Codemasters apparently could not wait any longer for fans to get a taste of what to expect, with the upcoming release of Dirt 3 set to arrive this Tuesday in North America and Friday in Europe. With the press embargo lifted early, a number of reviews are hitting all over the place; and the initial take on the title is exceptionally positive with all of the early reviews giving the game ‘9s’ and using words such as “Excellent” and “Outstanding.”

The news had to be very good for Codemasters, who are looking to capitalize on the significant success that Dirt 2 had last time around. Dirt 3 is said to build upon Dirt 2, but bring in some of the old rally racing elements that fans of the previous releases felt were missing from Dirt 2 with its far more X-Games like approach. Dirt 3 also still features Ken Block and the Gymkhana-style stunt driving that he made famous as a new addition for this release.

The game adds more cars, locations, routes, and events than ever seen in any previous release. The game will be available for the Xbox 360, PlayStation 3 and PC when it arrives later this week. With all of the praise that the title is receiving, it is definitely one title that is worth checking out if you are a racing fan.