crest the hill make this an absolute joy of a course to race.
Complimenting this visual feast like a perfectly paired wine is the fantastic soundtrack. With tracks by The Prodigy, Stormzy, The Chemical Brothers, Pearl Jam, Chaka Khan, The Killers and a whole lot more you can’t help but meld into the perfect vibe for the high octane events that Dirt 5 provides.
Game Modes
Now I have got the acoustic and aesthetics of Dirt 5 out of the way lets take a look at the actual content. There is a slew of content inside this masterpiece of a game. The full game features over 70 routes across 10 locations ( complete with seasonal changes) 10 race types and 13 different vehicle classes. As well as Career, Online, Arcade and Playgrounds career modes.
Career Mode
The staple of any racing game and Dirt 5 really goes all out with its career mode. Consisting of a massive roster events that take place over different locations, disciplines and seasons. At the point of writing this review, I could only see 33 of the events on offer in career mode but look forward to seeing exactly how many they are as I dive further into Dirt 5 on Twitch.
Accompanying you as you race towards stardom is the voice acting at regular intervals through out your career. Your rival Bruno Durand (voiced by Nolan North) and your mentor Alex “AJ” Janiček (voiced by Troy Baker) provide instructions to the various components of career mode such as Events, Throwdowns and even offer advice on how to select a sponsor that is right for you!
The DiRT Podcast by Donut Media that plays in between races is brilliant too. At times I have found myself waiting for the podcast to finish rather than jumping straight into the next race. I enjoyed it that much.
The AI in Career mode can be quite brutal but once you escape the pack and break free at the front of the race you often find yourself cruising to victory. It is getting clear that is the issue!
Multiplayer
Dirt 5 offers online multiplayer but due to the game not being released yet I haven’t had the opportunity to try this out for this review. Same goes for the offline 4 players split-screen mode. Due to local covid -19 restrictions, I am afraid I haven’t been able to test this mode out either.
Playgrounds
This is where Dirt 5 Longevity really comes into play. Playgrounds allow you to create your own tracks, events and even smash attacks game modes and share them online.
The editor is really simple to use and create a simple track in no time. Although for someone who lacks even the basic artistic ability I can’t see me sharing any tracks soon but I cant wait for the servers to go live and see what mental creations become available to race.
I can see Playgrounds being the backbone of the Dirt 5 community and I look forward to sharing some of the most insane and crazy tracks and events that I find on Twitch once they become available.
Overall Thoughts
If you have got this far I reckon you have figured out exactly how I feel about Dirt 5. It is simply sublime. Dirt 5 feels like a game that has been crafted rather than developed.
Every single aspect of the game is impressive and melds perfectly with the rest of the game. The graphics, the gameplay, the soundtrack all come together perfectly to create a sublime, high octane, energy-packed racing game.
The Playgrounds mode is going to add a hell of a lot of longevity to Dirt 5. both in terms of creating your own tracks and playing those created by others. I can’t wait to get involved with the community and see what people create.
For a game series that started life on the Playstation 1 twenty-two years Dirt 5 is the perfect way to say goodbye to the Playstation 4 and welcome in the Playstation 5
Overall Score – 10/10
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