Your review score : | Current user average : 4.28 | 7 users have rated this game
Written by Octones
Gameplay - 9/10 It feels like a completely different game. Punches are more realistic looking and the falls look a lot better than even the demo. No more 2 or 3 animations on boxers getting up off the mat, I've seen about 4 or 5 different ones already. And, yes, there is a few where the guy basically looks completely knocked out and doesn't even move in the 10 count. About time.
The series has always drawn a fine line between simulation and arcade game. A true boxing sim would be boring, but an all out brawler would also be boring. I think this version captures the best feel yet. It might be a little slower than real boxing is sometimes, but I think it almost has to be to be able to react accordingly. The whole parrying thing is overblown, but oh well, have to learn to play with it.
The AI appears to be fairly adaptive. Like doing a jab to the face and then two shots to the body a lot? The AI boxer will adapt and block or parry you and catch you off guard. Like dancing around and trying to jump in and out and get shots on the AI boxer? He will learn and either block, time good punches, or try to jab you to throw you off rhythm. Those are just a few examples of how I have seen the AI boxers adapt during a fight. It is not perfect, and sometimes the AI does dumb things, but it is much improved over Round 2 and each fight is different.
The menus suck, bad. The music sucks, bad. But that doesn't affect the gameplay. The cut man is about the same as before. The process of getting up when knocked down is also the best yet. Easy to see what to do, but if you've been beaten up you will have a very hard time trying to get up.
Sound - 9.7/10 Great sound. Hear your boxer breath heavily when tired. The announcer does an ok job of saying what is going on, but it is mostly audible clues to you about what is happening instead of commentating on the fight. The trainer does a decent job of letting you know what to try in the next round or what to avoid. The crowd gets better as you get to bigger venues. They will chant your nickname when you are on a roll and they will cheer and go nuts when the action gets heavy.
The music sucks, as it does in most EA games, but thank god for being able to use our own music.
Graphics - 9.5/10 What can I say but wow? Fighting with a real boxer gives you an amazing feel for it actually being that boxer. Ali, Frazier, Jones, and all of them look so much like their real life counterpart that I sometimes find myself wanting to watch the fight and then I realize I am playing a game and controlling it.
The lighting is spectacular, especially as you swing the camera around. The lighting will change according to your perspective on the source of that light. The graphics and the default camera with no HUD really pull you into the atmosphere of being in a boxing match.
After playing quite a few matches the one thing that truly stands out is the emotion of the boxers. Getting your right eye bashed in and cut up? Your boxer will sometimes default to holding his right glove up near his eye. Getting hit in the stomach and ribs time after time? Your boxer will default to holding his arms in front of his stomach at times. In the slower motion knockout time? Your boxers eyes will get wide and you can see the concern and fear on his eyes. These visual clues not only aid with no HUD on, but they also provide the intangible feeling of realism.
Difficulty - 8.5/10 Too easy in the career so far on the default (medium) difficulty. I may up it too hard to see what that does. Right now my longest fight has been 4 rounds and I knocked the guy out. Shortest was in the 1st round and the ref called the fight because I bashed the guy’s left eye open bad. The Classics fights are a completely different story. I beat Ali with Frazier but then I tried fighting with Jones against Toney and I got my ass handed to me so fast I was surprised.
After 8 fights in my career I upped the difficulty from medium to hard. Prepare to play a seemingly different game. You can still get the quick 2-3 round KO if you play it right, but you better watch out for the counters and leaving yourself wide open or you will be the one KO'd in 2-3 rounds. I was 8-0 on medium and I am now 2-1 on hard. Not sure if it is completely from the difficulty or getting to better boxers, but probably a mix of both. Also, the training appears to have higher levels to reach the maximum increases. Still fairly easy to max out your training each time though.
Longevity - 9/10 With all the various stances and punching styles there is enough variety to play around with in each weight class and feel like a completely different fighting game. Fighting with a powerful type stance and punching style with a heavyweight will feel completely different than fighting with a loose and fast punching style with a welterweight. Because of this I can see myself playing through the career a few times with various styles and weight classes.
The career itself is fairly straightforward in that you fight 4 or 5 fights and advance through levels of stardom. I won the Amateur Title, the Under Armour match and the Dodge match so far.
The Classics fights will always be cool to just go and play even if you have played them in the past.
The online aspect is where the longevity will reign. Random fights against complete strangers are good fun and a great learning experience. Fights against friends invoke rivalries and bitter grudge matches. Heck, Fight Night could be the game to play after a bad experience in the upcoming GRAW or the old Halo 2. Getting owned by someone in another game? Challenge them to a grudge match in Fight Night and take out your aggression in the ring. Fan created leagues with rankings will also give online matches true meaning.
Overall Impressions At first I had an "oh boy same gameplay, cool graphics" but that changed after playing a few matches offline and online. The boxing, punching and blocking styles play a big role in the game, much more than for visual effect. It takes time to learn the style as some will be slower and easier to block but others will be quick but not as lethal. Good variety.
I still have a very hard time blocking the body shots. No matter how I block they seem to land 75% of the body shots compared to maybe 45% of the head shots. Don't know if it is just me or if it really is that hard to block the body shots in the game. All I know is that if you go after the gut you can wear your opponent out and he will have a hard time coming after you hard after that.
This game grows on you over time. The first time I played it I just thought it would be a fun game to play sometimes and I wouldn't get obsessive over this title. Now I sit at work and think about ways to improve my fighting style and can not wait to get back in the ring upon arriving home from work. Is it just the new game appeal, or is it the signs of a great and addicting game? Likely it is a good mix of both and this game will still get playing time even after this upcoming wave of games for the 360 hits.
9.0
Gameplay Punches are more realistic looking and the falls look a lot better than even the demo. No more 2 or 3 animations on boxers getting up off the mat, I've seen about 4 or 5 different ones already. And, yes, there is a few where the guy basically looks completely knocked out and doesn't even move in the 10 count. About time.
9.5
Graphics On the Xbox 360 this game is stunning but it still looks awesome on the Xbox and PS2.
8.5
Longevity Different weights, a career mode and online support will keep you coming back for more.
8.3
Presentation The menus are a disappointing aspect of what is otherwise a beautiful looking game.
9.7
Sound The music is disappointing but the ambiatic sounds of the boxing experience are worth the score of 9.7.
9.0
Overall Best looking game yet and best in the Fight Night series in terms of gameplay. Still room for improvement, but definitely no slouch. A knockout from EA.
4.28 User Avg.
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