DiRT 2, released in 2009, marked a significant turn for the Colin McRae DiRT series toward a more accessible, colorful and spectator-friendly take on rally and off-road racing. Instead of its predecessor's purely simulation-focused approach, it offered a game built around the career of a young racer working their way up through an international competitive scene spanning disciplines such as rallycross, buggy racing, trucks, trailblazer sprints, and classic rally stages on closed tracks and open terrain across different continents, with the player moving between individual races via a clear world-tour map.
On Xbox 360, the game stood out especially for its visual rendering of environments, from the dusty deserts of Morocco to rainy European forests and snowy Nordic roads, and for a convincing vehicle damage model that gave every crash real weight and visible consequences on the car's bodywork. The controls were tuned to be fun even for less experienced players, without entirely abandoning the feel for powersliding and working the terrain when entering corners. The career presentation, with driver interviews, energetic menu graphics and a musical backdrop, gave the game the atmosphere of a modern extreme-sports show aimed at a broad audience.
Reviewers and the player community alike praised the way it opened the genre up to a wider audience and the variety of its environments, though rally-simulation purists lamented the move away from the earlier entries' more realistic driving model. DiRT 2 helped establish the series as one of the most successful off-road racing brands of its generation and set the course for future entries toward an even bigger show and spectacle in how races are presented. Even years later, the game still feels fresh thanks to its varied environments, a solid feel for off-road driving, and a still action-oriented presentation unafraid to admit it's a fun rather than a perfectly realistic simulation.
Why play it: If you want an accessible rally full of varied environments and slick presentation, it's still fun today, even if purists might miss the more realistic driving model of earlier entries in the series.
Game 136 of 259 for Xbox 360
