Ready 2 Rumble

Who would have though Midway could actually produce such a decent game? The boxers look nothing short of amazing. Almost CG quality you could say. Each one just has so many different facial expressions. It adds a sense of realism to the characters that have never been portrayed this well before. And the persona they give off is whacky & hilarious. Especially when you play as Afro Thunder who of course has the huge fro - "Dance Sucka, Dance Sucka ... Dance!". The boxers even take real damage. From bruises & black eyes to knocked out teeth & swollen mouths. You just can't beat the feeling you get from looking at your battle-abused opponent. What a rush! They even threw in that guy who does "Let's Get Ready to RRRuuuummmble!" This just puts the finishing touches on it's whole theme. To top that off the controls are really responsive & offer a lot of variety unlike other boxers. (hmp, hmf, Contender....) There's even a special bar that reads R-U-M-B-L-E when full. And when activated unleashes a furry of wild attacks on your opponent. My only complaint is that the game feels too short & way too easy. You can get by each boxer by landing a swift hit & backing off only to repeat the process again. Some of the last bosses should have a niche or trick to beating them (ala Super Punch-Out!). At least there's the Championship mode where you take the role of Manager & train your boxers. You can enter prize fights, or take on a title match to make money. You'll eventually be able to trade boxers & even put on exhibition matches too. I should also note the lack of any VMU mini-games, but not every can have them I quess. Ready 2 Rumble is still a great boxing game that packs alot of attitude & personality. I recommend trying it out sometime.

Overall 8.8