Presumably the first entry to a
franchise, Don King Presents Prizefigher is a boxing title meant to go up
against EA’s juggernaut franchise, Fight Night. The game certainly has a lot
going for it right out of the gate, offering an impressive roster of fighters,
cool and unique features, and the support of one of the most boisterous
personalities in sports. However, for all Prizefighter manages to get right, it
fails at the most important element, the sweet science of boxing itself. If you
are a fan of boxing titles and are waiting for a title to usurp the Fight Night
Round 3 throne, this game will only disappoint.
Prizefighter’s career mode showcases
some impressive story elements. The game’s “story” unfolds in a cool
mockumentary style, with real actors (and some well known figures from the
boxing world) showing up to describe your progress as though reminiscing. This
adds a pretty nice touch to the game, and is actually pretty fun to watch. While
some of the characters stumble a bit on their acting chops, for the most part
it’s done well.
In the actual meat and potatoes of
the career mode, there are some pretty cool elements as well, as you’ll begin to
have to box with some handicaps thrown into the mix, like a broken right hand
and other mitigating factors to make you really have to try to win your matches,
which is a nice touch. There are also a good amount of mini-games that you can
play through while training your boxer and improving his stats, which are also a nice
touch.
Whereas EA’s Fight Night series
makes heavy use of the right thumbstick for throwing and dodging punches,
Prizefighter forgoes this in lieu of utilizing the face buttons for throwing
punches, with the shoulder buttons used for modifying blows, signature moves,
and so on. The plus side of this is that the controls aren’t quite as
intimidating as Fight Night’s, meaning that gamers from diverse skill levels
shouldn’t feel too lost at the get-go.
Unfortunately, that’s about where
things start to unravel. The actual in-ring gameplay leaves much to be desired,
as the simplistic controls lack the technical proficiency of EA’s Fight Night
series. Spamming away at the face buttons lacks finesse, and the button mashing
gameplay just feels cumbersome. The hit detection is also very off, as punches
will often not connect properly and even sometimes will go right through an
opponent’s body without any damage done. This is death to a boxing game, and the
awkward controls definitely sully Prizefighter. When your boxers simply go at
each other and clumsily pound face like Rock ‘Em Sock ‘Em Robots, it kind of
kills the mood of the sport.
It’s not all bad in Prizefighter,
however. The game’s career mode is a definite step in the right direction, and
the robust fighter roster is quite impressive, featuring well-known classic
fighters like Rocky Marciano and Joe Louis as well as modern pugilists like
Shannon Briggs and Kelly Pavlik. Additionally, the online modes (while fairly
par for the course in terms of game modes), run pretty smoothly with minimal
lag.
Graphically, Prizefighter is a mixed
bag. While the fighters, especially the licensed ones, look quite good and the
environments are pretty nice, the animations are pretty lousy and look jerky and
robotic.
The sound effects fare quite a bit
better than the graphics, as the voice work and crowd noise both sound very
good, and the ability to unlock new ring entrance music is a nice touch. The
commentary could use some work.
Prizefighter shows some promise, as
the career mode offers an interesting alternative to other boxers and the story
is very well done. Unfortunately, the game doesn’t deliver when it comes to the
actual sport itself, and will likely leave you disappointed.
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Gameplay: 6.0
Prizefighter fails to properly grasp the sweet science, with awkward
controls and overall lack of finesse. The collision detection issues range from
annoying to frustrating.
Graphics: 6.5
Good boxer models and decent rings are mired by jerky and robotic
animations.
Sound: 8.0
The ring music is great and the rest of the sounds are pretty decent, but
the commentary could use some work.
Difficulty: Medium
Concept: 8.0
The game’s story presentation is very impressive, but unfortunately the
overall gameplay elements can’t back it up.
Multiplayer: 7.5
Pretty average game modes, but otherwise performs well online.
Overall: 6.0
Prizefighter’s production values are pretty high, but unfortunately the
gameplay took a back seat and fails to capture the essence of boxing.
