So, I've been giving it my best on Dirt 3, but there just wasn't that same excitement that Dirt 2 had, and still does have. This article expresses pretty much all of the same squabbles that I have with Dirt 3. I think I might sell it. 
 
Am i missing something? Does anyone else hate it here? Why shouldn't I sell it!? 
 
Other people feel the same way: 
http://www.racedepartment.com/dirt-3/55751-dirt-3-visuals-big-disappointment.html 
http://www.overclockers.com/forums/showthread.php?p=6869915 
http://forums.steampowered.com/forums/showthread.php?t=1903142 
 
It seems to me that it's preferential in some ways.

I would be enjoying Dirt 3 if it didn't crash at the loading screens =/
 I don't really agree with any of the points in the article.  The game just feels like more Dirt 2 to me, not a weaker game.

Dirt 1 > Dirt 2 > Dirt 3 
 
Seriously.

Dirt 3 makes me feel like a bad ass race car driver. Dirt 2 also did this but I didn't feel quite as bad ass. I enjoy Dirt 3 more.

That article didn't articulate anything. It just threw out some general statements. Kind of sounds like the writer just doesn't like change. Should've voted republican. 

What a laughable "article". Those points are beyond ridiculous "Dirt 2 looks like Crysis 2, Dirt 3 does not" ... bwahahahaha.
 
I didn't like Dirt 2 at all for it's emo-rock theme, the cumbersome menus and the tracks which were hardly rally-inspired. Dirt 3 has much better rally-vibe again like Dirt 1 had. Plus, weather and night races are awesome, controls are better, graphics are better, menus are better, tracks and locations are better.
 
So yeah, I like Dirt 3 MUCH better than 2.

As someone who typically avoids racing games, I thought Dirt 2 was tremendous fun, kinda catching me off guard with the whole X-games culture, which I thought worked really well for it. 
 
Dirt 3 is more of the good stuff, but different. I can't say it's possible to love everything about both games, which is kinda why I respect Codemasters for taking the route they did. Some minor changes to the presentation and it feels like a fresh game, it's totally bizarre. The biggest problem I have with 3 is the music, it makes me think I should be wearing  Burberry and Adidas, eating at MacDonalds while harassing some old people. Where as Dirt 2 didn't :P

Dirt 1 > Dirt 2 > Dirt 3  Seriously.

Plus, weather and night races are awesome, controls are better, graphics are better, menus are better, tracks and locations are better.  So yeah, I like Dirt 3 MUCH better than 2.

The only thing I'm really missing in DiRT 3, and this could be something that pops up later on, are the longer Rally Cross races. All of the Rally Cross tracks so far seem really short. That's totally a minor squabble though, I love the game so far. 

The only thing I'm really missing in DiRT 3, and this could be something that pops up later on, are the longer Rally Cross races. All of the Rally Cross tracks so far seem really short. That's totally a minor squabble though, I love the game so far. 

@CptBedlam said:

Plus, weather and night races are awesome, controls are better, graphics are better, menus are better, tracks and locations are better.  So yeah, I like Dirt 3 MUCH better than 2.

Did you notice that the controls are super sensitive in Dirt 3? They're so touchy, but I haven't figured out a way to turn down the sensitivity :( 

Not sure if trolling, but that article could have been written by a 12 year old. How are the graphics worse? I think he's just bummed about having an online pass now so he wrote that pointless article. 
 
I would rather have more tracks, albeit shorter, than the same 4 tracks over and over. The soundtrack is completely subjective, the graphics are slightly improved, the menus are a million times better and the gymkhana stuff adds a nice variety to the gameplay. How is Dirt 3 worse when they are almost the same game but with different tracks.
And yes I did all 100 races,(not just 5) and got all the gold medals in Dirt 2, I love both games but that "article" is stupid.

@Progn0sticator said:

The only thing I'm really missing in DiRT 3, and this could be something that pops up later on, are the longer Rally Cross races. All of the Rally Cross tracks so far seem really short. That's totally a minor squabble though, I love the game so far. 

Exactly, I loved the >20 minute hillclimbs etc. in Dirt 1.

@drewmaw said:

@CptBedlam said:

Plus, weather and night races are awesome, controls are better, graphics are better, menus are better, tracks and locations are better.  So yeah, I like Dirt 3 MUCH better than 2.

Did you notice that the controls are super sensitive in Dirt 3? They're so touchy, but I haven't figured out a way to turn down the sensitivity :( 

I don't know, I'm totally fine with the controls. Try out different car classes (some handle somewhat smoother) and turn off the driving assist options. Also, I use the hood view for driving - it's a big difference when it comes to how I feel the steering between the hood view and the 3rd person view.  

@CptBedlam said:

@drewmaw said:

@CptBedlam said:

Plus, weather and night races are awesome, controls are better, graphics are better, menus are better, tracks and locations are better.  So yeah, I like Dirt 3 MUCH better than 2.

Did you notice that the controls are super sensitive in Dirt 3? They're so touchy, but I haven't figured out a way to turn down the sensitivity :( 

I don't know, I'm totally fine with the controls. Try out different car classes (some handle somewhat smoother) and turn off the driving assist options. Also, I use the hood view for driving - it's a big difference when it comes to how I feel the steering between the hood view and the 3rd person view.  

Yeah, i'm familiar with the variety of cars from Dirt 2, but I've gone back and compared them, just to make sure it wasn't me, but the cars are much more twitchy feeling, I can't seem to get control of the cars like I could in Dirt 2. 

...because there always has to be a naysayer.

Dirt 2 was a bloom filled teenage fantasy with annoying celebrity endorsements, and shitty punk rock blasting everywhere. You can't talk about artistic value when the lens flares take up half the screen and the color palette is predominantly brown... wait.

"In Dirt 3, the handling controls are more difficult and twitchy. The cars’ handling physics are more simulated. In fact, there are a number of courses in Dirt 3′s rallycross courses that are ALL TARMAC! I didn’t realize that I was buying Tarmac 3!?"

All opinions of the idiot who said it, the idiot who blogged about it, and the idiot who made this thread are disregarded from this point on.

I find the lack of being able to buy vehicles and the attachment you get from it has really lowered my overall interest in the game. 

I also find the controls to be very sensistive and didn't see a way to turn it down.  And I would hazard to say that the cars I've driven so far have all performed the same no matter what class it is.  Seems everything is just overjacked to keep the speed up or intensity if you want to call it that. 

Dirt 3 isn't really what I had expected.

That article didn't articulate anything. It just threw out some general statements. Kind of sounds like the writer just doesn't like change. Should've voted republican. 

I stopped reading that article the moment he said the graphics on dirt 2 were better.

I completely disagree with that article. The most important aspect, for me, in a driving game, is the feel of the car and the way it controls. Dirt 1 was terrible, it never felt like I was actually controlling the car, but just turning it on its axis and the game would decide that I should turn.
Dirt 2 cars were too loose and twitchy to the point that i would do 360 turns on every jump just to amuse myself.
Dirt 3 cars are still just a bit too loose for me, but it's soooo much better than 2. I'm really enjoying myself, and I don't think I'll be done with the game for a long time.

I am enjoying Dirt 3 more.

You wrote that article, didn't you?

Dirt 1 > Dirt 2 > Dirt 3  Seriously.

Psshh ... I don't agree at all with that blog especially the bit about the graphics being worse.
 
My main issue with Dirt 3 is the way the single player is handled.  I just liked the trailer idea more than the triangles, and the music in Dirt 2 wasn't perfect, but it was miles better than the crap in Dirt 3. 
 
I also don't really care for the Gymkhana ... thing ... either.  All I really want is rally modes, not trucks and trick sessions. 

So, just taking the line from the article: 

There are many reasons why Dirt 2 is superior, namely the graphics, the car handling, the tracks, the artistic direction, the multiplayer, the sounds, and the overall learning curve are near perfect.

• The graphics aren't worse. It's just a fact.
• The handling is very slightly different, and any quality differences in the changes are mostly subjective.
• The tracks are better, There are more of them, they are more varied, there are less billboards and less fireworks.
• Artistic direction is an opinion, I prefer it because Dirt 2's art direction was the only thing I disliked about that game.
• The multiplayer is essentially the same.
• The sounds are as good as ever.
• Different difficulty settings mean the difficulty curve is as steep as you want it to be.

even if Dirt3 was worse, which it isn't to me, it would be made up completely by Gymkhana, and knowing that the driving and feel is better than Dirt2, AND has gymkhana, I have to say Dirt3 is so much better so far. 

I played Dirt 2 for about 15 minutes before deciding to never play it again.  I just hated the whole X-TREME feeling of it.  The only thing I haven't enjoyed about Dirt 3 is it constantly reminding me to upload stuff to YouTube.  That and the events are a little repetitive in the beginning.   
 
I love, LOVE, LOVE driving the older cars.  If given the choice for an event, I'll always go for the '60s and '70s cars.  Or the Cosworth, mmmmmmmmmmmmm.  I can drive an Impreza anytime but that old Mini and other bits of rally history are just really cool.   
 
I do miss some of the event types from Dirt 1 though.  There seemed to be a lot more variety in that game compared to the next two.

@Chabbs0 said:

Dirt 1 > Dirt 2 > Dirt 3  Seriously.

Hehe. You are kinda right.  Finished Dirt 1 to the last race, played Dirt 2 for 2-3hrs, not interested even trying Dirt 3.

I haven't played Dirt 3 so i can't say, but aren't there much more focus on actual "Rally" In Dirt 3? The 2nd game had to much focus on the X-games and stuff. If this is true Dirt 3 will be better for me.

You wrote that article, didn't you?

@iAmJohn said:

You wrote that article, didn't you?

Dirt 2 was a bloom filled teenage fantasy with annoying celebrity endorsements, and shitty punk rock blasting everywhere. You can't talk about artistic value when the lens flares take up half the screen and the color palette is predominantly brown... wait.

"In Dirt 3, the handling controls are more difficult and twitchy. The cars’ handling physics are more simulated. In fact, there are a number of courses in Dirt 3′s rallycross courses that are ALL TARMAC! I didn’t realize that I was buying Tarmac 3!?"

All opinions of the idiot who said it, the idiot who blogged about it, and the idiot who made this thread are disregarded from this point on.

Play what yea like, i like both games and will play them both.

I stopped reading that article the moment he said the graphics on dirt 2 were better.

@onarum said:

I stopped reading that article the moment he said the graphics on dirt 2 were better.

I'm wanting to get DiRT3, so is the article just bullshit? I kind of find it hard to think a game can get worse in graphics unless they completely change the engine

Play what yea like, i like both games and will play them both.

@chilibean_3 said:

@iAmJohn said:

You wrote that article, didn't you?

Heh, if you go to http://www.vidgees.com/author/drewmaw/, you see all posts written by Andy Williams aka drewmaw. So yes, he did write it.

I had a very strong distaste for the whole "slam a Monster energy drink and get xxxtreme at the xgames" bro culture that it was trying to push, it felt very much like they were trying to sell the game to the type of kids  that watch Spike and G4TV.  I really enjoyed some of the rally tracks that were in it but everything outside of racing in Dirt 2 became obnoxious so fast.  Even if all else was considered equal, just the design choice for the UI in Dirt3 makes it a superior game for me

So far I really like Dirt 3, more than Dirt 2 certainly. I'm not really feeling the GymKhana thing, but that;s only a small part of the game.  Overall, it's great. I think Dirt 3 is just a little more untraditional than the previous versions.  The way cars are unlocked for instance....  But that doesn't mean it isn't good.

So far I really like Dirt 3, more than Dirt 2 certainly. I'm not really feeling the GymKhana thing, but that;s only a small part of the game.  Overall, it's great. I think Dirt 3 is just a little more untraditional than the previous versions.  The way cars are unlocked for instance....  But that doesn't mean it isn't good.