The crashes in Burnout 2 would almost be worth the price of admission on their own.  First off, they look surprisingly realistic.  Not that I've watched many pile-ups as they occurred, but there's nothing about the crashes in the game that would make me feel that they'd look any different out in the real world.  Mass, momentum, and angle of impact are all factors in the crashes, and each accident results in a unique crash.  Some can be minor scrapes while others quickly evolve into multi-car pile-ups.  Semis will jackknife, SUVs roll, and poor little compacts will be crushed beyond recognition.  Burnout 2 is an arcade racer at heart, so crashes during racing are there to cost you some time in the race.  Your badly damaged car will be put back on the track and repaired for you, so you can continue the race after even the most violent accidents.  The goal in the races is definitely to avoid accidents, but they are so fascinating to watch that there is a strong temptation to throw the race just to see what would happen if you knocked a bus into the path of an oncoming semi.  The developers of the game were well aware of this temptation, so the game provides a crash mode where the goal is for you to actually cause accidents.

Pulling away from the pack.

Crash mode provides a series of intersections, dangerous curves, and crowded highways, and challenges you to start an accident that will cause as much damage as possible.  The damage that you cause is tallied as a dollar figure multiplied by the number of vehicles involved in the wreck.  If you cause enough damage, you'll be awarded a medal and unlock further crash challenges.  The crash challenges have an element of strategy to them, and you'll need to pick your point and angle of impact carefully in order to get as many cars as possible involved.  Once the final vehicle hits, the damage is tallied during a helicopter flyover that gives you a bird's eye view of the destruction.  You can then watch a replay afterwards to look for ways to improve your performance or to just sit back and watch the carnage.  Crash mode is a lot of fun and surprisingly addicting.  You'll find yourself replaying the challenges to try and improve on your score, try new techniques, or to accomplish your own morbid goals such as trying to get a bus to roll or a semi airborne.

In all play modes you can select from a variety of vehicles that range from compacts to powerful muscle cars.  The control of all of the cars is pretty smooth and tight, making it a lot easier to weave through traffic at high speeds than in the real world.  Although control is thoroughly arcade style as opposed to a sim, each car does have its own unique feel in steering, handling, and acceleration.

The game's graphics are top-notch, with realistic vehicles and environments.  Not only do the tracks and environments look good, there is no slow-down even though you are moving quickly and there can be a lot of moving vehicles on the screen at any given time.  The game also does a great job of conveying a feeling of speed, especially when you kick in the turbo boost.

Burnout 2 is a blast to play, even for those who are not big fans of racing games.  It's easy to pick up and play, and the variety of modes and tracks keeps things interesting for a long time. 

In The End, This Game Hath Been Rated: 94%.  Finally, a game that makes crashing as much fun as the racing.  This game should be part of every racing game fan's library.

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