The sequel to Fight Night Round 3, just like Mohammad Ali has become one of the most talked about controversial games.
Fight Night Round 4 is one of the most visual, high definition sports games the market has ever seen. The boxer details and create a boxer is astounding. By using EA Sports photo game face; you can upload your front and side face to generate a boxer similar to you. However, by not uploading a side face; the game tends to make all created boxers look relatively alike. Fight Night Round 4 looks really good; you can actually see pores on your boxers' skin. I applaud the great work EA has done with its graphics engine.
As stated before, one of the biggest downfalls in Fight Night Round 4 was the removal of buttons. EA is notorious for game breaking changes. Most of the time; EA tends to hurt the game rather than remodeling what once worked. The TPC; also known as, "Total Punch Control" is not as methodical as you think. When attempting to throw left hooks, the boxer tends to throw a left uppercut thus making the game play a bit frustrating. The whole argument behind the scientific theory about button users being cheap is not entirely true. We discovered stamina has become a major issue with Fight Night Round 4. With irrational swinging, new players can defeat the most experienced players because Fight Night Round 4 lacks the statistic; or slider to fatigue the boxer. Long time players suggested EA should add a slider to adjust the boxers fatigue to force sluggers into a more defensive minded strategy. The debate on whether buttons will exists in Fight Night Round 4 via DLC is still questionable. Many gamers have held out; while so many fans had no idea buttons were removed.
Fight Night Round 4 is missing many boxers like Oscar De La Hoya, Fernando Vargas, Felix Trinidad and Evander Holyfield. However, we do believe EA will offer some high profile boxers via DLC. Price not yet disclosed. Besides the "NO BUTTONS", the biggest disappointment was watching my boxers' entrance. It would have been nice to see your boxer enter the ring allowing players to add custom songs more than 16 seconds.
Fight Night Round 4 is not the boxing game we've all expected from watching videos and previews. After experiencing the demo and playing a few times with TPC; I have come to believe the many years EA spent in recreating an improved Fight Night Round 3 has become a major disaster. It's only a matter of time before EA sees a drop in sales and damaging future titles like Madden 2010 and NBA Live 2010.
If you're an avid boxing fan; there's no doubt, this game is for you. If you're looking for entertainment, you won't find it in Fight Night Round 4. As for the button users like myself; I'd stay away from purchasing until EA confirms a DLC with buttons. Otherwise, prepare to rest that thumb of yours. It's going to be a long boxing season.