Black & Bruised

"Reminiscient of Ready 2 Rumble, B&B features a much more eccentric cast, but is it better?"

Boxing's come a really long way in the video gaming industry. I mean, it pretty much started out with Punch-Out! for Arcade and NES, with a Mike Tyson spin-off as well as a Super Punch-out! for Super NES and Arcade. Of course, as the systems got better, boxing got more intricate in gaming, and, in most cases, got better. Some games kept true to the realism, yet still stayed fun [Victory Boxing, Knockout Kings, Ready 2 Rumble], but others... Weren't. [Contender] Well, Black & Bruised has decided to follow in the footsteps of the more eccentric path of their lineage, and in my honest opinion stacks up well to its past.

The graphics are pretty darn good. Most people steer away from cel-shading, but as of recent, you do have to admit that the style is getting a lot better [Sly Cooper, anyone?], and this game is hardly an exception. However, unlike most cel games, this one keeps a high polygon count as well, giving it a cross between realistic and cartoony, which is very difficult to pull off well. In this department, Black & Bruised pulls it off and exceeds with flying colors. The models are oftentimes humorous, sexy, or just plain odd.

The sound's also pretty good. The voice acting is pretty darn good. Anyone who says otherwise knows little of voice acting. Every character has a distinctive voice, and plenty of taunts to back themselves up. Sound effects are slightly softer than they should be, but that may simply be a fault of my bad sound system. Everything sounds like it should, though, which is nice. The music is interesting. Every character in the game has their own theme music during their intros. I like this.

Gameplay is interesting. Although up to now, this game's seeming a lot like Ready 2 Rumble. Now it changes. Controls are a little odd, I'll say that much. Combos are punched in without timing, meaning that if you punch in a combo string, you can do it as fast as you want, and your boxer will perform the combo in entirety. A lot of people will be offput by this, but fret not. It works well if you just remember that the characters aren't lightning fast, much like in real life. Which leads me to another point. Dodging? Yeah, it's possible. And, once you find a way to do it, it works darn well. You can slip from attacks fairly easy once you figure out how. You can easily counter any attacks this way. The actual matches are regulation, as it should be. Two minutes, nine rounds [can be changed in Options]. Characters introduce each other, then get to fighting. In between rounds, the boxers spout insults and quotes at each other, which usually don't match the previous comment. Oh well, this game wasn't meant to be perfect. Oh yeah, and powerups. Basically, you have a little ''special'' meter in the form of a line of stars, which charges up as you attack your opponent. After accumulating enough stars, you will earn a powerup. You can charge that powerup to three levels, the third usually being the most powerful. There are different powerups, such as character-specific Super Attacks, Instant KO attacks [fret not, they're rare], Super Speed, Instant Combo [push one button repeatedly to launch fast combos instantly!], and more. The system works, making every match a change. It's easy to turn around a match when you get the right powerup.

So how does it all add up? Well, if you can get past the frustrating combos, then you've got plenty to do. Every character [including four secret characters] has a little thing called ''Boxer's Life,'' which is essentially a Story mode [new to the Boxing genre], giving info on each character and their interactions with one another. Most of the matches are handicapped in this mode, never to your advantage. It's not impossible, but sometimes, it just seems like the odds are high-stacked against you. There are plenty of other modes, though, with multiple Survivor modes and Tournament modes, et cetera.

In all, the game's good. It's definitely worth a try if you're looking for something new, and if you're into the genre. If you want fast-paced button-mashing game, I'd be wary, as this is more than likely a bad game for you darn button-mashers [learn combos, dangit!]. Always try before you buy and figure out these things yourself.

Reviewer's Score: 8/10, Originally Posted: 02/03/03, Updated 02/03/03