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EA Sports’ boxing game returns for another season. EA Sports’ Knockout Kings series had a fairly successful run on the PS One. That success didn’t translate over to the PS2, as the first entry in the series received poor review scores across the board. The company was able to improve things considerably since that time as last year’s Fight Night 2004 was a solid boxing game all around; Fight Night Round 2 improves on its predecessor’s already great gameplay.
Fight Night Round 2 includes a number of game modes. You’ll find the typical quick matches, but also an in-depth career mode and a create-a-player mode. The quick matches are pretty self-explanatory, and you’ll be able to choose from Fight Night Round 2’s exhaustive list of boxers. The create-a-player mode is quite in-depth, giving you enviable control over your boxer. You can outfit your character with a number of gloves, and shoes, with the money earned from single-player. That money can also be used to purchase ring girls, or more practically to get a better trainer or cut man. But the real draw is the career mode.
In the game’s career mode, you’re able to create a character. Once you get all the physical stuff out of the way, you’ll be able to assign points to power, speed, and agility, among others. As expected, you’ll start off pretty weak but you’ll be able to train, and get better. The different training sessions involve a particular move or combo, and you’ll receive a boost in stats before you have to go fight. You’ll notice that the game gets incrementally tougher as you move up through the ranks. It should be noted though, that you can play the career mode with one of the included boxers as you try to get him back to the top.
What separates the Fight Night series from other boxing games is the ease in which the game portrays boxing. It does so eerily accurately, but that is a great thing. The boxers feel light on their feet, but they have enough weight to show you the damage they cause. The controls are incredibly responsive, allowing you to do whatever you wish at any given time. This is done via the right analog control, in combination with one of the face buttons. More powerful punches require you to wind up the boxer by pressing up and down, but are as intuitive as the regular punches. You can also execute body shots, as expected, something that the left trigger handles very well. The game makes it very easy to feel in control of your character, and you’ll be pulling off combos in no time.
Despite all of these moves at your disposal, defense is still important. You’re able to block, dodge, and perform a number of parries to protect yourself from your opponent. This is handled by the analog sticks and the triggers, and as you get deeper into the game, it is possible to become incredibly good at defense since you’ll visually be able to tell that you need to block a low right hook. Interestingly, once you get your opponent’s health bar empty, the game will let you go for a knockout punch, complete with a more cinematic camera angle. The KO moments are truly a marvelous sight, and are implemented in the game very well.
The PlayStation 2 and Xbox versions of the game include online play. In our tests, there was a bit of lag in the game. While not a major deal, it does delay moves just a bit, which takes some getting used to. With practice, it is easy to account for this brief delay, though.
The game’s visuals accurately portray the sport it is recreating. The boxer’s models are incredible, one of the best in the current crop of videogames. The facial features are distinct and change drastically throughout the course of the match. Even the player’s skin has a realistic feel to it that only enhances the experience. You’ll notice sweat and blood flying as you land some killer punches. Best of all, the players animate extremely well, making all of these moves believable. Unfortunately, it seems that much of the processing power is going into the boxer’s models. The arenas are fairly general, nothing really stands out. This applies to the crowd, and the non-boxer character models, as well. Thankfully, you’ll be looking at the boxers for the vast majority of the time. The Xbox version is the most distinct in terms of visuals, but the Gamecube doesn’t fall far behind.
The game’s sound isn’t as amazing, however. The game’s soundtrack is provided by EA Trax, which provides an ample supply of hip-hop songs. The sound effects are top-notch, accurately portraying the action. The audio highlight, though, is the announcer. Joe Tessitore provides professional commentary, as fans should know from his runs at Fox and ESPN. Rounding up the audio is a few lines from your trainer, who will prep you in between rounds.
Final Night Round 2 improves on an already engaging game. The gameplay is stellar, something that is only made better by the kick-ass graphics. Online play is a nice addition, and overall, the game is definitely recommended.
Please Note: This review is based on the Xbox version of the game.
-- Jose Liz & -- Jake Wilson, PGNx Media
---- Mar 26, 2005
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