With all of the new control mechanics on the upcoming PlayStation Vita, it seems to be crying out for suitable and effective uses of the likes of the touchscreen and gyrometers. Well, if you have read my Burnout Crash review then you will notice I had hinted at the title being more suited to the handheld market. As we know there are numerous devices out there providing handheld gaming to the masses, more so with practically each new smartphone bringing better hardware with it for entertainment on the go. However, when I play Burnout Crash I cannot help but think of how Criterion and EA could really make something special for Sony’s soon-to-be-released Vita.

Let us look at the stand-out specifications of the device on the off-chance there maybe some people who do not know about it. The touch screen steals the show and rightly so with a generous five-inch, Organic Light Emitting Diode (OLED) and capacitive touch screen. This means colour rich and perfect contrast sure to “wow” the user and bystanders at all times, with multiple touch-point controls to boot.

Now, when playing Burnout Crash you use one of those little analogue sticks (the left to be precise) to guide your vehicle into the unsuspecting cars passing through the junction. It is fun and instantly natural as you and I have used our console controllers for years and years. But what could really elevate the fun factor is a natural transition to that wonderful touch screen the Vita shows off with pride. Drag your finger across the screen and plot a path for your chosen vehicle to follow and perhaps allow the speed of the vehicle travelling along said path to be based on how fast you draw the path. Much of Burnout Crash is about observation and planning where and when you are going to hurl your vehicle for maximum destruction. Drawing a path like this allows you to take your eyes off the vehicle and take a bit more of a glance at where to go next.

After the first impact in Crash you start filling your “crashbreaker” bar and are set to explode once it is full. When you press the crashbreaker button you launch your vehicle into the air and throw it anyway you wish using (again) the analogue stick. That wonderful Vita device is packing six-axis motion sensing technology that would allow you to tilt the device in any directing you wish to send your wreck – preferably into more traffic. What could be more engaging and feel more intuitive than to actually tilt the handheld to control an airborne pile of destruction? Why not activate the crashbreaker by shaking the Vita console, thus utilising it’s built-in gyrometers instead of simply pressing a button as well? Already, you are already starting to play this game in much more engaging and unique fun ways but there is still more on offer.

So you are bouncing your vehicle all over the place by tilting the Vita and causing all sorts of lovely explosions to fuel that high score. Have you ever watched your parents or younger siblings trying to get to grips with a game? They usually tilt the pad in the direction they wish to go and the best parents are those that even lean their bodies in the same direction too. The methods of drawing a path to take and tilting the Vita in the crashbreaker would make it easy for anyone to pick up and play.

Burnout Crash is far from just a simple game of destruction though, with special actions and events to mix it all up. In the default game mode “Road Trip” you are building up to one huge finale that will see a tornado, tsunami and a plane in an emergency landing (amongst many) finish off the junction for you. As one of the more satisfying to watch part of Crash, it’s a shame that your interaction is literally just watching the carnage on-screen. So why not throw the rear touch pad the Vita houses into the equation? As your tsunami or tornado passes over the junction the player could swipe, rub and/or circle their fingers on the rear touch pad to keep the destruction going and determine the intensity. The player has immediately gone from enjoying the destruction on show to being an integral input on just how much destruction is caused and making them work a little harder for that high-score.

A couple more examples of innovation: in Burnout Crash you get the opportunity to fling your wreck into a pizza van, fuel tanker and a security van, each offering bonuses such as extra cash to be collected and a big explosion. Again you could bring the touch screen into the mix with say a “pest control” van and a “swat” van coming on to the screen. Taking both these out will provide a combo in relation to the vehicles such as “pest swatter” which could translate to the player using their finger on the screen to start flicking/swatting the traffic around for bonus points.

Then there’s Autolog, which makes a very welcome appearance in Burnout Crash. With the Vita 3G model housing an extremely welcome “online anywhere” (cellular signal dependent) ability, you could receive live updates anywhere and anytime when a friend (likely to become rival) beats your top score. On the Vita this could be special indeed as you get a notification that your score has just been smashed during your work break. The beauty in Burnout Crash is that I’ve found most junctions only take around ten minutes to complete in Road Trip mode, meaning you can retaliate with an even better score and still have time to eat your lunch. Why not go all out and use the front facing camera on the Vita to record a short video message of yourself bragging and to send back via an Autolog update to really set the rivalry on fire.

Burnout Crash is a prime example of a game that would suit and in my opinion be even more fun on Sony’s new handheld. A game like Crash can become more interactive and both more technical yet easier for all audiences to enjoy.

So Criterion, how about it?