“Ben” Sulayem featured in DiRT 2 video game

Codemasters today announced that rally racing champion Mohammed “Ben” Sulayem has been signed on as one of the key motorsport athletes who will be featured in Colin McRae: DiRT 2, the sequel to the little-known off-road racing game.

“Ben” Sulayem, a 14-time FIA Middle East rally championship winner, will be the first Arab racing celebrity to debut in a racing videogame. Codemasters revealed the announcement at Virgin Megastore in Mall of Emirates.

Mohammed “Ben” Sulayem, Middle East Rally Champion, has been working closely with Codemasters’ team to develop a digital version of himself.

Colin McRae: DiRT 2 will feature a roster of contemporary off-road racing events, taking players to the most diverse and challenging real-world environments. This World Tour will have players competing in aggressive multi-car and intense solo races at extraordinary new locations, from canyon racing and jungle trails to city stadium-based events.

“Codemasters is delighted to have entered into this partnership with Mohammed, Nissan and PlayStation for the launch of Colin McRae: Dirt 2 in the Middle East. Codemasters has a reputation of producing the world’s leading racing games and Colin McRae: Dirt 2 is the epitome of our development technology”, commented Hal Bame, Director Distributor Territories Codemasters. “We believe the entire GCC region is at a tipping point in the video game industry and plan on investing heavily in product, on-line and overall marketing activity, in order to maximise what we feel is a market tailor-made for Codemasters’ portfolio of products, including our official Formula 1 game lineup in 2009 and 2010.”

A Colin McRae: Dirt 2 regional virtual racing competition on PlayStation3 will kick off across the region in September 2009. The winner will drive off with a brand new Nissan Z sports car, a version of which is featured in the game, likely a 370Z.

“We are delighted Codemasters chose to use the famous Nissan Z sportscar in the latest version of its renowned rallying game” said Monal Zeidan, a Nissan Middle East marketeer.

Colin McRae: Dirt 2 is scheduled to be released in September 2009 for the Xbox 360 video game and entertainment system from Microsoft, the PLAYSTATION 3 computer entertainment system and Games For Windows LIVE, Wii, Nintendo DS and PSP.