its a fun game that is probly still being played noww
What should have I expected? I mean, speeding down the highway in my Roadster at 140+ MPH wouldn’t normally unsettle me, I trust in my driving skills, and the thrill of putting your life on the line like this all but erases every single trace of that futile emotion called “fear.” But this time around, unlike the hundreds of times before, I did something- an event happened that had never before. This event smashed through my layer of arrogance much like the way a cannonball would bite through a thin sheet of glass. What happened there on that highway changed my life, and made me realize this one thing: I am only human.
I took a turn a bit too sharply and ran my Roadster into the back of a SUV at about 100 MPH.
The first thing I thought as my Roadster’s wheels left the road, the first thing I thought as the entire front of my car buckled, and as my rear bumper dragged itself along the pavement amid a shower of sparks, was “Why me? Of course, this thought soon gave way to “Oh my goodness, I’m going to die... as the entire car, minus a few wheels, plunged over the road-dividing barrier onto the opposite side of the road.
I need not describe the commotion and crashes that followed, but after that entire experience, after all that happened, after an entire layer of arrogance was destroyed in a split-second decision, I feel that I truly need to say: “This game rocks!”
Burnout 1 was a sleeper hit, no one could deny that. It came from nowhere, and with its wild style, its incredibly fast (and incredibly tense) gameplay, and its crazy, crazy crashes, it was impossible not to love. Although it was admittedly a great game, it had a few key flaws that prevented it from being a real must-have for racing fans. Burnout 2 corrects these flaws and, as all good sequels should, adds some new components that not only are incredibly cool, but improve the actual gameplay, thereby making the game even better. This year’s Burnout is a must-buy, that’s for sure.
One of the most noticeable improvements is in the game’s look. Burnout 1 looked great, but Burnout 2 looks AWESOME! The cars are all very nicely detailed and, even with the lack of licensing, you can easily tell what make of car each and every one is trying to mimic. The courses are all incredibly realistic- and semi-interactive, too (it’s entirely possible to actually crash yourself OFF the road and into a ditch). And the small touches added aren’t only nice-looking, they add to gameplay. For example, whenever a car drives on dirt, its wheels will kick up a good amount of dirt and dust. This not only is realistic, but the poor sap that happens to be driving behind said car (most likely you) will actually HAVE THEIR VISION IMPAIRED by the kicked-up dust! Little things like this add a lot of depth to the game and actually improve it... oh yes, and did I mention the uber-realistic crashes? Oh wait, that was the first paragraph...
But the heart of the game, the racing, is where Burnout’s true soul lies. It’s also where you’ll be contacting your heart doctor, but that needn’t to be mentioned here. Burnout 2’s premise is simple: drive as dangerously and as fast as possible through everyday traffic, execute a few “techniques” such as “Drifting” and (my personal favorite) “Getting Air,” and your boost meter will go up partially. Fill up your boost meter, and then break the sound barrier for a few precious seconds. Repeat until you’ve finished your laps through whatever city you’re in. Occasionally experience the thrill of a lifetime, the high-speed crash, which (on the plus side) will fill you with shock and awe, but (on the down side) most likely drop you back a few places in the race. This simple premise is but only the launching point for some epic “thrill rides” through many courses you’ll be experiencing, and although these thrill rides can get rather long and hard (Read: The Miracle Mile is IMPOSSIBLE), you’ll constantly be having a blast.
But Burnout 2’s gameplay isn’t perfect. Though the cars all have different stats and handle differently, there is only one stat you should concern yourself with: speed. The law of Burnout 2 is “Fastest Car Wins.” I even matched a small, nimble, and a tad slow Mini against a huge, lumbering yet extremely fast Muscle Car, and the Goliath, the Muscle, beat the Mini’s time by a long shot despite the fact that it smashed into the wall of nearly every turn.
And there are a few issues with the pre-crash physics. No, the actual crash looks and acts out fine, but there are a few times where I feel a collision with a car shouldn’t result in my car actually crashing and being unable to continue. I mean, if I barely clip the tail-light of a car while I cruise past, should I completely spin out and lose my momentum? On the other hand, however, there are a few times when I’ve slammed into a barrier at 75 MPH only to bounce off, unharmed. However, these slight glitches are few and far between, and they don’t impact on the overall gameplay (much).
The sound of the game is so good nearly to the point that I would say it’s unparalleled. Every single sound effect, from the sound of you burning rubber as you pull out of a tight drift to the sounds of Car Alarms going off after a massive pileup, sounds so realistic that you might compare it to actual real-life City traffic (if you live in a city where illegal street races are held daily, that is). And no, I’m not exaggerating. They’ve even added nuances like stretched sound waves due to the Doppler Effect as you pass a moving car producing some sort of sound at a high speed, for goodness sake! And trust me, even if you have no idea what I just said (learn Physical Science, people), you’ll appreciate it when you hear it in action. Burnout 2 certainly raises the bar when it comes to sound.
But best of all must be the extra modes that Burnout 2 offers. They’re not unlockable at the very start, and you’ll need to go through a whole lot of pain to get to the best, but once you get them, you’ll immediately forget all of the pain and suffering you went through and you’ll merely concentrate on having so much fun. You have your basic 2-player races... and then you have the two monsters, the main events.
Probably the most highly publicized of Burnout 2’s new modes was Crash Mode. Let’s face it- you want to crash. But in a race, you just can’t do it... it loses you valuable time. Now, here’s a mode TOTALLY based on crashing! A gift from the heavens. But it’s not just ram yourself into the first bus you see- oh, no. You actually have- GASP- strategy involved! Every single car that is unable to avoid the mini-pileup that you cause multiplies your score, so the real task is to create the biggest pileup possible. Nice...
But for you... less violent people, you have your Cop Chase mode. One person plays the “criminal,” and the other person plays the cop. Your task? Either escape the cop, or ram the criminal so much that they’ll be waking up with a license plate rammed up their butt. Wait, did I say less violent? My bad...