Fight Night Round 3

"If You Are A Keen Boxing Enthusiast, Like Myself, You Will Hate This"

Gameplay

Now here it depends what you are looking for in a boxing game. If you are looking for an ultra realistic boxing sim which allows titanic, challenging, battles to take place in a similar fashion to the Thrilla In Manilla or Rumble In The Jungle, this is certainly not the game for you. This game is solely based on unrealistic, slow, dull and predictable gameplay in a similar fashion to many EA sports titles such as FIFA. It is no more a Boxing game than it is a Hollywood boxing based movie. Fighters in all divisions are slow and sluggish, there is almost no way to put meaningful combinations together, work the head and body strategically or "BOX" and jab your opponent for 12 rounds and win decision. The only strategy in this game is throw haymakers, or be systematically taken apart. All contests in any weight division you decide to take part in are eerily reminiscent of the first Danny Williams and Audley Harrison fight, dull, slow with the contest being won by a speculative right hand. Fights are easy once you get the hang of it and samey, and usually all end within 7 rounds after 5 knockdowns and one or the other taking what, in real life would be a coma ensured beating. Gameplay is a joke if your looking for a realistic challenge.

Realism

To put it bluntly, there is none. As I mentioned, fights are extremely slow compared to real life, there is almost no way of taking the fight past the 6th round. No matter how much punishment your opponent seems to take, he will only ever go down for good, after he has hit the deck at least four times. Now as most will know, most of the time, it takes just one big punch clean punch to take someone out for a 10 count. Not in this game. You can land devastating haymakers all you like, yet your opponent will rarely go down unless his health bar is empty. And even then, no matter how much blood is spilt, he will only ever stay down after being knocked down a few times previously. Now Counter punching takes place in real boxing all the time, but n this game it is strangely easy. Simply lean back, your opponent can't make any effort to step forward with speed and will be open to a counter. Aswell as this, parrying is farcical, since when does it take 5 seconds to recover from a punch being knocked away. By parrying, you give yourself time to set up a huge haymaker, to connect with a fighter whose arm is below his waist (below his waist from a parry huh, very strange). Now another element to realism is fighting styles and techniques. Every fan of boxing knows that styles make fights. For example a flash boxer(ALI) against a inside fighter(FRAZIER) will always be a classic. Yet in this game neither style is effective against anything. There is simply NO such thing as inside fighting according to EA, and the way Ali dances around the ring in this game is more drunken than stylish. Putting punches together is nigh on impossible and when it does happen, the fighters take an eternity to pull them off. Also, apart from Naseem Hamed, who dances and shows off when entering the ring.

Graphics

Its EA, thats all they care about. Graphics are brilliant. Superb sweat, blood, and detailed, lifelike fighters. Having said that, injuries, swellings and cuts seem to occur extraordinarily fast. Within one round you could be forgiven for thinking fighters have just been in a 12 round slugfest by the look of them.

Longevity

Quite frankly, appalling. Career mode is farcical and bears no resemblance to the real thing. Starting as an Amateur and working yourself through the ranks to become champ takes years. You will not be champ in this game until your character is AT LEAST 26. Whereas in real life, fighters at the start of there pro career usually have 12 fights in as many months and then within a couple of years have some sort of title shot. This game allows roughly 4 fights or less every year until you retire and you climb the ranks so slow, there is no point. Scoring in Amateur contests, are for some strange reason in this game, scored like pro fights. Even stranger is the fact that purchasing shorts or gum shields, improves speed, power and defense. The challenges in challenge mode are poor, easy and pointless.

Overall

A joke of a game, typical EA, great graphics, forget gameplay. If you know anything about boxing, and have viewed fights before the decline of Mike Tyson, you will hate this game. Kids, people who have never boxed and people who have never watched any classic fights will love this game. I would rather rub bleach in my eyes than play this game. Don't waste your money, infact, use that money to purchase some classic boxing fights on DVD.

Reviewer's Score: 6/10, Originally Posted: 01/16/07