Early in Burnout Paradise’s career, before the Jensen 88 Special and Hot Rods were even announced to the general public, the only DLC they had announced was to come in the form of free islands, which were to be released fairly soon after launch. Were. They never came, and I found myself wondering where they were every time a new batch of “Premium DLC” was announced for the title, which was fairly frequent. Actually, it was damn near every other week since release.

For the first time since May, Criterion has posted more information on the island, now renamed “Big Surf Island” and moved from free to premium. Premium, if you don't already know, is much, much more than free.

Before we start keying cars and slashing tires, think about it. Of course it’s a shame that this will cost money now, but their excuse makes some sense. Early on it was simply going to be some more room to drive, new places to visit and streets to race through. Now it has been upgraded, and Big Surf Island is bigger and better than originally anticipated. It’s a culmination of all of the knowledge gained during and since launch, and they became more ambitious as it progressed, growing to a much more expansive island. Here are some images that look...well...like just about everything else in Burnout: Paradise.

I’ll pick it up (or download it, if you will), especially if it launches around the time the other cool DLC is launched. Then again, I’ve written that nearly a dozen times now, so it shouldn’t be any surprise. Their website has a little more information, so click here for Criterion's Blog posting on the upcoming Big Surf Island.

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