This year's Gamescom opening night started things off a bit counter-intuitively with its preshow. Kicking things off with an announcement for DIRT 5, the next installment in the beloved offroad racing series.
The trailer included some of the game's trademark racing and terrain, but then it revealed a brand new special feature: a brand new course creation mode called Playgrounds. It appears that players will be able to make their very own racetracks, complete with ramps, hoops, loops, and jumps straight out of a deranged stunt show. The trailer continues to show a robust sharing system where players can share their racetracks online.
DIRT has been a beloved series developed by Codemasters going as far back as 1998, thanks to its impressive dedication to realistic rally race physics. This has helped it stand out among other racing sims such as the European raceway focus of the Gran Turismo series or the in-depth vehicle authenticity that has been the Forza Motorsport series' claim to fame.
It's a good thing that this installment is trying out something so bold since the last installment in this series was DIRT 4 all the way back in 2013. That is a complete console generation ago. In a way, this is a good thing. Seven years of absence can lead to fans being recharged and excited for a new installment, while also currying the favor of new potential fans who are looking for that particular itch the series is known to scratch.
As for the new Playgrounds mode, it looks like a fantastic way for players to have fun with the physics engine and create some utterly bonkers obstacle courses for friends and rivals to enjoy. Playgrounds is included in all versions of DIRT 5, and the creations of players on current-gen consoles will be carried over when you switch to next-gen consoles.
DIRT 5 is scheduled to release October 16th on current and next gen consoles. If you pre-order the Amplified Edition, you will have access to the game three days early.
