Looking more like eHarmony than a modern racing game, Electronic Arts is using Burnout: Paradise in a new marketing campaign targeting couples — very appropriate for Valentine’s Day.

With a series of YouTube videos, EA is driving home the point that couples who play together stay together.

“Today, EA has released nine viral videos on YouTube that are a spoof of the online dating commercials we all know and love,” said EA’s Mariam Sughayer. “These ESRB-approved ads are designed to create buzz around the game’s online social gameplay, its unique “mugshot” feature and the open world racing of Paradise City. It is also a great example of new and innovative ways companies are reaching consumers in the web 2.0 world.”

One of EA’s marketing minds, Lincoln Hershberger created the ads, so be sure to send him a Valentine!

From Electronic Arts:

Redwood City, CA — January 22 — Electronic Arts Inc. today announced that Burnout Paradise for the PlayStation 3 computer entertainment system and Xbox 360 video game system is now on store shelves in North America and will be available in Europe on January 28. The much anticipated Burnout Paradise is critically acclaimed as the Best Racing Game by the 2007 Game Critics Awards.

Burnout Paradise is built with an all-new open world design to provide the ultimate in freedom and discovery online and offline. Players will be able to create their own personal driving experience, as you decide when and where the action begins. It is a totally seamless experience, as Burnout Paradise sets the new standard in online social gameplay. See your friends online with the EasyDrive Friends List and connect with them instantly without having to wait or exit your game. You can battle up to seven of your friends and grab their Mugshots, or join forces to complete more than 300 online challenges.

“Burnout Paradise is the natural evolution of the franchise as we wanted to give the player full control to create their own personal Burnout experience,” says Alex Ward, Creative Director at EA Criterion. “The city really comes alive when players get together with their friends online, aggressively blasting through the streets at insane speeds to see who is king of the road. The team at EA Criterion couldn’t be more happy and excited to be delivering a truly next generation Burnout title.”

Burnout Paradise has been rated E10+ by the ESRB and 3+ by PEGI. For more information about Burnout Paradise, please visit http://burnout.ea.com.

This is the official Blast Magazine preview for the upcoming Electronic Arts game Burnout: Paradise coming soon for Playstation 3 and Xbox 360.

Gamers can be a fickle bunch. Change too much in a well-established series, and watch the flames arise, but rest on your laurels too much and you’ll be hearing cries of the series becoming stagnant (Madden).

Burnout Paradise, the latest in EA’s high-octane, crash and smash racing simulation series seems to be destined for controversy. On the surface, Paradise, which releases in mid-January for the Xbox 360 and Playstation 3 looks like a sharp departure from the series roots. Gone is the one race at a time linear gameplay in favor of a new, wide-open sandbox style gameplay. Gamers can now tool around the massive Paradise City, wrecking what they want – when they want and taking place in events at their own leisure.

While some might cry foul at the developers for taking such a large step away from the formula that made the series so popular — it must be noted that at its core — Paradise plays and feels just like the older games, only with much, much more freedom.

In most open-world games, parts of the world are locked until you complete certain missions or chapters. Not so in Paradise City. Right from the start, the entire city is yours to explore, and it is massive. While you will be able to take part in any of Paradise City’s events in any order you please, you will have to wait to unlock the nicer cars. It’s alright though, even your junker-cars can be given high-class looks by visiting one of the game’s many gas stations or body shops, which get added to your map every time you visit one.

Anyone familiar with The Burnout series knows that it’s not so much about racing as it is causing destruction and crashes — which Paradise looks to take to the next level. I’m no masochist or anything — but crashes look and sound amazing. When you wreck, a grainy, black and white filter slows down the action, allowing you to hear and see your ride bite the dust. I found myself purposely crashing to see how many different ways I could find to see new animations.

Burnout Paradise is different, but a lot of fun so far. Anyone familiar with the series should give it a look when it launches in early 2008. Stay with Blast Magazine for the review.

Electronic Arts announced Tuesday that the Guns N’ Roses song Paradise City will top the stacked playlist in the upcoming Burnout Paradise for Playstation 3 and Xbox 360.

“The music propels the game into high speed action with forty major artists including Alice in Chains, Jane’s Addiction, Soundgarden, Twisted Sister, Jimmy Eat World and N.E.R.D., as well as rising stars Airbourne, Jupiter One and Junkie XL who have been signed to EA’s own music label, Artwerk,” EA said in a statement Tuesday.

“Burnout is one of the world’s most popular racing franchises and demands a soundtrack that matches the game’s intensity at every level. We believe we’ve crafted a truly volatile mix of rock’s most dangerous tracks — beginning with the iconic ‘Paradise City’ — for an audio fuel as explosive as the game itself,” said Steve Schnur, worldwide executive of music and music marketing at EA.

The open world racing title is coming January 22.

Complete soundtrack:

Electronic Arts released today “a fully explorable slice” of the award-winning and highly anticipated racing game, Burnout Paradise.

The demo is available now on the Playstation Store and Xbox Live Marketplace. It allows players to check out a portion of Paradise City before the game hits shelves in North America on January 22.

Discover jumps, billboards and smashable targets all over Motor City, Big Surf Beach and Ocean View in search of the fastest Burnout Route in the Hunter Cavalry car. Also, attempt your shot at a race and check out the all-new Stunt Run mode. If you’re online, invite up to three friends into your game and connect with them instantly using the EasyDrive online system. Once online, players can work cooperatively to complete three FreeBurn challenges or simply smash each other up and grab their Burnout Mugshots with the Playstation Eye and Xbox Live Vision cameras.

According to the game’s designer, Criterion , said recently that Burnout Paradise has been designed for speed, freedom, social online play and spectacular crashing, “but now with all new modes, a completely open world and events at every intersection,” they said.

Download it now — Paradise is the best looking racing game we’ve heard of this year.

Electronic Arts has released the box art and screenshots for the next chapter in the classic Burnout racing franchise. Burnout Paradise is out January 8 for PS3 and xbox 360.

Tear through the streets of Paradise City, filled with insane super jumps and hundreds of smashable targets, looking for shortcuts to give you that competitive edge! The action begins with you but it may not end, just pull up to a stoplight and spin your wheels to enter one of five types of high speed action challenges or jump online instantly with your friends. Burnout Paradise sets a new standard for online social gameplay with its EasyDrive online system.All the cars in Burnout Paradise have been engineered from the ground up to look beautiful, whether they’re fresh out of the showroom or smashed into scrap. From exotics and muscle cars to hot rods and even supercharged SUVs, get ready to experience spectacular bone-crushing crashes and an unparalleled sense of speed! Welcome to Paradise: one city with infinite possibilities.

Features:

• Explore Paradise — From big-surf beach, to downtown gridlock, there’s over 30 square kilometers of the ultimate driving playground to explore from the get-go. Nothing is blocked off.
• Burnout Your Way — Just pull up to over 120 stoplights and spin your wheels to start one of five different events — the classic Race, Road Rage and Burning Route, and the all-new Stunt Run and Marked Man games.
• Instant Online — Burnout Paradise sets the new standard in online social gameplay. See your friends online with the EasyDrive Friends List and connect with them instantly without having to wait or exit your game.
• Team up or Takedown — Join forces with up to seven of your buddies to beat hundreds of online FreeBurn Challenges together or heat up the competition and go head-to-head in user created race routes.
• Road Rules — Make and break the rules of each road by setting speed and destruction records all over town. Track how many you own against your friends!
• Mugshots — Track the length and breadth of up to 2,500 online rivalries. In your moments of victory, grab mugshots of opponents who have connected Playstation Eye and Xbox Live Vision cameras. Gloat over them even more in your trophy room or export them for ultimate bragging rights!
• Speed, Speed and Even More Speed — The rebuilt, race-tuned Burnout game engine delivers intense speed boost gameplay at a super-smooth and super-fast 60 frames-per-second.
• Showtime: Crash Anywhere, Any Time — Feel like bringing chaos to the streets of Paradise? Set your car wrecking, spinning and scraping down the road, smashing through traffic and leaving a trail of expensive wreckage in your wake.
• Crash Deformation — Burnout Paradise features an all-new deformation technology that gives players an astounding close-up and slow-motion view of super-real destruction.
• Cars — Muscle cars, exotics, hot rods and even supercharged SUVs, engineered to look beautiful whether they’re brand new or mashed into scrap. Choose from stunt, speed or aggression car classes, each built with their own unique boost ability to give you the upper hand for specific challenges. Shut down roaming rivals and rack up wins on your licence to strut the streets in a wide selection of unique rides.
• Take it Aerial — Go airborne and pull boost-earning barrel rolls and spectacular mid-air spins. Find the hidden jumps to reach secret rooftop routes and 120 smashable Burnout Billboards.
• Driver’s License — Start with a Learner’s Permit then rack up wins to progress all the way up to a Burnout Elite Driver’s License — the ultimate accolade for any safety-unconscious motorist.

This stunning looking racer will be available for Xbox 360 and Playstation 3.