Codemasters Sure Like Their Yellow Filter Don't They?

That, right there, presented in glistening digital format, is your first look at Codemasters’ DIRT 3. We’ve known that the rally franchise was getting a sequel for some time, but we’re about to get a better idea about the game’s direction this weekend. The game’s set to air its debut trailer on ESPN during the X-Games. No doubt it’ll be on YouTube within minutes.

Until then, you’ll just have to enjoy this little tease-shot.

Race Driver: GRID's Still One Of The Best Racers On PS3. Shame It Doesn't Have Trophies.

Rejoice fans of good racing games – there’s a new GRID title in development at Codemasters’ Southam studio. The game’s being worked on alongside the already announced DIRT sequel. Get in – the more caps-locked four-letter racing franchises from Codies the better.

The news comes from Codemasters’ SVP of production, Jamie Macdonald. In an interview with Develop, the Codies man revealed:

“We’ve got a major launch with F1 coming up in September and developed at our Birmingham studio and we hope to draw new IP from there. Our Guildford studio is working hard on Bodycount, and we will be looking to to take that franchise further and further with the addition of more IP.

“In Southam it’s full steam ahead with the next iteration in our Flashpoint series, as well as the next Dirt and Grid. It’ll be interesting to see how it all pans out.”

So yes, we neglected to mention, there’s also a new Operation Flashpoint in the works. Well, the last one wasn’t terrible, so fair play. We’re just not half as hyped about that as new DIRT and GRID titles. Eeee!

DiRT 3 Is In Development At Codies. Hurrah!

Codemasters’ VP Gavin Cheshire has confirmed that DiRT 3 is absolutely in development at the studio.

Speaking with EDGE on the studio’s status as one of the last big publishers based in the UK, Gavin stated:

“Really, it’s all about letting the teams just innovate. There’s some great stuff coming from Birmingham that’s going into Dirt 3, and obviously you’ve seen Bodycount.

“I guess in today’s world, every day you’re dealing with people from all over the world. So it’s a British company and the last bastion of British publishing, and there is some pride in that, but it doesn’t take control of your life.

“It’s about the culture we’ve created and making the best games you can. Dirt 2: brilliant game but it’s all American accents, so maybe we’re a little over the top with those. Maybe we should fly the flag a bit more.”

We weren’t necessarily offended by the “USA-USA!” nature of DiRT 2, but we did love the driving mechanics of the game, so we absolutely look forward to a follow-up.