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boxing bonanza

4 Rating: 4, Useful: 0 / 0
Date: January 14, 2008
Author: Amazon User

Good graphics. I like the boxers that are in the game. There are some old timers in there.

Playing it again on the XBOX 360!!!

4 Rating: 4, Useful: 1 / 1
Date: July 20, 2006
Author: Amazon User

I played through Fight Night 2004 back when it came out and had a lot of fun. Other reviewers have mentioned that different boxers have different approaches to being in the ring with you, and they are correct! You'll need to react accordingly or find yourself laying on the mat trying to get the dizziness out of your head.

Playing this on original XBOX was great. Playing on the 360 is also fun, but there are a few graphical errors you'll have to overlook. The front right quadrant of players heads has a graphical glitch that leaves a quarter of the players hair missing. If you're playing a character with an afro, this can be interesting, since they have a 3/4 afro instead of the full thing and you can see inside the hair (it is hollow). Tattoos also fail to appear on the 360.

I read a review where the reviewer complained about mandatory retirement; I disagree. A 42-year-old boxer is really pushing it. He's going to go down. Your body at 42 isn't what it was at 20, especially after you've been through a professional boxing career.

Anyhow, I like everything about Fight Night 2004. It's just pure fun. Make sure you do the training in between fights. If you get good, your stats such as stamina and speed will go up much faster than if you select the Auto Train feature.

At the prices you can get this game for, I recommend owning a copy whether you're still playing on the original XBOX or have upgraded to a 360.

One Great Boxing Game!

4 Rating: 4, Useful: 1 / 1
Date: June 05, 2006
Author: Amazon User

I got this game for Christmas of 2004, and I've had a total blast with it. The graphics and sound are top notched from EA! You can either fight with the large Fight Nite lineup or create your own boxer. So I created a 6'10 heavy with a mohawk and tatoes and named him the Irish Bull. You can unlock rings, equipment, and buy upgrades at the store. This came is so much fun, but there are two things I don't like about it. First for Xbox there is no online play, so you might want to get the one with Benard Hopkins because there is. Second the computer autimatically retires your boxer from career mode, when it sees fit. My Bull was 48-2 and had defended the title 11 times in a row. The computer retired him at age 42 for no reason. I can still use him in exhibition mode, but not in career mode. You'll luv this game and its a ton of fun!

Better Game Than I had Previously Thought

4 Rating: 4, Useful: 1 / 1
Date: September 05, 2005
Author: Amazon User

I had previously written a review proclaiming Knockout Kings 2002 to be a better game than Fight Night 2004. I was wrong. At the time, I was unaware that you could turn off the total punch control system and punch with the buttons... making the game much easier to control. You can also run the total punch control and buttons simultaneously which offers the ultimate aresenal of controllable punches. A lot of people have complained about the "annoying" rap soundtrack. That can be turned off in the settings menu and saved so you'll never have to hear it again. Those are the 2 biggest complaints I've heard about this game, and that's the fix.

Great game

4 Rating: 4, Useful: 2 / 2
Date: July 23, 2005
Author: Amazon User

I've yet to play Fight Night Round 2... But I must say this
is a really fun game. It has great control, great graphics
and is pretty realistic. I don't know alot about real boxing,
but this game had a decent number of characters and most of
the big names I've heard of... Of course the create a boxer
and move up the ranks is the highlight of the game. It's a
journey that can take a while, but it's worthy.

Also, you are provided with some decent fun training courses
that help build up you're endurance, power, agility and such
and that adds alittle to the game.

The boxing matches are rather fun. The block button works
very well which is a suprise to me. The punches look very
realistic with the exception of some of the special punches
which are really worthless and suck up the stamina meter
and so you are better off not bothering with them.

One thing I really like is that you can't got out there
just brawling and throwing wild punches or it will drain
the stamina meter and you will be open to some VERY nasty
upcuts and such. It can be alittle frustrating until you
figure this out.

Why not 5 stars?

Well, I believe some fighters simply jump around too much
and it was made this way to draw fights out. When you get
further up in the ranks you are force to be a cat chasing
a mouse because a number of the fighters will just dance
around with the health meter builds. And obviousally when
you chase so much it leaves you open to hits and at a huge
disadvange.

I know they did it to help draw fights out to the 7+ rounds
but it just gets on my nerves. Other than that it is a really
good game.

4 stars.

Gorgeous Control

4 Rating: 4, Useful: 2 / 3
Date: December 17, 2004
Author: Amazon User

This is quite possibly the best boxing game ever! (once you get over the nostalgia of Mike Tyson's Punch-out...) The graphics are sweet even though video games are still plagued by the ongoing difficulty of generating the human face; but what the game lacks in graphics it more than makes up for in control of your boxer, it is amazing! Each punch becomes completely intuitive and impact varies based on multiple factors (positioning, transitioning, fatigue, etc.) I love a game that lets you advance in the ranks against a myriad of opponents while increasing your skills via training routines on the side. In the spirit of tradition, you get to choose where you want to advance specific skill levels. Each match is totally unique with regards to AI strategy and opponent attributes, so you have to change your own strategy to compensate; you can't just keep doing the same moves and that rocks huge becuase games with glitches suck. Anyway, the coolest part might be how much can configure your own boxer to look like you; so many attributes at your disposal. Or even better, you can configure the boxer to look like one of your friends and then let him get pummeled on easy levels against non-opponents... It's hilarious to watch a computerized version of your best friend just sit there and take it in the face over and over by the equivalent of a Glass Joe until he drops and gets counted out, hahahaha it never gets old. If you like boxing, or you hate your friends, you have to get this game...

Technically Correct

5 Rating: 5, Useful: 3 / 5
Date: October 15, 2004
Author: Amazon User

This game is great from a technical point of view. If you are not familiar with boxing strategy, chances are you will have problems palying at the higher difficulty levels. Just as real boxers have their individual styles and strategies that set them apart from others, you too must develop your own style and stick with it. But, you must also learn to adapt to the fighting style of your opponent.
The music absolutely sucks for this game. I like rap, but this is severe overkill. A very bad judgement call on EA's part. Selling out is unattractive when it is so painfully obvious.
One point I would like to make is this: you CAN NOT have a realistic boxing game and call it KNOCKOUT KINGS or FIGHT NIGHT without including Mike Tyson. It is insulting to real boxing fans to exclude the meanest , toughest, most instinctive and devastatingly effective BOXER to ever don a pair of gloves. My advice to EA would be to pay Iron Mike a decent price to include him. BOXING sucks without Mike Tyson, whether it be in real life or in a video game. That would be like creating a NASCAR game and leaving Earnhardt or Petty out.Why is it that EA chooses to include Earnhardt Sr. in their games so they can cash in on a dead man, but not include TYSON who is still alive?But, that is my own biased opinion. There has not been a credible heavyweight champion since Mike.

Suggestions for future release

4 Rating: 4, Useful: 3 / 3
Date: September 19, 2004
Author: Amazon User

Fight Night is a superior, thoughtfully made, very addictive game which shines in many aspects. Rather than get into those, which have already been covered by many people, I'll mention suggestions to improve on the negative aspects for the next release. This may read as if I'm trashing the game, but in fact I love it and would like to see these small improvements made to make it even better.

1) The rap 'music' is extremely obnoxious. It probably does reflect the "urban" tastes of some boxing fans, but rap is a thing you either love or hate, so it's not a good idea to alienate so many people with it in a sports game. Thankfully, it can be turned off while boxing, but not before you suffer through P. Dummy's noise when booting it up, every time. This is the worst thing about the game by far; blatant commercialism by EA that serves no purpose. Also, they need to lose Big Tigger as the announcer. This guy has no connection with boxing whatsoever; just another brainless rapper spewing dumb homeboy-isms in a failed attempt to make the game more appealing to teenagers. Get Jimmy Lennon or Michael Buffer to do it; even Larry Merchant would be better than Tigger (although I wouldn't want to see Larry as a boxer!)

2) The "special" punches are the heart of this game, but they're essentially limited to the two that do fast and reliable damage: the lunging varieties. The rest take too long to execute. "Sledgehammer" and "home run" sound good, but your boxer will be hit with 10 punches by the time he swings, and they'll miss anyway. And they don't do any more damage than other specials. They need to equalize the speed of all the special punches, and have the expensive ones that do more damage (what's the sense of paying a hard-earned $2 million for the sledgehammer punch, when it's actually worse then all the rest?) At the very least, they should make those bigger punches have a better chance of a flash knockdown. You may not hit very often, but when you do, it does severe damage or knocks the guy down. I think that was their idea, but they didn't program it very well.

3) I can understand that licensing boxers would be expensive, in some cases. But they need to do more than fill the divisions with the exact same guys. What is Holyfield doing in LHW?? After you spend the time to work your way up in different divisions, you need a better reward than facing the same people repeatedly (and worse, when you beat them, they instantly retire, leaving you to face anonymous slobs for the rest of your career.) And where are people like Golota, Holmes, & Klitschko? Those guys would be glad to be in the game for the price of lunch at McDonalds. EA spent all their budget on rap songs, I guess. Unlockable boxers are missed too; sorry, but unlocking a rapper is just not enough to get excited about. What's next, Snoop Dog as a 300 lb knockout artist? As it is, are we supposed to be thrilled to unlock ugly tattoos, doves, or the latest hip-hop song, for meaningless walk-ins that we all skip past anyway? Terrible ideas. People want boxers in a boxing game, including women like Mia St. John & Laila Ali.

4) They almost got the boxer attributes & training right, but not quite. Too easy to get 100's in all categories, then your guy is maxed out & can't get any better WAY before he reaches the top. The heavy bag is a mindless and poorly executed idea. Also, there should be two more boxer attributes and one more training exercise. Agility is worthless; who cares how fast you walk across the ring? I suggest a Stamina rating for BOTH health & punching, and Instinct/Radar, which can be a factor in dodging (Speed should control offense only). Experience would be good too, controlling late-round fatigue. A computer boxer with high experience would have secret, small bonuses in some categories, & be an especially tough foe. That's how it is in real boxing - Lewis vs. Grant for example.

5) Since it's such an addictive game and you can create your own boxers, they need more variety in the clothing/equipment. Boxers such as Tua & Tyson favor all black trunks & shoes, but they didn't include those. Too many boring white trunks; and from the famous guys, only Holyfield has good-looking trunks. The shoe selection is awful; you can either wear tall ugly Viking boots, or "fashionable" but extremely ugly shoes. And gloves need more colors and designs. As long as they have the memory in the game to give us choices, why not redesign that section and eliminate the hideous stuff? Eliminate the tattoos, & put the designs on the gloves instead of the shoes.

6) All these people who want clinching - WHY? It's one of the worst aspects of real boxing; just watch any John Ruiz fight to see that. How can clinching possibly make this game better? That would be the same as having fighters spit out their mouthpieces, or waiting 5 minutes on a low blow. Leave that tedious stuff out. Also, they need to make the low blows more powerful. You only get 3 of 'em per fight, might as well make 'em count. Why take a chance on a DQ with a punch with no power?

Coulda Been A Contender...

5 Rating: 5, Useful: 2 / 2
Date: September 10, 2004
Author: Amazon User

i'm loving this game. i had knockout kings for the 64 so i'm familiar w/the button mashing style of fighting games. punch, punch, punch. there is so much more strategy to fight night. i feel like the only thing holding me back is my own lack of skills. the punching system is great when you get used to it. also, as you fight different boxers you quickly (and painfully) learn that you have to adapt your style to your opponents'. i would highly recommend it.

Great Game with Room for Improvement

5 Rating: 5, Useful: 4 / 6
Date: July 12, 2004
Author: Amazon User

Overall I have to say that I love this game. It's easily the best boxing game I've ever played. That doesn't mean that there's not things that could be better.

Pros: The graphics are very well done. The motions of the boxers are great and the venues look good. The sound is well done with some very realistic punching and crowd sounds. I personally like the total punch control, but for those who don't like it (see other reviews) there are several other controller options to choose from. The fighters in the game use different tactics that can vary depending on how the fight is going, so there is no set formula to winning.

Cons: I like the fact that the fighters show damage, but it's too uniform. First your eyes get red, then you get a cut around your eye. That's it. There could have been much more variation. Bloody or swollen noses and lips would be more realistic.

Once some opponents start to lose they begin to walk backwards around the ring, moving just as quickly backwards as you do forwards. All this while they're on the verge of going down. This can mean that you'll be chasing an opponent around for most of a round trying to land a punch or two.

Pretty much all fighters will get up on the count of 6 or 7 on the first knockdown. I've fought over 50 matches so far and have yet to see a boxer KO'd on the first or second knockdown, they always get up. A bit more realism would be nice. If you're caught with an especially powerful shot, it should be a little more difficult to get up. I've had fights where I've knocked my opponent down 7 different times before he stayed down.

Finally I think it's unfortunate that your boxer in career mode automatically retires after 20 years while still at the top of his game. Perhaps your skills could diminish as you get older making it necessary to keep training to stay in the game? Then you could decide when to retire your boxer. Go out while still on top or take a chance of losing your title? As it is now you max out your skills after a while making it pointless to keep training.

Overall this is a great game that is worth buying. Hopefully next years title will be even better with some of these problems fixed.

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