Fight Night Champion

This video contains violent images, may not be appropriate for all ages.

Fight Night Champion is the fifth game in the Fight Night series and was released on March 1. The game is rated M for mature audiences. It includes more than 50 fighters in which you can take control to unleash your fury upon your opponents. The game is available on PS3 and Xbox 360.

I've played the last four Fight Night games and what I've noticed is they like to personalize your fighter. EA accomplishes this by having the gamer create their own boxer. Amazingly, this time it's different. You have a set fighter that you progress through.....

Champion Mode
As soon as you turn on the game, you are taken into Champion Mode, which I must say is pretty graphic. You are Andre Bishop, an amateur middleweight boxer who's career seems to be on the bright side. You get a few fights in, and as you keep winning, you start to gain attention. While you play, your grasp of the controls gets better and better. Each initial fight has goals for you to accomplish to get acclimated. You start to gain attention from Mr. McQueen, the boxing pit boss.

 He wants you to sign a contract with his promotion staff but you decline. So McQueen is set out to make your life a living hell. They set you up with what looks like a hit orchestrated by McQueen. Turns out they are police officers on McQueen's payroll. You are sent to prison and your career appears to be over.

You pick up, bare-knuckle boxing in prison to stay in-tune with your passion. This is gruesomely awesome and it turns out you can play bare-knuckle boxing in basic gameplay. After you serve your prison sentence, you get to work as a helping-hand in the same gym in which your career unexpectedly ended.

Andre has to prove he still has his boxing skills, only this time you are a heavy-weight. You fight in Mexico and work your way back to the professional ranks. You learn lots from stipulation bouts you have to endure. One specific bout you have a broken hand and you can only fight with your left hand! Another, you cannot throw low punches. Anything McQueen can do to hamper your career he will.

This mode of play is the heart and soul of the game and champion mode is very addictive, but I made my way through most of it in about four hours, completed it in five and a half. So, replay value is considerably low for this mode and hurts the game's overall value.

Head to Head & Online
This is probably the most fun of all. Just head in there and lay the lumber. I played this mode against one of my friends the night I got the game and we played for about five hours. It adds a sense of competitiveness with me and my buddies. Button-mashers aren't of use in the Fight Night series anymore, so stick skill keeps your opponent at your will. My friend Charles won't even play me anymore because he cant button-mash. The head to head game mode is essentially how you play online as well. I rate it highly just because its super fun and playing with real people, especially your friends, is great.

Final Verdict
Fight Night Champion has great graphics, as well as a unique and addictive story mode. However, it gets old quickly. It's difficult to find interest in playing the same story mode multiple times. You get the feeling of been there, done that. If you do not have online to play head to head like most PS3 owners right now, this game is probably sitting on the shelf in your entertainment stand. I like the game but I don't love it. I suggest that you RENT Fight Night Champion because replay value is low. I compare it to the cool new toy you may have wanted as a kid, but when you got it, you play with it once or twice then throw it in your toy chest.