As the first foray into the boxing ring for 2K Sports, Prizefighter nicely fills the gap between releases of EA’s Fight Night series but doesn’t aim high with any unique control schemes or revolutionary features. It’s a basic boxing game in a design-by-numbers style that remains addictive for those not looking for originality.
It’s immediately apparent where the budget went. The brilliant, brief, and incredibly effective cinematics in the career mode tell the usual boxing story of the small up and comer and the turmoil he faced. This “documentary” follows the player through his career in retrospective and is loaded with excellent performances, Hollywood names, real boxers, and high production values.
Sadly, that style doesn’t carry over to the in-game visuals. Compared to the hefty competition, Prizefighter looks a generation behind with its flat lighting and mundane character models. Then again, much of the game feels late to the party.
Where Fight Night eliminated the need for health meters clogging up the screen, Prizefighter returns to that proven method. Damage is noticeable on the fighters as punches connect, though nowhere near as severe as the current standard set by EA’s product. You’ll need to rely on the meters to gain a sense of where you stand. Stiff animation will also be a turn off for some.
Punching is handled via the face buttons, with modifiers on the bumpers. This is the stuff we’ve been doing since the SNES era, but it’s almost a comfortable throwback that still works. The mistake of the control scheme is putting block on the right analog stick. The split second delay in moving your thumb off the stick and onto the buttons makes counter strikes (slowly powered up as the fight moves on) harder than they should be.
The same goes for defending against the telegraphed signature punches which need to be prepared for, and the sometimes sluggish controls combined with the needed thumb movements is too much. Using the left trigger can be a far more effective means of defense to bob and weave out of the way, and can also eliminate the need to use the right trigger for body shots.
2K’s design delivers some solid fighting. Rarely will a brawl end early. Prizefighter nicely captures the pacing and speed of the sport. Relying on the judges is a risky endeavor as the only thing they seem to take into account is the punch percentages. It doesn’t matter how weakened your opponent is for a round. It all comes down to whether or not you landed more of your jabs, which is tricky given the spotty and inconsistent collision detection.
A standard array of mini-games offers rampant button mashing in Dace Dance Revolution style events. These require a near inhuman amount of speed to hit some of the combinations (the speed bag especially). Other such as running sprints or the heavy bag are slightly more tolerable.
While it lacks some of the bigger names (Ali, Tyson), there’s a decent roster of classic boxers. The career even lets the player partake in some classic bouts when your trainer comes into the office to discuss the history of the sport. It’s a nice touch, as is “Eye of the Tiger” on the soundtrack.
Prizefighter is a gap filler, and there’s nothing wrong with that. There’s also nothing wrong with a button based control scheme as it’s worked for decades. It works here, and while many have been here in this same territory before, this has a potential franchise written all over it with some work.
3/5
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