Glove On Fight

"Wackiness is good!"

Based on a Flash video of a nonexistent game, Glove On Fight is a little Japanese company's version of what was seen in the video. Unlike the company's other games, this isn't a straight-up fighting game but is, instead, a boxing game with numerous quirks. Using 8 characters from anime and dating games, rendered in ultra-cute somewhat SD style, this game is utterly unlike anything else you'll play.

Gameplay: 8 - The mechanics of this game are different from most fighting games. You don't get jumps (unless it's a special move), you don't get kicks - you get two Punch buttons, a Dodge button, and several Specials. It's deceptively simple, however, as each Punch button can result in a number of moves depending on whether you're standing still, moving, dashing, holding down one of the vertical arrow keys or doing quarter-circles with the d-pad. Specials - which are silly yet effective in different ways (like summoning the car from Initial D or a flock of cute little penguins) - are activated by doing Street Fighter-type d-pad movements and using the Dodge key. With all this, there's a number of different moves for each character, and a number of different strategies to develop. It moves more slowly than many fighting games, but the game's style is still extremely enjoyable and flexible. It'll feel like a boat at first, but when you get the hang of it it's a lot of fun, and the more limited style makes you rethink the way you play the game.

Graphics: 9 - Emulating the look of the original Flash video, the game is very smooth and crisp-looking, especially the bizarrely-rendered characters. Using several independently-moving sprites pivoting on virtual ''joints,'' the characters are very innovatively done and are fun as hell to look at, especially the utterly strange expressions on their faces. Specials are colorful and quirky, and the backgrounds are very clear and nicely done (if a little bit uninteresting at times). It doesn't need a spectacular CPU or graphics card, but having a processor above 500 MHz won't hurt.

Sound/Music: 9 - The sound of this game is pretty much limited to the sounds of fists hitting flesh and crunching bone (and the occasional penguin yelping :), but they're nice and crisp. The music, however, is one of the highlights of the game. Having progressed a great deal since his other installments on these fighting games, the composer's music is immensely catchy and fitting for the game, and in some cases is intensely, magnificently ludicrous. Ranging from quirky J-pop to infectious trance to awesome rap (the winning theme will make you want to turn your gat sideways and bust caps in someone's ass), and even some 80s and disco, the music will grab you like nothing else. Unfortunately, the game only uses 128 kbps mp3s, but the quality isn't bad at all. If you can find a copy of ''Lovely Beam 2002,'' it's probably the most insane thing you'll ever hear. :)

Challenge/Replayability: 8 - The gameplay may seem simple, but there's enough variety and flexibility in there that you'll want to play all eight characters, and it's not easy to master any of them. Once you've beaten the game with all eight, though, you'll want to put it down for a while before coming back to it so it stays fresh.

Overall, while it's not a perfect game, it's certainly quite good, and worth it if you feel like injecting a bit of insanity into your usual sense of fighting games. :)

Reviewer's Score: 8/10, Originally Posted: 05/01/03, Updated 05/01/03