Please note: My "3 hours played" is not accurate - I have about 40 hours on an alternate account. I had to register my press release key on an alternate account as I had DiRT4 already preordered on this account._____________________________________________________A lot of people have asked me to write a review on this game. I'm really not a review kind of guy - in fact I think I've only done one review before this. However, having played rally games since 1998, perhaps my input can be of some aid to those who are hesitant to spend money on this title. I also have 1777 hours played in Dirt Rally. I feel that this helps a little in forming my opinion on the game.I'll keep it simple. I will list the pros and cons. While subjective, I don't feel like they're biased because I love the DiRT team, though perhaps because I love rally titles.Let's start off with the pros.·Rally school. (or DiRT academy I guess) is highly informative and will teach you some really helpful techniques, narrated by Jen Horsey. No matter how experienced you feel in the art of rallying, it certainly can't hurt to brush up on your skills. I picked up on a couple of things myself I never thought I'd be able to do.·The improvement of handling over DiRT Rally. This includes cars having actual weight, improved aerodynamics (no more randomly bouncing off protruding rocks at the roadside, no more mid-air turning when taking jumps at an angle), more realistic braking distances. The DiRT team have done their homework, and it shows. It feels amazing regardless of what car I am using. Mind, I'm not exactly a fan of modern cars, but so far even those have been enjoyable to me, which was unexpected.·Career mode. By far the best one I've ever seen in a rally game - and I haven't even played through it yet! I think I came about halfway (40 hours played on a separate account upon recieving an early press release key), so it will take a while. You can choose whether to compete with your own (handpicked!) team, or be a driver for hire and race for other teams. You can improve your staff, as well as upgrade your staff's facilities. Nice one, Codemasters.EDIT: How could I forget to mention this! You get to choose your own team name! You also get to choose team colors for your car, as well as numbers, patterns... your name will be put on the side window of your car (or the front fender, depends on the car!), and you can also choose what colors these should be! There's so much lovely customization here. You can choose up to four separate colors for your team's livery, and whether they should be gloss, satin, or matte to the finish. There's also metallic and carbon finishes.·Upgrade system. This too is a massive improvement over Dirt Rally. The cars no longer have bad performance as you buy them; they're quick from the word get go. The upgrade is of their parts. Bad parts makes them more prone to breaking down or cause issues on the stages. Good parts last longer and will not break as easily. And it really makes a massive difference. I will give a prime example; I attended the weekly Group A event last week (before game release), with a sh*tbox Ford Escort Group A that I had bought used for an owners' club daily. The game warned me that its equipped parts were substandard, but I didn't take much note of it. By my logic, as long as I was driving well, the car would hold up. Nuh-uh. Halfway through the rally, my rear suspension collapsed! I later learned that it was both of the rear springs that had snapped. I had to drive over 5 kilometers with this and it was the most agonizing and amazing virtual rally experience I've ever had.·Damage system. If my above story didn't convince you, I don't know what will. It's just on a completely different level than Dirt Rally. Driving through night stages with bad parts in your car can be especially interesting. Lights can start flickering randomly, or cut out completely. The intercom between you and you co-driver can also stop working at times. You will have misfires even though you're fresh out of service. Yesterday I was on Twitch, and saw Quirkitized become absolutely thrilled as he wrecked his first career event by plowing into a tree at speed and being forced to retire.·The immersion. I have driven through stages where birds near blocked my view, where helicopters actually did block my view by blowing up dust in my face. Animal crossings. Drivers waving for me to slow down, because they've broken down or crashed ahead. Low-flying drones nearly clipping my car. The co-driver moving his (or hers) lips when talking. The look of commitment on the drivers' face. Driving up to the marshal after crossing the finish line. The service area; the fact that you can clean your car between stages! It all adds up into a beautiful experience.·The improved graphics. This seems to be one of the topics people moan most about, but like it or not - the graphics really are improved. I've seen enough Dirt Rally to know this without any doubt in my mind. The reflections are beautiful, the lighting is gorgeous. Textures are crisp. Granted, I cannot max the details in this game, but someday I will...·Your stage. It's better than I expected. I've enjoyed many, many stages from this tool and put on Youtube - and there'll be more to come!·Improved sounds. These become most apparent when using dashcam or headcam, but they've improved the noise of several cars as well. The Ford RS200, Lancia Delta S4, Lancia Delta Integrale, Seat Ibiza Kitcar, Lancia 037, Peugeot 205 T16... to name a few.·The soundtrack. I'm liking all the music I've heard in the game so far, and that's rare. Especially in a rally game.·Improved force feedback. I set it up the same way I did in Dirt Rally, and it feels a lot better; more refined. I especially like it on tarmac. I feel the car perfectly through the wheel.If you'd like good wheel settings, take a look at gheeD's & Kakkela's guide here:I think that's all for the pros. Now for the cons, of which I can think of three... plus a tiny one.·The rear end grip. It's a little too much, and it regains way too quickly after performing a handbrake turn, or any kind of slide really... why they've done that I cannot fathom, but I am fairly confident that we will see a fix of this. If not... well, I'll probably keep playing, but be a little disappointed as well.·Sweden. It's a little too dumbed down and simple now. I wish for punishing snowbanks, but now you can just drive over them like it's nothing. It is not my favourite location thanks to this, so I choose Wales as my favourite instead.·The tarmac. While they did improve the feel of the cars, and the FFB (massively!) - watching the replays, the movement is still off. It feels good, but looks wrong. Pretty much. I shouldn't be bothered about movement, but I just am. Shame on me.·Please let me disable the mouse cursor! :DWell, I hope this review has been helpful to somebody.I give it 8/10. Best rally game I have ever played.