My Enduring Affinity for Burnout 3: Takedown

This guest editorial is part of the Why I Love series on GamesIndustry.biz, where game developers express their admiration for each other's work. Mladen Bošnjak, creative director at Misfit Village, is currently developing the SCP-based thriller Go Home Annie for PC and consoles. In 2005, a PlayStation 2 console was a staple in many Croatian households, including Bošnjak's, where he first encountered Burnout 3: Takedown. The game's cover art, featuring a sports car narrowly escaping a massive explosion, captivated his 12-year-old imagination. However, his introduction to the game was actually through a pirated copy with a blank, white cover and a handwritten title. As a young game enthusiast who dabbled in modding and game development, Bošnjak felt a twinge of guilt playing the pirated game, but his desire to experience it outweighed his reservations. Burnout 3: Takedown's pre-rendered intro, set to early 2000s punk music, effectively established the game's tone, which emphasized high-speed driving and destructive car crashes. The game's unique twist on traditional racing games lay in its 'takedown' system, where players could earn a boost by ramming opponents into obstacles, thereby gaining an edge over their rivals. A notable feature of the game was its 'Aftertouch' mechanic, which allowed players to slow down time after crashing and attempt to maneuver their wreck into opponents, causing them to crash as well. This feature gave Bošnjak a sense of freedom, as the game's developers had not imposed restrictive boundaries on the player's movements. Crash Mode, another key aspect of the game, appeared to be a mindless, chaotic experience but actually required strategic thinking and problem-solving skills. The game's environments, soundtrack, and overall design coalesced to create an exceptional gaming experience. For Bošnjak, attempting to 100% the game became an all-consuming challenge, even influencing his real-life activities as he tried to recreate the game's trophies using toy cars and other materials. The sequels to Burnout 3: Takedown, including Burnout Revenge and Burnout Dominator, failed to recapture the essence of the original, with Bošnjak feeling that they were more like reskins than true sequels. The later release of Burnout Paradise, with its open-world design, also failed to surpass the charm of Takedown in Bošnjak's opinion. The technical wizardry that made Burnout 3 possible was largely due to Criterion's RenderWare software suite, which powered many notable games of the early 2000s. When run through an emulator at 4K resolution, Burnout 3's graphics hold up remarkably well, a testament to the game's timeless design. Bošnjak concludes by expressing his desire for a remastered version of Burnout 3, which would allow him to finally purchase the game and alleviate his lingering guilt over playing a pirated copy as a child.