Colin McCrae DiRT 2 Announced

Since the release of Codemasters' DiRT, its inspiration Colin McRae was tragically killed in a helicopter crash. Codemasters continue his off-road racing legacy by announcing Colin McCrae DiRT 2.

In an interview with IGN, DiRT 2's executive producer Gavin Raeburn had the following to say about the upcoming game and their decision to retain its affiliation with McCrae;

"The decision was made jointly between Codemasters and the McRae family. His ventures into events such as the X-Games, Dakar Rally and the Race of Champions have inspired us to look at events covering the extremes of off-road motorsport. This is where we're taking the series with DiRT 2 and Colin will play a part in that. DiRT 2 will be a great tribute."

DiRT 2 will see a number of improvements over its predecessor. Codemasters' EGO graphics engine had already been tweaked for GRID, and due to developments in multi-core programming, DiRT 2 will experience further enhancements in lighting, textures and geomtery.

The instant replay options found in GRID will make an appearance too, along with vastly improved online play. You'll no longer have to race against time-trial ghosts, with the addition of competitive online racing: why this was missing from the original game, we'll never know.

For more information, please head on over to IGN for their interview with Gavin Raeburn. DiRT 2 will be released for the PlayStation 3, Xbox 360 and PC in 2009.