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Wii Fanboy Review: Victorious Boxers Revolution
Upon initially hearing that the title Hajime no Ippo would grace U.S. retail shelves as Victorious Boxers Revolution, we were quite excited. Then, some critics reviewed it and we were worried the game wouldn't be worth our trouble. So, upon receiving this nice little review package from XSEED, we jumped right into the game.And you know what? It's actually quite good.
Joystiq checks out Victorious Boxers
Joystiq was lucky enough to get their hands on the upcoming Victorious Boxers: Revolution and they walked away generally interested in the game, although they think the title has one flaw: controls. And this is arguably the most important factor for the game (and most games), so this is very disheartening news.The rest of their time with the game was spent lauding its stylish presentation, as they commented that the game looks great in 16:9 and 480p. They also mention that the replays look amazing and the need to keep track of one's own health through physical cues in the game, such as character wobble and bruises.But, all of the style in the world can't save a game that has crummy controls. So, given that the game is due to release later this month, gamers might want to give this a rental before purchasing.%Gallery-7359%
Victorious Boxers boxart, for real this time
We threw in the towel last week when we mistakenly identified GameFly's Victorious Boxers: Revolution mockup as the finalized design, but now we're scrambling into the ring to retrieve the surrendered cloth. "Uh, sorry about that! It must've slipped out of our hands!"Dynamite Glove, a community site for the Hajime no Ippo series, received a first look at publisher XSeed's actual packaging, and it is a thing of beauty. This is the sort of box that we could run up the Philadelphia Museum of Art's steps with, holding it above our heads once we've reached the top, hopping up and down in slow-motion as the training montage fades out.Those of you who would still rather have Ippo's fighting figure on the front will be happy to hear that the jacket is reversible, the opposite side using artwork from the Japanese cover. Jump past the break for a better look at both boxart designs.
Not So Victorious Boxart
Publisher XSeed will be bringing Victorious Boxers: Revolution to the US (Hajime no Ippo: The Fighting Revolution in Japan), but the boxing game's manga-tastic cover won't be coming along for the trip, at least according to the packaging design on GameFly's product page.Instead of the crowd of expressive faces -- determined, vengeful, and contemplative -- that we saw with the Japanese boxart, we'll be getting this victory pose silhouette and a ho-hum logo. While we understand that Hajime no Ippo isn't as popular in North America as it is across the Pacific, it would've been nice to have at least seen Ippo, the series's hero, on the cover.Victorious Boxers hits store shelves this September. Bob and weave past the post break for a look at the game's dramatic packaging art in Japan.
The sweet science of Victorious Boxers
XSEED is bringing Hajime no Ippo Revolution to the US as Victorious Boxers Revolution, ushering in a new era of smashing some cartoon people up! Soon you'll be able to find out how impetuous your style is.Unfortunately, the motion controls, which are lauded so enthusiastically in the video, are apparently not that hot. There are actually two motion control styles: a Wii Sports-like scheme, and a pointer-based control scheme in which you use the remote to point at where you want to punch. The Classic Controller seems to work much better-- we assume that Classic Controller play works similarly to the well-regarded Playstation 2 Victorious Boxers controls. But that doesn't look as exciting on video.
Hajime no Ippo punches through the fourth wall
We love it when games make clever little self-aware nods to the audience, as if the characters know they're in a game. When someone like Hideo Kojima does it (look on the back of the CD case) it's postmodern and brilliant. But we don't think postmodern is what the developers of Hajime no Ippo Revolution were going for. This tutorial shows the trainer demonstrating techniques using Wii controllers. So, rather than allowing you to suspend your disbelief and pretend that you don't have anything in your hands, an in-game character who doesn't need to hold a controller is actively reminding you. How hard must it be to control this game, for it to be worth breaking immersion?%Gallery-3584%
