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Black & Bruised Published
by Vivendi Universal Games It's been a while now since we looked at a boxing game. The last boxing game we looked at was the lamentable Mike Tyson's Heavyweight Boxing, which was extremely poor. The only other boxing game we've reviewed at Deaf Gamers is the massively underrated Victorious Boxers which in our opinion is still the best boxing game out there. Finally though we have another boxing game to review and it's definitely an unusual one. Black & Bruised isn't based on real boxers, it's based on 18 wacky cartoon, cel-shaded characters. Featuring the likes of El Luchador, Mickey McFist and Maiagaru the Geisha girl, to name just three, the game gives you the opportunity to take part in six modes of play including a tournament mode and a Boxer's Life mini-campaign (containing six episodes) for each of the fighters. The Boxer's Life mode is rather interesting because occasionally you'll have some kind of modifier which will change the way your boxer will fight. In the El Luchador story, for example, he gets covered in a green chemical between the first and second fight and this makes him rather drowsy and difficult to control in the second fight. You'll also come up against specific challenges in the Boxer's Life mode. Sometimes you'll have to knock-out a fighter within a certain amount of time. It's these kind of challenges which give the game something different. There are special punches that are available to each boxer and these can be used when your power bar becomes filled in a fight. These special abilities can give you a heavy advantage and allow you to floor your opponent quite easily. Whilst we're on the subject of being floored, it's very noticeable that the countdown seems unnaturally quick. Should you hit the canvas you'll have to feverishly bang on the X button until the recover bar fills. The first time you are knocked over, this isn't too much of a problem but it gets a lot harder if you are floored subsequent times. The biggest problem with Black & Bruised is that you never get the feeling that any technique is needed. To be blunt it's a mash the buttons as fast as you can game and this means that it won't hold your attention for more than a couple of days or until your fingers seize up, whichever comes first. Victorious Boxers called for technique and there were ways of beating the opponents that you had to find. Simply mashing the buttons is no substitute for technique and it's certainly not the way to keep you playing after the first couple of days. The game is a hybrid of cel-shading and traditional polygons and you have to say that it looks great. Each of the characters look good and it's impressive to see the way that they bruise and take damage. In keeping with the cartoon style (that's not to say that it isn't without the odd adult undertone) of the game you'll see exaggerated punches and animations and very good they look too. In addition to the 18 boxers there are 18 arenas for you to fight in whether it be in Mexico or in an Irish bar. What is really disappointing with Black & Bruised is the lack of support for deaf gamers. The introduction is not subtitled, the Boxer's Life mode is not subtitled and the tutorials are not subtitled although the button presses required are shown on screen. This is rather poor and it makes the game only worthwhile for 2-player fights which takes a lot away from the enjoyment of the game. Essentially Black & Bruised isn't the game it could have been. If you're looking for a button bashing boxing game then it's definitely better than the Mike Tyson Heavyweight Boxing but those looking for a boxing game which requires technique and offers longevity ought to look elsewhere. Overall
Game Rating: 5.0/10 Deaf
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