Fight Night Round 3 |
Xbox 360 |
||
Review by Matt Paprocki |
EA Sports |
Sports |
|
Graphics: 9 |
Sound: 8 |
Gameplay: 8 |
Overall: 8 |
![]() The lack of any meters, bars, or indicators is the game's crucial departure from the norm. Though they can still be turned on if needed, getting into the ring without them is obviously the way this game was intended to be played. Instead of fighting with various colored bars, you're fighting against another person whose movements are the only necessary indicators. You can see the pain in their eyes, the fatigue setting in, and gruesome broken noses in brutal detail. This is what the graphical detail and processing power brings with it. Knocking someone down is guess work, not just pummeling them until the meter says they're down. You'll be decimating your opponents with Total Punch Control, an overrated control scheme due to inaccuracies, and not one that was needed in the first place. The button controls still feel more natural, though it's ridiculous that given all the buttons, certain moves are not available to non-analog players. These moves require some work to pull off, whipping the analog stick around to various degrees and hoping you're executing the right one (since the margin error is minimal). ![]() While it's nearly perfect in the ring, outside of it the experience has some problems. The career mode needs more of everything, except for more advertisements. It's a sad day when your Xbox Live profile is forever plastered with company based "adver-chievements." The number of training mini-games is a miniscule three, items like shorts bought from the in-game store apparently help a boxers stamina, and there are some glaring gaps. Though most screens show how long it is until your next fight, it has no bearing on the action. You can only train once in-between matches regardless of the time frame. There was room for strategy, but it's lost. There's also an opportunity to pay a contract fee for a new trainer, yet the stat boost is so miniscule, you're better off sticking with the free one you'll use from the start. ![]() That's the story with the entire game though. The in-ring action is close to flawless, it doesn't matter what complaints you have before you get there. The classic fights alone, some even being done in black and white for effect, are nearly worth a purchase. It could still use a push towards realism (400 punches to some ones head will not only knock them out, they'll likely never box again), but Fight Night Round 3 is the best of the Xbox 360 sports games so far. |