Racing fans with PSVR headsets have a new reason to get excited. Codemasters is bringing its highly-rated rally game, Dirt Rally, to the PlayStation VR platform “in the coming weeks.”
Dirt Rally isn’t new to the PlayStation platform. Codemasters brought the action-packed rally game to consoles in April 2016, and it quickly became the highest-rated racing game on Sony’s platform. Codemasters followed up the console launch with the July launch of Dirt Rally on Oculus Rift, which we tried and loved.
In my review of the game, I wrote, “Dirt Rally VR is definitely an experience worth trying out. I give high praise to Codemasters for the excellent job porting Dirt Rally from 2D screens to VR HMDs. Racing up a mountainside road at breakneck speeds in virtual reality is a visceral experience. If racing games are your jam, don’t pass this one up.”
Now, the developer is preparing to bring the VR rally experience to the living room. The Dirt Rally update for PSVR brings the console version of the game up to par with the Oculus Rift release. The update lets you play through the entire game in virtual reality, including casual races, championships, and daily/weekly/monthly leaderboard challenges in rally, rallycross, and hill climb disciplines.
The PSVR version of Dirt Rally goes a step further than the Oculus version does. Codemasters leveraged the PSVR’s Social Screen feature to enable localized multiplayer rally racing. The social screen gameplay scenario puts the driver inside the VR headset, while a second player uses a controller and the TV to fill the role of the navigator. The Social Screen player sends the driver instructions to help navigate through the often-deadly course at breakneck speeds.
During my time with Dirt Rally on the Oculus Rift, I found the navigation instructions were difficult to follow, but it's also critical to understand them correctly. Putting the instructions in the hands of another player sounds like complete chaos, but it would sure make for a fun group experience. The timing of the instructions is crucial, and receiving correct instructions is also of the utmost importance. When playing solo, you may have a hard time interpreting, but at least you know that the instructions coming in are on time and accurate. If you’re relying on your buddy for those instructions, you better find a friend who you can trust not to mess with you and purposefully send you off the mountainside.
Codemasters didn’t reveal the exact release date for Dirt Rally PSVR, but the company said that the update should land “in the coming weeks.” The PSVR update comes in the form of a paid DLC update for digital copies from the PlayStation Store. Codemasters is also prepping a new boxed version of the game, which includes the updated content on the disc.
