Details on Burnout 5's ultra damage

Burnout 5 will be "like nothing you've ever seen before and better than any car crash in the movies," according to developer Criterion's creative director, Alex Ward, who says that the open-world racing game will have collisions so dramatic they will "rip the car in two."

Ward explains that "it's all about how many bones are in the car. In the last games we made, we were able to have 12 or 15 pieces of metal come out of the car" in Burnout's crash sequences. "This time we're looking at 90 to 100 pieces all coming out of the car at any time; all physically simulated."

The latest in the adrenal action series was announced nearly two months ago, but Criterion has revealed little about the new game, other than it will take place in the open-ended, free-roaming Paradise City and will boast some exciting online multiplayer features.

Above: It will be hard to top the amount of damage in the last Burnout game.

Ward also revealed that he and his fellow developers could soon be bringingtheir talents to the new world of downloadable games.

"We're working on a few ideas at the moment... might see something from [Criterion] next year," he teased.

Just in time for PS3's launch, perhaps? Criterion would be following in the footsteps of Bizarre Creations, who masterminded the impulsive Geometry Wars for Xbox Live, and a blockbuster downloadable game for Sony's new hardware would throw some serious weight behind PS3's online appeal. We'll be chasing Criterion for further details, so stick with GamesRadar for updates.

October 25, 2006

Ben Richardson is a former Staff Writer for Official PlayStation 2 magazine and a former Content Editor of 12DOVE. In the years since Ben left GR, he has worked as a columnist, communications officer, charity coach, and podcast host – but we still look back to his news stories from time to time, they are a window into a different era of video games.