Fight Night Round 4 Comments by Kristan Reed

Nice one. Have to get this asap.

8........9..........10 a standing count then

Nice! I was waiting for this review

edit: oh, the question's gone, nevermind

Oh this looks sweet.

Not entirely sure why having button controls would make the game any better personally. I'm of the opinion that if you used them in the last game then you were missing out on the best part of the whole thing.

I thought they removed the buttons to activate punches to slow the game down and to make the game more about strategy and guile than button mashing.

I've never been into fighting/boxing games much, but this game seems to be a pretty solid experience

Tried and enjoyed the demo of FNR4 but I was disappointed by the way they handled the corner side of things. If anything, it takes you out of experience by just hitting an automatic button to heal certain areas. A combination of the past titles corner mini-games and the new points system would have been better for immersion in my opinion.

Not understanding the desire for buttons, the stick control seems far more natural to me.

I would have liked the option of button punches, but I think I'll pick this up purely because there's been nothing of note out for ages. As for the review, I don't think it really sustained itself for a whole 3 pages. For future reference, I don't really want to read about a preview while I'm reading the review (unless perhaps, there has been a significant change of opinion regarding the game). Such pointless references are just a waste of space imo.

I'd far prefer being able to use the buttons.

It's really about time the button issue was put to bed, it's reminiscent of those who claimed FPS's wouldn't work on console's using a game pad.

I don't get it, Skate gets applauded for it's stics only controls as something amazingly groundbreaking and amazing yet Fight Night, which is arguably more responvie a game better suited to stick movement, gets criticised for it!

What's that about? It's a momentum based fighting game, the buttons just give you one level of punching speed, power.

@OllyJ :

I totally agree, this is very weird.

Deserved more than an 8 imo.

I'll be picking this up today and, like many others, am happy with the stick-punching. Personally, I think it is pretty brave of the developers to take out the buttons in an attempt to move the genre forward.

Personally I think the stick controls are brilliant and they were all I used in FNR3 anyway so I'm at no real disadvantage. I think EA may at some point patch the button controls in as said in the review but it won't be a priority. For me the game deserves a 9 and to have to mark down the game soley on not having button controls means it's probably more brilliant than we all think.

If thats all it got marked down on then I'm in, picking up today!

The decision to remove the alternative control methods meant this game has gone from a "hmmmm maybe" to a "definitely not".

I'll admit I'm not a big fan of boxing but then it's never stopped me buying other sports games and enjoying them. I did buy Fight Night Round 3 and got on well with it once I dropped the imprecise analogue stick control system. I tried the demo of Round 4 and while the game looks gorgeous graphically and captures the atmosphere of the sport extremely well I just found the analogue stick controls too fiddly and annoying to the point where they spoilt my enjoyment of the game. As such I ended up just randomly swinging the right analogue stick around in the hope of throwing punches which doesn't make for a very tactical game. Even with the tutorial I was only hitting the correct moves 25% of the time, no matter how much I practiced. To me it's a horribly unnatural control scheme, not that the buttons are realistic per se, it's just I'm used to them. The Wii with two Wiimotes is probably the only console that could offer a control scheme that's anything close to the real thing IMO.

Why force people on to one control scheme when the previous game supported the buttons? I went straight from the Fight Night Round 4 demo to the UFC 2009 one and that was an absolute joy to play in comparison because it's controls felt 100% accurate. Silly EA.

Well I've played the demo with a non gaming friend and he took to the controls naturally and very precisely. Are people who don't like the sticks simply just a bit shit at this game?

@dsmx - "I thought they removed the buttons to activate punches to slow the game down and to make the game more about strategy and guile than button mashing."

Huh... you can randomly move the right analogue stick about and still wins matches as I found when I played the demo. That to me is exactly the same as button bashing!!! Buttons at least mean that you can punch with the left or right hand perfectly whereas with the analogue stick I found that if I was slightly off then, ooops, I was using the other hand instead. K.O. Game over for me. Oh dear.

It's that impreciseness that ruined the demo for me. In the heat of a match I'm betting not one single person who plays the game will pull off all the moves they want because of this. EG admit they can't in the review which is why they commented on it. Does a real boxer miss a punch because he accidentally threw his right hand instead of his left? At a guess I'd say not... ;)

@Physically_Insane - I can win matches in Round 4, I just don't like the control scheme personally, it's far too fiddly and inaccurate IMO. It doesn't feel comfortable. As I said earlier it spoils my enjoyment of the game, I want to concentrate on beating my opponent not have to think about what tiny movements I have to make with the stick in order to achieve a specific punch, low, high, left, right hand, etc.

Anyway it's not about whether you're shit at the game or not, it's about finding a control scheme you like and Round 3 had those options. It seems silly to remove them in a sequel especially as I've read several reviews including EG's where the game has been criticised for doing so! Then I hear that EA are considering patching them back in! Well why were they even removed in the first place? Because the reviews were criticising the game for removing them probably!

Prolly about right. If they have given this an 8 it will surely suck balls much as I felt the demo did :-)

Does a real boxer miss a punch because he accidentally threw his right hand instead of his left?

It probably depends on how many shots to the head he's taken in the bout so far ;)

People always criticize fighting games for not trying to move the genre forward, but EA have tried something new here, and people are baying for traditional controls to come back. I understand that analog controls can be frustratingly imprecise, but maybe the developers felt that if they allowed the fall-back of traditional button controls, people wouldn't spend the time to learn what the developers consider to be a more granular control system.

People are right that FNR3 was easier on the buttons. Similarly, WoW is easier when you have a BOT to play for you. The problem is that in a multiplayer situation, this isn't fair. To have a truly balance multiplayer experience you just can't include both control schemes and so I feel EA made the right decision on this one.

For the reviewer to say the game is near perfect (i.e. 10/10) bar for the ability to use the face buttons is insane. This game drops 2 whole points on the review score because of this 1 omission?

One thing I would say is that I imagine most of the people complaining about the stick controls are probably PS3 gamers. IMO the PS3 pad is just not designed for the analogue sticks and having played games like FN & SKATE on both 360 and PS3, I can see why PS3 gamers think that the controls are sketchy. I've never had an issue landing the trick I wanted on Skate or the punch I wanted on Fight Night, because the 360 analogue sticks are well placed and easy to use.

I'm a big fan of options. I like the option to choose my control scheme if I want. Taking an option out of a game seems strange - I'd have just buried it a bit if I wanted people to use the stick controls. That way, most people won't bother and use the sticks, but the option for buttons is still there.

Though I suck as much with both, they're both open to equal abuse - I remember reviews for the original Fight Night even stating how stcik twirling was the new button bashing :P

I've got too many games to play....but I want this badly! I should wait. But I won't. Lunchtime I'm all over it

I got this yesterday. I have played it for hours and it is the best boxing sim ever. I boxed when I was younger for a few years and follow it now as closely as most follow football. If you truly appreciate the skill involved and are patient. You will spot your opportunity to strike and the feeling is awesome. Don't even get me started on the freak one punch knockouts. I came out of the corner in the 4th round and had really been struggling. I used my signature move. Stuck my chin forward and when Hatton tried to knock my head off, I ducked back then spanked him straight on the mooey. K.O. This is boxing at its best.

Bein that it's analogues only makes this a PS3 purchase for me. Played the demo and was impressed, will be the first FN I'll have bought.

I love FN:R3. For me was the most realistic upper body simulator. Placing accurate punches of the correct speed right where they were needed, not wasting a single bit of punch power. My friday night gaming buddies have some incredibly tactical fights. We use range effectively, work the jab, play the long strategies on cuts and stamina.

As a practitioner of Hung Keun, Taekwondo and Wing Chun the game absolutely fascinates me because of the realism and the fact that I can use real-world strategies like feigning to provoke an opponent to open up, the 45 degree outside, the stick'n'move, using circular movement, body momentum and hip twist to increase punching power.

I'd always wanted a fighting game without dragon punches and fireball attacks, where you dont stand bolt upright and spam your best move until the other guy falls down. FN:R3 had accuracy when using buttons. The fighter moved where I wanted and struck where I wanted.

FN:R4 improves on all aspects of the game, with one notable exception: Punch accuracy. The hook, body hook and uppercut occupy too small a space on stick control, and it simply is not possible to guarantee the shot you need. Fast jab-jab-hook combos now often end up missing because a jab turns into a hook, or the hook becomes an uppercut.

Swinging your thumb from left to right over such a small area can never be as accurate as a 1 or 2 button press to denote the EXACT shot you want.

The myth that you can 'button mash' in FN:R3 is also completely false. The fact is that stick punching is slower. Not more accurate, not more realistic, just slower. Whining stick fighters being beaten by fast, accurate button punchers have caused the button implementation to be dropped, not some quest for realism. Deciding to throw a jab and your avatar throwing a hook is not realism.

Whether sticks are more 'fun' than buttons is another matter open to interpretation, but buttons are catagorically more accurate than stick control.

The solution that should have been implemented was to allow segregation of stick/button fighters in lobbies, not to remove the primary control mechanism used by half the players of the game.

For me and my gaming group the game was about realism and accuracy and that simply isnt achievable with sticks, so until buttons are patched in (which they inevitably will be) then I'll stick with FN:R3.

It's a real shame because FN:R4 with buttons would be, in my opinion, about the best game ever created.

"Whether battling it out with a friend or the AI, Fight Night Round 4 is one of the purest gaming experiences out there. Had it included the simple option to punch with with buttons rather than sticks, it would have been a near flawless experience"

Fiddlesticks! Being able to fight with buttons removes the major USP that differentiates this game from all of the other fighting games out there.

Normally I would say "choice is good" and would never say that a game should be hard to get into for its own sake, but a key part of FN is the online experience. What would be the point of playing the game online if you had no way of knowing whether the other player was using the same stick system as you, or option for the easier button based approach? I view each game on a case by case basis, and in this instance I think they made the right choice.

'For me and my gaming group the game was about realism and accuracy and that simply isnt achievable with sticks, so until buttons are patched in (which they inevitably will be) then I'll stick with FN:R3.

It's a real shame because FN:R4 with buttons would be, in my opinion, about the best game ever created. "

taking the words right out of my mouth. patch or no sale

Does anyone else find themselves giving +1 karma to relatively inocuous posts, just to balance things out because some muppet has previously given -1 for apparently no reason (other than disagreeing with the poster)?

Surely karma should be given for a point well made, and taken for a trolling post. Distributing karma on the basis of only liking the posters that agree with you, and disliking any other opinion, is feeble and childish says I.

Hmmm, decisions.

Should I ignore the latest incarnation of the result of a love free problem filled childhood that is fightman, or should I let the karma system do its work?

Fiddlesticks! Being able to fight with buttons removes the major USP that differentiates this game from all of the other fighting games out there.

but it would make it a better game. if i wanted to to play a boxing game with different controls as a major USP, i'd buy a Wii. the button controls made FN:R3 the best boxing game in history, and that won't change as long as they don't patch R4.

@JahB

I am kind of torn on this one. There is a part of me that can't help but think the choice would be welcome. I guess if online games required matched control systems between players, that would meet my concerns.

@OllyJ

"It's a momentum based fighting game, the buttons just give you one level of punching speed, power."

Sticks only give you one level of punching speed and power too. You gain momentum by using body movement. Punches are as much about hips and stance as they are arms.

After playing it all yesterday it is a decent game yes, but im sorry I dont care who or what peopel say, TPC is utter WANK!!!!

For those who think you are not skilled enough, bollocks! There is not a single person who can throw the shot he or she wants 100% of the time with TPC like you can with buttons. Some may think this is good, but if you are boxer you are able to do the punch you want when you want to get the results. Half the time when the guy is dazed its almost impossible at time to haymaker him to the floor. So its bloomin annoying and will be way better with button controls if they ever patch it.

On the plus side, there is the record replay option which is brill. You can now watch your replays from any angle and as many times as you want in game, then after the game you can review, record, edit and upload them. Brilliant fun.

@layleeloo

Panicing and fudging a shot under pressure (such as when your opponent is stunned for a short while) was an issue with the previous games, but it was an issue solved through practice. I was cack handed with FN2 when I first played it, but through practice I could do the trick most of the time.

The thing with having buttons is that many people bail to those early, and in the end don't get as much fun out of the game as they would have had they stuck with sticks.

Would a plane be as fun to fly if it was easy so easy to control that anyone could learn in a few minutes? What about riding a motorbike?

Far be it for me to say that UFC and Fight Night aren't games with depth, but why do they deserve 3 page reviews when other much more complicated games only get 2?

I so wanted this, was heartbroken at no buttons (HATED the stick control on FN3), patch it with buttons EA or no sale.

Kangarootoo

I am a biker, so dont get me on about that one! haha :-)

I see my post is already maked down by the TPC fanboys hahaha. This new system does make me chuckle. Those rating it down havnt even played the game so when you have and you agree you can change your stance haha.

Its not about bailing out early, it is about not being able to do the shot you want when you want.

If you are a pro boxer, and you want to throw a right hook, you do. But in the game you can often throw a right uppercut etc. I know its becasue you have pushed the stick down too far so could be called player incompetance, but that does not deter from the fact that with the buttons if you wanted to do a right hook, you press the button and you do a right hook.

So if they are on about relaism and making it feel as good as it can, then surely throwing the punch you want when you want is probably the most important and realistic thing you can put into a game!

They should have left us with options. You are right people may bail early if they couldnt get used to sticks, but people should be able to play a game the way they want, not the way the makers dictate. Although that is a stange comment in that all games are played the way the creators want as games wont allow us to do what the creators have not programmed to be allowable, you get my drift that if you want choice then it should have been left in. If the buttons game is quicker, segregate it. If you want realism, then go for sticks.

I guess its like fifa and pro evo. Fifa is the better and more realistic game so I play that most of the time. But then I also have pro evo for some faster more arcade fun. Unfortunately there is not two boxing title of quality enough to allow this (he says having punch out on his wii but hardly comparable). Therefore they should leave both options in to please their public, and in turn sell more copies which at the end of the day - is what EA wants. To make money.

The Demo is intentionally easy, I think it is very satisfying performing moves on the sticks,
the chance of failure adds tension and more spacial versatility.
I am not sure about the corner though?
You can do a lot more with the sticks,
but there should probably be an easy level for those who need them.
The King is dead, long live the King.

"If you are a pro boxer, and you want to throw a right hook, you do. But in the game you can often throw a right uppercut etc. I know its becasue you have pushed the stick down too far so could be called player incompetance, but that does not deter from the fact that with the buttons if you wanted to do a right hook, you press the button and you do a right hook."

I've done martial arts in my time, and I know that the accuracy of any blow develop with practice and time. A pro boxer might well be able to throw the punch he/she wants as required, but it wasn't always that way. Sure they would be unlikely to ever accidentally throw an uppercut instead of a jab, but they might some equivalent error (such as missing with the blow, or throwing it late). The concept of improving with practice is the same, it just manifests itself in the game in a slightly different way.

"So if they are on about relaism and making it feel as good as it can, then surely throwing the punch you want when you want is probably the most important and realistic thing you can put into a game! "

Being able to rely on buttons is equally less like real boxing in one way, but perhaps slightly more like it in another way (in being able to choose the move you want more accurately). Why is one failing better than the other?