4Players: The driving physics of DiRT were a mixture of simulation and arcade with a slight focus on the latter - especially when you think of the "wonder brake" which seemed to be very unrealistic. Did you change anything about the driving physics?
Gavin Raeburn: We always try to make our car physics as accessible, intuitive and fun as possible, starting from a realistic physical base. For DiRT 2, we've completely overhauled our car physics model to deliver greater depth and accuracy, which makes the cars feel even more intuitive and natural to drive. We believe DiRT2 will deliver handling that will appeal to a broad spectrum of racing fans.
4Players: Some players like it more the arcade way. Some prefer an accurate simulation like Richard Burns Rally. How difficult would it be to deliver a hardcore simulation and an arcade racer in one game? Or have you ever discussed the idea to split the Colin franchise into separate arcade and simulation games like Electronic Arts plans to do with Need for Speed?
Gavin Raeburn: No, we don't feel that is the way forward for our game. The balance between arcade and simulation in our games is something which we look at closely and with DiRT2 I think our car handling and vehicle physics are much more advanced than they were in DiRT. Weve spent a lot of time working on tyre physics, which obviously has a big effect on the way an off-road vehicle handles, and this means that driving in DiRT2 is more realistic than it was in the original game. However, we concentrate on making sure the game experience is as accessible and entertaining as possible, and in that respect we're making a much more mainstream game.
4Players: Race Driver: GRID offered an amazing crash experience and gave players a chance to rewind scenes. Do you have similar plans for DiRT 2?
Gavin Raeburn: Both DiRT and GRID are developed by the same team at Codemasters Racing Studio so both benefit automatically from the cool tech we develop for each of them. As a result, the Flashback system we developed for GRID was available in DiRT 2 from day one and is now being expanded with additional features and functionality. More details soon.
4Players: Your EGO engine is a very powerful tool which is capable of delivering stunning graphics. What kind of progress did you achieve in technical areas since the first DiRT and GRID?
Gavin Raeburn: Following what was widely hailed as an impressive debut of the EGO Engine with DiRT, we were able to make key improvements during the GRID project which lifted the quality of the game to a level we were very happy with. The development team have learnt a lot from the development of GRID, and have strengthened massively in their ability to get the most out of the hardware, notably pushing SPU usage on PS3, improving multi-core performance on Xbox 360 and adding PC specific features and technology. In DiRT2, we're building further on these changes to the engine, adding more physical modelling of the environment, improving lighting and shadowing, and some fantastic water physics, plus were broadening the use of our streaming system to allow much higher texture detail. Overall these changes mean we are pushing the boundaries of what is possible with the hardware as much as possible, and we're confident in our ability to lift the quality bar again. We think you'll be very pleased with the results!
4Players: If somebody asked you what makes DiRT 2 special compared to other offroad racing games like Motorstorm or Pure - what would you answer?
Gavin Raeburn: The easy answer is our emphasis on realism - both the games you mentioned are set in fantasy environments and that makes them a very different experience. In DIRT2, all our cars are fully-licensed offroad vehicles and all our tracks are real-world locations, painstakingly researched and recreated by our track design and art teams. For me, that's what makes DiRT2 so special - we let the player perform amazing feats in real cars on real tracks.
