After the disappointing OnRush, Codemasters had to get their Codemasters Cheshire (formerly Evolution Studios) back to work. Fortunately, the next gen ‘was on its way, and it was high time to go back to woo car-loving players. DiRT 5 has therefore arrived on the market, and by dropping its Rally suffix, the title announces that it will no longer be a question of simulation, but of fun old-fashioned arcade. The series therefore puts forward everything that made the salt of previous opus, with slippery surfaces (earth, snow or ice), and a wide selection of all-terrain vehicles taking a little of everything that is done on the market. So we unplugged our steering wheel, and we took out the controller to see if this DiRT 5 was indeed the first racing game to earn the next gen label. Here is our verdict.
Having received the game before having the ninth generation consoles available, we therefore trusted our PC to give us an overview of the graphics capabilities of this DiRT 5. And it must be said that on this point, we have no not disappointed. Ok, other car games have a splendid rendering (mention for Assetto Corsa Competizione), but we can tell that the developers at Codemasters Cheshire have gone all out to celebrate their return to the arcade, especially in terms of effects. Tested in 4K on our PC equipped with a GeForce RTX 3080, all options fully, and at an average of 80 FPS, we took full advantage. The models of the cars are impeccable, but it is above all the different circuits and their specific weather conditions that seduced us. With dynamic weather (without affecting the grip conditions), the game gives us sacred panoramas, and can even make driving devilishly more complex due to phenomena that will complicate our vision. Thus, sandstorms and other blizzards are not uncommon, and when you do not know the route by heart, you will have to take many glances on the map in order not to miss a turn.
When the weather is warmer, we will enjoy the Northern Lights which illuminate the skies of Norway or the fireworks in China. The play of light is particularly convincing, especially the reflection of our headlights on snowflakes during blizzards, which creates a real wall of light right in front of our hood, further complicating visibility. Despite the mention of the presence of ray tracing during the promotion of the game, we did not see an appropriate option in the settings, which leads us to think that it may be a feature reserved for AMD clients, the game displaying the red logo when launched. Anyway, we will have nice reflections in the puddles, and in the bodies of the cars as long as we have opted for a very shiny paint. It’s hard to say that DiRT 5 is a graphic slap, but it is clearly at the top of the basket when judged in terms of graphics.
SLOW PUNCTURE
There is no doubt that owners of ninth generation consoles will find their account there, especially given the lack of titles that offer big visual improvements compared to the previous generation. But unfortunately, the dress does not make the monk, and the game does not turn out to be so impressive in all areas. Our first disappointment concerns the countryside. Yes, it is full of races, but ultimately only offers three types of events: races, gymkhana and fairly classic sprints. We would not have formalized on a simulation, but when we claim to be in the arcade, we would have liked to enjoy a little more. Especially since we are not really motivated to progress, the best vehicles being easily unlockable, and the scenario reduced to heartache. It is all the more unfortunate that the studio had sold the dream, with Nolan North and Troy Baker at the key. These are present, but are content to deliver a few lines of dialogue when walking through the menus. No cut-scene is present, and their characters are never embodied in the game. We will be content to race against everyone at the end of their career. Yes, it is rather skinny. And it is not the friends of the YouTube channel Donut Media who raise the bar. James Pumphrey and Nolan J Skyes give us common places to the chain, there too to furnish our escapades in the menus.
Overall, anyone will be able to complete laps and win races in DiRT 5, so much the game forgives all mistakes.
We could at least have consoled ourselves in the game, but here too the shoe pinches on many points. The AI will probably jump out in the eyes of most players, as the latter seems so amorphous. The bots go around in circles, showing no offensive or defensive behavior. Worse, we have even seen AIs get out on their own, or crash at each turn in the same bend. In short, you will have understood it, the pleasure will be especially solitary in DiRT 5. Fortunately the feeling of the vehicles raises the level a little. If the big all-terrain does not offer much interest in terms of piloting, the rallycross supercars, or the ultralight buggies raise the level a little, just like the Midgets which do wheelies during the starts. Overall, anyone will be able to complete laps and win races in DiRT 5, so the game forgives all mistakes. Here no need to have any notions of speed, trajectory or other, since it is often enough to turn the steering wheel at the right time to pass the bends without even letting go of the accelerator. In addition, the AI is so easy to pick up that we can easily distance it, which leaves us free to drift at the end of the race in order to kill time.
OF FUEL
Even removing all piloting aids, Codemasters Cheshire’s game hardly exudes any piloting feel, which quickly becomes boring. The only interest is ultimately to tour the 10 destinations, the many cars present, and take charge of the 3 or 4 that stand out a bit. As you can see, unless we are looking for the platinum trophies we will quickly turn to multiplayer, in order to experience yet another disappointment. Already, the servers are particularly sparsely populated, and it will often take a long time to find a race. Once the game has started, our excitement will immediately subside in the face of players for whom the absence of a penalty system turns all races into one. demolition derby in good standing. Thanks to a cosmetic-only damage system, your opponents will have no qualms about playing bumper cars, which totally ruins the fun of the race. After a few games, you will have understood that the key to victory lies in a perfect knowledge of the tracks, in order to know where it will be the most judicious to place deadly collisions, and how to obstruct as best as possible. The best solution is often to take advantage of an accident to take off, or to wait for the leading pack to crash in order to pass calmly. Here again, racing enthusiasts will quickly turn their heels. But then what remains in DiRT 5 to make us vibrate? Not much to be honest.
Redemption comes to us in the form of Playgrounds mode, which is probably the most arcade of all. Here, DiRT 5 ostensibly eyeing the side of Trackmania with a new gameplay that revolves around the time trial on incredible tracks made by other players via an editor integrated into the game. The latter is also really easy to learn, and the community had a blast with lots of challenges to complete. Rid of moldy AI and malicious competitors, we can finally taste the joys of arcade piloting in increasingly tortured playgrounds. Super narrow tracks filled with obstacles, monstrous jumps, a Hot Wheels circuit course, the Playground mode is super rich and has the necessary tools to guide the player in the jungle of content. It will be possible to filter by type of event, car, and much more to find new activities. Better still, when we like an event that we have just finished, the system manages to offer us similar activities, and the relevance of the offer is very encouraging. In short, this is where we will spend most of our time, even if we have not yet found a level that integrates changes in weather and the day / night cycle. We hope that these features will be added, and that they will not remain confined to the single and multi modes of the title.
