Like a 1969 Chevelle SS, somethings just get better with age. Seemingly out of nowhere EA announced late in February that it would be releasing a remastered version of the much loved Burnout Paradise. For those that either didn’t get a chance to or were too young, Burnout Paradise was a fast-paced open-world racer meets smash-em-up car brawler that say you take to the streets earning your way to legendary status. This was accomplished by performing incredible stunts, engaging in high-speed chases, and taking out other drivers. Cars were collected by smashing them to bits and pacing was set by the player. The original game was, in many ways, ahead of its time and offered hours of arcade-style racing joy. This is our BurnOut Paradise Remastered review.
The original release was just about 10 years ago and the landscape of what racers are and are not has changed. The expectation and experience that players expect have shifted gears over the past 10 years. So with a remastered version of a beloved classic slated for March 2018, I had to wonder how well this old muscle car would stand up to some new kids on the street. If the Fast and the Furious has taught me anything it’s that you can’t beat a classic! So grab that coffee, kick back and enjoy our review of Burnout Paradise remastered.
To be honest Burnout Paradise was never heavy on story. In a time where cars were king racing was strictly about, well, racing. This game is essentially Pokemon Go with 500 horsepower under the hood. The game sets you up in the world with a low-level car that you grab from the scrap yard, spends about five minutes teaching you the basics and sends you out into the world to explore. Yet that’s the mechanic that makes Paradise such a great experience. There’s no pressure, no strick script you need to follow and no half-baked story setting the pace for gameplay. You are truly free to do things in whichever order you want.
In regards to things to do this is another area that Paradise excels at. There is always something to do. Be it street races, takedown challenges, time trials or collecting achievements in the world, this city is alive with activity. Unlike some other racing games that either focus on realism or even story, Burnout focus instead on your experience as a player. Throughout my time revisiting this classic I never once found my mind wandering or my attention waning. In fact more times than not between the incredible soundtrack and endless things to do I ended up spending much more time in the world than I had originally planned.
Speaking of incredible soundtracks, Burnout Paradise’s original soundtrack was chalked full of some incredible classics and modern beats to keep your time in Paradise entertaining. All presented through the car’s radio as Crash FM, the game seemed to always have the right soundtrack to set the mood for racing, stunts, and takedowns. I’m happy to report that all 80 plus songs have made a return for the remastered version. If you can’t wait to get your hands on the game be sure to check out some of the songs provided by Spotify.
Gameplay for this title is as tight and responsive as the original and feels great. Taking a nod from other racers of the era, Burnout has done a great job creating an experience that feels good to play. The speed of cars, they way each handle and even the types of cars available all hit the mark giving the player a well-rounded experience. All of the DLC from the original are here(with the exception of the Time Savers Pack) so you will have a wide range of classic inspired cars to choose from as well s the Big Surf Map DLC to work with which offers its own set or races and challenges.
Visually Burnout Paradise has received a beautiful paint job with a boost to 4K resolutions and 60 frames per second on supported devices. Even if you are running the game on a 1080 display it’s still a great visual experience and arguably as good as other racers on the market currently.
Multiplayer in this classic racer is handled a bit differently than other games of the genre. You won’t find a lobby system or have to wait for things to happen. Instead, Burnout Paradise offers its “Easy Drive” system which essentially allows you, while driving, to hit the D-pad which will pull up the aforementioned system. From here you can quickly and easily invite friends into your city experience. Once players are in the host can simply pull up an event for everyone to play.
A fun little feature that has carried over from the original is the “Mugshots” mechanic which, if you have a webcam (Playstation Camera or Kinect) will take a picture of your smiling mug. When you take down or are taken down by another player, the aggressor and victim get to see exactly who it was that they engaged with. This feature, of course, is completely optional but does add a nice little twist to the online experience.
Score: 9/10
Pros
- Superb arcade racing experience
- Excellent pacing
- So many things to do
Cons
- If you’re looking for a realistic racing experience this isn’t it
This review was completed through the donation of a key by the publisher.
