Burnout Paradise Megathread -Big Surf Island TODAY!!! v 1.90 out NOW!

Jan 29, 2009
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Burnout Paradise (formerly known as Burnout 5) by Criterion Games is the seventh game in the Burnout video game series. It was released in January 2008[1] for PlayStation 3 and Xbox 360. It was also released on the PlayStation Store in September 2008 and will be available on Microsoft Windows from February 2009[3]. It has an open world set in the fictional Paradise City, with no loading times and no traditional online lobbies or game menus. The song "Paradise City" by Guns N' Roses is the game's title music and also featured on the in-game soundtrack.

According to Alex Ward from developer Criterion Games, this game is a "complete reinvention" of the Burnout series.[4] He also said "To create truly next-generation gameplay, we needed to create a truly next-generation game, from the ground up." Despite being in an open world, the game still retains the 60 frames-per-second most Burnout games have used.[5] Initially day and night cycles were not included in the game but a software update entitled "Davis" added this element to the game. Records will now be kept on players' drivers licenses and there will be statistics such as fastest time and biggest crash for every street in the game. Unlike in previous Burnout games, Crash Mode, now called Showtime, can now be started at any time and place in the game; though Showtime mode is rather different from the usual Crash Mode.[6] Also, for races, players may now take any route to get to the destination. Races and other events are simply started by stopping at any of the 120 traffic lights around Paradise City and applying the accelerator and brake at the same time. Multiple settings have been confirmed to be fully customisable[7][8]such as:

* "Boost Rules", where the player may choose cars that use the boost styles from previous Burnout games.
* Whether or not there is traffic in an online event.
* Start and finish points for online events with up to 16 checkpoints.

The damage system has also been reworked. There are now two different types of crash based on the car's condition after the crash.[9] If the player's car manages to retain all four wheels, and not break its chassis, the player may drive out of the crash and continue playing; this is called a "driveaway". If a player's car loses any of its wheels, has the engine damaged too much from an impact, or winds up outside of the game's map, the car is in a "wrecked" state and the player will have to wait until their car is reset. Cars can also be torn into several pieces, be compressed and deform around objects as you crash into them. However, Alex Ward confirmed in the Official Crash FM podcast that cars may not be ripped in half, as concept pictures and early information had stated. There are also other cars which can be obtained by typing in a sponsor code. These only work for certain regions. One of these sponsor code cars is the Steel Wheels version of the Carson GT concept car, which features the car with an armor plate and supercharger. The code for this car could be obtained from pre-ordering the game from certain retailers. When starting the single player mode you are assigned with a learner's permit and a single car. While playing you race and win events to earn points towards a higher license, from a Learners Permit (E-class), D-class, C-class, B-class, A-class, Burnout Paradise (S-class), Burnout Elite (SS-class) up to Criterion Elite (SSS-class). After earning a new license every event that you complete is reset so you can replay the event again to earn credit towards a new license.

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Cars now have manufacturer and model names, which are loosely based on real-world cars but are mostly fictional (some of the cars are even based on those from a previous Burnout game, e.g. the Hunter Manhattan is the Classic from Burnout 2). Cars may not be "tuned up"[10] or customized apart from color changes, which may be done in real-time by driving through the forecourt of a blow shop, which will randomly assign a color to the car, or by selecting the color in the Junkyard where you select your vehicle (after taking the car through an Auto Repair drivethru at least once). Other real-time changes include driving through the forecourt of a gas station to automatically refill your Burnout meter, and driving through the forecourt of a repair shop to automatically repair your car, allowing you to extend a Road Rage or Marked Man event beyond the car's damage limits.[11]

The online lobby system used by most video games has been replaced by a streamlined system known as "Easy Drive". While driving, players simply hit right on the D-Pad and the Easy Drive menu pops up on the bottom left hand corner of their screen. From there, players are able to invite another player from their friends list. Once friends have joined the game, the hosting player is then able to pick from a variety of events to play. There are also special Burnout Racing Team cars that you can get.
 
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Version 1.60 is out, with the new PS3 web browser and many enhancements, including restart option.

This is one of the best games on the PS3!!!
 
Hey guys. Great to be back on the blog, and we’ve got lots to tell you about.

We released our first premium content for Burnout Paradise – the Party Pack !

Our Freeburn online play is a cool way to hang out with your online friends, but we wanted to give you a way to play PlayStation, when your friends comes to visit. The game supports up to 8-players for pass-the-pad single-screen action.

You can find out more on the Criterion Games Network. We’re now making use of PlayStation’s in-game browser to bring you all the latest news direct from the Burnout team.

Burnout Paradise Cops and robbers

Party is our first premium-quality content for Burnout Paradise. It’s available now from the PlayStation Store for $9.99. And if you can’t bear to stop playing Burnout, you can also pick it up from our own Burnout Store within the game.

If you’re new to Burnout, you can now get the whole game bundled with all our 2008 updates and the Party Pack on the PlayStation Store for $29.99.

You can hit this link to see the team playing a session in our latest video podcast – Crash TV.

And finally, we used the Criterion Network to bring Burnout players exclusive news of a new pack for 2009.

Slotting in soon after the Party pack, Legendary Cars, Toy Cars and Boost Specials, comes another premium pack - Cops and Robbers. This one’s dedicated to bringing you the thrills and spills of cops and robbers car chases in Paradise City.

We’re keeping the gameplay under wraps for the moment, but in the meantime here are the first images in all their glory.

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The upcoming PS3 & Xbox 360 update for Burnout Paradise, which will give players the ability to purchase the Legendary Cars Pack has been released early to some users. The update, which brings Burnout Paradise to Version 1.7, will prevent players from participating online with other players that do not have the update.

The 1.7 update is scheduled to be released globally on February 19, 2009.
 
Xbox Live Marketplace accidentally received extra Burnout Paradise downloadable content this morning, revealing details on the upcoming Toy Car and Boost Specials packs that Criterion didn't want you to know yet.

Both packs appeared and then disappeared early this morning, not allowing gamers to purchase them but definitely allowing us to read about them, listing the as of yet undisclosed vehicles in two of Criterion's upcoming downloadable content add-ons for the popular racer. Only five vehicles have been shown in the Toy Car collection, with eight total listed this morning on Xbox Live, along with the secret second car in the Boost Specials pack of high performance cars.

Joining the previously announced Carson Extreme Hotrod in the Boost Specials pack will be the Hawker Mech 400, an extremely tunable car that can be adjusted to drive the way you like.

The full line up of Toy Cars consists of seven cars and one tiny motorcycle, which should be an absolute blast to play. Here's the list:

Hunter Takedown
Carson GT Concept
Hunter Citizen
Carson Inferno Van
Jansen P12
Krieger WTR
Hunter Manhattan
Nakamura Firehawk

While prices for the vehicles in both packs is most likely subject to change, each Toy Car was listed at 160 Microsoft Points except for the Firehawk, which carried a 240 point price and the entire collection listed at 1,000. The Boost Specials pack listed at 400.

We've contacted Criterion for comment on this rather large mistake on someone's part. In the meantime, start saving up your downloadable game currency of choice...things are going to be getting expensive.

Update: Several readers have emailed us to let us know that they actually were able to download the packs before they were pulled, with the downloaded vehicles working just fine for them. Hopefully this means the additional packs will see a full release soon for those of us who just weren't fast enough.
 
Dam. I hope they don't start price gouging everything. It's cool they gave us all free DLC and all, but to overcharge for what they have now isn't cool. I'll buy maybe one of the cars from the car pack. And not the back to the future one. To expensive just for one item.
 
Six gamers, led by freelance games journalist, Kirsten Kearney, started playing Burnout Paradise at 10:00 am on Saturday 18th April, at the ESC Gaming Centre in Glasgow. They finished at 10:00 am on Sunday 19th April

This, you see, is an official world record for "the longest marathon playing a racing game" according to the Guinness Book of Records (Gamer's Edition).

"The record breaking feat served as a fundraiser for gaming charity GamesAid and nearly a hundred online gamers stepped in at different points to join the six record breakers during their 24 hours of continuous play", we're told - so something came of it.

24 hours playing a racing game for six people - sorry, 'nearly' 106 people? Doesn't seem a vast record to us. Two people playing Burnout Paradise non-stop for 24 hours, that's something.

What about, one person playing Virtua Tennis for 48 hours? Or a singleton playing World of Warcraft non-stop of a week... surely that's already been done.

Source: news.spong.com/nibble/17707/Burnout_Paradise_Breaks_Record
 
A brand new way to play Burnout Paradise online is coming this Thursday, and Criterion Games has revealed the price you have to pay for getting mixed up with the Cops & Robbers scene.

The Burnout Paradise Cops & Robbers pack introduces a ton of new police-themed makeovers for your favorite Paradise City rides, along with a brand-new online mode that pits criminals and the authorities against each other in a tug-of-war with a load of stolen gold. How much is all of this going to run? $9.99 or 800 Microsoft points, with Europe paying €9.99 and the UK forking over £7.99.