New ‘Burnout’ game on Switch eShop has nothing to do with EA’s series

A new Burnout game has been released on the Nintendo Switch eShop, but it’s not the Burnout players are familiar with.

The new game, simply titled Burnout, has been published by a company called GameToTop Corp, and has nothing to do with EA‘s racing series.

The release could have an affect on sales of Burnout Paradise Remastered, which is already on the Switch. When players search ‘Burnout’ on the Nintendo website, the new release appears near the top of the list.

Because Burnout Paradise Remastered is $29.99 / £24.99 and this new Burnout is only $2.99 / £1.99, some players may be fooled into buying the cheaper one, thinking it’s part of the same series.

“Engage in intense races, seize victory, and claim your well-deserved rewards,” the ‘new’ Burnout’s description reads. “Prove your mettle and rise through the ranks to become the Burnout champion.”

The word Burnout is still an active, registered trademark belonging to EA, so the publisher may take legal action at some point to prevent another game with the same name being made available.

GameToTop Corp already has a selection of games on the Switch eShop, many of which look like or share similar names to popular game series, in an apparent attempt to appear in search results.

Examples include Rocket League clone called Rocket Car: Ultimate Ball League Machines, Bus Simulator 2023 (which is unrelated to Astragon’s popular Bus Simulator games) and Farming Tractor Simulator 2023 (which has nothing to do with the long-running Farming Simulator series).

The Switch eShop has come under criticism numerous times for the apparent low level of moderation, allowing a large number of poor quality games to be released on the store.

In August, a game called The Last Hope: Dead Zone Survival was removed from the Switch eShop, following social media buzz highlighting that it appeared to be a cheap ‘knock-off’ of The Last of Us.