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Have you got what it takes to take on and beat over 40 of the biggest baddest rappers you have ever heard of, (and some you haven’t)? All of this takes place in 22 different venues whereby you and your crew must regain control of the streets. The story mode is where you start off, firstly creating your fighter in the now standard way; size, weight, ears, nose etc. Any one who has played Tiger woods will understand the format. You then must pick your fighting style, and for a change there are five to choose from: street, kickboxing, martial arts, wrestling, and submission fighting. Once you progress through the game you can add up to two other styles to your repertoire.
Included are the almost obligatory finishing moves, or “blazin” moves in this case. As you progress through the game you earn points by defeating opponents, which you can use to upgrade your fighter. These upgrades include street style clothes, “bling” jewelry, and new moves and techniques, all of which give an incentive to progress in the game. The story itself is quite weak and will only appeal to younger gamers, using quite cheesy cut scenes and rather clichéd dialog. However once the button is pressed and this is skipped, the game play shines.
Game play:
This is where the game does rather well. The actual fights are set in interactive venues, where a fighter can pick up weapons to use on an opponent. Or maybe you would like to put your opponents head through a jukebox? Even the crowd may take part by holding or even joining in and beating the hell out of one of the fighters. The controls are responsive enough, but it’s the moves themselves, which are very good. There are so many moves that are all quite unique, that you will learn and enjoy putting into effect as you progress your fighter. The moves are quite reminiscent of the Tony Hawks series, but then it is an EA game and that’s a good thing. During a fight once you have enough to power up, you can blaze, this means that you get faster and stronger and may execute any number of special “knock out” moves you may have trained in. This game features nothing new, but takes a lot of good things from other games, and makes for a good fight
Graphics:
The graphics are very good, large characters with mapped faces all taken from the stars of rap, including, Busta Rhymes, Flava Flav, Ghostface, Ice T, Lil' Kim, Ludacris, Method Man, Redman, Sean Paul, Snoop Dogg , and many more. The movement is fluid and it can be quite a joy to execute a knockout. The scenery is good too, being that you may interact with the environment which had it not have been possible would have made the game a little outdated.
Sound:
All of the characters have their real voices, which are spot on, imagine fighting an angry Busta Rhymes and he speaks and it sounds like Dale Winton? Not acceptable I hear you say. By defeating fighters you earn more tracks, all are rap but then you would expect that considering the participants. Wouldn’t be “keeping it real” fighting to Steps! The FX are spot on too, with all the crunches in the right places, and when you bottle someone, it sounds just right.
Longevity:
With over 90 fights set in 22 venues and with over 40 fighters, there is more than is expected in this genre. There is also two player battle modes, and you can play with up to three of your friends at the same time in a free for all or team battle. My only gripe with the four-player game is that whilst two people are involved in a scrap you cannot join in. This is to say that whilst one fighter is holding another in the air, you cannot hit either of them. Over all there is more than enough here to keep you busy.
Round up:
This game will appeal to anyone who likes beat-em-ups, especially fans of wrestling games. It is a well-made game that is polished. It would have been a far better game if it was live, but maybe they can include that in the next version. I can recommend this game for all fight fans, but don’t expect anything too new and revolutionary.
Pros:
- Loads of fighters and venues.
Cons:
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