The big news about Burnout Paradise is that the game is now open ended. Gone are the tracks and crash mode from the days of the PS2 and Xbox. The next-gen Burnout has Paradise City where you can travel any road, drive any car, and cause any wreck you like anytime you want. It's a real pleasure to play.

So you start Burnout in a single racer and you'll have to find a race, which is easy because there's plenty of events around every corner. Then you race, but you'll have to find the route on your own. There's no track! So it does take a bit of trial and error to win a race since you'll have to figure out the fastest route to take, or play follow the leader if you know what we mean. Winning races unlocks the licenses for better cars.

There are five event types that include time trials, taking down a specific number of cars, or just a plain race. The city has plenty of things to crash into like billboards and traffic signals. The cars are all fake, but who cares when there's major car wrecking that needs to be done by you. The more wrecks you create, the more boost you get, which is the turbo for your car. And you'll need maximum turbo to beat the rubberband AI.

Burnout has great next-gen graphics with plenty of detail in the crashes. The cars are nicely textured and the gameplay is ridiculously fast. The soundtrack is a mix of rock, pop, and everything in between. It can get annoying, but not as annoying as the announcer. EA once again proves that money is in the music and graphics. The gameplay is classic Burnout crash and boost.

There's plenty of multiplayer events for two to eight players, and unlike other multiplayer games, the online community is thriving and the racing is fast and hard. If you've ever played Burnout, and want more freedom, then Burnout Paradise is for you. If you prefer the track beating method of previous Burnout games, then avoid this open ended racer.