Def Jam: Icon

"An Iconic game of an Iconic series"

Def Jam Icon was hyped to be one of the best games in the beginning of the year 2007, and now it has finally come out. Don't be expecting FFNY, because this game is different...Way different. But I found it extremely enjoyable.

GRAPHICS:9.5
I seriously enjoyed these graphics. They are so beautiful in action, with the backround bouncing and exploding to the beats of the songs, and you can actually tell what charecter you are using because of the charecter detail. One of the strong points of the game.

Sound: 9
The voice acting is great, and explosions and crashes actually sound like explosions and crashes. The music isn't all that bad either.

Gameplay: 7.5
I really wanted to give this game an 8 in this catagory, but I can't. The gameplay is the main difference from past Def Jam games, and is a lot simpler this time around. The moves are somewhat limited.you can punch, kick, or hit him from all sides, and also throw him in any direction you would like. The FACE creation mode is a great feature, and is so advanced that you can create close to lifelike faces of your favorite rappers that didn't make the cut. Another awesome thing this game has for it is the customizability in the Build A Label mode. You use the FACE engine to create your superstar, and you can bling him out and dress him sharp in hundreds of different items while you fight through the story, which I found quite ejoyable, though the cutscenes were sparse. Having the choice of which 4 superstars to sign to your record label sounds like a good idea, except once you land a singer, they can only put out a maximum of two songs, which is sort of disappointing. There are sidemissions kind of where you have to take control of a rapper of your choice and beat someone down, wheter it be a pestering cop or overzealous paparazzi. All in all, Build a Label mode is a fun playthrough for at least 2 times, once on easy and once on hard. It's different from FFNY, but you will just have to cope. Other than all that, there isn't a whole lot more to do. You can fight with other people online or just set up a quick match against the computer or set up a Def Jam tourney with your friends. The ability to put in your own music as well is a definite plus.

DEF JAM ICON:8/10

PROS
+Good Sound
+Great Graphics
+Awesome customization options
+FACE creation mode

INBETWEENS (GOOD AND BAD)
=Build a Label mode
=Putting in your own soundtrack (might be kind of glitchy for some songs)

CONS
-Not much replayability
-BAL mode doesn't have enough cutscenes

Just remember: This game is NOT FFNY, and not everyone will like it. I, however, loved this game, and the only big thing that they could probably improve on is the depth of the fighting engine, and improve the BAL mode.Thanks for reading.

Reviewer's Score: 8/10, Originally Posted: 03/21/07