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Dreamcast Ready 2 Rumble Developer: Midway | Publisher: Midway
Rating: BRobotopia
Type: Sports Skill Level: Variable
Players: 1-2 Available: Now

It seemed to come out of nowhere, but after midway announced Ready 2 Rumble--despite not having the franchise clout of, say, Soul Calibur, Sonic Adventure or Mortal Kombat Gold- became one of the hottest commodities of the newly released Dreamcast. At this year's E3 it was Dreamcast's most played title, and almost every major magazine was eager to feature the arcade style slugfest.

Fast forward to September 9th, 1999 and R2R is one of DC's top selling titles, quite the feat considering that boxing games are known for playing like crap and looking even worse. But there I was, in line at Toy's R Us, buying this game along with the amazing Soul Calibur. I wondered what the appeal was as I forked out my $50. I quickly found out.

A hundred or so some odd hooks and black eyes later I realized that R2R is one of the hottest boxing titles since Ring King and Punch-out, and a graphical feast that even the staunchest of PlayStation owners, and PS2 hopefuls, would have to be in awe of.

First off, the visuals are incredibly amazing, and with DC being new hardware, this is one of the first things the game will be judged by. No worries there. Running at a liquid-smooth 60fps, with polygon combatants the look comprised of hundreds of thousands of seamless triangles. Look with scrutiny until you're blue in the face, and only after hours will you notice polygon shears and edges: muscle flexes beneath skin which stretches accordingly over joints; faces change expressions with frightening realism; eyes move eerily in sockets. The game is definite eye candy, graphic whores will be pleased.

When it actually comes to trading blows, hooks will send sweat flying, and after awhile missing teeth, swelling, and bruising make everything look quite grueling. You almost don't want to hit the opponent any more because they look so dogged.

The downside is the audience. They're bitmaps, flat and with limited animation. Everything is high-res, and nicely textured, but lacks depth in comparison to the likes of Soul Calibur. As you move up in the ranks though, the arenas turn from sparsely attended dives to large, standing room only stadiums. One point worth mentioning is the ropes which have some nice physics applied, allowing them to bounce and bend like the genuine article.

The sound is about what you'd expect: the voices are clear and distinct, and the hit and thuds are conveyed nicely. Now I don't know if it's just my copy of R2R but sometimes the music skips. This doesn't affect gameplay and there is no distracting music during the actual bouts, but it's still annoying.

Gameplay is where the game really shines. You can duck, bob and weave, and string together combos that a boxer might actually employ. Some of the fighters have odd, out of place fighting styles (Kung Fu?) but on a whole I found the gameplay to be easy to come to grips with and deeper than one might expect. I will say that after the "RUMBLE!!!" feature is used things get unbalanced and reckless. Not a bother though.

The one downside to R2R is the AI. It's a little to easy, which makes the game short. Championship mode allows you to train your fighter from rookie to contender; this entails going through some Simon Says, or Parappa the Rappa-esque mini games. These add longevity, but the real meat and potatoes is two player mode, where dishing out beatings is more fun than ever. It's a arty game, basically, or a frustration reliever after a long day at the school/office. With over 16 fighters to choose (everything from lard butts, to Mike Tyson wannabes) it'll be awhile before you get bored, just don't expect the zen that is Virtua Fighter 3.

In conclusion, Read 2 Rumble is a fine purchase. It looks, plays and sounds like a Dreamcast game should. Astounding and nothing less. It's what Blitz and NBA Jam were to their own respective sports. Kickin' ass has never been this fun...er, not since Ring King that is.

· · · Robotopia


 
Rating: BRobotopia
Graphics: 10 Sound: 8
Gameplay: 8 Replay: 7
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