Colin McRae MBE 1968 - 2007 Last week I received a media release from Atari and Codemasters, telling me that the long-awaited PS3 version of Colin McRae: DiRT would be released on September 28th. Now it will be a posthumous release, following the death of the rally driving champion in a helicopter accident over the weekend. It has been confirmed that McRae, his 5-year old son Johnny, a 6-year old friend and an adult friend were involved in the fatal accident at McRae's home in Scotland. This morning saw a new media release from Codemasters, in regards to the weekend's events.

Everyone at Codemasters, especially those who worked directly with Colin McRae, is deeply shocked and saddened by the tragic events of this weekend.

The loss of Colin McRae is deeply distressing. That it involved his son and another so young makes it even more tragic. Our thoughts are with his family and those closest to him and we share in their pain.

For over ten years, Colin was part of the Codemasters family and it was a privilege to have a man recognised as a true legend on the team. He always took a keen interest in the game experience, wanting to make sure it was without equal in its portrayal of the sport.

His contribution was inspirational and brought his technical expertise and passion for rally driving to each and every McRae game. Through the popularity of those games, he brought a whole new audience to the sport itself.

Codemasters' relationship with Colin began through Jim, David and Richard Darling and their condolences, along with ours, are passed to Colin's family. We are heavy of heart at his passing but we are also brimming with pride at knowing him and to have played a small role in his life.

He will never be forgotten by all at Codemasters.

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