We have a deep admiration for Dirt, Codemasters' spiritual successor to the Colin McRae Rally series. Its developers dropped most of the technical aspects from the earlier games in favor of a terrific, hassle-free arcade racer with a huge assortment of events and plenty of competition. Now comes the superior sequel, Dirt 2.

You begin the game in a beat-up trailer that serves as a real-world hub. From there, you head outside to choose your vehicle and modifications to make it run better. Then it's time to hit the road and choose from over 100 single player races.

Don't be afraid to kick up the tires. Click to see more images from the game...

You can take your time and get the hang of the tracks with Free Rides or Time Trials, compete against opponents in a Rally Cross race, crush Styrofoam barriers in Gate Crasher, survive an insane round of Last Man Standing, accept a personal Throwdown from a fellow racer and more. Events spread across the country, from the dusty hills of Morocco to the neon-lit streets of Tokyo to the grassy fields of Croatia. The more you race, the more your skill set improves and the more events open up. Soon enough, you'll take on the world's best in the X Games tourneys and beyond.

All of this is useless without good gameplay. Fortunately, Dirt 2 doesn't disappoint. It handles extremely well, no matter which vehicle you drive. Mitsubishis, Subarus, rally trucks...they're all excellent. Once you get the hang of how your vehicle performs on jumps and curves, you'll be on your way.

If it's realism you crave, turn on the damage to avoid heavy collisions with walls and other cars; hitting them too much takes your car out of the race. If you prefer an easier ride, you can turn on visual damage, where you see your vehicles fall apart but they stay up to speed. Variable difficulty levels are also available; the higher you go, the more cash you'll earn.

Along with the single-player campaign, Dirt 2 provides plenty of online features. You can meet up with friends and goof off in a Jam Session, or try something more competitive like Skirmish, Time Bomb or Ruckus. If you want something simpler, you can post your best racing times against others around the world via leaderboards.

The real-world hub looks spectacular, as it draws you in and makes you feel like you're in the midst of a racing circuit. The attention to detail on the tracks is also top notch. All of them resemble their real-life locales, especially London. Other touches are worth noting, including fireworks that explode when you cross the finish line, the visible damage that your vehicle collects with each crash and cool replays. In addition, the game moves at a fluid pace, and has several camera options, from behind the car to in the cockpit. (For good measure, you can decorate your windshield and dashboard with goodies, like dangling dice and an Xbox Live Avatar.)

Although the music isn't the best we've heard (mostly bland alternative tracks), the dialogue recorded by your fellow drivers sounds terrific. They'll provide advice, give you a heads-up on what's next on your agenda and, once you befriend them, show concern. We actually felt loved when Jayde Taylor went, "Whoa, are you okay?" after taking a nasty header into a wall.

All of this combines to form a wonderful racing experience that Colin McRae would be proud of, so pick up Dirt 2, rev some engines and enjoy one of 2009's best.