The Burnout series has always looked good, but never this good. Every aspect of the visual presentation has had a complete overhaul and just has that EA touch. The car models, while not actual licensed vehicle,s are well rendered, have great shine, reflective surfaces, and the car damage has to be seen to be believed. Some of the wrecks are so brutal you may actually turn away, if ever so slightly, as the impact has never been replicated so accurately. The fenders, doors, and tail ends bend, fold, and break beyond comprehension. You will see pieces of car scattered all over the road, followed by the shards of broken glass in your path. This is an arcade racer of course, so as soon as you witness the carnage, the race continues. Added to this year’s presentation is the perspective of seeing your opposition wreck as well. The camera will take itself away from the action for a moment to show you the demise of your competition, only to resort back to your current race without missing a beat.

The tracks consist of long laps, great detail, and fantastic lighting. You will not be admiring the scenery for long as the game goes by as such a blistering speed; you will be too worried about careening head on with an oncoming vehicle, than worrying about some snow-covered mountain in the background. What’s more, the game diversifies itself by having you race or just go for the crash, with each track tailored for each event perfectly. Whether you play online, offline, split screen or by yourself, the game moves at a perfect frame rate that never hiccups or slows down. To put it simply, the game is simply awe-inspiring. On a side note, there is some controversy that has even made it on the airwaves of G4TechTV about some of the spark effects being superior on the PS2 over the Xbox version. While there is a fact that the sparks are nicer on the PS2, the Xbox version overall visuals are cleaner, more colorful, and supports widescreen and progressive scan. The PS2 version is definitely no slouch, and the differences between the two are minimal, but both support widescreen and progressive scan. Is there a conspiracy against the Xbox by EA? I guess only agent Mulder will figure this out…the truth is out there!

Audio is not only brought to you by the good people at Dolby Digital, but takes advantage of each level of sound. The treble, bass effects, highs, and lows are all equally balanced and sound wonderful. Engine sounds vary from vehicle to vehicle and you can easily recognize a vehicle’s make just by the way it sounds while driving. As with the visuals, the impact sounds of the crashes are devastating and make the wreckage all the more impressive. Burnout 3 has an on air DJ from KROQ in LA named DJ Striker, which not only gives you track updates, but will give you the low down on how to succeed in each game mode. EA Trax returns with a slew of alternative bands to provide that background fodder while you wait for the sweet noise of destruction. While the soundtrack overall is pretty weak, there are some bright spots with songs from Pennywise and the Ramones to break up the poser punk monotony. PS2 gamers will be stuck with this music, or the option to turn it off, while Xbox owners get to use their custom soundtracks. In the end, the sounds are just as magnificent as the graphics.

Burnout 3 has the most enjoyable game play I have witnessed in an arcade racer in some time. In some ways it reminds me of the Hot Pursuit title from a couple years ago, but this time with more attitude. As mentioned before, the speed of the game can be so fast at times, it almost seems ridiculous, but thankfully, the game play never suffers no matter how fast you are going. Steering varies from car to car, but all feel tight and responsive. Controls even continue when you crash, as you have “impact time” in which you can steer as you are wrecking to either try to cause more damage or collect valuable icons. The racing portion of the game is competitive, yet you never get the feeling you have been cheated. If you drive well and race flawlessly, the CPU is not going to follow suit just to keep up. It is almost as if the CPU is actually driving with the same probability to crash as you. Crash mode, while it seems like you just drive until you hit something, actually has some strategy elements as far as timing and place of impact to deal with. How fast you drive, where your point of impact is, and how you steer into the wreckage all make a difference between a high dollar crash, and a low dollar bore fest. The game is so much fun to play, with such ease, that even non-racing fans may get a kick out of this title.

Burnout 3 is not just looks and great game play; there is actually plenty of meat on this bone. Whether you like to crash or race, there are plenty of modes to choose from in each circumstance. Races consist of Single Race, Tournament, Lap Eliminator, Burning Lap, Road Rage, and four other modes to choose from. Crash events allow you to unlock even more rewards and features that allow for continued fun and fulfillment. There are over 70 cars to race and crash, varying from 12 classes of vehicles. Whether you are a fan of muscle cars, mid size, sports sedans, compacts, European exotics, or just want to pick a semi or fire truck, the options are quite large. There are over 100 events to compete in for single player mode that span over 40 different tracks from three different continents. Honestly though, what is a good racer without some multiplayer? With Burnout 3, you get to experience all the goodness of the single player events online as well, with some alternatives made specifically for multiplayer mayhem. At the time of this writing, the Xbox Live play was a bit quirky, as the game would lock up on occasion, especially when signing in to EA. When playing perfectly, the game played like a dream and felt no different from the single player experience. I can only expect EA will rectify any of their Xbox Live glitches and the game will run smooth from start to finish in the near future.

Before the initial release of Burnout 3, I was a huge fan of the other two in the series. I played the demo of 3, read the early reviews, but never bought into the initial hype. I always believe in playing the game for myself first, as for those who know my work, I am a meticulous SOB. All I can say is that Burnout 3 is damn near flawless in almost every way shape and form. Brilliant visuals, ear pleasing audio, highly addictive game play, and enough modes and tracks to keep you busy for months on end. If you do not own Burnout 3 by now, you are letting one of the best, if not the best, arcade racer pass you buy.