Fight Night Round 3 - Hands On Preview

Largely stemming from the fact that a new Xbox 360 title has appeared in the office, it's fair to say that there's been a greater interest in EA's Fight Night Round 3 then what TVG typically would expect from a boxing sim - thankfully it's also shaping up to be one of the first to really exploit the next-gen format from a visual perspective at least.

Having had the chance to put the gloves on thanks to a demo released shortly after CES, the latest preview build appeared in the office recently and has smacked TVG's expectations like a left hook from Smokin Joe Frazier.

The latest title in EA's Fight Night series, Fight Night 3 retains many of the trademark qualities that established its predecessors and builds upon them with a lavish next-generation renovation. Long-term fans of the series will be at home with the Total Control Punch and Defence system, providing an intuitive control mechanism utilising both thumb-sticks in conjunction with the trigger buttons to duck, block, weave and punch. Naturally it wouldn't be an update however without a smattering of new touches which come in the shape of the Flash KO and the Stun Punch. The latter acts on the same principle as the staple Haymaker technique, requiring a further degree of wind-up on the thumb-stick; connecting with one successfully finds your opponent dazed and stumbling around the ring waiting for the final blow, but find yourself on the connecting end and the importance of blocking and dodging takes on top priority. The effect of the Flash KO is distinguished to the point of being unmistakable, switching to the first-person perspective of the boxer on the end of a beating, who must block, block, block but relish in the possibility of absorbing the blows and unleashing a devastating counter blow.

There's little point in denying the fact that the first thing to grab your attention are Fight Night's photorealistic visuals. The Xbox 360 hasn't exactly had much to shout about when it comes to games fully exploiting the next-gen hardware, however Fight Night Round 3 ushers in a glimpse of what to expect and it's hard to decide whether Fight Night Round 3 would obtain as much interest if the visuals weren't there. Illustrious boxers throughout history have been brought to the screen with alarming success, sweat pours across a forehead, moles and imperfections create skin unlike any before ever witnessed in a videogame before - or at least not looking like waxwork. Connecting with a Flash KO draws the camera in and hushes down the surrounding atmosphere, which not only intensifies the action, but also allows you to block commands with a greater degree of accuracy when on the receiving end.

The only problem with such quality is the fact that little niggles and inconsistencies become increasingly apparent. Despite featuring staggering representations of Muhammad Ali, Smokin Joe Frazier, Sugar Ray Robinson and many more, hair still seems to be a problem, and as such bald boxers such as Evander Holyfield appear far more realistic then the polished 'bonce of Roberto Duran. The bad hair days carry across to the ring girls, who, providing a much needed diversion amongst the blood and sweat, illusion is ruined by hair clipping into their body in the most unconvincing fashion. As with many of its 360 sports titles Fight Night Round 3 utilises a combination of 3D models and other effects to generate the crowds, which looks entirely convincing during bouts (particularly with the camera's subtle motion-blur) but can look downright ugly during close-ups. Whilst we're at it, the replays in between rounds are nothing short of disastrous, however given EA's importance on gloss and sheen is something TVG expects to see fully rectified upon the game's final release.

To avoid sounding too much like visual floozies, TVG would like to make the point clear that visuals in Round 3 go far beyond just looking great and should ensure it as a worthy next-generation entry. Players get a real sense of a boxer's performance degrading as the bout goes on thanks to the explicit body damage and the simply sublime animation, as a result EA Chicago have managed to remove health/stamina bars completely, resulting in a HUD'less experience that furthers the sense of immersion. Typically this notion is good in theory but ultimately let down in practise, however that doesn't appear to be the case with Fight Night Round 3 as punches have a real sense of impact and the effect of them are glaringly obvious. Boxers to begin with are quick, rapid, and precise, however after a few rounds movement becomes sluggish and the blows far less defined. Special mention must also go to the camera work - something that is likely to become paramount in this generation - which zooms in on the action to capture the heavyweight hits and emphasise the hard-hitting nature of the game.

Land enough punches to a certain area and the opponent will soon fall to the floor, complete with a gruesome close-up replay highlighting the boxer's facial muscles twist and contort under the impact of the blow amongst a cloud of sweat and a plume of spit heading in the opposite direction of the mouth from which it came! Fight Night Round 3 is an absolutely brutal game at times and certainly isn't pretty; put two heavyweights into a ring and see what they're looking like at the end with broken noses, swollen cheeks obscuring their eyes and blood streaming down their cheeks, it's a game that has you "oooing" and "ahhing" whenever a punch connects - it's so close to being real that you'll have spectators watching from the ringside and betting on the outcome. Fortunately in between rounds you'll have the chance to swab the cuts and dampen the swelling with two mini-games, providing you can take your eyes away from the lovely ring girls of course!

Combine the stunning visuals with the intuitive control system and you have a boxing game that is shaping up to be the definitive answer on the subject, there's a real sense of diversity to the action whether it's re-enacting "The Fight of the Century" with Muhammad Ali squaring up to Smokin Joe Frazier or . With well over 30 boxers from the past and present faithfully replicated within the game EA Chicago has done an exemplary job of capturing the various different styles, to the point of training boxers to fight in the style of the classics for motion-capture purposes. Whether its Ali's lightning-fast hands and a killer left jab or the winding punch of Sugar Ray Leonard, Fight Night Round 3 accurately portrays the action in the ring and carries on the fortunes for boxing fans.

When it comes to content Fight Night Round 3 is shaping up to offer the customary selection of modes, with the branded "ESPN Classics" providing the scope to travel back and re-enact classic rivalries. The bulk of the game lies in the "Career" mode which challenges players to start from the bottom and create their own boxer or choose a great to take to the top in "Rebuild a Legend". Those accustomed to boxing titles will know what to expect; beginning in a humble gym with a prize purse that a professional boxer shouldn't even get out of bed for, players must work their way through the ranks to get a shot at the title. Along the way venues, opponents and prizes increase, whilst training before a bout takes the shape of four shallow-yet-entertaining mini-games. In a slightly strange twist players can purchase new accessories and clothes which have an impact on the boxer's abilities; not that a new gum-shield is ever likely to improve your power, but it does add a sense of reward to the traditionally sterile gaming experience of a boxing sim.

Long suffering gamers with a penchant for boxing will truly appreciate the expanded emphasis placed on a boxer's style within Round 3. EA never typically disappoints when it comes to "Create-A-Player/Sim/..." modes with Round 3 offering the traditional range of attributes to tinker with, from the size of the boxer's cranium to the type of trim on the lining is his shorts. This year's Fight Night isn't however just about the cosmetic touches, there's substance to match and as a result a huge emphasis placed on the boxer's style, stance and everything in between.

One of the largest stumbling blocks to the long-term enjoyment of a boxing sim for TVG is the lack of personality; it's a case of bout after bout of increasingly escalated importance with some half-witted mini-training-games thrown in between. In an attempt to alleviate this Fight Night Round 3 promises to capture some of the drama surrounding the sport by including the pre-match press conferences and rivalries that drive the sport. Sadly this feature has yet to be finalised in the preview build that TVG has received, however we have a lot of hope that EA Chicago can invigorate the mode with some fresh ideas. Completing the offering is the chance to take the experience online, although once again this feature was absent from the build.

Naturally the game is shaping up to a different prospect on the current-gen systems, although that's not to say they shouldn't become the de-facto standard - if the lack of competition is anything to go by at the very least. Perhaps the biggest testament to the 360 is the current-gen's inability to display the effects of stamina depletion and ten rounds of pummelling to a significant standard without resorting to traditional health and stamina bars. The crop of current-gens will also have to make do without the Flash KO punch, however when it comes to missing out, those with a "second thumbstick missing" PSP will have to resort to face button combat instead of the finer subtleties of the Total Control Punch and Defence implementation.