Colin McRae: DiRT

Colin McRae: DiRT marked a fundamental shift for the series - instead of pure rally simulation came a broader spectacle encompassing rallycross, buggies, hillclimb, and American off-road disciplines like Trailblazer, all wrapped in the new Neon graphics engine. This significantly expanded the series' scope, which up to that point had mainly relied on classic rally cars, and opened it up to players who preferred flashy muddy racing without needing to memorize co-driver pace notes. The career mode was built around gradually unlocking individual disciplines and cars by winning cups, which set the game apart from earlier entries with their more linear season progression.

The Xbox 360 version launched simultaneously with the PC version in June 2007, and together with the PC formed the main, reference platform Codemasters primarily targeted - all promotional material and review copies for journalists were built primarily around these two platforms. Content-wise, the console edition is identical to the PC version - the same tracks, the same disciplines, and the same visual style of muddy surfaces, dynamic weather, and visibly damaged cars, which was one of the game's main draws in 2007. The main difference lies in the controls, tuned for a gamepad, and in the fact that players cannot fine-tune graphics settings as on a computer - the game runs at a fixed resolution and detail level dictated by the console's hardware, whereas the PC version allowed quality to scale according to the rig.

The Xbox 360 release also benefited from Xbox Live: players could compare times on leaderboards and later download additional tracks as DLC, which was at the time still a relatively new way for console players to extend a racing game's lifespan. The PlayStation 3 version didn't arrive until several months later, so Xbox and PC owners played DiRT first and thus shaped the first impressions of the whole series as well as its reception in reviews.

Why play it: Thanks to leaderboards and downloadable tracks via Xbox Live, the Xbox 360 version offered a convenient way to extend the game's lifespan, and alongside the PC, it was the first platform to shape first impressions of the whole series.