thinking about buying dirt 3....

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cbrown119

cbrown119

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cbrown119
Hello,

I need some help on deciding whether or not to purchase Dirt 3.

What category does d3 fall into. Arcade or sim?
If you had to rate d3 in different categories when comparing to other games gt5 and shift 2, where would d3 fall?

for example:

Physics/handling
1. gt5
2. shift 2/d3
3. shift 2/d3

AI
1.
2.
3.

realism
1.
2.
3.

fun factor
1.
2.
3.

lastlty, I have both s2 and gt5. gt5 has rally racing already. Wouldn't that be the same as dirt 3? Or am i missing something with d3?

thanks.
 
DiRT3 is pure arcade. If you like it, get it. I wouldn't get if I were you, it's just too late to play this game.
 
Oh, i did not know it was pure arcade. I read ign's review, but I must have missed that part.
Well, thanks for saving me a few bucks:-)
 
It's not "pure arcade" - but nor is it a straight-up simulator. It exists somewhere between the two. Some game modes are more arcade-y in their feel than others, but the rallying is generally pretty good (even if the stages are short). Although it is probably too late to play the game online, and that's where the real challenge lay.
 
I recently played this game on PC with a wheel. My brother usually plays with a pad and with that it is a bit harder for me due to the sensitivity. A wheel makes it feel more arcadey to me as you can be very precise with ease.

I did an online time trial on it and was amazed that you barely needed to move the steering wheel or even use the brakes. If you saw just the footage of just me using a wheel and pedals, you would think I was just driving more or less straight forward. I think my time put me somewhere in the top 80 out of over 170,000 people which is not bad I would say considering it was my first time playing with a wheel on the game. I am about 2 seconds faster than I'm with a pad which is consistent with other games I played. I have not played with many cars in the game so my experience is limited but I would expect it to be similar level of arcadeyness through the car range.

The game looks like good fun I would say on the whole. Getting platinum is quite achievable I would say as my brother managed to platinum every event :sly:.
 
I'd say DiRT 3 is something you have to try to understand, really. Not sure if there is a demo, but if there is, then definitely try it. It's absolutely not arcade, and I will explain why.

The key about DiRT 3 is that you get highly accurate input response with a wheel and pedals, unlike a game such as Shift (on one side) or Burnout (on the other side) which both feel very dislocated from your inputs. This means that you can have total control over your rally car at all times. You also get high quality Force Feedback, which is very informative and immersive.

What DiRT 3 doesn't do, however, is try to be a full-on simulator. You get unrealistically good brakes, slightly too high speeds, slightly too wide tracks. But that doesn't make it arcade, because as I said the game allows such precise inputs with a wheel. Seasoned sim racers can also enjoy DiRT 3 precisely because it rewards accurate and careful driving.

Personally I'd rate DiRT 3 way above Shift in terms of the quality of the experience. You just have to be willing to look past the slightly "hyped" speeds. It's a great fun blast, not to be taken too seriously.
 
Thank you for some really good feedback! I am still on the fence about this, as I am still playing gt5. Although lately I have been doing some snow and dirt racing with the focus rs in Arcade mode

With that being said, would that (Gt5 arcade mode) be a good example of Dirt 3?
 
You really cannot compare those 2 to dirt.

They're race games, it's a rally game - the cars are supposed to slide around and be difficult to control.

Shift 2 is an abomination with controller or wheel it's disgusting.

Dirt 3 will never be as good as gt5, but for playing on the controller the rally on dirt 3 is better.

It's an amazing game, stop comparing it to games that it cannot be compared to :D
 
Last edited:
ipswich1992
you really cannot compare those 2 to dirt.

they're race games, it's a rally game - the cars are supposed to slide around and be difficult to control.

shift 2 is an abomination with controller or wheel it's disgusting.

dirt 3 will never be as good as gt5, but for playing on the controller the rally on dirt 3 is better.

its an amazing game, stop comparing it to games that it cannot be compared to :D
Click to expand...

Sorry bout that comparing thing.

Anyhow, I bought it today.

I saw it in the store at a reduced priced and decided to just stop thinking about it and just buy it already.

I won't have a chance to try it until next week, though...7 days of night shift :(
 
Okay i had to give a quick spin today...
I am having some problems driving in straight line. I guess i am used to gt5. i really did not look to in depth in the instructions, but the ffb was non existent. Im assuming its compatible with dfgt wheel, right.

Anyways, did a couple of races. Finished last. Hit a few trees along the way and almost took a dive into the lake. Not very impressive start. I think i might lose a sponsor or two.

I will try again tomorrow. But i really need to get some sort of resistance on the wheel.
 
The handling is hyper-sensitive in the first few races. It's designed to force you into the trees so that you can learn how flashbacks work. It's pretty cheap, but it's short-lived.
 
Basically, if you go off the track, you can activate a "flashback" - it's a function that allows you to rewind your race by a few seconds, and re-attempt the section you just screwed up. You only get a handful during the race, and they're entirely optional; it's possible to complete the entire game without using one. You also get more experience points in career mode by not using them. But the handling in your first few races might feel a little over-sensistive, because the game is trying to force you to crash out to demonstrate their use. It should stop after a few attempts.

Also, I'd look at getting some of the DLC. The Monte Carlo track pack is excellent, and you should defiantely look at getting either the Power & Glory car pack or the Mud & Guts pack, if not both. The Shibuya rallycross stages are also a lot of fun (they're easily the best in the game), but it's pretty much just a palette swap of the circuit from DIRT 2 with a few surface changes to boot.
 
Oh those are Flashbacks.....I kept seeing those pop up. The sad thing was is that I it was a replay button----because I crashed the same way I did earlier. Sad.

Well that is good to know it will go away. Does that mean the FFB will work?
 
I believe the force feedback will work, but I don't have a wheel (and I usually turn controller vibration off; it hurts my hands), so I can't confirm it or tell you how to sort it out.
 
I'm also thinking about buying this game today.

I heard though, some people say a lot of the courses are "meh" and too easy?
 
Wow, no place I went to HAD it... Looks like they're waiting for the complete edition. Picked up Shift 2 LE for $20.
 
cbrown119
Hello,

I need some help on deciding whether or not to purchase Dirt 3.

What category does d3 fall into. Arcade or sim?
If you had to rate d3 in different categories when comparing to other games gt5 and shift 2, where would d3 fall?

for example:
Click to expand...

Alright, here's my experience, I've used a DFGT for both Dirt 3 and Gran Turismo 5, but I played Dirt 3 on the PC. My feeling is that the surrounding graphics were improved, but I think the gameplay is the same, I have tried Dirt 3 on PS3 but only with a DS3 (at a friends place), it was easier on PS3 with the DS3 than on my PC with the DFGT.

I have no experience with NFS S2, so I'll just put them in 1 v 2.

Physics/handling
1. gt5
2. d3

GT5 has this hands down, Dirt 3 is nearly impossible to handle the cars, I could with a DS3 and all settings almost off, but for my PC version with the DFGT It became pointless, I basically had everything on, and it was like driving an automatic, that braked for you. This also means I highly reccomend the PS3 over the PC version.

AI
1. D3
2. GT5

GT5 seems to have simple/basic AI, this isn't true, but I think that the D3 AI is probably as hard or a bit harder, but it's difficult to say because the game is just that much harder.

realism
1. GT5
2. D3

The same friend who was a top gun at D2, played D3 and said 'I don't know what happened', the controls ruin the realism to it, again with the learning curve of a brick wall, I did overcome this with about 3-4 hours playing at another friends EB Games store, so it is possible to eventually be awesome at it, but GT5 is just something else, and I'd say that the rallying in GT5 isn't that far off D3s (excluding the scenary, and list of rally cars).

fun factor
1. GT5
2. D3

I was tempted to put D3 at 3, but what's the point. GT5 is much more fun, but for people who really like a challenge, D3 will 'always' give that to you, GT5 'can' give it to you as much as you want, make it as hard as you want, D3 is just plain and simply hard, the whole time, or, too easy (all assists on too easy).
cbrown119
lastlty, I have both s2 and gt5. gt5 has rally racing already. Wouldn't that be the same as dirt 3? Or am i missing something with d3?

thanks.
Click to expand...

Look, if you want rallying exclusively, I don't think anyone in their right mind could say that GT5 has 'better' rallying than D3 - more satisfying for me, absoloutley, simply because of the better controls, but D3 does the physics, and scenary, and cars of rallying more extensively that GT5. IMO, GT5 does rallying good enough, and I regret buying D3 for the PC. I might not regret going out and finding D3 on the PS3 now, but I won't do it, GT5 is enough for me.

Hope that helped, let us know what you decide, I won't reccommend D3, but if you do buy it, its possible eventually that you'll enjoy the game.
 
Yeah, I read all of the thread just now, and realised the OP had already bought the game.

It isn't a total loss, but I just don't think there's much point to it, there's the online aspect which according to someone else here has dried up? I never got into it and bought the game when it was new (for only $60, and that's here in Australia, so saved about $25-$30 from new), I think learning the games basics is hard enough.
 
Bought D3 complete edition today. Not bad with my ds3. Only for the love of rally car engine's sound this game is a win for me. Why tuned cars don't sound like that in GT5??
 
Just purchased D3 Complete and for my money I feel I've gotten enough, went online at some point and while it wasn't crowded I got into a couple of games with about other people.
 
Apollo87
Just purchased D3 Complete and for my money I feel I've gotten enough, went online at some point and while it wasn't crowded I got into a couple of games with about other people.
Click to expand...

Pretty fun isnt it!
 
Good game without all the assists, remove assists and it's more realist, just use abs... one strange think all cars got the same driving behavior

i purchase it and not get dissapointed
 
I just ordered a copy of the complete addition - should be arriving by Wednesday, can't wait :)
 
Not realy sure that GT5's physics can be said to be better than D3's - especially not on gravel. I find that in GT5 the car has a swivel point at the centre, which feels very unrealistic when braking.

Online modes were a bit limited if you don't like sharing with rammers - having said that though, hardcore mode was pretty good.
 

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