Colin McRae: DiRT, or DiRT as it's more often referred to, was one of those racing games that seemed to go down a treat with racing fans thanks to its addictive arcade gameplay and rather luscious visuals. Since then, Codemasters have of course given us GRID in 2008, yet another of their top quality racing titles.

Codemasters' latest racing outing DiRT 2 is more a combination of both previously mentioned games, giving us the DiRTy and approachable gameplay from the original DiRT whilst incorporating some of the more welcome additions that first made an appearance in Race Driver: GRID.

For those petrol-heads that have played Codemasters first DiRTy outing, they should feel right at home with the sequel, although naturally being 'the sequel' there are some subtle differences.

Gameplay:

The menu navigation has taken on a somewhat 3D aspect from the typical expected 'flat' menu, instead you move around your caravan in essentially a first-person perspective to navigate the DiRT Tour, multiplayer modes, options etc. Certainly the more distinct difference from the original is the more 'laid back' or 'extreme sports' vibe that the game seems to embrace with its flashy fireworks and driver chatter, that is, as opposed to the more serious tone of previous racing titles that bare the legendary Colin McRae name – although gameplay wise, DiRT 2 still handles and plays just as well as the original.

There's a few things carried over from Codemasters 2008 racer, GRID; that's mainly the rewind feature, which depending on difficulty gives you a specific amount of 'flashbacks' to use up which enable you to rewind time just enough to fix a potential devastating mistake. One of the other noticeable things is the sometimes unpredictable A.I., which can randomly make mistakes and crash. These are certainly welcome additions to DiRT 2, the further that games can push away from typical 'flawless' A.I. behaviour, the better. Sorely missing from the original DiRT was any form of online competitive multiplayer racing, Codemasters have rectified this now with several options available in DiRT 2 for online racing to cater for upto 8 players with a matchmaking system in place.

The DiRT Tour, which is where most will likely be spending their time, essentially sees you as a new driver, of which you get a few options to put in your name, pick your flag and a catchy nickname (I'm “T-Bag”), which you'll hear frequently used in the menu between races, and even during races from the other drivers. The DiRT Tour is fairly simple, there's several locations marked on a map including the likes of London, Los Angeles, Baja, Japan, China, and a few more. Each location naturally has a distinct different environment to race in. Baja is perhaps the one that stands out the most, like the original DiRT, it is here where you'll get access to buggies to plough through the sand. The other mentioned locations mostly see you in a typical rally car, although it's the environment and track layouts that drastically stand out.

With racing events to compete in from across the globe you'll be seeing the bright lights, tall building and dark cities, to racing through a jungle, and as you win races you quickly accumulate experience which further unlocks new racing events, challenges from other drivers of whom over time will become your friends to issue out the occasional 'throw down' 1-on-1 challenge. Gaining experience naturally unlocks some new vehicles over time, as well as some goodies to decorate your rides with, including liveries/paint-jobs, dash and windscreen items, the latter enables you to have your Xbox LIVE Avatar hanging from the wind-mirror, which is fairly 'cool', that is until you crash for looking at yourself too much.

Each location has a set amount of events to race in, as you rank-up by gaining experience, new events will become unlocked, the further you progress a further two tiers will be added to the standard Rookie one, these are Pro and All-Star. Essentially these are here to offer up more of a challenge, as well as some new tracks to offer up a change of scenery. Although, whilst you'll be travelling the globe to compete in racing events there's also several X-Games and World Tour tournaments to compete in, by this time you'll be seeing racing on a late of the same old tracks. There only seems to be a limited number of tracks to race on per location, there's not a great deal of vehicles on offer either. You can navigate and purchase what's on offer from your earned money from winning races, though there's not much incentive to do so, as when you open up the next tier or require a more powerful vehicle as you rank-up, you simply have the option to fork out to upgrade your existing rides. Fortunately though the gameplay is addictive, and certainly a joy to play which outweighs any lack of variety.

After each race you have the ability to view, but not save your replay. This is a massive shame, as the game looks rather stunning, and the replays while you can only watch them after a race give you some basic options for changing camera angles and speed, but alas, there's annoyingly no save feature present to look back on some of the more memorable moments from the DiRT Tour or competitive online races.

Graphics:

There's nothing quite like driving through the off-road and muddy terrain with some dirt hitting your windscreen in the passing breeze. Much like the original, the sequel looks rather stunning, with environments such as the rather well lit jungles and the bright and moody atmosphere of Japan and all of its many buildings and spectators, as well of course the typical DiRTy terrain to plough your tyres through some mud.

Naturally the in-car view has of course returned, and one of the more interesting aspects is the ability to have your Xbox 360 Avatar hanging from your wind-mirror. Perhaps visually though, one of the most noticeable things, and noticeable because you can't see where you're bloody going for a few seconds is the many puddles that are scattered throughout some of the tracks. Racing through at top speed and hitting a puddle (whilst in the in-car view) will have it splash on your windscreen, which temporarily blocks your vision and ensues a brief moment of panic as your windscreen wipers do their job – it's rather heart-pounding stuff though on some occasions, especially if it's your first time on the track. Although you could just press LB and be a sissy by using one of the other viewpoints, and miss the finer details of the in-car view.

Sound:

DiRT 2's audio does its job to a high calibre, from the swooshing of splashing puddles hitting your windscreen, to the engine noises, spectacular crashes and of course, even honking your horn (which by unlocking can include some basic comedic horn sounds to an ice cream truck's horn).

More interesting though is the voice-overs, you'll be hearing Ken Block regularly as well as many other drivers including the likes of Dave Mirra who is perhaps more famous for his BMX antics. Drivers will frequently shout out support or even some trash talk should you accidentally or not bump into their ride. Naturally the more rally focused races will have you side-by-side with your co-driver, who as expected barks out instructions at you so you know what lays ahead. It all comes together rather well and creates a bit more of an atmosphere during races.

Compared to the original DiRT, the sequel does seemingly take more of an 'extreme' approach, with that said it is somewhat disappointing then that the game's rather fitting racing music which is featured in the menus is not playable during actual races. Naturally Xbox 360 racing enthusiasts, as always, can play their own soundtracks at least.

Longevity:

With the DiRT Tour being the main focus for single-player, there's certainly plenty to keep the player busy with events, challenges from other drivers, X-Games and World Tour races, as well as of course competitive online multiplayer, which was something severely lacking from the first titles outing. That repetition feeling can quickly kick in though if you're focusing your attention primarily on one location at a time, with that said, don't, it's best advised to skip around the different locales doing an event a time to try and break some of the tracks apart.

Overall:

If you're not so fond of the realistic or simulation based racers such as Forza Motorsport or Race Pro, and prefer the more approachable, and more importantly arcade racers such as the likes of the Project Gotham Racing series, GRID and of course the original DiRT, then Colin McRae: DiRT 2 will certainly appeal as the finest racer of 2009, even if it is somewhat over shadowed by the dated original.