I won't hesitate to say that Burnout 3 is one of the best games not just of 2004 but of this generation.
It's a bold statement, and there are a lot of factors make it a truth, but if we had to pinpoint the most obvious one it would be this: Takedown is instantly enjoyable and maddeningly addictive. It is a super-arcade racer that treads new ground; it rips off its Clark Kent exterior, disposing of perfect braking and flawless cornering like an unwanted button-up shirt and tie, to reveal the genre-defining hero it was destined to be. In Burnout 3 you get into all-out brawls with the CPU drivers while trying to maintain your place in the race -- it's a really gratifying gameplay mechanic (movie - 5.4MB). As a reward for your valiance you'll bump up your burnout meter (speed boost) capacity, which allows you to rocket down the trafficked highways so fast you'll swear your eyelids are going to peel off and take your face along with them.
Seriously, Burnout 3 vies for fastest racer ever created and, magnificently, it's playable at these sonic speeds (movie - 3.3MB).
At its core, these are the main elements that make it so frighteningly satisfying to play -- you won't want to put it down. It's a little hard to put into words, because only when you experience, first-hand, taking down the opponent drivers -- mashing metal and sending them careening into a brick wall or semi-truck -- will you get it. It just feels right, as can be said for so many of the most beloved games out there.
Make no mistake, though, Takedown is still about racing skills; if you can't handle the turns or control your car with a steady hand, you will endure many a defeat. But you have to understand that takedowns, the act of bullying another car off the road, play a huge part in the strategy of winning. That's why there's been so much refinement and focus on how they work. The challenge to the player, to you, is to balance this new super-charged, arcade-style gameplay with some traditional racing skills. It is through these synergies that Criterion's racer offers something new to the genre.
It transcends the usual quarter-popping, checkpoint-style days of old (something that was evident in the original Burnout) and proves itself as a true console experience. The strong gameplay mechanics at its heart provide the lifeblood for an entire body of modes and extras, so everything comes together seamlessly.
The main single-player mode, Burnout 3 World Tour, offers up a non-linear progression of race challenges. Burnout 2 forced players to choose to race or crash in completely unrelated modes, but the new World Tour design allows complete freedom that ensures few will experience the same path. A GPS-style map grid provides you with two simple choices at the start of World Tour: race or crash.
You choose your own destiny. If you want to unlock crash junctions for several hours and earn all the gold medals, go for it. If you want to do the same for race modes, that's completely up to you. Most will probably jump between both for diversity's sake. Regardless, it will lead to at least 10+ hours of gameplay between all the different events and crash junctions. Going for all the golds and unlockables and there are some really tough ones to crack -- can take more than twice that time. So, it's safe to say that the Burnout experience has gotten deeper.