Burnout Dominator [PS2]

The Burnout series has come a long way since it debuted under Acclaim's banner six years ago. The PlayStation 2 has been the series' de facto home all that time, though it has crossed over to every other possible system. Now, with original developer Criterion at work on the fifth full version for next-gen consoles, Burnout: Domination is the series' last splash on the PS2. It's not quite the send-off we hoped for.

If Dominator looks a lot like Burnout Revenge, that's because it uses most of the same technology. That doesn't mean the games are identical, however, or that this is an expansion pack of some sort. In fact, Dominator has a noticeably different feel than other titles, specifically because it emphasizes drifting and long, crash-free boosts rather than takedowns and explosions. The core racing is as good as ever, but some of the frills that made Burnout a must-play are oddly missing.

The big change in Dominator is, ironically, not a step forward. The ability to chain together full boost levels has returned, and over the course of the game you'll have to make full use of chaining in order to win.

So in addition to the regular full boost gauge found in all Burnout games, you can continue to drive dangerously in order to push the boost bar into Supercharge territory, at which point the flame indicator will burn blue. At this point, you can burn the entire supercharge in one go for a Burnout bonus. Or, while burning the supercharge boost, drive like a maniac to recharge the bar for a chained series of supercharge boosts.

Drifting is the other big focus in this version, with several events featured in which you can only earn points while sliding around corners. If only Burnout did drifting better; there are some car classes where you'll be able to fly through turns skewed perpendicular to the road, but most of the time a drift just looks like a skid. At least the mechanic is easy enough to learn, so even those unfamiliar with the drift will be able to compete.