Fight Night: Round 3

The “sweet science” of boxing has never felt this smooth on a console. EA has done a marvelous job on Fight Night: Round 3 – we finally have a game that truly showcases the power of the Xbox 360. It was worth it folks. This fighter’s graphics are nothing less than jaw dropping. All you gamers that kicked a soccer mom in the groin and stepped on a stack of crying children to get a 360, it was worth it. Hey you! Yeah you, eating your third meal of Oriental Ramen for the day, the guy that spent his grocery money on an overpriced 360 on eBay that was advertised on a pair of breasts, it’s ok man, it was worth it. And you, the poor schmucks that paid 800 dollars for a picture of a 360, and 600 dollars for a homemade empty box on eBay…Sorry about that, but man that’s hilarious.

Features

Graphics that make you feel like you are looking through a window, not at a screen

Improved haymakers and new impact punches

Solid create a character option (Tyson here we come!)

Virtually lag free online play

Did I mention those next gen graphics yet?

Perfect Pixilated Pugilism

With all of the ballyhoo about what constitutes as next gen and what doesn’t, it is nice to see a title arrive where there should be no argument at all. In fact if you argue that Fight Night: Round 3’s visuals are not “next gen” you should donate your eyes to some one who needs them. Really: http://www.eyedonation.org/. We have reached a level of gaming that the graphics dictate the gameplay. No longer is the HUD on the screen. The way that you react will depend on how you and your opponent look and carry yourselves. You of course have the option to turn the HUD on, but why would you want to? We don’t need it anymore, the graphics are so sharp and detailed that you are completely conscious of how your fighter is fairing at all times.

Float like a Butterfly…

The gameplay in this round is a very similar to that of Round 2. The haymaker system has been made less powerful and the impact punches are a welcome addition. All in all EA has created a very balanced fighter. The analog punch controls are intuitive, the blocks and doge are functional, and the parries have the ability to aggressively change the momentum of the fight. That being said, if you are familiar with Round 2, you are boxing on familiar ground. There is not one single change or improvement that takes the mat from under your feet. If you are new to the Fight Night Series you may want to wait a couple of days to jump online just to get the basics down. But the controls are intuitive enough to be knocking out 13-30 year olds with a little practice.

…Bite Like a Tyson

The sound is simply brutal. To quote Fight Club: Sometimes, all you could hear were the flat, hard, packing sounds over the yelling. Or the wet choke when someone gasped and sprayed “stop!” The sounds are as grimy as Palahniuk’s words and Fincher’s eyes. These boxers are covered in a sticky wet stink and you can hear every thud of the gloves hitting the skin. In other words, the sound effects are picture perfect. The announcer is another story though, rarely is any insight offered, and the quips and comments are generic and get very redundant. This could have been greatly improved upon.

The soundtrack is not all that bad, it is pretty much your standard compilation of up and coming rap and hip hop artists and most of it is pretty solid. It is especially nice to see Minnesota natives Atmosphere made it on the soundtrack. Like all music though, one can only listen to the same 12 songs so many times until it gets a tad old. Thank God/Microsoft for the 360’s easy connectivity to your Ipod.

I Coulda had class. I Coulda been a Contender.

This time around EA has added a personal rival in the Career Mode. Essentially your rival mirrors your career. You know that he is your rival because the announcer tells you. Other than that he is just like any other fighter. He pops up here and there but is ultimately a wasted concept that neither adds nor detracts from the game, kind of like planters wart on a Vivid porn star. The Career mode has been stripped of the stats that graced Round 2. Instead of a solid way to see how you are ranked you given a popularity bar. When the popularity bar is full you get a shot at a title. The Career mode is relatively shallow and really only exists to hone your skills for online play and obtain achievements.

Speaking of online, there is a lot to be impressed with here. This is the first game on the 360 that is virtually lag free. It is leaps and bounds above Dead or Alive 4’s online performance. Truth be told, the majority of time spent on Fight Night: Round 3 will be spent online and EA Chicago has done a superb job making it a smooth experience. It is far more satisfying laying a haymaker on some chump from Albuquerque than your virtual rival in Career mode.

On Virtual Globalization

After clicking through several pop ups, watching a movie trailer, and reading a banner about Nike Shox Turbo III at Finish Line, you may realize that some other game review sites aren’t too happy about the involvement of in game advertisements from GM and Burger King that present in Fight Night: Round 3. They have been referred to as “eyesores” amongst other things. We would all like to have a video game experience without the adverts, but it is the way of the future. If the whole point is for video games to push forward into a solid virtual reality, we need to realize that the reality it is mimicking is our consumer driven, privately owned, publicly traded Planet Starbucks. Give it up. Get used to the adverts folks and give up the fight before it starts, it’s only going to be as bad as every film you see in the theater.

Final Word

Fight Night: Round 3 has graphics that are reminiscent of a Square Enix film, sound that is rich and realistic, and gameplay that is intuitive and painfully addictive. Yes, the Career mode leaves a little to be desired, but it really doesn’t detract much from the game. This is a game that should be enjoyed, with friends whether they are virtual or not.