Like the entire Fight Night series before it, FNR4 makes use of the Total Punch Control system. This system allows players to deliver their punches and perform defensive manoeuvres using the analogue sticks and shoulder buttons, instead of relying on complicated button combos as you’d expect to find in any regular fighting game. For example, jabs are performed by quickly flicking the right stick upwards, hooks require you to move the stick to the side and circle upwards, and uppercuts are performed by moving the stick down and to the side, then circle upwards. As you might guess, it’s a little more difficult to precisely replicate each move every time; the result of this is much more natural-feeling combat and a blissful lack of repetition compared to other fighting games. Defensive moves are performed by holding either L1 for upper-body movement or R1 for blocking – both of which are used in conjunction with the analogue sticks. If you’re confident enough to bring down the smack with a haymaker, hold down R2 and perform a hook or uppercut and just hope that there’s a face or rib-cage on the receiving end.
That’s all old news for Fight Night veterans, so the folks over at EA Canada have put together something special to take this organic combat system to the next level. Every boxer movement, from slipping past an incoming blow to lurching forward with a mighty hook, is now controlled by the laws of physics. Animations are no longer canned affairs, and are instead dictated by a complex system of bones and muscles – boxer height, size, and reach, now play a vital role in how they chose their tactics, and adaptation during each fight is the key to survival. To further this, your boxers will slow down when their stamina (now represented on the HUD by default) begins to deplete – you can see those punches becoming less effective with every swing. It’s the almost legendary slow-motion fist-to-jaw connections that really stood out in the past, however, and FNR4 is a bit of a let-down in that regard. Sure, the physics-enabled motion looks fantastic and realistic, but the punches themselves just don’t look as “meaty” as they did in FNR3. It does balance out, however, as the fights look much better in general, but those assaults on your opponent’s bloodied and puffy faces just don’t have quite the same appeal as they used to.
Things have definitely taken a step forward with FNR4. The engine has been built from the ground up, the physics-based animation system breathes life into the classic fighting genre, and the Total Punch Control system is sharper than ever, but it’s not without its problems. The commentary, while pretty amusing a lot of the time, is repetitive, the Legacy mode won’t win any awards, and the menu could do with a bit of a trim. Overall, however, FNR4 is a winner. Even if you’ve never had the inclination to watch a boxing match but enjoy fighting games, you need to own this title.
