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BURNOUT REVENGE (PS2)
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Publisher: EA.
Developer: Criterion Games. Released: September 2005. Genre: Racing. Other versions: XBOX. Posted 27th November 2012. By Chris Weatherley © 2012 |
The modern thoroughbred racing game can be basically split into two camps, arcade or simulation, and for me the arcade style has produced the best titles. The early-to-mid 2000s saw an influx of excellent 3D arcade racers all vying for top spot in the wake of 1995's Daytona USA and the Ridge Racer series. Released in 2001, Burnout was one of the early showcases for Criterion’s Renderware graphics engine, the other more famed title of the year being Grand Theft Auto 3, and like the infamous GTA, Burnout had a little controversy about it too; chiefly the detailed depiction of crashes and impact damage. Instead of pure racing, you were actively encouraged to damage other vehicles and drive as mentally as possible to rack up the points. Competition between the racing titles was strong however, and the original Burnout was overshadowed by the huge success of Gran Turismo 3: A-Spec. Several sequels followed the original and gained a popular foothold in the racing genre. Burnout Revenge was the fourth instalment of the now-established series, and added even more excitement to the unusual approach the game takes. Boasting all the trademarks of its predecessors, does Revenge leave a skidmark on the tarmac of racing game history once and for all?
The original Burnout was known for its graphical quality, a superb if absurd sensation of speed but mostly the fact that you have to deliberately drive dangerously to make progress. The sequel expanded on this, introducing the controversial ‘Crash’ mode, and the third instalment changed things even more obviously, the ‘Takedown’ (the ability to cause rival racers to crash) being the most prominent. Revenge takes all these elements and expands it yet again. The feeling of speed has been enhanced and is one of the finest of all arcade racers. The tour mode is lengthened, alternate races and tracks are introduced, and as hinted in its title, the main addition is the revenge factor. During races, if you are ‘taken down’ by a rival, they become a target for you in the race, with the aim to get ‘revenge’ by returning the favour. Maximum points are awarded for ‘ultimate revenge’, which results in the opponent’s vehicle exploding. This is an exciting addition and really gets the emotions going, forcing you to drive harder, faster and more reckless. Other differences from the previous games include the ‘vertical takedown’, where you land on a rival after a jump, and the ‘checking’ of non-racing motorists trying to enjoy a quiet drive in the city. Checking involves slamming into such a vehicle from behind, thus barging them out of the way. In the previous games, this would result in a crash, but not in Revenge. It’s a foundation within the gameplay, and like drifting, jumping, and driving against traffic, fills up your turbo boost gauge. New crash junctions have been envisaged for ‘Crash’ mode, new mode ‘Traffic Attack’ has been added, as well as a whole new compliment of vehicles at your disposal to obliterate. There is certainly plenty of different things to achieve, making it the most extensive Burnout title yet.
The original Burnout was known for its graphical quality, a superb if absurd sensation of speed but mostly the fact that you have to deliberately drive dangerously to make progress. The sequel expanded on this, introducing the controversial ‘Crash’ mode, and the third instalment changed things even more obviously, the ‘Takedown’ (the ability to cause rival racers to crash) being the most prominent. Revenge takes all these elements and expands it yet again. The feeling of speed has been enhanced and is one of the finest of all arcade racers. The tour mode is lengthened, alternate races and tracks are introduced, and as hinted in its title, the main addition is the revenge factor. During races, if you are ‘taken down’ by a rival, they become a target for you in the race, with the aim to get ‘revenge’ by returning the favour. Maximum points are awarded for ‘ultimate revenge’, which results in the opponent’s vehicle exploding. This is an exciting addition and really gets the emotions going, forcing you to drive harder, faster and more reckless. Other differences from the previous games include the ‘vertical takedown’, where you land on a rival after a jump, and the ‘checking’ of non-racing motorists trying to enjoy a quiet drive in the city. Checking involves slamming into such a vehicle from behind, thus barging them out of the way. In the previous games, this would result in a crash, but not in Revenge. It’s a foundation within the gameplay, and like drifting, jumping, and driving against traffic, fills up your turbo boost gauge. New crash junctions have been envisaged for ‘Crash’ mode, new mode ‘Traffic Attack’ has been added, as well as a whole new compliment of vehicles at your disposal to obliterate. There is certainly plenty of different things to achieve, making it the most extensive Burnout title yet.
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Racers find themselves sandwiched in the middle of a gangland shoot-out
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These elements make the game far more interesting and enduring than the first two games, but just gives a sense of being a bit crowded next to Burnout 3: Takedown. The slight improvement in the visuals is fine, the general tone is a bit more sinister than before but the backdrops and track details are glorious. There is a little more freedom to the courses too; shortcuts and alternate routes are bountiful, including some great opportunities for massive car carnage. Making a return is the ‘Impact Time’ camera and the utterly ridiculous but explosively entertaining ‘Crashbreaker’. These again are a fun, if slightly time-consuming part of the game, but used correctly can create some spectacular results in addition to the regulation racing action. This can cause a lot to be going on and does clutter the screen occasionally, causing you to loose your bearings somewhat following a respawn. That said, the overall layout is perfect, the necessary gauges not hindering your view but clear enough to glance upon, and most importantly, none of the busyness of the environment detracts from the sheer sense of pace. It’s very quick indeed, and the blurred, eye-watering effect of the boost is expertly implemented. A few problems do occur though with the external camera views. The action can become lost behind buildings, other cars sometimes appear to re-spawn in front of you, and falling off cliffs/intersections can momentarily cause the camera to get stuck between graphic layers. These issues are not common however, and with excellently arranged presentation screens, instant replays and a little cheeky added finesse, it’s all rather impressive and easy on the eye.
EA employ their generic jukebox music player, much like the FIFA Football series and so we have a choice selection of dance, indie and mixed rock tracks to listen whilst rampaging over the hilltops. Some tracks are class, some twaddle, and there’s very little in the way of specifically composed music for Revenge. The SFX are excellent and exciting, fitting the feel of things. The boost blasts, crash noises and even the selection sounds are pretty cool. During the game, the sync does tend to lapse with the effects, most notably when boosting and when using the ‘aftertouch’ function during a crash. A bit of lazy programming here maybe, but little much else to complain about.
EA employ their generic jukebox music player, much like the FIFA Football series and so we have a choice selection of dance, indie and mixed rock tracks to listen whilst rampaging over the hilltops. Some tracks are class, some twaddle, and there’s very little in the way of specifically composed music for Revenge. The SFX are excellent and exciting, fitting the feel of things. The boost blasts, crash noises and even the selection sounds are pretty cool. During the game, the sync does tend to lapse with the effects, most notably when boosting and when using the ‘aftertouch’ function during a crash. A bit of lazy programming here maybe, but little much else to complain about.
The air is always crisp and breathable, as appreciated by this mad driver
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3 points on the licence...
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What doesn’t escape criticism are selected parts of the core gameplay, namely the ‘checking’ of other vehicles. Takedown didn’t have this, and so was tougher as a whole, but constantly knocking the cars out of the way gets tedious after a while. The ‘Traffic Attack’ mode, whilst a bit of fun at first, gets dull quickly. Yes, the game’s concept is outrageous to begin with, but smashing into a 7.5 tonne truck and sending it spinning to its doom is too much, even in the immortal realm of the Burnout universe. I much preferred the challenge of avoiding these, adding to the intricacy of handling the awesome speed. The worst thing is, this cannot be disabled either, which would have been a real simple fix. Some really enhancing features have been put into Revenge, but this is detrimental to the overall play, and something I believe was removed from further titles in the series.
Highly accomplished in many areas, Burnout Revenge has a few flaws that mean it doesn’t reach the pinnacle of what the Burnout series has to offer. The primary tour mode is long enough to keep your attention despite being a touch easy in places, but with the amount of signature moves, takedowns, awards, modes and targets to achieve, to fully complete it does take some degree of skill and time. Multiplayer is always fun, split-screen or online, with all the elements of the race mode included, and still retains that wonderful brain-warping hyper speed, which coupled with the impact damage, is the series’ fundamental attraction. Burnout Revenge is a high-quality racer, no doubt about it, and even with the barmy and unnecessary ‘checking’, it fractionally beats its predecessor right on the finishing line.
Highly accomplished in many areas, Burnout Revenge has a few flaws that mean it doesn’t reach the pinnacle of what the Burnout series has to offer. The primary tour mode is long enough to keep your attention despite being a touch easy in places, but with the amount of signature moves, takedowns, awards, modes and targets to achieve, to fully complete it does take some degree of skill and time. Multiplayer is always fun, split-screen or online, with all the elements of the race mode included, and still retains that wonderful brain-warping hyper speed, which coupled with the impact damage, is the series’ fundamental attraction. Burnout Revenge is a high-quality racer, no doubt about it, and even with the barmy and unnecessary ‘checking’, it fractionally beats its predecessor right on the finishing line.
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VERDICT
Visual: 9/10
Audio: 8/10 Gameplay: 8/10 Longevity: 9/10 OVERALL: 8/10 |