Kick some dirt

Race car gaming has had its heroes,right from the time of Need For Speed series to Gran Tourismo.

Race car gaming has had its heroes,right from the time of Need For Speed series to Gran Tourismo. In comparison,DiRT 3,though puny in terms of specs,manages to stand out on its own.

The USP of the game is the World Tour based on four levels of game play. After entering basic information about yourself,the game opens its world to you. Mind you,this is not a normal run-of-the-mill Point A to Point B kind of game. There are many different forms of racing here,such as drifting,rally races,rally truck races,sprint events and more to keep it interesting and challenging.

Your performance will determine your DiRT ranking that you can improve through the various stages of the game. As with most race games,you start with a limited number of cars and options. Careful and judicious use of the available options in the beginning go a long way in building your race career. It is here that avid racing gamers will have an edge over new players. The assists are a players best option to get a hold on his/ her vehicle and use it according to the track. Once you start winning,the number of jobs,options and cars you can choose from keeps on increasing. The cars on display offer great variety in that they cover Mini Coopers of the 60s that found a new legion of fans post The Italian Job to powerful slickly-designed latest models. Typically,four events entitle you to a championship in the games World Tour Mode. You also have to unlock a further sponsored level called Final Event.

Thats about the amount of story-telling this game will offer you,which is strictly okay. However,a more complex setup would have taken away from the games driving spirit.

There is also a Gymkhana event in the game where players can perform different tricks according to the form of the field. For example,there is a spin track where driving around a designated spinning area earns you points. Other forms include Jump,Donut,Smash and Drift events that need to be maneuvered in those tracks. Battersea is another fun part of the game that acts as a compound with three zones to unlock,with each having a different set on missions like smashing blocks and finding hidden boxes etc.

There is also a limited number of Flashbacks in the game. This basically acts as a counter-measure to some of the mistakes you may have committed in the heat of the race. A player can go back 10 seconds and play the game as if that bad flip at that tricky crossing never happened. Its a small cheat designed to help players stay in the game despite the assists best efforts. Coming from CodeMasters,you can be virtually assured of stunning visuals and a decent audio experience. Every car is designed to perfection and once you select yours,it will take some effort to forget your car. The falling rain and change in corresponding sunlight,the flying debris from tracks where snow and dirt are in excess have to be seen to be believed.

DiRT 3 has issues in terms of longevity though. Most races and challenges can be completed in a matter of days,if not hours,once you get a hang of the controls. Only the main Pro Tour mode lasts for some time. Of course,getting top points and coming first will require constant effort and the graphics will certainly egg you on to keep playing. Race car gamers may overlook this nifty little game for more established names but for a no-frills racing game,DiRT 3 delivers on all counts.