"A gaming Legend makes it on to the PSP"

Although the series has been around for only a few years, the Burnout brand has become firmly established in today's gaming world, especially when Criterion teamed up with Electronic Arts to release the widely successful Burnout 3: Takedown for PS2 and Xbox. A year and a fourth game later, Criterion have decided if the series can cut it in the handheld world and replicate their success that was enjoyed on the consoles.

From the start, it's plain to see that Criterion have chosen to retain the look and feel of the third game, the highlight of the series. The majority of the cars, tracks and modes of play have been taken directly from Takedown, with a pick of the best from the first and second game added in for good measure. The race and road rage modes are there along with pursuit and the popular crash for cash games. Its therefore obvious that what has been done is simple: this is effectively Takedown in your hands.

Therefore the gameplay is largely the same and unchanged. This is mainly a good thing. Although even a chimp could understand how to play, this benefits the PSP in that there are no fancy concepts to learn (Ram opponents off the road is about as hard your techniques become) and because of that, you can pretty much jump in to a game, as each race takes only about five minutes. It also means you don't have to be a good driver, but it does help to be a violent driver, especially as the description for a race is get to the finish by any means necessary. And the game really steps up a gear (no pun intended) when you unlock the coupe, sports and super cars. It then becomes so easy to take down opponents. Or for them to take down you. The only problem is the AI. Naturally, to fit Legends onto the PSP, sacrifices had to be made and this is the major one. Compared to the console efforts, the AI is less violent and as a result your demise will most likely be because of a blunder on your part as opposed to a rival smartly executing a takedown move on you. And the early courses seem endless in a bad way to start with, due to the fact you are stuck in the low powered cars. And compulsory time trials don't help matters. They could have just reduced the number of laps you do in the early stages to compensate for this.

Only one word describes the graphics: Amazing. How on earth did Criterion manage to do this? The courses and cars on Legends look almost identical to their former console counterparts, and the over the top crashes still look just as good on your PSP as they would on a widescreen TV. Damage and debris are still there with only a slight (and I mean slight) drop in how they look compared to the console versions and yes, the sparks do literally fly and are still just as detailed. The best though is the sheer speed of how the game runs. The top-end cars, which travel at 200+ miles per hour, really do look (and feel) like they are going at 200 mph. And does the PSP slow down because of the strain of it all? No! If this isn't a showcase of the power of Sony's handheld, then I don't know what is. The only real problem is when you manage a takedown, sometimes, instead of flying into the air, the rivals car goes through the road. Which doesn't make sense. But at least it doesn't affect you or your score so if this happens, you know its only a two second lapse.

The sound effects are almost identical to the console versions, with a selection of music from the fourth game, Burnout Revenge. The spot effects when your vehicle (and anyone else's that gets in the way) crashes are brilliant, whether you are ramming into a rival cars door or land after a suspension shattering pile up. But before we get carried away, bear in mind the in game music is straight from Revenge. And, in my view, are terrible compared to Takedowns musical score. What happened to Franz Ferdinand, The Futureheads or the Ordinary Boys? However, this could be attributed to my frankly poor musical taste. It really is a matter of opinion.

For a handheld racing title, the lifespan is long, especially if you play it in short bursts, which you probably will, seeing it's on a handheld. The world tour will last a good while, especially if you go for gold on every race and crash event. The single event choice is also good as it lets you quickly pick your track, mode and car. This put on a handheld, where you want to dive into the game quickly, enables Legends to have potentially unlimited replay value which makes it a near essential purchase for your PSP collection. And this is before I even begin to mention the unlockable goodies and how difficult it is to achieve in the games eyes 100% completion. Which like the console counterparts, will take forever to do. And will have you come back for more

So all signs point to yes and Legends will suit everyone. Not quite. Some will find the basic principles of Legends too simple, and those that think that Burnout 2 was the best will probably say its too much like Takedown. And there are those that think the handling and crashes are too simple as well. But then again Burnout prides itself on its simple arcade style and over the top crashes. And if the third and fourth game can top the console charts, then why cant Legends reach number one for the PSP? After all, it deserves to.

Gameplay: 8.7/10 Hardly challenging, but as this shows, sometimes simplicity is the best option
Graphics: 9.8/10 How did Criterion do this? Crash glitch aside, this is akin to Burnout 3
Sound: 7.9/10 Terrible music and average engine noises, but impacts and crashes are impeccable
Lifespan: 9.5/10 For a handheld game, this is what it should be, but the slow cars at the start may put some off

Overall 9/10

A few niggles and problems aside, Burnout Legends is another winner for Criterion. A worthy purchase for your PSP collection

Reviewer's Score: 9/10, Originally Posted: 01/24/06