Crash big or go home. Simply put.
The gameplay is something out of complete simplicity that any 5 year old could follow but not boring enough for a 20 year old. The different kinds of racing action that can be chosen in the career and in single/mutiplayer are amusing for anyone. Theres the ever famous crash event where you do just what it sounds like: CRASH. And as the annoying DJ wont tell you, theres a strategy in each of the crashes that will either help or hurt the outcome of it. Road rage has to be my favorite: no lap amounts so you can run around a track several times. The only limit is time or until your car gets completely destroyed. You'll have to pick this one up in order to find out how it really is.
The graphics are very well up to par. There is never any lagging during the crash scenes, mainly because the crashes can be slowed down with Crash Aftertouch. The cars are similar to real-world vehicles but at the same time they arent. And theres plenty of'em to choose from so it can have a very differing effect on how you race, crash, and tear your enemies apart. The levels are global, and the tracks rarely resemble each other so you will probably never get bored.
The sound is alright. The DJ, Striker (Stryker?), can get annoying sometime. You can tell its obviously a voice actor whos just waiting to get paid. His overzealousness in things shows it. The music is good. No annoying hiphop tracks constantly blaring, its all rock & punk. Custom soundtracks are optional, but it resets after you turn the game off, so you have to constantly choose the option. I just quit messing with it. Most of the cars sound like rice burners, while the others sound like what they are: a muscle sounds like a muscle, a fire truck like a fire truck, a diesel like a diesel. The crashes are the most fun to listen to: when you hit a tanker the explosions make you wish you had surround sound with the bass turned up.
The replay value may not be the most high if you dont have Live. Or a friend to pwn. If you dont, its just another race through and beat it game. So good luck with that.
This game has simple fun and thats what makes it so good. Other race games are complicated and make you long for the next Burnout. Dont worry, Revenge is already oout. Go have a look at that one.