Student Weekly
Student Weekly online : March 3rd, 2008 edition


Games

Pedal to the metal

By Shaun Conlin

Burnout Paradise takes racing to another level

Game: Burnout Paradise
Publisher: EA Sports
Platform: PlayStation 3
Rating: Everyone 10+
Score: 4.5 out of 5

Continuing a franchise tradition, Burnout Paradise takes automotive stunts, racing and wrecking to another level. Loud, fast and spectacular in so many ways, it�s really the ultimate driving game.

Burnout Paradise is all about showing off, scoring points for death-defying jumps and causing random acts of mayhem. It looks fantastic, the controls are tight and intuitive, and the number and variety of available cars is surprising. But what makes Burnout Paradise a truly new-generation game is the size, scope and detail of the environment in which it�s all presented.

LOST AND FOUND

Kilometres of city streets and winding highways await those seeking the ultimate adrenaline rush. It�s go-anywhere, do-anything driving excitement, rather than just offering good-looking tracks and courses to smash about on.

In fact, the grandness and the real-time feel of it all can be a little daunting and disorienting. You�ll wish for an on-the-fly GPS navigator to no avail, opting instead to pause and check the map all too often. This can cause frustrating breaks in continuity until you�ve memorised the city.

FOR SPEED DEMONS ONLY

Sometimes bigger is better, and Burnout Paradise is huge. What�s more, the online mode is just as big and sprawling, allowing for up to eight players to fool around and unleash their inner road-rage together, to compete or cooperate in dozens of races. There are years of playability in this game. � Cox News Service

mayhem (n): confusion and fear, usually caused by violent behaviour or by some sudden shocking event
intuitive (adj): obtained by using your feelings rather than by considering the facts
daunting (adj): something that makes you worried because you think it will be very difficult or dangerous to do
unleash (v): to suddenly let a strong force, emotion, etc. be felt or have an effect

IDIOM

to no avail: with little or no success

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