Monday, February 9, 2009

Burnout's Back Baby!

It's pretty hilarious how one simple addition breathed new life into a game I used to love and loathe at the same time. Now it's just love all the way.

Burnout Paradise, released over a year ago, is surprisingly engrossing, especially so for a decidedly different take on the "drive this car to the finish line" formula. Instead of racing in a point A to point B style like, oh I don't know, a normal racing game, Criterion decides to mess with our heads and tell us "Just get to point B. I don't care if you go through points A, C, D, Omega, or Niner. Just get there."

Yes, this racing game takes place in a city that you navigate for missions ranging from a simple race to a death match on wheels traveling through the streets of Paradise City like a pestilence.

The only problem at first? As you complete missions, you earn points towards upgrading your license, from a lowly Learner's Permit to D to A and eventually the Criterion Elite License. The easiest way to progress is to beat one and move on. At first, when you fail a mission, you can easily move on to another. this becomes a problem later on when you've completed a large majority of the missions, so you'll have to drive long distances just to get a new one.

The new February update adds the ability to restart failed missions. This greatly improves the way you play the game in case you fail a mission.

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