MagpieRacer
Premium
- 17,184
- Wymondham, Norfolk
- Seagull_Racer
Usually not in the UK. Sometimes stores have some left over that they just bundle with the standard game but otherwise no.
DiRT Rally Thread
- Thread starter The Stig Farmer
- 2,815 comments
- 236,486 views
Usually not in the UK. Sometimes stores have some left over that they just bundle with the standard game but otherwise no.
- 33,155
- Hammerhead Garage
I'm just looking at my collection and thinking that they should either be all steelbooks ot not steelbooks. I pre-ordered my copy of Dirt Rally, but I don't know if it will be the steelbook edition. If it it, then I would like steelbooks for Metal Gear Solid V: The Phantom Pain and Fallout 4 to go with it.
So how is the game on PS4? Is it as good as they say on the videos with the smoothness and the graphics when playing at home? Is the steel case going to be available on Tuesday in most Sainsbury stores do you know? And what time will it be available from? (You can tell I am itching to get my hands on this game)
P.s Xboxone and PS4? (do you own both consoles?)
MagpieRacer
Premium
- 17,184
- Wymondham, Norfolk
- Seagull_Racer
So how is the game on PS4? Is it as good as they say on the videos with the smoothness and the graphics when playing at home? Is the steel case going to be available on Tuesday in most Sainsbury stores do you know? And what time will it be available from? (You can tell I am itching to get my hands on this game)
P.s Xboxone and PS4? (do you own both consoles?)
I only have it on Xbox one. I plan on doing a write up this afternoon to keep an eye out. I'll tag you when I do it.
- 2,148
- Milan, Italy
- paulpg87
Just a suggention for all you getting the game for the first time on console like me. Go into option, map all the buttons and calibrate the wheel. Button mapping is very important also to change FOV in cockpit view which makes a lot of difference... morever I already think i will need to share with the masterminds here which are the best settings for the wheel. Too much sliders. have a nice sunday. bye.
- 8,239
- United Kingdom
Ooh, DiRT Rally has a TV ad (over here at least).
MagpieRacer
Premium
- 17,184
- Wymondham, Norfolk
- Seagull_Racer
So here is my write up on the Xbox One version from around 3 days hard playing. Still some things I haven't done yet but the bases are mostly covered. I'll go in a category basis and I know a lot of PC players here have had the game a while but I will try and sum it up for the console crowd.
Now, I've always been a fan of the Colin McRae rally games, way back from the very first one all the way up to Dirt 3. I did have an initial week or so on Dirt Rally when it first hit early access in its initial basic stages. But that was some time ago so playing it on Friday was like a whole new experience.
I'll start by saying that I know Digital Foundry and many other reviewers who compare versions or reviewed the Xbox One version have already said it runs 1080p60 on Xbox, but I think it is still not being talked about enough in terms of how big a thing that is. With how good the game looks I personally find it to be a fantastic achievement and cannot be underestimated how good a job Codemasters have done here.
Sticking with visuals for the time being. This game is, to put it simply, gorgeous. The UI is slick, although perhaps overwhelming initially, but everything does what it says on the tin, everything makes sense and everything works. Once in gameplay things really start to get motoring, upon first loading I picked the 2001 Impreza on the Welsh rally and had to just take a few seconds to admire everything, the colours are very vivid, the lighting is spot on (that goes for every condition), the textures look good in normal gameplay conditions and there is plenty of detail.
When things get moving it only gets better, normally things like running at 60fps over 30fps doesn't bother me, but here it is very noticeable, especially after a few months of playing SLRE with its erratic frame rates, particularly as SLRE although it looked good enough it didn't look good enough to justify the stuttering. Dirt manages to not only maintain a rock solid 60fps but does it while also looking stunning. Now, I know everyone has different opinions of what a visually stunning game is, but, to me this is one of, if not, THE best looking game I have played on the Xbox One. Bear in mind I haven't played Halo 5, The Division, Destiny, Metal Gear Solid and a few other typically graphical titles. But this trumps FM6 for me in detail and lighting, and I think for any Xbox player, regardless of their gaming history on the console, couldn't deny this game the title of best looking racing game on the XBone.
Part of the reason Codemasters want to achieve at least 60fps parity across the consoles is to be able to run the complex physics engine at the full 60fps it was intended to do so. This trickles down to create a very responsive driving experience. I have predominantly been testing on the controller and can say that it feels fantastic, the 60fps surely goes some way to helping with that. I was concerned that it would be very difficult to play with a pad, games like Project CARS and SLRE, both target simulation, both are hard to play on a pad. Granted with pCARs you can tweak it to some form of playability but it is still almost unplayable to me and doesn't have the same connected feels as say Forza. Dirt Rally falls on the Forza side of the fence when it comes to control, it's weighty and the pad gives good feedback, counter steering and getting the cars to slide feels very natural and while it can be overcooked you never feel like the game is against you for using a pad. In short, if you don't have a wheel or like me, use the pad through convenience, then don't panic because this game plays very well on a pad.
The game has plenty of assists for casual gamers, the usual ABS, TC and stability control, auto gears, semi auto, manual sequential and manual H gate plus clutch. One control stood out for me, as I usually use either Semi auto or manual depending on my mood with the pad, clutch override stood out to me. The control is assigned to LB by default if you turn it on and, does what it says on the tin, allows you to override the clutch even on Auto gears to let you use a clutch kick technique to get cars into a power slide, and let me tell you, I have used it a lot, especially in RallyX.
Onto the core of the game. IT is very addictive, whether you're playing rally, rallyx or hill climb. Rally is self explanatory, but the desire to take off seconds is stronger than in any game since Colin McRae Rally 2005, it helps that the stages are well put together and challenging. RallyX is very comprehensive featuring the full 4 heats - semi final - final structure so one round can take a good chunk of time unlike Rally Evo which had short races with no competition structure resembling RallyX. Hill Climb is bulked out by having three versions of Pikes Peak, the all tarmac, all gravel and mixed surface variations in full as well as 3 shorter variants on each. Even featuring period specific traffic!
Theres no doubt that RallyX and Hill Climb are far from the core focus of the game, only 3 RallyX tracks and despite 3 variations, only Pikes Peak for Hill Climb. RallyX is expanded on slightly more with the new inclusion of the Classic Rally Cross category and the S1600 class. In career mode, both utilise the additional layouts on each circuit, expanding the overall layout count in RallyX to 8, add in the different weather effects and there is just enough content to keep in interesting as a side part to career mode. Of course the crowning RallyX feature is the Supercar class, these cars are seriously fast but extremely good fun to drive. It is of course officially licensed, and they have made the most of it with licensed liveries and rights to use the drivers names so you can actually race against the likes of Doran and Solberg.
The rallying has been spoken about a lot so I'll keep it brief but it is the core of this game experience. Most of what you do will revolve around the stage rallying so it is important that this part works to its max potential. Thankfully it does, as mentioned earlier, the stage design is excellent and although each country features a few long stages split into shorter stages plus reverse versions to reach the figure of 12 stages per rally, it is a generous figure regardless in a world used to having 6 or 8 stages, usually still made up of 1 or 2 long and shorter or reversed variations. So whilst a complaint of some, it hasn't bothered me yet. The career mode is the standard affair of buy a cheap car, earn money to buy better and race in harder championships. But the character of each car means this doesn't feel in anyway like a slog.
The selection of cars and countries is strong. The cars represent a tour through rallying history with some real classics and some significant machines. It's easier to talk about the omissions than list what made the cut, notable absentees include Mitsubishi, Toyota and Citroen, although the C4 made the cut and the DS3 in RallyX, No Xsara and no WRC DS3 sticks out. The only Evo representation from Mitsubishi comes in the form of the R4 Evo X. I anticipate the Citroen issue must stem from some kind of license issue with SLRE, its too convenient to miss them all except the C4, and even then it only features with plain white or plain red liveries. But, obvious omissions aside it is a collection that should keep everyone happy. The countries are classic Colin McRae Rally and Codemasters, Finland which features in every CMR since 2.0, Wales which featured in some form since 2.0, Sweden in since the first, Greece also a series mainstay, Germany which was introduced and loved in 2005 and also represent the games only tarmac based rally and Monaco, which strangely only featured in the very first CMR game. Each rally has a distinct character and colour palette. Sweden has very cool tones whilst Greece has a very orange hue. Each rally has good variations of weather, usually staying relevant to the locales, so in Monaco you can expect more snow whilst Greece doesn't have an option for rain.
Final few points in this wall of texts. Sound effects firstly, they are exceptional, each car has its own unique exhaust notes, throaty but not ever overpowering enough to be annoying. They sound accurate and in the replays, well my partner had to question whether it was real or not. It's also the first racing game in my opinion to absolutely nail in car sounds, it sounds like you are inside a car that doesn't have much sound insulation and sounds like it was recorded inside the car rather than simply muffling the external sounds. The co-driver also deserves a mention with very strong pace notes that were recorded specifically for each stage. They are detailed and accurate with good information but never will they overwhelm the newcomers to rally.
Custom events also feature, from the main menu you can pick any car from any class and set up a full rally to tackle, alternatively you can go into career mode and setup entire championships in any of the three disciplines using any of your owned cars and earning credits throughout. A feature highly requested in Forza and pCARs is here from the start in Dirt.
Finally, online. I haven't done any PVP but it all looks promising, the daily challenges are a great idea, basically only giving you one shot to set your time, no restarts and no second tries. Alongside weekly and monthly challenges which seem to be based on whole rallies rather than just a stage. These are conveniently located inside the career mode menu which means good results earn you credits at the end of each event.
Tl;dr - Buy it, its the best looking racing game on Xbox, one of the most playable simulations on a pad, feels excellent on a wheel, and is a full, well rounded experience. The only downsides or areas that could be improved revolve around content, a few extra countries would be amazing but mainly extra RallyX locations would be the most welcome.
@torque99
Now, I've always been a fan of the Colin McRae rally games, way back from the very first one all the way up to Dirt 3. I did have an initial week or so on Dirt Rally when it first hit early access in its initial basic stages. But that was some time ago so playing it on Friday was like a whole new experience.
I'll start by saying that I know Digital Foundry and many other reviewers who compare versions or reviewed the Xbox One version have already said it runs 1080p60 on Xbox, but I think it is still not being talked about enough in terms of how big a thing that is. With how good the game looks I personally find it to be a fantastic achievement and cannot be underestimated how good a job Codemasters have done here.
Sticking with visuals for the time being. This game is, to put it simply, gorgeous. The UI is slick, although perhaps overwhelming initially, but everything does what it says on the tin, everything makes sense and everything works. Once in gameplay things really start to get motoring, upon first loading I picked the 2001 Impreza on the Welsh rally and had to just take a few seconds to admire everything, the colours are very vivid, the lighting is spot on (that goes for every condition), the textures look good in normal gameplay conditions and there is plenty of detail.
When things get moving it only gets better, normally things like running at 60fps over 30fps doesn't bother me, but here it is very noticeable, especially after a few months of playing SLRE with its erratic frame rates, particularly as SLRE although it looked good enough it didn't look good enough to justify the stuttering. Dirt manages to not only maintain a rock solid 60fps but does it while also looking stunning. Now, I know everyone has different opinions of what a visually stunning game is, but, to me this is one of, if not, THE best looking game I have played on the Xbox One. Bear in mind I haven't played Halo 5, The Division, Destiny, Metal Gear Solid and a few other typically graphical titles. But this trumps FM6 for me in detail and lighting, and I think for any Xbox player, regardless of their gaming history on the console, couldn't deny this game the title of best looking racing game on the XBone.
Part of the reason Codemasters want to achieve at least 60fps parity across the consoles is to be able to run the complex physics engine at the full 60fps it was intended to do so. This trickles down to create a very responsive driving experience. I have predominantly been testing on the controller and can say that it feels fantastic, the 60fps surely goes some way to helping with that. I was concerned that it would be very difficult to play with a pad, games like Project CARS and SLRE, both target simulation, both are hard to play on a pad. Granted with pCARs you can tweak it to some form of playability but it is still almost unplayable to me and doesn't have the same connected feels as say Forza. Dirt Rally falls on the Forza side of the fence when it comes to control, it's weighty and the pad gives good feedback, counter steering and getting the cars to slide feels very natural and while it can be overcooked you never feel like the game is against you for using a pad. In short, if you don't have a wheel or like me, use the pad through convenience, then don't panic because this game plays very well on a pad.
The game has plenty of assists for casual gamers, the usual ABS, TC and stability control, auto gears, semi auto, manual sequential and manual H gate plus clutch. One control stood out for me, as I usually use either Semi auto or manual depending on my mood with the pad, clutch override stood out to me. The control is assigned to LB by default if you turn it on and, does what it says on the tin, allows you to override the clutch even on Auto gears to let you use a clutch kick technique to get cars into a power slide, and let me tell you, I have used it a lot, especially in RallyX.
Onto the core of the game. IT is very addictive, whether you're playing rally, rallyx or hill climb. Rally is self explanatory, but the desire to take off seconds is stronger than in any game since Colin McRae Rally 2005, it helps that the stages are well put together and challenging. RallyX is very comprehensive featuring the full 4 heats - semi final - final structure so one round can take a good chunk of time unlike Rally Evo which had short races with no competition structure resembling RallyX. Hill Climb is bulked out by having three versions of Pikes Peak, the all tarmac, all gravel and mixed surface variations in full as well as 3 shorter variants on each. Even featuring period specific traffic!
Theres no doubt that RallyX and Hill Climb are far from the core focus of the game, only 3 RallyX tracks and despite 3 variations, only Pikes Peak for Hill Climb. RallyX is expanded on slightly more with the new inclusion of the Classic Rally Cross category and the S1600 class. In career mode, both utilise the additional layouts on each circuit, expanding the overall layout count in RallyX to 8, add in the different weather effects and there is just enough content to keep in interesting as a side part to career mode. Of course the crowning RallyX feature is the Supercar class, these cars are seriously fast but extremely good fun to drive. It is of course officially licensed, and they have made the most of it with licensed liveries and rights to use the drivers names so you can actually race against the likes of Doran and Solberg.
The rallying has been spoken about a lot so I'll keep it brief but it is the core of this game experience. Most of what you do will revolve around the stage rallying so it is important that this part works to its max potential. Thankfully it does, as mentioned earlier, the stage design is excellent and although each country features a few long stages split into shorter stages plus reverse versions to reach the figure of 12 stages per rally, it is a generous figure regardless in a world used to having 6 or 8 stages, usually still made up of 1 or 2 long and shorter or reversed variations. So whilst a complaint of some, it hasn't bothered me yet. The career mode is the standard affair of buy a cheap car, earn money to buy better and race in harder championships. But the character of each car means this doesn't feel in anyway like a slog.
The selection of cars and countries is strong. The cars represent a tour through rallying history with some real classics and some significant machines. It's easier to talk about the omissions than list what made the cut, notable absentees include Mitsubishi, Toyota and Citroen, although the C4 made the cut and the DS3 in RallyX, No Xsara and no WRC DS3 sticks out. The only Evo representation from Mitsubishi comes in the form of the R4 Evo X. I anticipate the Citroen issue must stem from some kind of license issue with SLRE, its too convenient to miss them all except the C4, and even then it only features with plain white or plain red liveries. But, obvious omissions aside it is a collection that should keep everyone happy. The countries are classic Colin McRae Rally and Codemasters, Finland which features in every CMR since 2.0, Wales which featured in some form since 2.0, Sweden in since the first, Greece also a series mainstay, Germany which was introduced and loved in 2005 and also represent the games only tarmac based rally and Monaco, which strangely only featured in the very first CMR game. Each rally has a distinct character and colour palette. Sweden has very cool tones whilst Greece has a very orange hue. Each rally has good variations of weather, usually staying relevant to the locales, so in Monaco you can expect more snow whilst Greece doesn't have an option for rain.
Final few points in this wall of texts. Sound effects firstly, they are exceptional, each car has its own unique exhaust notes, throaty but not ever overpowering enough to be annoying. They sound accurate and in the replays, well my partner had to question whether it was real or not. It's also the first racing game in my opinion to absolutely nail in car sounds, it sounds like you are inside a car that doesn't have much sound insulation and sounds like it was recorded inside the car rather than simply muffling the external sounds. The co-driver also deserves a mention with very strong pace notes that were recorded specifically for each stage. They are detailed and accurate with good information but never will they overwhelm the newcomers to rally.
Custom events also feature, from the main menu you can pick any car from any class and set up a full rally to tackle, alternatively you can go into career mode and setup entire championships in any of the three disciplines using any of your owned cars and earning credits throughout. A feature highly requested in Forza and pCARs is here from the start in Dirt.
Finally, online. I haven't done any PVP but it all looks promising, the daily challenges are a great idea, basically only giving you one shot to set your time, no restarts and no second tries. Alongside weekly and monthly challenges which seem to be based on whole rallies rather than just a stage. These are conveniently located inside the career mode menu which means good results earn you credits at the end of each event.
Tl;dr - Buy it, its the best looking racing game on Xbox, one of the most playable simulations on a pad, feels excellent on a wheel, and is a full, well rounded experience. The only downsides or areas that could be improved revolve around content, a few extra countries would be amazing but mainly extra RallyX locations would be the most welcome.
@torque99
Brend
Premium
- 11,771
- Scotland
- GTSophy-Lapos
- ClassicBrend
Totally agree with this. I've got review duties with GTP for this one but what I will say right now is that the atmospheric lighting in this game is spectacular. A lot better than the muddy look all previous Dirt games on the EGO engine had.
- 33,155
- Hammerhead Garage
If you don't mind my asking, what's your gamertag? I'm not online much, but I was born born and bred on the amateur rally circuit - most of my childhood was spent on forestry roads - and it's nice to see another afficionado. I'd be keen to race you at some point, if you're interested. My gamertag is von Shatterhand.
- 2
- United States
Maybe off topic a bit, but as a big fan of the old Rallisport Challenge games for the original Xbox, would I like this game, or would I find it too challenging for me?
I have Project cars, and while I normally like simulation type racers, it's just not very fun to play on my ps4 controller. How much better are the controls on Dirt rally compared to PC?
I have Project cars, and while I normally like simulation type racers, it's just not very fun to play on my ps4 controller. How much better are the controls on Dirt rally compared to PC?
- 9,554
- Vermont
- catamount39
The pad controls are good by the sound of it.
- 2,047
- New Zealand
- TIZZLAA
It depends on your idea of fun I guess, if you like going fast and nailing every corner then you won't like it with a controller. You can't make the slight steering inputs and control the throttle like you can with a wheel and pedals. It's similar to the controller vs keyboard+mouse when it comes to shooter games, sure it works with a controller but it's nowhere near as good.
So if you don't mind slower times and driving off the road a few times then you might like it with a controller.
- 9,554
- Vermont
- catamount39
Wish I had a wheel setup...or the money for it. ;_;
Wow, I didn't expect such a detailed review, covers everything, Well done & thank you 👍
p.s It is better than some gaming website reviews
Looking forward to picking this up this week. Just to clarify now you have had time with these nice graphics, is there any type of photo mode or screen shot filters within the replays or nothing included at all as I think 
?
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- 2,966
- southport
so jealous of people who got this early, ive never had a game early...
even had a week booked off work this week for it, but cant be off now as too busy, booked it off in january aswell..grrrrrrrrrrr
even had a week booked off work this week for it, but cant be off now as too busy, booked it off in january aswell..grrrrrrrrrrr
dopedog
(Banned)
- 880
- United Kingdom
Amazing review, thanks for that, really seems this was a labour of love for codies, to get both consoles ruining this well and not having to resort to dividing the community with "PC is more powerful than PS4 and PS4 is better than XBox so suck it up" like SMS did. Proves yet again SMS just sent out a borked game at launch then just winged it with excuses, granted its a lot better now but then after 10 patches it SHOULD BE....
Roll on Tuesday!!
Roll on Tuesday!!
- 3,078
- Sweden
Ah, tuesday, so close yet so far away. Can't wait and can barely contain my excitement anymore. @MildAshers' review haven't made things easier either.
MagpieRacer
Premium
- 17,184
- Wymondham, Norfolk
- Seagull_Racer
Sounds good! I'll add you tonight, my tag is MagpieRacer
Wow, I didn't expect such a detailed review, covers everything, Well done & thank you 👍
p.s It is better than some gaming website reviews
No photo mode unfortunately but you can capture some decent shots using the screenshot features on the console in replay mode.
dopedog
(Banned)
- 880
- United Kingdom
Don't think we need to, totally different types of game (rally / road racing). Just think as purely from developer stand point codemasters need some serious respect for this game as they do take some flak for the F1 franchise....is it OK to write "F1" on forums these days or will i get charged?
All my shots from PCars are done using xbox screen grab mode. In fact i use that even in forza most of the time.
All my shots from PCars are done using xbox screen grab mode. In fact i use that even in forza most of the time.
Last edited by a moderator:
- 3,890
- Netherlands
- skazz-race
- skazzracer
Well with the official release date coming tomorrow, Thrustmaster's post is good news for guys who want to use H-pattern and handbrake separately on the PS4. https://www.facebook.com/ThrustmasterRacingTeam
Apparently it supports up to 3 simultaneous TH8A shifters:
Plus the new expensive Sequential knob accessory, of course:
http://www.thrustmaster.com/en_UK/products/th8-sequential-knob
Apparently it supports up to 3 simultaneous TH8A shifters:
Plus the new expensive Sequential knob accessory, of course:
http://www.thrustmaster.com/en_UK/products/th8-sequential-knob
- 3,890
- Netherlands
- skazz-race
- skazzracer
I was using R2 on my T300RS rim and it's fine for me (on PC using 900 degrees in drivers but with 60% steering saturation = 540 degrees actual rotation on all cars). You only need to dab the handbrake briefly to initiate, and almost always you can do that before the wheel has rotated far enough that your thumb is no longer able to reach the button.
