|
The Burnout series arrives on next-generation hardware. On current-generation consoles, Burnout Revenge made things a little faster, made the game a little more intense, and sharpened the graphics just enough that the Burnout experience feels fresh. Burnout Revenge for Xbox 360 makes some improvements to the current generation version including nicer graphics, better sound effects, and some gameplay changes but it may not be enough to purchase if you’ve already played the Xbox version. However, if you have not, Burnout Revenge is easily recommendable.
Burnout Revenge features a new world tour mode. The game now features 11 different ranks for you to go through. You need a certain number of stars in order to be moved up to the next rank, which in turn unlocks additional races. You earn stars by driving forcefully in the different events. The goal is to get four stars per race; you get an additional star if you finish the race with a gold medal. The 169 events in the mode encompass the game’s different events. There’s the basic race, in which you need to place first. Burning laps places you against the clock. In road rage, you attempt to make as many opponents crash as possible. Eliminator eliminates the last place person every 30 seconds. There are crashbreaker versions of these races, which enable you to blow up when you crash thus taking out nearby opponents.
A huge portion of Burnout, some would consider it a bigger portion than the races, is the crash mode. In crash mode, you are placed into an environment and tasked with making the biggest pileup possible. Crashbreakers allow you to make even bigger pileups. The power-ups found in Burnout 3 are gone it a bit more challenging.
The game mechanics of Burnout Revenge have changed since the last version. You are now able to crash into small cars in a feature called traffic checking, allowing you to use these cars are projectiles and slam them into other vehicles. It’s an interesting feature and makes the game a bit more complex. The tracks have also changed considerably. They have many alternate routes, shortcuts, and ramps that allow for some awesome crashes into the ground.
Burnout Revenge features offline multiplayer. The most enticing mode is crash battles were two people can play crash mode simultaneously. Online, the games allows up six players to compete in a number of races including road rage and crash battles. You’ll still have to go through the ranks online, unlocking cars that you’ve already unlocked offline. It is much quicker to do so online, though, and you can set it so you only play with people of your same rank. Additionally, the game gives you separate rating for crash and races, so you’ll be matched up with someone of your same caliber. The Xbox 360 version adds full race replays, the ability to save and edit 30 second clips, and upload these clips to Xbox Live. The game even ranks the most viewed clips. The Xbox 360 version of the game also includes a rivalry system where you’re alerted if a player caused you to crash too many times. If they did, they appear as red in your friends list. You’ll also be able to unlock a number of achievements in the game.
The game’s visuals have been noticeably upgraded from the Xbox version. The car models are more detailed this time around and are a bit more interactive since they break into more and smaller pieces when you crash. They’re still not licensed, though they certainly look the part. The environments are equally impressive with detailed tracks and sharp textures, though they didn’t receive the same upgrade that the cars have. Nonetheless, like with the current-generation games, the presentation is what really enables Burnout Revenge to be set apart. The framerate never fails, and combined with some fancy camera movement and blur effects gives you the impression that you really are pulling off these insane moves. Needless to say, the crashes look amazing.
The game’s soundtrack is quite varied, considerably more so than Burnout 3. It’s noticeably edgier and goes along well with Burnout Revenge’s more aggressive theme. The game’s sound effects were excellent on Xbox, but are even better on Xbox 360. You’ll hear everything as you go by, though the crash effects are particularly satisfying. If you have surround sound, the experience is made that much better. The sound effects are crisper and louder than they were, making the crashes more rewarding than you are used to.
Burnout Revenge is decidedly the most intense racing game available on the Xbox 360. If you haven’t played the game on another console, you’ll definitely want to add this to your collection. If you have, the improvements are worthwhile though it’s kind of hard to recommend the $60 game if you’ve already paid $50 for a similar version.
-- Adam Nunez & -- Jose Liz, PGNx Media
---- Mar 23, 2006
|
