Dirt 3 spinning out May 24

The Dirt franchise has lifted Codemasters to the top tier of racing game developers, ably assisted by the well-reviewed Race Driver: Grid, helping the firm win the Formula One licence to bring the pinnacle of motorsports back to consoles after a long absence.

The long-standing Colin McRae franchise started life in 1998 and gained the Dirt moniker in 2007. Since then the franchise has gone from strength to strength as Dirt has moved from a serious rally sim into a more extreme motorsports festival. Codemasters today confirmed that gamers would be able to see if this trend is to continue on May 24, when Dirt 3 will be released worldwide on the PlayStation 3, PC, and Xbox 360.

Dirt 3 looks to continue the series' move away from pure rallying with the addition of the gymkhana discipline to the event list. This sits alongside traditional rallies, point-to-point races, rallycross events, and more primarily off-road activities in a range of vehicles.

The title was first shown off in a trailer that was released in conjunction with the X Games in August 2010. For more on the Dirt series, check out the GameSpot review of Dirt 2, the latest hands-on with Dirt 3, or the developer diary below.