Dirt Showdown is the latest entry into the Dirt franchise. Once again the series has gone for a more extreme approach to racing and has completely strayed away from its rallying roots. While this new approach may not be a bad thing it does leave the game lacking the usual panache that the series has and if anything it maybe the black sheep of the Dirt family, that no one really likes to talk about.

With the rally events gone the emphases in this latest instalment to the series is aimed more towards collisions and destruction. Tracks tend to be very wide and have plenty of tires and barrels littered around them for you to destroy.

AI opponents are very aggressive and will try there very best to do anything they can to wreck your car. With fireworks going of every few seconds as well it really does make for a violent but entertaining atmosphere.

Going in this bold new direction makes the title a lot of fun, though it just seems so much more simplified than previous games. The handling model is very simple and there is not as big a danger of making an error as most racing titles have. Even in some of the trick events you will find that pulling of donuts and other tricks really requires very little skill at all.

This isn’t to say it handles badly; it’s just different compared to the previous titles and certainly more arcade like. Though with some of the carnage that kicks off during the destruction derby events this is a good thing at times as the game would be very unforgiving otherwise. These destruction derby style events are great fun though they do feel a little lacking as the areas a little too big for the amount of cars on the track, upping the ante a little for these modes would really have helped.

Single player is full of different events from simple 8 ball races, to trick based events (hoonigans). It doesn’t get repetitive as each event is a little different and this keeps things fresh. The events are all fun in there own way and getting to grips with the different types doesn’t take long.

The presentation is spot on with a suitable heavy soundtrack accompanying your destructive antics. The visuals are also pleasing though a few of the tracks do seem a little devoid of detail if you look hard enough but chances are that at the speed you will be going most players may not even notice.

Showdown is all about connectivity as well with YouTube, Twitter and RaceNet integration all available. RaceNet is Codemasters own way of linking the player to the web so they can view stats add friends as well as taking part in exclusive RaceNet events and unlocking special cars and livery for use in game.

This is increasingly becoming standard in many games, though RaceNet so far has yet to pick up on the fact that I have played the game so is a little redundant at the moment.

Dirt Showdown isn’t quite Dirt 4 and I doubt that it ever was supposed to be. In trying something different they have simplified the game and while this makes for a fun and accessible game it won’t tax many drivers’ skill. This is a brave move by Codemasters to try something new with an already established franchise and for the most part it does work. However if you are not into arcade racers than you may wont to give this one a wide berth.