Burnout Video Game Series
A series of spectacular arcade-style car racers. The series was created by Criterion Games studio, which also handles its development. The owner of the rights to the brand, however, is Electronic Arts corporation.
The series debuted in 2001 with the game Burnout, released by Acclaim in versions for PlayStation 2, Xbox and Nintendo Game Cube consoles. The production of the Criterion Games studio gained the sympathy of players due to its unconventional approach to car racing with a focus on risky driving style and destruction of competing vehicles. The success was repeated a year later with the release of Burnout 2: Point of Impact. The publisher's financial problems caused the brand to be taken under its wing by Electronic Arts. This resulted in three more installments of the series included in the mainstream: Burnout 3: Takedown (2004), Burnout Revenge (2005) i Burnout Paradise (2008), as well as spin-offs: Burnout Legends (2005), Burnout Dominator (2007) i Burnout Crash! (2011).
Games in the series Burnout do not have a clearly outlined plot. Instead, players take on the roles of participants in spectacular races, the routes of which generally run along the crowded arteries of virtual metropolises.
The gameplay is geared towards exciting, albeit unrealistic car driving. Most of the games in the series offer many variants of play, both in single and multiplayer modes. One of the most frequently chosen by players is the gameplay option "crash mode", in which not only speed and stunts count, but also the damage inflicted on the vehicles of rivals.
As befits the genre of racing games, players have access to cars that differ in body design and basic technical parameters. In general, the choice of car models is not particularly abundant. There is also a lack of licensed brands, although in many cases you can easily recognize the sources of inspiration of the developers.
On the technical side, games under the banner of Burnout are based on Criterion Games studio's proprietary engine - RenderWare. RenderWarewhose roots date back to the mid-1990s. However, newer generations of the mentioned engine provide audiovisual setting not deviating from the quality standards of competing productions (e.g. from the series Need for Speed).
Burnout Series Evolution
2018
Burnout Paradise Remastered
2011
Burnout Crash!
2009
Burnout Paradise: The Ultimate Box
2008
Burnout Paradise
2007
Burnout Dominator
2005
Burnout Revenge
2005
Burnout Legends
2004
Burnout 3: Takedown
2002
Burnout 2: Point of Impact
Burnout Paradise Remastered
Racing
March 16, 2018
A remastered edition of Burnout Paradise, created by Stellar Entertainment. Apart from the base game, the package contains 8 DLCs. Burnout Paradise Remastered was enriched with upgraded textures and optimized based on the capabilities of particular gaming systems.
Burnout Crash!
Racing
September 20, 2011
A crazy racing minigame which is a spin-off to the popular Burnout series developed by Criterion Games and launched in 2001. Burnout Crash! focuses entirely on the titular Crash Mode which is one of the hallmarks of the franchise. Thus the gameplay here focuses on causing as much damage as possible in collisions on crowded streets. The player is rewarded for being creative when causing road accidents - the more damage one causes the higher their score is. Contrary to all the previous installments, the game features top-down perspective. This affects the gameplay formula significantly, because the player cannot see what is far ahead of them and good reflexes are the key to success here. One is capable of comparing their results with others' thanks to the Autolog system, which appeared first in the Need for Speed series.
Burnout Paradise: The Ultimate Box
Racing
February 3, 2009
A complete edition of the racing game released in 2008 by Criterion Games. The title was a great success and received many DLC expansions during the months following its debut. The game takes place in the titular Paradise City which has open structure and across which the player can freely move while accepting various racing challenges. The title slightly refreshes the formula of the series but without resigning from its characteristic traits, such as the arcade driving model and spectacular traffic crashes. The mechanics of Burnout Paradise: The Ultimate Box are same as in its predecessor that was released one year earlier. However, the game contains all DLC expansions that were previously available only through the PlayStation Network and Xbox Live. These DLC expansions introduce, among other things, motorcycles and night races to the game. The Ultimate Box is the first installment of this popular console series that was released on PC.
Burnout Paradise
Racing
January 22, 2008
The full-fledged sequel to the series of racing games started in 2001 by Criterion Games. The game takes place in the fictional Paradise City, which consists of an island with an airport, a bay with skyscrapers and hills that are free of any infrastructure. The game combines dynamical driving with impressive crashes and breaking the traffic regulations in a way that is typical for the series. Burnout Paradise slightly refreshes the classic formula of the series. One of the main novelties is taking the action to an open world across which one can move freely, completing various challenges. In contrast to the previous games, the gameplay concentrates slightly more on typical races while the Crash Mode (here called Showtime) known from the previous installments is only an addition which can be activated at any moment of the game. The title uses a completely new driving model and physics engine which is responsible for damage model of the vehicles.
Burnout Dominator
Racing
March 6, 2007
Another spin-off to the popular Burnout racing series. The game was created by EA's internal studio, specifically for owners of Sony consoles (PlayStation 2 and PlayStation Portable). As compared to the franchise's previous installments, Burnout Dominator is an unusual game, because it lacks one of the series' hallmarks, namely the Crash Mode, which never appeared before. Instead however, the creators offered four completely new modes, including Maniac, Drift Challenge, Near Miss Challenge and Burnout Challenge. What is more, the burnout effect which was not present in the third installment returns here - it allows the player to activate boost after executing sufficiently dangerous maneuvers. Burnout Dominator does not offer many racing tracks, for it features twelve in total, located in 8 different parts of the globe. Also, the game lacks an online multiplayer component. The only form of multiplayer competition included here is the split-screen mode.
Burnout Revenge
Racing
September 13, 2005
The fourth installment in the bestselling series of arcade racing games, the main selling point of which is causing spectacular traffic collisions. Developed by Criterion Games, Burnout Revenge contains the essence of all the previous installments. The game offers an extensive single player campaign, World Tour, which includes locations based on real-life cities (for example, Detroit, Tokyo, and Rome), a split-screen mode, and a network multiplayer mode. The proven solutions of the game’s predecessors were enriched by previously unavailable game modes and an improved driving model, which perfectly captures the feeling of speed. The list of novelties is complemented by a new, even more spectacular damage model and an improved graphical layer, powered by the engine borrowed from the Grand Theft Auto series. Additionally, Xbox 360 version offers even more spiced-up visuals with increased resolution, and a dedicated network mode.
Burnout Legends
Racing
September 13, 2005
A spin-off installment of the famous series of arcade racing games developed by Criterion Studios. This installment was created exclusively for Nintendo DS and PlayStation Portable handhelds. Burnout Legends is a compilation of the first three installments in the series which were famous thanks to the strictly arcade driving model and very dynamic traffic collisions. The game contains tracks from the previous installments, remodeled to fit the specs of the handheld devices. The title has 9 game modes taken from Burnout 3, including the World Tour championships and the Crash Mode that is characteristic for the whole series. The game also supports local multiplayer. More than 100 car models known from the second and third installment can be found in the garage. The cars are divided into several varied classes (like Compact, Muscle, Coupe, Sport, Super, Race Special and Heavyweight), each of which is best in specific racing types.
Burnout 3: Takedown
Racing
September 7, 2004
A third installment in a popular series of console racing games, originally launched in 2001 by the British studio Criterion. Burnout 3: Takedown is the biggest game in the series, sporting an impressive set of more than 70 cars, divided into 12 categories, and 40 varied racing tracks on three continents. The list of game modes was also updated, with an overall of 9 single-player modes and 7 multiplayer ones, in which up to 16 players can take part. The biggest emphasis was put on the trademark of the Burnout series, the Crash Mode, which also underwent some changes and improvements. Among them, the most important are the ability to enable the afterburner in any moment of the race, the ability to control the vehicle during the crash to cause even more destruction, or pick-ups, increasing caused damage and increasing the final score.
Burnout 2: Point of Impact
Racing
September 30, 2002
A sequel to an arcade racing game by Criterion Games, whose main selling point is the advanced damage model and the spectacular crashes resulting from it. Burnout 2: Point of Impact stands by the solutions originating from it’s predecessor, centering on dynamic arcade races, beefed up by spectacular crashes observed from different camera angles. The basic gameplay mode is the championship, in which our victories unlock access to new race tracks, vehicles, or duels with demanding enemies, resulting in car rewards. The game also includes a chase mode, in which we take control of a police vehicle, trying to intercept a felon before he reaches the finish line. One of the characteristic elements of Burnout2 is the famous Crash mode, in which instead of racing our task is to cause a crash with the highest possible number of vehicles involved, while the game rewards our actions with appropriate amounts of cash.
Burnout
Racing
November 1, 2001
A dynamic racing game created by the British studio Criterion. The game stands out with incredibly spectacular car crashes. Burnout offers many different game modes, though initially the player can take part only in regular races. New modes, such as time trial, 1 vs 1 duel or split-screen challenges for two players are unlocked gradually alongside progression in the campaign. The game offers typically arcade driving physics complemented by the useful addition that is boost. This can be replenished by performing risky and dangerous maneuvers. Burnout features more than several different cars which can be easily recognized despite the lack of producer license. The majority of races takes place in urban areas, where numerous crashes occur - the player can view them from different camera angles.
Burnout Series News
XCOM 2 and Burnout Paradise Coming to Nintendo Switch
Electronic Arts have announced that the refreshed version of the racing Burnout Paradise will be coming to Nintendo Switch this year. So far we do not know the exact release date. A special edition of XCOM 2 is also coming to Switch.
video games
Paul Wozniak
March 26, 2020