Burnout Paradise
Burnout Paradise, the 7 game in the Burnout series, is not necessarily the most unique racing game, but is still worth your time regardless. For those of you not familiar with the Burnout series, Burnout is an arcade-style racer with high speeds and dramatic crashes. It uses a boost system, which is built up by performing various stunts, such as air, drifting, driving on the wrong side of the road, near miss, and various other stunts.
Gameplay
Building on the gameplay outlined above, Burnout Paradise incorporates the familiar boost system with several different event types. These events include the standard race, Road Rage, in which the goal is to ram off a set number of opponents in alloted time; Marked Man, in which the player must reach a checkpoint while AI cars attempt to run them off the road; Stunt Run where the player must build multipliers by performing stunts, and Burning Routes, car-specific rushes to checkpoints within a time limit. These events are scattered about the environment, spanning an urban area that flows into the winding roads in the mountains.
In addition to the 120 single player events, there are upwards of 300 (there are DLC updates to increase that number) online “Freeburn Challenges” that are extremely diverse in terms of goals. Goals can run the gauntlet from something as simple as using boost, or so complex as pulling a barrel roll through a suspended fuselage in an airfield. These are very fun, and always give a sense of accomplishment upon completion. There is some frustration derived from uncooperative players online, but this is to be expected in dealing with the Internet, and its fine denizens.
Sound
Adequate, but definitely nothing special. Soundtrack is hit and miss. From classical music to Avril Lavigne's “Girlfriend,” there isn't always the best music, but luckily the playlist is customizable. As you would expect, Guns N' Roses “Paradise City” is the theme of the game. The sound effects are nothing special, they are the simple “vroom” and “crunch” that you would expect. Only complaint is DJ Atomika. I cannot explain it. He simply defies explanation.
Graphics
This game has some of the best racing graphics on the 360. I dislike comparing graphics in games to other games, so I will simply say these are wonderful. Very little pop-up, very infrequent glitches, technically sound. The crashes are honestly something to behold. Watching the game switch into slow motion, watching in morbid anticipation as your car slams into the divider, watching your hood crumple and your windshield fly into pieces. When not in head-on collisions, watching your car flip and fly wildly about in space, end over end. The only major complaint I have about the graphics is the fact that there are no PEOPLE in the cars. They are ghost cars magically driving themselves around. A little disconcerting.
Replayability
With over 420 challenges, online and off, there is certainly plenty to do in this game. 80 something cars to unlock, there is no way you can possibly run out of things to do in this game.
Value
Available for $29.99 on PSN, and around that price on 360 new or used, this is a very good choice for a new console owner. With Criterion promising more updates for the game throughout the year, there is always something that gives you a reason to come back to this game. I have spent almost 40 hours in this game, more than any other 360 game. A very good value for everyone.
Burnout Paradise is certainly a good game. Despite DJ Atomika, and the various minor quibbles about the graphics, the massive number of challenges, and consistent updates, along with the low price point, Burnout Paradise is certainly worth your purchase, if not at least a rental.