Review for DiRT 4. Game for PC, Mac, PlayStation 4, Xbox One and Linux, the video game was released on 06/06/2017 The version for PC came out on 09/06/2017 The version for PlayStation 4 came out on 09/06/2017 The version for Xbox One came out on 09/06/2017
In the gaming world it is always difficult to please everyone. There are those who would like the games to be more realistic and others easier and carefree. In the context of driving games, the two currents of thought are divided into players who want arcade and spartan gameplay and pilots over and over, who want technical and precise simulators.
How can all players be satisfied?
Codemasters for his part he had tried to support the two souls of the public by realizing DiRT 3 e DiRT Showdown for the former and the most precise and complex DiRT Rally for seconds. Two diametrically different titles, both appreciated but still unable to perfectly reach the opposite world.
Here the definitive solution has come to us; a rally game able to accommodate the tastes of driving purists and arcade style lovers: welcome to DiRT 4.
After a short video introduction, we are immediately launched into a test race, necessary to establish the level of difficulty and assistance suited to our skills. A very simple circuit, to be covered with a Ford Fiesta S2 will allow the player to try the assisted mode and the one reserved for expert pilots.
Just from these two main difficulty levels you begin to see the double soul of the title: if in the simplest mode any player will be able to grab the wheel or the joypad and launch into the wildest races, in the advanced one you will find yourself in the total absence of aid or facilities, demanding maximum precision from the pilot.
If you are undecided do not worry: this setting will be modifiable from the game menu, together with the huge list of driving aids selectable by the user himself. None of these will be invasive and will act almost imperceptibly, without taking the place of the player driving.
Once this choice has been made, you can move on to the competent and well-made one DiRT Academy, which contains numerous tutorials and driving courses. Each of them will consist of a practical demonstration in the form of a video with indicators relating to the behavior of the machine and verbal explanations. The player is then invited to try these techniques to learn how to master them.
The more experienced pilots among you will start thinking about the classic boring introductory tutorial, but let's admit that as you progress through the lessons very in-depth topics will be reached.
From here we launch into the career mode, divided into the modes Rally, Land Rush, Rally Cross and Historic Rally. Each of them will have a dedicated car park, initially composed only of the cars owned by the team and later also from those that can be purchased by the player. The variety of the four modes is well expressed, demonstrating that what has been learned with DiRT Rally has been wisely maintained and cultivated.
Before starting each race, the detailed situation of the track will be presented to the driver, allowing it to adapt its car to different weather conditions. In short, the beating heart of career mode is pure simulation.
As you progress through the various events you will earn reputation points, thus increasing your rank and unlocking new vehicles, events, modes and sponsors.
However, if the career mode is considered the serious older brother and focused on technicalities, the "Ace of the wheel" mode is the crazy and wild little brother who only thinks about having fun. This mode represents everything that the arcade departments of DiRT 3 and DiRT Showdown have brought to the series: From time trials to block smashing, from buggy races to special group B races, pure fun is guaranteed.
Fun guaranteed by the powerful machines available, which will guarantee power and control suitable for the wildest stunts.
In this regard, we really appreciated the remarkable variety of vehicles, guaranteed by the over 50 different models; from Subaru WRX STI NR4 to Delta HF Integrale of Group B, the player will be spoiled for choice. Each car will have an incredible level of graphic detail and the technical characteristics will be particularly evident.
Likewise, the excellent quantity of tracks, located in Australia, Spain, Michigan, Sweden and Wales and each having different climatic and territorial characteristics give the title a considerable thickness. Their care demonstrates the developer's experience in the sector, giving the viewer an immersive and satisfying experience.
The real gem of DiRT 4, however, is certainly the procedural creation of the tracks. Once a location has been chosen, the player will have the opportunity to create circuits setting length, "difficulty", weather conditions (fog, mist and dry climate to name a few), phase of the day and inverted path. There are two main advantages of this technological innovation: the first and perhaps most obvious is to increase the longevity of the game, given that for each pair of length and difficulty selected, infinite different tracks can be generated with a single click.
The second, on the other hand, relates to the aforementioned "difficulty"; it is not a question of adding lots of curves to make a circuit complex, but rather every physical element of the track is added by the system in a perfect way, returning the feeling of "officiality" to these circuits as well. Not to mention that such random generation makes memorization of the track out of the question, forcing the player to pay much more attention to clear and well-explanatory indications from the navigator.
The limit of this system, however, is the visual sector: having such a wide variety of variables leads to an inevitable narrowness of the setting, which is occasionally poor in natural elements. However, the positioning of homes, spectators and boundaries of the route is well done.
Moving on to performance and the technical sector, our Playstation 4 test showed no slowdown even in the most extreme conditions. The result is a graphically satisfying and detailed title, pleasant to play thanks to an excellent fluidity and stability of framerates.
What we reluctantly noticed is the lack of care applied to some visual effects, such as the lack of the same fluidity in the reflections of the environmental elements (trees for example) on the car and some not excellent particle effects. These defects are noticeable since the first races given the thick vegetation and dusty ground, but they are not always visible.
To accompany our tests we found a noteworthy audio sector: the excellent choice of songs for the soundtrack give way to the roar of the engines, detailed and well made. By dint of playing, we found ourselves distinguishing the different cars by the sound emitted.
Of course, the loop in the main menu could be monotonous in the long run, but it's hard to stick to the home screen and not throw yourself into some wild ride.
DiRT 4 is the title every rally player has been waiting for, regardless of their previous favorite title (be it DiRT 3 or DiRT Rally). He manages to perfectly express the two souls he represents, giving the player full control of what he can do. Codemasters has managed to create a title that can adapt to every driver, offering every type of game mode that exists today with excellent technical care. A jewel for rally lovers in all its forms, as well as the representation of a certified FIA WORLD RALLY CROSS CHAMPIONSHIP product.
DiRT 4 is available for Playstation 4, Xbox One and PC.
► DiRT 4 is a Driving-Simulation game developed and published by Codemasters for PC, Mac, PlayStation 4, Xbox One and Linux, the game was released on 06/06/2017 The version for PC came out on 09/06/2017 The version for PlayStation 4 came out on 09/06/2017 The version for Xbox One came out on 09/06/2017
