Dirt Showdown is the latest game in the high-octane franchise developed by Codemasters. Allowing players the opportunity to take a great mix of cars, and use them to carve through the various game types; and trust me there is a good mix of game types. So without further a do, lets get stuck into this game review.
As with most racing games, there is no real plot, and who needs one. There is however an objective. You must race, wreck, and hoon your way through the various tour races, and events to get to the Showdown finale. It is set so well that you really feel that you are the focus of the crowd’s adulation, or at times, boos. The whole thing just feels like one long adrenaline festival. To make the first Fast and the Furious reference, ‘this is race wars’.
The gameplay is incredibly intuitive, with the player only needing to use the acceleration, and steering. It was not until a few races in that I even dared to use the brake. Because, after all if you need to brake just use one of your fellow racers to slow your momentum. They really do not mind. The trailer advised me to play this way, and it really works. So when you first play this game start a race by T-boning an opponent on the first turn. I should warn you all though, that later events will require you to become a precision instrument. As handling, drifting, and manoeuvring, all become paramount to winning events.
As you play your way through the career mode, you compete in three core styles. Racing events are of course the most obvious game type. I enjoyed navigating the madness, that was the maze of turns, ramps, and shortcuts that made up these events. I am also sure that the figure eight race tacks will have you gritting your teeth as you approach the cross over point. This seemed to be a T-boning nightmare. When you can pull yourself away from racing, there are also demolition derby events. Including a version that has players fighting like sumo wrestlers, on a raised platform. The final core game type is the hoonigan events, featuring the legendary Ken Block.
The soundtrack was superb, with artists including Turbowolf, Rise Against, and Black Spiders, provide the game with a wide range of music to get your blood pumping as you boost through the tracks. Codemasters have ensured that they have tailored the soundtrack to the varied tastes of car enthusiasts. (Just a little game trivia here, Turbowolf’s ‘a rose for crows’, can also boast its second videogame appearance this season).
Which brings me to the most important element, the cars, and there are some real beauties amongst them. From the retro Beliveau Meteor, to the rusted out DMG Titan, players have some excellent vehicles to unleash on their rivals. The most honest part of this game is the way in which you customise car performance. There is only three elements to each car. Strength, power, and handling, and in career mode you spend money to upgrade them. I felt this was just better than other car games that have players debating buying a Gallo 12, or a Gallo 24 for their Skyline. As if any of us have spent any time under the hood of a car. You want to have more handling, you just spend cash on it. Some cars are specialised to key events. To get a real feel for all the cars, it is best to play the multiplayer game.
Multiplayer, is best player in this game. Dirt Showdown is a game for competing, and multiplayer brings this to the forefront. There are racing and demolition events a plenty. As well as co-op team play. This was fantastic party fun. On the first night I broke open the game, my best friend and I, played rampage over a hundred times as a pair of DMG Titans, and never got bored. Aside from just the traditional style of multiplayer, the game constantly has you competing with your friends. It does this through using Xbox live correctly. If you connect to Xbox live, the game will transmit your scores to all of your friends that have the game, displaying a leader board after every event. I found myself honestly caring more about beating my friends than beating the game. I would celebrate beating my friends, even if it was by the barest of margins. Because it doesn’t matter if it’s by an inch or a mile, winning is winning.
Overall, I cannot help but recommend this game for anyone that is a fan of the car-racing genre. It is an arcade racer that has so much longevity, not only for stand alone, but for party play, that it warrants purchasing. A pulse pounding, nitrous injected fuelled gauntlet will entertain and challenge for hours.
4 out 5
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