Tonight's bout pits a young blood with a unique style and flair against a sea of hardened veterans. So, for the thousands in attendance…and the millions playing at home…let's get ready to mash buttons incoherently!
Indeed, that seems to be the theme behind Black and Bruised. But before we get into that, let's look at the game's good points, as there are a number of them. The graphics, first and foremost, are an innovation for the genre, and bring us one step closer to Cel-Shading every single type of game there is. (Heaven help us.) The character designs are all unique, crisp, clean, and straight out of a Saturday morning cartoon, though you'd be hard pressed to find some of the racier ones on the Disney Channel or Nickelodeon.
Black and Bruised also features a very comprehensive list of modes, and its story mode is second only to "Rocky". A boxing game with a story…imagine that! Granted, they don't make much sense, and they aren't much more than your average cartoon plotline fare, but the mere existence of a reason to be pummeling someone, other than a shiny belt and rap music, is a welcome change.
Which brings us to…the bad. With all its great features, and as much as I'd like to give it a thumbs-up, Black and Bruised takes a dive in the last round, due to the emphasis on button mashing. It's sad, because even in the gameplay department, the game could have been a contender: the power-up system is oddly reminiscent of Mario Kart, and can change the tide of battle with one punch, keeping fights unpredictable. However, the lack of any real strategy, or a tutorial mode that is actually helpful, keeps Black and Bruised in the lightweight division.
-George
Company Line
Black & Bruised is an over-the-top arcade style boxing game that combines wacky cartoon humor with thumb twitching boxing action.
The cartoon look and feel of Black & Bruised combines humor and strategy to attract both young and mature audiences. The individual boxing characters are differentiated not only by their look, but more importantly, by their AI personalities. Detailed and humoristic facial animations are used to convey the boxer's mood and reaction to a landed punch. The boxer's body and face also deteriorate visually to indicate injuries.
Black & Bruised takes full advantage of proportional analog controls and buttons to give the player a puppeteer like sense of control over their boxer. Ex: When pressing the punch button, the pressure, speed and depth of the press is translated into the PC's punch speed, power and completion. These feelings are visually enhanced by the use of skeletal motion and skin morphing technologies.
Game Storyline:
Enter the world of 18 colorful individuals who have, for one reason or another, been forced into the world of boxing to support their families and themselves. With each character, you will learn their life stories and how they plan to reap the benefits from winning bouts.
Key Game Features:
18 distinct cartoon-esque characters with colorful personalities and unique fighting styles;
18 different boxing rings and fighting arenas;
Cel Shaded - High quality cartoon shader creates a Disney-esque feel and exaggerates gameplay;
Enhanced AI engine – characters' unique personalities react to a sequence of events that modify their subsequent reactions to circumvent repetitive player strategies;
Extended facial animation – more than 30 unique and humorous facial animations convey boxer's mood and reaction to punches;
Pressure sensitive analog controls are easy to learn, hard to master;
Boxer's Life-Innovative mode builds character storylines and connects FMV to gameplay. It will not only define the stakes, but also impact the way the boxer performs in the next bout
Special effects – Stars, perspiration, particle effects and explosions will indicate the effectiveness of a particular punch and add to the zany feel of the game.
Super Punch – Every boxer has a "super punch" to destroy his/her opponent. Fire, electricity and explosion effects indicate super punches.
Six modes of play:
Training – Refine your techniques by fighting the training robot.
Single Fight – Select your opponent and go one-on-one with the computer.
Tournament – Fight a list of opponents and go for the World Title.
Survival – Fight as many opponents as you can knockout.
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