Genre: Racing
Developer: Codemasters Cheshire
Publisher: Codemasters

At times Dirt 5's amateurish sky boxes and full bright appearance during certain scenes make the game look quite ordinary. But flip to the post processing-filled cockpit view during a mud track in the rain during dusk, and you will see some of the most sophisticated lighting to ever grace the medium: the HDR contrasts between light and dark are astonishing. The use of volumetrics for rocks and mud means every single car can throw vast quantities of road substance without tanking performance, and the ray traced shadows are on yet another level from there. The only knock is that the tracks are so filled with detail, even including flora, that it's often difficult for the eye to trace the intended route ahead.

Long-time gamers will fondly remember the peerless chemistry between the fictional "NFL 2Kx" announcer duo of Dan Stevens and Peter O'Keefe: but behold, here come Nolan North and Troy Baker as they present a fictional podcast series-- from a hilariously named "Donut Media"-- which is the vehicle via which the game's story is delivered. Its authenticity is astonishing, especially in the way it integrates real world guests such as Jamie Chadwick. The game's soundtrack is a mix of beer commercial, stadium, soul, pop rock, and low-fi indie music. Like the 3DO's "Road Rash", the licensed music here "just works", with songs like Jack White's "Over and Over and Over" or Child of the Parish's "Thread in the Needles Eye" fitting the title's ethos perfectly. The songs even play out of loud speakers during the races, and the 3d positional audio is fantastic.

Dirt 5's campaign mode involves selecting from a series of colorful icons, each representing some kind of event-- like driving rally cars over an icy lake, or doing an uphill climb in dune buggies-- which are won to earn money. There are many racing disciplines on offer, but unlike the more structured approach of let's say "Project CARS", Dirt 5's progression feels somewhat scattershot and random, almost like what one would find in a mobile game. The good part is that the car physics strike that "Sega Rally" sweet spot three quarters towards the "arcade" side of the spectrum, yet the title can also be quite convincing in cockpit view, with manual gear shifting enabled. The PlayStation 5 controller's advanced rumble features are used to nice effect-- although the game's often confusing tracks could really use the traditional co-pilot navigator voice.

Because Dirt 5 makes no simulation bona fides, it has a wide open road to toss insane amounts of bombasticity into its gameplay: outrageous jumps which would kill a real-life human occupant, confetti flying through raging lightning-filled hail storms, and dynamic weather and time of day which changes lap-to-lap; because why not? And yet, the game has just enough of a physics engine behind it to lend a kind of satisfying believability to proceedings, as the player unlocks more and more story-progressing podcasts. There is even a fun in-game stage editor, to go along with full split-screen support, a photo mode, a livery editor, and lots of other small but appreciated touches. Even though and like most of Codemasters's games, Dirt 5 is more of a genre "filler" title than a game changer, it's a fun way for racing fans to spend their time waiting for "Gran Turismo 7".