Dirt 3: Complete Edition Review ([FTG] Becky)
Once upon a time, there was a team called Code Masters. They made racing games for the ZX Spectrum. <3
Then they made DiRT 3 and suddenly we were all alienated.
Long story short, DiRT 3 used GFWL and rarely ever worked. It has now been ripped out, this now uses Steamworks, so I get to review it! Yay!
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Okay so now that is out of the way! DiRT 3 is a sequel to, yup, DiRT 1 and 2. but of course these were known as Colin McRae Dirt. Codemasters started out in the 1990's with a license from Colin McRae and Nicky Grist to use them in games and it became such a success they are often regarded as some of the best rally games out there. Whilst not a full on simulation, they are highly regarded amongst fans of the genre and or rallying itself.
DiRT 3 starts off as an okay-ish game. We have our usual arcade handling, our usual graphics for the time and effects, and we have a ton of cars with choosable skins. We also have Ken Blocks Gymkhana. Now that last one is hit or miss with people as is RallyX, but we shall get to that.
The rallying in this game is much more than DiRT 2 and more along the lines of the original CMR games, being a much more integrated part of the game compared to D2, which had a lot of other forms of off road racing. Whilst this is all good, these games are what made Codemasters, and they were started from rallying. Pure, rallying. So cannot help to let the fans moan. I moan too!
The Rally Cross features and Gymkhana, are "okay", but really knock home that this game has been developed in the "simcade" setting (i.e. Arcade/Simulation). But saying that, if you can get a good score in Ken Block's idea of racing, congrats! Because I cannot! :D
The game as a whole is an interesting concept and you can feel that Codemasters wanted to give the long time fans some more rallying but whilst keeping newer and younger fans engaged with the pop culture of Ken Block and Monster Energy. For the latter I can understand as they may be the newer market, however us long time fans are what kept the game afloat so I think we need our place in the game too.
This "Complete Edition", after having been moved from GFWL to Steamworks, because of the wait, all DLC from the GFWL have been included so you do not need to buy them again. Any key you had for it will work, such as if you picked up a physical copy. Also of note, if you own DiRT 3, you own this too so install and enjoy.
As with most racers I recommend a G25/7 for this as it does add a somewhat better feel to the overall game.