Dirt 3 Hands On Impressions?

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lengthybaton
Since the game was freshly released this morning, I was wondering what some of your on hand impressions would be of the game. Specifically the different game modes, A.I., and handling. Also, if you have used it with a wheel or not. All the reviews of this game have been very high, but I wanted some regular gamer opinion here. Thanks
 
I havent had that much fun in Rally game since Colin McRae 2.0! this is the kind of game was need on current get consoles
 
I have no Dirt experience besides the Dirt 2 demo with a dualshock. I jumped straight into this with Driving Force Pro and all assists off except ABS. To me it feels loose, like my inputs aren't very precise. I need to get the hang of it though, and probably adjust the wheel settings. I am really bad at the rally so far and okay at the rally cross event I did. Impacts also feel very light to me without a lot of feedback if I've struck a car, wall, or object(except for a downed tree I've found on the very first stage, that things kills me). Otherwise, i'm enjoying it for the most part, but I can tell the potential is there once I get used to the way it plays and handles.
 
Immense !! Had it since about 11 this morning and my god the Gymnakha bit is fun !! Other than that graphics are good, car sound effects are amazing !! An awful lot of fun ! And although I've just reached the X Games parts and the career seems long with loads of races, which is good. Overall easily a 9/10 !!
 
Great game, best Codemasters rally game since CM2 and 3.

Wasn't expecting much following DiRT and DiRT 2 but it is great, big thumbs up from me. Opel Kadet in the snow is great fun!
 
As everyone has said! THIS GAME IS AMAZING!! Far exceeds 1&2. Gymkhana is crazy fun on a wheel. trophy trucks are much better in this game too. love the art direction with the triangle. Soundtrack is actually good! (unlike D2's awful selection). Ya, just very excited lol I do HIGHLY recommend a wheel for this release. The past 2 had horrible calibration, but they got it right this time.
 
grafpt
As everyone has said! THIS GAME IS AMAZING!! Far exceeds 1&2. Gymkhana is crazy fun on a wheel. trophy trucks are much better in this game too. love the art direction with the triangle. Soundtrack is actually good! (unlike D2's awful selection). Ya, just very excited lol I do HIGHLY recommend a wheel for this release. The past 2 had horrible calibration, but they got it right this time.
Click to expand...
Does the Gymkhana on the wheel seem ''too harsh''?

I was worried that this aspect might be quite hard on the wheel?
 
I had a great time with Dirt 2 but it lacked some of the hill climbing from Dirt 1. I still have yet to play a rally game as fun as Rallisport Challenge 2.

-Does Dirt 3 have hill climbing?
-Lots of muddy hill climbing like in Rallisport Challenge 2?
-How is the online?
-Does it still have "center axis" turning?
-Lots of water puddles?
-Does mud and debris pile up on the cars?
 
I'm enjoying it lots.

I really wanted the rally and rally x and those are great, but the others are fun too.
It's actually quite fun doing gymkhana ... It gives a point to drifting, which i usually try to avoid.

As with all driving games, takes abit of getting used to handling.

Of course no online yet for ps3, which is ok, gives some practice time.

Im not too far, it did have a drift event which was called a hill climb stage, but not seen hill climbing yet, also ive only had a 'bit' of weather so far.

Good sense of immersions, just did a buggy race in snow at night, with cockpit view... Start was real fun, couldn't see a thing for all the snow and chaos :)

Force feedback, typical for cm, is very strong , but can be dialled back.
I'm using now about 50%, and it's fine I don't think there will be any issues with wheels.
( I think people who don't take into account ffb strength and their wheel could have issues)
I guess using drift mode on fanatec wheels will help in the 'fun' modes.


Setup of wheels I think is very similar to f1 2010, though obviously more action due to surfaces.

my only issue is the clutch misshift , not sure if that's me or not, but it's not a big issue really.

Oh, I'll be the first to say I dislike the triangles :) but menu system is not bad at all.

Not sure about the lack of car ownership (you simply unlock), and not belonging to team ( like f1), I think some will like this, others may miss it... It feels like you are simply unlocking events/cars rather than a career as such.


Will post more , once I've done some more
 
CAMAROBOY69
I had a great time with Dirt 2 but it lacked some of the hill climbing from Dirt 1. I still have yet to play a rally game as fun as Rallisport Challenge 2.

-Does Dirt 3 have hill climbing?
-Lots of muddy hill climbing like in Rallisport Challenge 2?
-How is the online?
-Does it still have "center axis" turning?
-Lots of water puddles?
-Does mud and debris pile up on the cars?
Click to expand...

-I don't think it has hill climbing, but the the Toyota Tacoma returns from Dirt 1.
-The mud is about the same as in Dirt 2, if not a tiny bit better.
-Haven't tried online yet.
-To me, the centre axis physics is still very simple. Doesn't feel much different AT ALL to Dirt 2. Imo RWD cars don't oversteer as they should but obviously when the back does go round, it goes round way too fast and unless you come off the brake, it swings round rather than producing a powerslide. You can still throw 4WD cars into a corner and scrub speed through the slide yeah.
- I think there's a few water puddles, I've just came off a rainy stage (where it wasn't actually raining) in Finland and didn't take much notice about puddles to be honest, lol. There's watersplashes though!
-Yes mud and snow pile up on your car. My Renault 5 was caked in snow after one stage.

Not the most telling answers because I've only really had 3 of 4 hours on the game but I thought I would respond seeing as no one else has yet. 👍
 
Thanks for the replies. Greatly appreciated. I will try to rent this for sure sometime in the next week if they have it in.
 
I've never played a Rally game before, but once I adjusted to the handling I'm finding it Brilliant.

Certainly more enjoyable than either GT5 or Shift 2 straight out of the box.
 
This thread should either be called "What are your hands-on impressions of DIRT 3?" or just "DIRT 3 hands-on impressions". It should not be titled "DIRT 3 hands-on impressions?" because that is not a question. It is a statement with a question mark at the end, and speaks to an inability to properly communicate grammatical structures and implies a low level of literacy.
 
Question....what exactly is the objective of Gymkhana mode? Is it some sort of drift only mode? If so, can it be played in an online multiplayer event, to see who gets the most drift points?
 
No, it's not. The easiest way to describe it is that it's a skate park for cars. While you do drift in gymkhana, that's only a part of it - there's spins, jumps, donuts and all manner of things lying around as well. It's modelled on Ken Block's Mountain Lab 1.5, GymkhanaTWO and Gymkhana_Three videos. If you haven't seen them on YouTube, you should check them out.

The gymkhana events in Dirt Tour mode do focus on scoring points, but multiplayer is more about having a bit of fun.
 
interludes
No, it's not. The easiest way to describe it is that it's a skate park for cars. While you do drift in gymkhana, that's only a part of it - there's spins, jumps, donuts and all manner of things lying around as well. It's modelled on Ken Block's Mountain Lab 1.5, GymkhanaTWO and Gymkhana_Three videos. If you haven't seen them on YouTube, you should check them out.

The gymkhana events in Dirt Tour mode do focus on scoring points, but multiplayer is more about having a bit of fun.
Click to expand...

Ah, thanks.
 
Okay, so, I got my copy today. After playing it for longer than I care to admit, it's time to share my thoughts, in no particular order.

What I like
- Gymkhana. Oh, God, yes. It seemed like something of a novelty to begin with, but it's actually pretty addictive. I suck at the moment, so it feels wrong to go through trying to complete all the missions (though hidden packages are tough).
- The learning curve. When I started, I was all over the place. But the physics felt familiar within half an hour, and less than twenty minutes after that, I was posting competitive times.
- The soundtrack. I don't know 90% of the bands, but it captures the feel of the game perfectly.
- The progression system. It feels pretty intuitive, and while most of my time seems to be spent between loading screens and menus, it doesn't feel cheap.
- Norway. I don't know why, but this is already my favourite event.
- Rallycross. Good times. You can afford to throw the car around and get careless.
- The length. I'm currently in the early stages of the third season, and I've still only finished 35% of the game.

What I don't like
- Donuts. I just can't make them work. Deliberately throwing the car into a controlled spin and feathering the throttle goes against all my instincts.
- Trailblazer. Whose brilliant idea was it to put the player in lightweight, high-powered cars on difficult courses with no pace notes? Even with the difficulty turned all the way down to one, I was still twelve seconds off the leader's time on that massive Michigan stage.
- There's no way to view the stages (to get a sense of direction) short of going into multiplayer and then hosting a game and choosing the stages yoruself.
- Online only connects you to one game - it doesn't give you a list to choose from.
- Christian. He's a wanker.
- Codemasters claimed there were six head-to-head stages. There's actually only three, each with a reverse (which doesn't make that much difference). And the Monaco ones are rubbish.
- For some reason, my settings keep changing between envets without warning. My co-driver is set as complex, but she starts giving easy directions. I use the metric system of management, but the distances suddenly start showing in miles. And I do a series of races with a difficulty of four and all aids off, and then suddenly it's back to one with all aids on. I suspect it has something to do with the gymkhana challenges.
- The availablity of cars is a little unbalanced. I did one race with Arai, and then a dozen with Kenwood.

What I'd like to see
- Some way of practicing the Monaco and LA gymkhana facilities the way you can the Battersea Compound.
- Alternatively, some career events in Battersea.
- Some DLC as soon as possible.
- Team challenges. I like meeting the bonus reputation conditions as often as I can, and they're quite challenging (193km/h in Trailblazer at night on a tight stage in Norway), but because the last team you unlocked always gives the best payout, there's no incentive to go back and drive other cars.
 
@ interludes, You don't like the Monaco head to heads? They're my favourite. It's very rewarding when you're on the limit. :D

And I'm sure you can practice the Monaco and LA Gymkhana facilities under freestyle gymkhana in singleplayer?
 
I don't like them because of the layout. Particularly that little hairpin at the end of the pier on the inner loop.

And I haven't seen the Monaco or LA gymkhana anywhere but Tour mode. Thought I haven't checked out the single player mode too much.
 
I agree with the Trailblazer comments,

Why no pace notes on a vehicle that covers ground so quickly. ( that S1 audi sounds immense though)

On one stage I was 1.7s down on the first split and I hadn't lifted once, and it was only a 24s section.


I had to change the pace notes on rally to complex, was fed up with hairpins being called medium rights.
 
I kinda like Trailblazer. Only when not on the snow though. The Norway event in season 3 is madness, I must have spent a good half hour just trying to get around there without hitting a snow bank and careening into a tree. Playing on the advanced default, I can win them, but not too easily. It's just as much about the corners as it is the straights. I find that braking in Trailblazer is a no-no for everything but tight bends and hairpins. Often just letting off the accelerator for a split second and downshifting is enough to get you around a corner quickly enough.

Anyway, in my opinion I find the Finland rallies to be the most fun. A great mix of tight bends, narrow paths and high speed straights make most of the routes very enjoyable. Driving in the rain is also a joy. I think me and the RS200 might need to spend a little more time together...
 
interludes
Okay, so, I got my copy today. After playing it for longer than I care to admit, it's time to share my thoughts, in no particular order.

What I like
- Gymkhana. Oh, God, yes. It seemed like something of a novelty to begin with, but it's actually pretty addictive. I suck at the moment, so it feels wrong to go through trying to complete all the missions (though hidden packages are tough).
- The learning curve. When I started, I was all over the place. But the physics felt familiar within half an hour, and less than twenty minutes after that, I was posting competitive times.
- The soundtrack. I don't know 90% of the bands, but it captures the feel of the game perfectly.
- The progression system. It feels pretty intuitive, and while most of my time seems to be spent between loading screens and menus, it doesn't feel cheap.
- Norway. I don't know why, but this is already my favourite event.
- Rallycross. Good times. You can afford to throw the car around and get careless.
- The length. I'm currently in the early stages of the third season, and I've still only finished 35% of the game.

What I don't like
- Donuts. I just can't make them work. Deliberately throwing the car into a controlled spin and feathering the throttle goes against all my instincts.
- Trailblazer. Whose brilliant idea was it to put the player in lightweight, high-powered cars on difficult courses with no pace notes? Even with the difficulty turned all the way down to one, I was still twelve seconds off the leader's time on that massive Michigan stage.
- There's no way to view the stages (to get a sense of direction) short of going into multiplayer and then hosting a game and choosing the stages yoruself.
- Online only connects you to one game - it doesn't give you a list to choose from.
- Christian. He's a wanker.
- Codemasters claimed there were six head-to-head stages. There's actually only three, each with a reverse (which doesn't make that much difference). And the Monaco ones are rubbish.
- For some reason, my settings keep changing between envets without warning. My co-driver is set as complex, but she starts giving easy directions. I use the metric system of management, but the distances suddenly start showing in miles. And I do a series of races with a difficulty of four and all aids off, and then suddenly it's back to one with all aids on. I suspect it has something to do with the gymkhana challenges.
- The availablity of cars is a little unbalanced. I did one race with Arai, and then a dozen with Kenwood.

What I'd like to see
- Some way of practicing the Monaco and LA gymkhana facilities the way you can the Battersea Compound.
- Alternatively, some career events in Battersea.
- Some DLC as soon as possible.
- Team challenges. I like meeting the bonus reputation conditions as often as I can, and they're quite challenging (193km/h in Trailblazer at night on a tight stage in Norway), but because the last team you unlocked always gives the best payout, there's no incentive to go back and drive other cars.
Click to expand...

I agree with most except Gymkhana. I think its horrible. And I LOVE Trailblazer. My fav so far. At least there is something for everyone I guess.

Over all I find the lack of wheel rotation the most dissapointing (160 or 180 degrees is TOO little).

I find picking a car/team horrible as well. You want the most rep? Go with the latest car. You race for a different team on EVERY event almost. I would have loved to see the teams likes in GRID.

Rally races so far (I am only in season 2) are stupidly short. I am hoping they get longer than 2 mins. This is a huge downfall.

Graphics are not as pretty and neat as I thought they were going to be. Water animations are bad...real bad. Going through water looks like PSone generated. Water on windscreen is just as bad. Dirt2 nailed the water and 3 took it a few steps back.

Its a fun little game but I dont see myself playing it for a long while. I still find Dirt2 more fun for soem reason. I think my expectations were too high.
 
Needs more rally locations drastically. Eight locations like the classic McRae games would have been a good start before DLC.

Britain, Corsica, Monaco and somewhere like Argentina would have been ideal. I have to agree, Finland is fantastic, though. I like Michigan and Kenya, but it's a shame the cars didn't get snorkels and bush guards for the latter, to get the old Safari rally vibe.
 
Vaxxtx
Its a fun little game but I dont see myself playing it for a long while. I still find Dirt2 more fun for soem reason. I think my expectations were too high.
Click to expand...

I think your on your own on that one. Dirt2 was garbage, and still is. NOt sure what wheel your using but mine goes over 180 degress. GYMKHANA would be impossible if it didnt.
 

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