With an abundance of racing games on the Xbox circuit, it would have to take a unique game to clear the pack and claim the chequered flag and Burnout Revenge could be a worthy contender for the title. This is the fourth game in the series, the second under the EA flag and if you thought Burnout 3: Takedown was practically a prefect blend of high-speed racing and demolition derby than wait till you see Revenge. Perfection has been improved to bring a racing game that will be the benchmark for all racers.

Gameplay:

Racing is the name of the game but causing carnage and mass mayhem along the way would be the aim. There are several big changes in Revenge from Takedown which are noticeable as soon as you start the World Tour. All the game modes and events are now rolled up into this one tour, so you will find your basic race, where you must finish 1st against five AI opponents as well as the ‘Eliminator’ where every 30 seconds the last placed car blows up until there is only one car left and declared the winner. Road Rage comes in two forms, the first being where you must take out the AI cars by all means and the total number of cars crashed will dictate your medal. The other form of Road Rage is called ‘Traffic Attack’. This time the idea is to hit every vehicle in your path, which in turn adds more time to your race with the end result being how costly the damage was. ‘Burning Laps’ and ‘Preview Races’ are races which will be just you against the clock, with the fastest time securing an appropriate medal. Last but not least is the ever favourite ‘Crash Mode’ where you must control your car and crash it into the traffic which will in turn cause maximum carnage. This mode has been revamped since ‘Takedown’, no longer have you got onscreen power-ups to aim for but instead you must work out where your crash will cause the most damage and blockage. Sounds simple enough but if you want gold, than you must try a little harder. At the end of every event, you will be classed on how damaging you were to everyone around you, as well as which position you finished the race. The damage indicator you are aiming for is ‘Awesome’ and along with a Gold medal will make that event a ‘Perfect’ but the star rating will go down if you get a Bronze or nothing at all. These stars are than added towards your reputation which act like levels, the higher the rep or level, more cars and events will be unlocked.

Another improvement to the game is ‘Traffic Checking’. No longer do you have to worry about hitting cars moving in the same direction, in fact you can use them as projectiles to take out oncoming traffic or even cars behind you. Of course, nothing is that simple since the bigger vehicles like buses and rigs will cause you to crash if hit. The last major improvement is the track design. Each of the games tracks has multiple routes or shortcuts (indicated by their entrance/exit blue neon lights) which all eventually lead back onto the main circuit. These shortcuts can be a lifesaver but considering you can gain boosts by hitting traffic and these routes don’t have any, you will have to make a quick decision as to whether it will benefit you. One would wonder why it is called ‘Revenge’ but that thought soon disappears when racing against the AI because they are all out to get you and no matter how fast you go, they will catch you up and try to cause your demise. If an AI forces you to crash or takes you down, than they are automatically tagged in red which means if you force them to crash it will now be a ‘Revenge Takedown’.

Burnout Revenge also has split screen racing including the crash battle but it is LIVE where you will see some serious multiplayer action. Up to six players can compete in all manner of races. Road Rage has been replaced by a team event where one team has to stop the other from finishing the race by way of takedown. The one thing I like about this mode is that even if you are eliminated, you can still carry on racing and collide with the opposition in the hopeful event of helping out your team mates. You earn points after every race which is transferred to your online rank. The higher the rank, the faster cars become unlocked for you to race in.

Graphics:

It’s very important for any racing game that the gamer feels like they are travelling as fast as the speed indicator shows. Burnout has never had this problem; in fact it excels at making the player feel like they are driving at obscene speeds. With a little bit of blurring and some excellent slow mo camera effects, the acceleration is nothing short of outstanding and as for the boosts, well, if this was a high thrill ride in a theme park, I would hate to imagine what the g-force was. Of course with all of your concentration being used for driving, you might just miss out on how nice the scenery is and the highly polished cars you are driving in. None of the cars are licensed but who cares, they are more concept than your average car on the road with each one designed in fine detail. Now, Burnout would be nothing without the crashes and this is where the graphics shine. The cars literally explode on impact with every piece of bodywork flying off in different directions, all captured in beautiful camera angles and to top it all off, you can slow it down and control your car slightly (if it is the car that has crashed) to inflict some after touch damage.

Sound:

Thank god EA have decided to get rid of that annoying DJ from Burnout 3. The music has been replaced with a darker feel but if you don’t like that, you can customize the soundtrack to your liking. Can you imagine driving and crashing your car to the sounds of Mozart? Nah….neither could I but someone might be out there. The sound effects are outstanding especially in surround sound but even if you don’t posses surround sound, you will still be amazed by the constant whooshing of air as you fly past traffic and scenery and when you crash, well, let’s just say the neighbours might think that a bomb has gone off.

Longevity:

There are 169 different events to complete through 11 ranks for that 100% completion in just the single game mode without even touching the multiplayer races as well as LIVE.

Overall:

This is a must have for any collection whether you like racing games or not. The enjoyment of driving at breakneck speeds and smashing cars into walls is nothing short of pure bliss. LIVE extends the game even further and you would be foolish not to purchase this game.

Pros:

• LIVE racing / crashing / team grudge matches.
  
• Excellent sound all in dolby digital 5.1
  
• Explosive action.