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This thread has been linked to the game 'Real Boxing'.
The PS Vita is home to many games from the big console ports to small indie titles. Somewhere in the middle sits a range of games that have the polish of a full price game with some of the elements of an indie game, and the price to match. Real Boxing is one of those games.
Phoning it in
Aside from being the first boxing sim to appear on Sony's handheld, Real Boxing started life as a mobile game, showing off the power of the Unreal Engine 3, the same one that drives games like Infinity Blade. The PS Vita version doesn't really differ too much from the mobile version, playing the iPhone game and the Vita game side by side there's only a slight graphical sheen to the game playing on Sony's handheld.
Despite the mobile origins, the game certainly looks impressive, from the intro to watching the 2 boxers square off in the square ring. In principle. it's a simple one on one boxing game in the tradition of all that have gone before it, with your fighter (hopefully) winning matches and gradually climbing up the ranks to face stronger and harder opponents.
Left hand jab
Then there are the controls. Mobile games obviously have a disadvantage when it comes to controls for a game like this. The swipe and touch controls were implemented well, but a boxing game is arguably far more suited to physical controls. On the Vita there are actually three options to choose from, touch controls work fine, but are overshadowed by the physical control schemes. The other two options can be interchanged, with one relying on the left and right buttons for punches with either hand and having to flick down to the left stick to move every so often or (my preferred scheme) the left stick for movement and the right stick for all the punches. With each of these schemes the right trigger acts as a dodge move and both triggers together act as a block.
real boxing screen 1
Block, punch, it's all in the mind
Fights are a mix of fast blows and strategic rests, but it's the dodge button that gets used the most, defecting shots and providing a counter at just the right moment to deal massive damage. At first this is all you need to master, but later opponents become impressively adept at playing this game themselves, turning it in to a game of chicken at times. Luckily, moving and blocking help to break this up and fights can get pretty tense as you enter the second tournament.
Between fights you can train to earn bonus items to add to your skills. These can range from shorter time on the floor after a knockout to making the blocks more successful. You can also pay money won in a fight for extra strength, speed and stamina, which you'll need against later fighters. The minigames on offer in this gym section are based on the same sort of actions as a rhythm action game, pressing the correct direction or button at the right time. They're not very interesting in themselves but help to break up the fights.
With only three championships, the longevity is in question, although later fights are pretty tough. Thankfully there's also an online mode with decent leaderboards that lets you play and compete against other gamers from all over the world.
Prize Fighter
For the launch there is even a chance for the leader of the first European championship to get themselves another PS Vita to give to a friend. Although I didn't spend much time with the online game, it's a smooth and easy process to find a fight and there were no connection issues. It's also nice to fight against a human opponent, a vast improvement over the AI.
Final Round
Those with a decent mobile device may question the need for Real Boxing on PS Vita at its inflated price point, but the added control schemes, polished graphics and fluidity of the game do justify the console version of this fun boxing title. Until something better comes along, Real Boxing is a fun way to get in the ring without the fear of real injury.
7/10
Phoning it in
Aside from being the first boxing sim to appear on Sony's handheld, Real Boxing started life as a mobile game, showing off the power of the Unreal Engine 3, the same one that drives games like Infinity Blade. The PS Vita version doesn't really differ too much from the mobile version, playing the iPhone game and the Vita game side by side there's only a slight graphical sheen to the game playing on Sony's handheld.
Despite the mobile origins, the game certainly looks impressive, from the intro to watching the 2 boxers square off in the square ring. In principle. it's a simple one on one boxing game in the tradition of all that have gone before it, with your fighter (hopefully) winning matches and gradually climbing up the ranks to face stronger and harder opponents.
Left hand jab
Then there are the controls. Mobile games obviously have a disadvantage when it comes to controls for a game like this. The swipe and touch controls were implemented well, but a boxing game is arguably far more suited to physical controls. On the Vita there are actually three options to choose from, touch controls work fine, but are overshadowed by the physical control schemes. The other two options can be interchanged, with one relying on the left and right buttons for punches with either hand and having to flick down to the left stick to move every so often or (my preferred scheme) the left stick for movement and the right stick for all the punches. With each of these schemes the right trigger acts as a dodge move and both triggers together act as a block.
real boxing screen 1
Block, punch, it's all in the mind
Fights are a mix of fast blows and strategic rests, but it's the dodge button that gets used the most, defecting shots and providing a counter at just the right moment to deal massive damage. At first this is all you need to master, but later opponents become impressively adept at playing this game themselves, turning it in to a game of chicken at times. Luckily, moving and blocking help to break this up and fights can get pretty tense as you enter the second tournament.
Between fights you can train to earn bonus items to add to your skills. These can range from shorter time on the floor after a knockout to making the blocks more successful. You can also pay money won in a fight for extra strength, speed and stamina, which you'll need against later fighters. The minigames on offer in this gym section are based on the same sort of actions as a rhythm action game, pressing the correct direction or button at the right time. They're not very interesting in themselves but help to break up the fights.
With only three championships, the longevity is in question, although later fights are pretty tough. Thankfully there's also an online mode with decent leaderboards that lets you play and compete against other gamers from all over the world.
Prize Fighter
For the launch there is even a chance for the leader of the first European championship to get themselves another PS Vita to give to a friend. Although I didn't spend much time with the online game, it's a smooth and easy process to find a fight and there were no connection issues. It's also nice to fight against a human opponent, a vast improvement over the AI.
Final Round
Those with a decent mobile device may question the need for Real Boxing on PS Vita at its inflated price point, but the added control schemes, polished graphics and fluidity of the game do justify the console version of this fun boxing title. Until something better comes along, Real Boxing is a fun way to get in the ring without the fear of real injury.
7/10
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The PS Vita is home to many games from the big console ports to small indie titles. Somewhere in the middle sits a range of games that have the polish of a full price game with some of the elements of an indie game, and the price to match. Real Boxing is one of those games.
Phoning it in
Aside from being the first boxing sim to appear on Sony's handheld, Real Boxing started life as a mobile game, showing off the power of the Unreal Engine 3, the same one that drives games like Infinity Blade. The PS Vita version doesn't really differ too much from the mobile version, playing the iPhone game and the Vita game side by side there's only a slight graphical sheen to the game playing on Sony's handheld.
Despite the mobile origins, the game certainly looks impressive, from the intro to watching the 2 boxers square off in the square ring. In principle. it's a simple one on one boxing game in the tradition of all that have gone before it, with your fighter (hopefully) winning matches and gradually climbing up the ranks to face stronger and harder opponents.
Left hand jab
Then there are the controls. Mobile games obviously have a disadvantage when it comes to controls for a game like this. The swipe and touch controls were implemented well, but a boxing game is arguably far more suited to physical controls. On the Vita there are actually three options to choose from, touch controls work fine, but are overshadowed by the physical control schemes. The other two options can be interchanged, with one relying on the left and right buttons for punches with either hand and having to flick down to the left stick to move every so often or (my preferred scheme) the left stick for movement and the right stick for all the punches. With each of these schemes the right trigger acts as a dodge move and both triggers together act as a block.
real boxing screen 1
Block, punch, it's all in the mind
Fights are a mix of fast blows and strategic rests, but it's the dodge button that gets used the most, defecting shots and providing a counter at just the right moment to deal massive damage. At first this is all you need to master, but later opponents become impressively adept at playing this game themselves, turning it in to a game of chicken at times. Luckily, moving and blocking help to break this up and fights can get pretty tense as you enter the second tournament.
Between fights you can train to earn bonus items to add to your skills. These can range from shorter time on the floor after a knockout to making the blocks more successful. You can also pay money won in a fight for extra strength, speed and stamina, which you'll need against later fighters. The minigames on offer in this gym section are based on the same sort of actions as a rhythm action game, pressing the correct direction or button at the right time. They're not very interesting in themselves but help to break up the fights.
With only three championships, the longevity is in question, although later fights are pretty tough. Thankfully there's also an online mode with decent leaderboards that lets you play and compete against other gamers from all over the world.
Prize Fighter
For the launch there is even a chance for the leader of the first European championship to get themselves another PS Vita to give to a friend. Although I didn't spend much time with the online game, it's a smooth and easy process to find a fight and there were no connection issues. It's also nice to fight against a human opponent, a vast improvement over the AI.
Final Round
Those with a decent mobile device may question the need for Real Boxing on PS Vita at its inflated price point, but the added control schemes, polished graphics and fluidity of the game do justify the console version of this fun boxing title. Until something better comes along, Real Boxing is a fun way to get in the ring without the fear of real injury.
7/10
Phoning it in
Aside from being the first boxing sim to appear on Sony's handheld, Real Boxing started life as a mobile game, showing off the power of the Unreal Engine 3, the same one that drives games like Infinity Blade. The PS Vita version doesn't really differ too much from the mobile version, playing the iPhone game and the Vita game side by side there's only a slight graphical sheen to the game playing on Sony's handheld.
Despite the mobile origins, the game certainly looks impressive, from the intro to watching the 2 boxers square off in the square ring. In principle. it's a simple one on one boxing game in the tradition of all that have gone before it, with your fighter (hopefully) winning matches and gradually climbing up the ranks to face stronger and harder opponents.
Left hand jab
Then there are the controls. Mobile games obviously have a disadvantage when it comes to controls for a game like this. The swipe and touch controls were implemented well, but a boxing game is arguably far more suited to physical controls. On the Vita there are actually three options to choose from, touch controls work fine, but are overshadowed by the physical control schemes. The other two options can be interchanged, with one relying on the left and right buttons for punches with either hand and having to flick down to the left stick to move every so often or (my preferred scheme) the left stick for movement and the right stick for all the punches. With each of these schemes the right trigger acts as a dodge move and both triggers together act as a block.
real boxing screen 1
Block, punch, it's all in the mind
Fights are a mix of fast blows and strategic rests, but it's the dodge button that gets used the most, defecting shots and providing a counter at just the right moment to deal massive damage. At first this is all you need to master, but later opponents become impressively adept at playing this game themselves, turning it in to a game of chicken at times. Luckily, moving and blocking help to break this up and fights can get pretty tense as you enter the second tournament.
Between fights you can train to earn bonus items to add to your skills. These can range from shorter time on the floor after a knockout to making the blocks more successful. You can also pay money won in a fight for extra strength, speed and stamina, which you'll need against later fighters. The minigames on offer in this gym section are based on the same sort of actions as a rhythm action game, pressing the correct direction or button at the right time. They're not very interesting in themselves but help to break up the fights.
With only three championships, the longevity is in question, although later fights are pretty tough. Thankfully there's also an online mode with decent leaderboards that lets you play and compete against other gamers from all over the world.
Prize Fighter
For the launch there is even a chance for the leader of the first European championship to get themselves another PS Vita to give to a friend. Although I didn't spend much time with the online game, it's a smooth and easy process to find a fight and there were no connection issues. It's also nice to fight against a human opponent, a vast improvement over the AI.
Final Round
Those with a decent mobile device may question the need for Real Boxing on PS Vita at its inflated price point, but the added control schemes, polished graphics and fluidity of the game do justify the console version of this fun boxing title. Until something better comes along, Real Boxing is a fun way to get in the ring without the fear of real injury.
7/10