Codemasters are back again with another instalment of the Dirt series. Dirt 5 tasks players on becoming the best off-road racer there is, you will travel around the world taking part in a variety of events to prove you are the best.
The events will challenge your skills on all different terrains, weather types and vehicles, The constant change to your environment and conditions bring excitement to every race. As much as you might enjoy one track there is always a fresh exciting feeling of what is your next race conditions.
Dirt 5 also has a wide variety of race mode, there is your typical and more well know the Circuit and Point to Point style races.
They also have PathFinder where the aim is to traverse a rocky terrain. Up next is Gymkhana, A game mode last seen in Dirt Showdown. You are now able to show off and perform stunts in the designated arena.
Stampeded, land Rush, Ultra Cross and Ice breaker are all variations of the same races using different terrains to alter the tracks experiences. Ice Breaker really stood out with the tracks covered in ice it really made the game pop with colour and vibrance.
Career Mode is where you will spend the majority of the time, taking part in the above-mentioned races proving you are the next best thing.
As well as the well-varied track types in the career mode you will get to explore great locations like China, Italy and the United States but also be able to unlock a wide array of cars to try out. Instantly the Subaru Impreza and Ford F-150 spring to mind when selecting your car of choice for the race but there are some great buggies and alternatives to pick.
The story mode features voice lines from Nolan North and Troy Baker, whilst it was nice at first and I was listening to the story after a while it was hard to care that much about when the racing and the graphics where so good that was the main attraction to the game.
Tieing in the wide variety of locations and tracks with the outstanding graphics Dirt 5 really is a game worth playing on the highest settings to really appreciate the shift of dynamic weather and the dirt that kicks up from the tires spraying onto other cars as you race around these scenic landscapes.
The final mode is Playgrounds, here you can create your own arena and upload it for others to play. It was fun creating a level then pushing it out for everyone else to join in and play. It will be interesting to see what the community comes up with here.
Multiplayer was a fun experience once I got into a race but the system to finding lobbies or races I wanted to try was a little frustrating. This can easily be solved by adding a filter option and hopefully, this is something Codemasters will patch into the game.
Overall Dirt 5 is a real blast play. With the gameplay not being too strict, it gives you that feeling of being an arcade racing king without having to leave the comfort of your own home. There are some area's like online that need some fine-tuning but these are all issues that could be solved with a future update.
I am excited to see what the community can make on in the Playgrounds and hopefully Codemasters will promote some of the community-made content for everyone to see.
Initial release date: 6 November 2020
Platforms: PlayStation 5, Xbox Series X and Series S, PlayStation 4, Xbox One, Microsoft Windows, Google Stadia
reviewed on PC
