If you have to pick: Dirt 2 or Forza 3

[JeffL]

I know this is an apples to oranges question, but I'm gonna ask it anyway:

New 360 to go with my PS3. I'm going to pick one racing game to play (not forever, just for now. ;) ) I have Forza 3 that came with my 360 bundle, and I can get Dirt 2 pretty cheap (a coupon.)

I like "career" type play in games like this. I'm not really hung up on extremely realistic details (i.e. having to set up every little detail on the car in order to have a chance to win, details being things that require me to read a reference book to truly understand.) But I don't want it to feel like Mario Kart either.

So - Dirt 2 and Forza 3 both seem to get really good reviews. They are very different in their scope and the cars covered, obviously. But I'm asking for opinions: which is the better overall "game?"

Thanks!

[McKnight]

Forza 3.

That is all.

[Kool Moe Dee]

Forza 3.

That is all.

Agreed.

[Telefrog]

They're both pretty different experiences.

If you go for more of a traditional Burnout/Need for Speed career progression and unlocks, then Dirt 2 is what you want. Keep in mind that the presentation is very "Tony Hawk XXTREME" and might be a little grating.

If you want car porn, attention to detail, a more sedate presentation, and a ton of car customization, then Forza 3 is your game.

[rei]

I hate the sterility of Forza 3 so DIRT 2 is my preference. Rally car racing is my preferred discipline as well.

[BobJustBob]

Forza has unlimited rewind and a non-awful presentation, so Forza.

[sventest]

I love both but I would give Dirt2 the nod for "fun factor".

[Fugitive]

As others have noted, they're really too different to say whether one is really objectively better than the other. But, based on your criteria, I'd lean towards Dirt 2, as it seems to be better at fun-per-race and a more structured career mode. F3's career does try to present a variety of stuff, but it does feel at times like it's just throwing random races at you.

Forza 3 is better when it comes to longevity though, as it has a gazillion different events to do and a strong online community. So, play Dirt 2 first and then try F3 for a while since you already have it anyway.

[Paul_cze]

ummm, need for speed shift? : )

[Skipper]

I'm unsure why you would not just try Forza 3 first since it comes with the bundle, so the cost to play is included in your new $360 anyway. If you don't like it you could always pick up the second game? Is your gaming time limited or something else I'm missing?

[sinfony]

The correct answer is Need for Speed: Shift. And I say this as somebody who pre-ordered Forza 3 and really liked it.

[Rock8man]

NFS: Shift will always be there. No need to play it first. As will Dirt 2. I say play Forza 3 first. Then Dirt 2. Then NFS: Shift. I think you'll enjoy all 3 if you enjoy racing games. (However, if you play NFS: Shift first, it could potentially ruin Forza 3 for you in some ways).

[fuzzyslug]

I'll go with and.

[ElGuapo]

I've played a bunch of racing games recently. In order, I'd rank them:

For the racing experience, physics, graphics, and sound:

1. GRID
2. Need for Speed: Shift
3. Project Gotham Racing 4
4. Forza 3

If you are a car nut and want to race stock, off the street cars:

1. Forza 3
2. PGR 4
3. Need for Speed: Shift
4. GRID

[Harkonis]

Forza 3

[DennyA]

Forza 3.

Then pick up Split/Second.

[MattKeil]

Forza 3, without question.

[Aszurom]

Forza. If you want Dirt too, just pick up Dirt 1 for a couple bucks. It's not an entirely different experience.

I don't get the NFS Shift love though. I've tried and tried and tried to like that game, and just cannot do it. The cars are like they have an axis in the middle of the hood around which the car pivots when you turn. I turned the dead zone up, sensitivity all the way down to like 5%, have fiddled with the linearity, read several setup guides online, just cannot control the cars. Forza, however, is just relaxing to cruise around the tracks in. They're like night and day. What's up with that?

[Rock8man]

Picking up Dirt 1 for cheap is actually a very good suggestion.

JeffL, consider this: Dirt 1 and Dirt 2 each have a lot of courses for you to race. Do you know how many they have in common? Zero. That's right, not even one. This is in contrast to games like Forza 3 and Gran Turismo 4 where the sequel completely eclipses the previous game in the series because they have all the old courses, plus more. So there's no reason to ever go back and play the previous game. But Dirt and Dirt 2 should absolutely both be played and have their own unique charms.

[Wholly Schmidt]

PGR4, Forza 3, Midnight Club LA, in that order.

[spiffy]

Personally I enjoy the offroad ploughing through grass and mud gritting your teeth driving style of racing, so Dirt2 is the easy choice (Dirt1 has more actual rally stages, but control and physics aren't nearly as good). I like Forza, but any time I stray off the racing line and bump something-- which is all the time -- I feel like I'm doing it wrong. Like I'm trying to eat a delicious steak but my mother keeps tellng me I'm holding the fork and knife with the wrong hand, and that I need to alternate every bite with a piece of broccoli.

[djotefsoup]

Forza. If you want Dirt too, just pick up Dirt 1 for a couple bucks. It's not an entirely different experience.

I don't get the NFS Shift love though. I've tried and tried and tried to like that game, and just cannot do it. The cars are like they have an axis in the middle of the hood around which the car pivots when you turn. I turned the dead zone up, sensitivity all the way down to like 5%, have fiddled with the linearity, read several setup guides online, just cannot control the cars. Forza, however, is just relaxing to cruise around the tracks in. They're like night and day. What's up with that?

Active steering (http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=wVkxSZoHbYY).

[merryprankster]

Get Shift! That game is amazing, Definately the most intense driving game I have ever played. THe sense of speed is just unmatched. Forza seems pretty tame by comparison. If you get it for a PS3 maybe I will have someone to race....it's awfully loanly on the ole PSN :(

I Really lke Dirt 2, but to be honest there are not really a ton of tracks or cars so it is kinda short lived. The career is OK, but pretty soon it's jus doing the same runs over and over. That being said what there is in Dirt to is pretty exciting. Lots of sliding and crests and it is a blast to fly along through the rally stages on the edge of control.

[jfletch]

If you are more of a car nut than a gamer, Forza 3. If not, Dirt 2. Forza 3's career mode was mind-numbingly boring. By season 3 I just couldn't take it anymore.

[squirrel]

Forza for me, but I have Dirt too. They're both really good, I prefer Forza for the additional stuff (Livery editing mostly) and the car selection, plus it's really more involved.

Hard to go wrong with either really. If you're a car/racing nut, get both.

EDIT: I have Shift as well and it's what goes in when I've had a few pints and I want to get loose in a car. Get that too! In fact if you can only get 2 get Shift and F3. Dirt isn't quite as good as either really.

[Cubit]

Forza 3.

[JeffL]

Hmmm. Great feedback, thanks.

More info on what I'm looking for: I probably won't play online much, so I'm focused on the single player game. I think, for the mood I'm in now, I'm more into the career progression aspects than the cool car aspect.

[sinfony]

NFS: Shift. Forza's career is sterile, interminable, and doesn't have a lot of variety.

[djotefsoup]

Dirt 2's single player could be finished in a rental time frame - or at least you would see all the art assets in a long weekend or so. I'm not sure it's really a great full price single player only game, fun as it is.

[merryprankster]

NFS: Shift. Forza's career is sterile, interminable, and doesn't have a lot of variety.

Yeah, Shift has a XP system that is pretty good at sucking you in, as well as a lot of really cool events that help keep it fresh.

[Brakara]

Haven't played Dirt 2 (just the demo which didn't grab me), but Forza 3 is great.

[JeffL]

Hard to tell from the reviews: can someone talk about the "career" aspects of each of these three (Dirt 2, Forza 3, NFS:Shift?) My ideal racing sim would be one in which you start as a poor driver with no endorsements, racing on the low end racing circuits with pretty crude cars, and then as you progress you pick up endorsements and money and move up the racing world in terms of the racing series in which you race.

[Telefrog]

Neither Dirt 2 nor Forza 3 has a career that works like that.

Dirt 2's career progression works more like a Tony Hawk game. You unlock venues and tracks as you gather more XP. You buy new cars with the money you win, but none of them are really much better than the starter vehicles. Just different. Since they're rally cars, they're all competitive.

Forza 3's career starts you in a slow car racing small races against other slow cars, but you can buy a really fast car and move to high-speed races as soon as you can afford it. You could also stick with the slow car forever and just race at that level. It's all up to you.

[djotefsoup]

Dirt 2 sounds like more the thing then. It's very personal, has that kind of cash-strappedness for a fair way into the game, sponsors matter, other drivers have speaking parts in and out of races, etc. It's pretty slick but you need a high tolerance for hanging out with extreme duders.

Shift doesn't really personalise things to the same way, money becomes unimportant quite quickly (it is almost impossible not to earn money and even playing solo quickraces will earn it). The narration/race manager cutscenes only turn up at significant milestones but they're quite well done well done, and there's a strong element of personalisation with the different badges/achievements/profile/ai reactions to the way you drive. But it's definitely not about calling you by your first name like Dirt 2 and the other codies games. And sponsors can eat a dick as far as it's concerned.

[merryprankster]

Hmmm...Midnight Club:LA kinda had that sort of career story, kinda. It's very much an arcade racer though, but a really good one. Dirt has basically no career, other than calling you by name. It is really just races for XP that unlock more races. Shift might be the closest, since it is about advancement through tiers, but it's kinda meaningless. Mostly it's just getting cash (which is plentiful) to buy and upgrade more cars.

Shift, Forza and Dirt are really more about the driving model than any real rags to riches career. I would suggest downloading the demos to see which game has handling you like the best. Personally I find Forzas driving a bit stale compared to Shift or Dirt, but Forza has a lot more cars and customization options than the other two. Since none of them really have a "career" per say, I would suggest picking the racing you like the best or just not bothering if you really want a career.

You might want to ask about Test Drive: Unlimited (2 is coming), since I think that gives you more of a character to play. I'm not sure since I never played the first one though.

[Brakara]

For me the most important part of a racer is the car handling, so you should (as merryprankster said) try out the demos first. Personally, I like the way Forza handles a lot better than both Shift and Dirt.