First Look:

Burnout : Paradise

Everything about the Burnout franchise is appealing.Not too sim oriented but not too Mario cart either.Paridise, is like the big kids arcade racer. It is full of knee jerk obstacles and crazy launches. The soundtrack is perfect as well, bringing you G n R as we are treated to a sprawling aerial view of the city in question as an opener to the more Huntington Beach strut sounds of Rage Against the Machine.This is a great piece of art, fastidiously detailing the cars and their playgrounds. You really do wince when your ride gets too intimate with a barrier or fence as the reflection maps on the vehicles are as alluring as a candy red apple proffered to Adam. Beautiful design all around. There isn’t too much of a story beyond getting all the cars and beeting the chrome off of the urban competition, but thats good. Noone likes a forced and contrived story line, wspecially when it’s not neccessary to advance the game, all you need here is the accelerator.

This is like a Warren Miller film, big air, big jumps, daring to push, your limits to the edge, only difference is that there is no snow and you are carving up the ashpalt in 1.8 tonnes of steel instead of 48” of board.My biggest dissapointment however comes usually during the “Finals” review and is tied into online/multiplayer.....that being said, this isn’t that time yet, BUT I am let down by the lack of multiplayer in this game. You need 2 consoles or a Gold Live membership to head off any living opponents in Burnout Paradise.

The only other design flaw is the fact that there no character models driving the cars. It’s like the traffic jam of the Knightriders. You have a license, there is music and there are voices heard (I think they were from the game), yet there is noone in the driver seat. Unless this Burnout release is an ode to seniors who can’t see over the dasboard ( that would explain the lack of visual confirmation. But if you are fine with the online thing then this is your digital adrenal gland fortification. A franchise built on the wreckage of its players cars, this series has the most spectacular crashes. Metal rending , glass into dust, nitrous shredding high speed. A GAME FOR ANYONE WITH A HIGH DEFINITION SYSTEM.

Gaming

cinematic experience:85%
audio:75%
video:85%
overall design: 85%
sets:90%
characters:n/a
story:n/a
play:90%
replay:tbd
next gen ranking:85%

AS IT STANDS:
8.5/10