Though it can be classified as arguably the Best Next Gen Racing game it also qualifies as the Least Best In Series.....
No, but but previous burnout games are one of the Best Racing games. So i can call this my least favorite game in the franchise.
Its pretty understandable. Nothing wrong with these next gen games. But i can recall many great Franchises on the last gen which all have disappointed in the next gen due to some petty reason or the other.
It is a fact that Most of the gamers are nostalgic and pretty dogmatic when it comes to their favorite last gen games. And the expectation is so high that it is bound to kill the next gen games no matter how great they may be.
I have my own respect for the NFS franchise and it deserves its own league. But the recent NFS games have been too abysmal to even deserve an above 5 rating.
Ok. Back to the Main Review. My sincere apologies for the long but true rubbish that i have written above.
So, Burnout Paradise or simply Burnout 5 is the 5th installment after 1, Dominator, Takedown and Revenge.
The first STRIKING feature of this game is the Graphics. Easily beats so many games and also i believe in the league of the so called "Best Graphic" game called Crysis. Whenever you crash a slow animation plays showing the Dent bending carefully. Glasses slowly shattering and smoke and other debris coming through. Amazing isn't it?
Yes. But the thing that makes this title the least Best in the series is the Disappointing gameplay. Don't take me wrong. People like some of my friends who have played only NFS Carbon, Prostreet or Undercover will absolutely adore the game. And there is no denying the fact that this game simply mows down the Next Gen games of the NFS Franchise.
But this game gets Mowed down by its own fathers. Because this game has very limited and i agree with many reviews here that it has Repetitive gameplay.
You have 5 modes. The Race Mode is a usual feature. But unlike the previous games, there is way too much racing which is either too easy or frustratingly impossible due to the dented roads.
Then there is this Burnout Route Mode. You are alone and have to go from point A to B in some minutes. YAWN!
The best mode that has held this Franchise high and mighty is the Takedown Mode known in this game as Road Rage. Yeah the road rage is fun. But again you don't see cars flying that much as in previous games. Also the scenes get very repetitive and there is no Signature Takedown!!! WTF?
There are few good types like Grinding, Vertical, T-Bone, Revenge takedown.
Then there is a new mode called Marked Man. About 2 to 4 cars chase you and try to take you down and turn your car into garbage wreck before you reach from point A to point B.
The stunt run is the Worst Mode IMO and the least fun. No need to describe as the name says it all. Stupid Barrel rolls, Jumps etc.
Alrite, i had mentioned 2 to 4 cars in Marked Man. Yes this is the difficulty that increases as you level up in your license.
You begin with the Learner's License and go all the way through C, B, A, Burnout and the ultimate license called the Elite License.
The no of events needed to win increase as your license increases. The elite one requires 118 wins. Damn! Gets too repetitive in the end.
And yes. One of the Greatest modes of all time Crash Mode is replaced by a silly Showtime mode where your car becomes a Ball and you have to bounce it over other cars to get points. How Obtuse!!
Then there is this Road Rules which automatically begin in every road. You have to beat these oddly named guys like charista or someone and you rule the road Partly. Yeah you have to do a showtime on the road to totally Rule it.
And there are Bikes introduced. There are only 4 and they do get bored fast.
Mind you there are actually only 35 CARS, only 35 cars in this game multiplied by 2 and you get 70. I multiplied by two as the rest of the 35 are simply the first 35 with some paint jobs and slight variations. Damn how cheap. Yeah ultimate box has extra 5 cars which you have to unlock by breaking billboards and stuffs. Don't bother. So total 75 cars.
The soundtrack in this game as always in Burnout Series is great. GNR Paradise City song is great. But it simply doesn't make any sense when you listen to it and see cars falling from above and crash clumsily. It only makes you....atleast it made me laugh.
Alright. So this is the Burnout Paradise review. You must be wondering where the 9.0/10 score came from inspite of the ruthless bashing i did about the game.
Yes that's because, i have compared it with the Next gen racing games only. And there is no Next gen Racing game that even comes close to this game.
Burnout Paradise is afterall a Burnout product and is bound to inherit some of its truly great qualities. But the final Next Gen product fails to match its predecessors.
I have played all the Burnout games. The first game was ok. Second game was better.
But takedown was simply the Best Racing game and Revenge offered even more. Thus the standards of this franchise was set so high that even the Best Of Best Next gen racing game could not match it.
Revenge, the previous title before Paradise had over 200 different takedown styles, 120 DIFFERENT not same cars and man the crash mode was addicting.
So Burnout Paradise according to me is not the Best In Series. If you are a Burnout Fan do give it a try but don't expect much. Man all they had to do was remaster Takedown or revenge in next gen graphics.
Anyways, people liking Racing games but who have never played Burnout before, this is a MUST PLAY.
Hopefully, Burnout 6 gets back those crash modes and stuffs Burnout Fans like me missed in this game.....