Say what you will--Def Jam: Vendetta wasn’t all it was cracked up to be. Yeah, it had an excellent cast of hip hop superstars and some pretty slick graphics and punishing moves, but a lack of those moves hindered the enjoyment, and the story and replay value left a lot to be desired. I made that clear, and took (and sometimes find myself still taking) some serious heat for it in the review. All I’m saying is it had some deep holes that needed filling.
Well, EA Games has your filler right here in Def Jam: Fight for N.Y., the latest attempt of the Def Jam series. Heavily hyped for a while now, this game is said to take a whole new direction from the previous title. Let’s see how well it stands up.
Knuckle up, y’all…Def Jam: Fight for N.Y.
Story
Def Jam: Fight for N.Y. picks up where the previous game left off. D-Mob, after losing the final bout and his underground fighting empire, is hauled off by the police, and in the midst of transport, an “unidentified assailant” (you) frees him from police custody. As thanks, D-Mob brings you into his family, which consists of all the superstars from Vendetta. He also employs you to assist him in regaining his reputation and stature as king of the underground. In order to do so, you have to mow down a whole new crew of fighters, all of whom side with D-Mob’s nemesis, Crow, played by Snoop Dogg.
Get ready to face a whole new list of rap superstars like Busta Rhymes, Fat Joe, Bonecrusher, Bubba Sparxxx, Sean Paul, Memphis Bleek, even Henry Rollins himself along with many others join the fray. There’s much more to this story than the cast that makes it as compelling as it is, but to avoid spoiling it any further, I’ll leave that up to you.
Gameplay
The gameplay of the new Def Jam has been completely revamped for the better, almost completely deviating from the wrestling format of Vendetta. Though it still exists in a few areas, such as one or two fighting arenas and the move set, the gameplay brings a new, more intense look and feel than its predecessor.
As far as fighting goes, wrestling is just one of many different fighting styles the player must contend with, although it is still the most widely used. Now, there are four more disciplines in the game: kickboxing, submission style, martial arts, and streetfighting. It doesn’t sound like much as opposed to other fighting games, but your created character and each fighter you face can use up to three styles simultaneously, and that can make for a mean move set. The main drawback with this is that, despite the fact that there more styles, there are still not nearly enough moves, and you’ll notice some repetition between you and whomever you are facing.
Just as before, the main focus of fighting is in your grappling moves, regardless of the style in which you’re fighting. Game control has made a change for the better; gone are the pressure-sensitive button combinations, making the game a little more pick-up-and-playable. Now, by simply holding the L1 button and pressing your attack button, your moves switch from weak to strong, and flicking the analog stick in different directions executes various strike and slams. Despite the change, timing your attacks is no different, as you’ll have to decide the best time to use stronger attacks versus the weaker ones. Leaving yourself wide open after a missed power move can get your face caved in.
The intensity of the moves is just as sickening as they were before, if not more now that you add the environmental attacks, which is one of the main draws of Fight for N.Y.. Vendetta was a wrestling-based game, so all the fighting took place in a roped-off ring. The new Def Jam drops the ring ropes and puts the fighters in a Fight Club-style or back alley setting, surrounded by rowdy spectators, concrete walls, pillars, and so on, and that’s just to name a few scenarios. Your surroundings are fully interactive; you can take weapons from the audience and use them, or simply toss your opponent into the crowd and let them handle him for you. You can bounce his dome off a wall or throw him face-first into a pool table. Anything can happen in these fights, and almost any of these elements can twist the outcome of a match, not to mention it makes the knock-out system much more relevant than it did in Vendetta. This can also make for a man-sized helping of cheese, but it’s still solid nonetheless.
Speaking of knockouts, The BLAZIN’ moves are back, and they are just more incredible and overblown than before. If fact, some look more like toned-down Mortal Kombat fatalities than knockout moves. With the expanded roster of fighters, there are even more specials then before. The beauty of it all is your creation can use up to four different Blazin’ moves depending on which direction you pop the stick when you get in that mode. Now, this is all well and fine, but for some reason, these moves don’t have as much impact as before. They can turn a match around if you can pull the move off, but in order to put your adversary away with one, you’ll have to beat them half to death. Even if these finishers aren’t as powerful, they are still painful as all hell to look at.
The learning curve of the game can be frustrating at first, but once you establish some strategy and get your skills together, it’s cake. There is a tutorial in the story mode, but it’s nowhere near solid enough to help you hone your skills, so you will have to tighten up through trial and error. You’re going to get frog-stomped, perhaps more than you’d like to, but it comes with the territory. After a little while, and with the proper placement of your attribute points and a suitable choice of fighting styles, you’ll be dishing it out more than you’ll take it.
As you progress through the story, your character earns development points, simply known as DEV, which are applied to his attributes. Every gamer is familiar with this, and it’s no different here, you just plug them where you want them. As each characteristic builds up, it becomes more expensive to increase. You can also save those points to go towards unlocking new finishers and learning new fighting styles. Being able to throw down may be your mainstay, but progression is based on more than just ability alone this time around. Appealing to the crowd is also important, and it has a direct effect on his charisma with the audience. After each victory, your character earns money that can spent towards clothing, hairstyles, tattoos, and jewelry, so the more you spend on appearance, the better off you’ll be. Def Jam: Fight for N.Y. pimps out the latest in urban fashion, including names like Sean Jean, Ecko, and RocaWear, just to name a few. Even Michael’s “Air Jordan” line of athletic wear is at your disposal.
When it comes to overall gameplay, Fight for N.Y. is absolutely loaded. Tons of options and matches and its huge roster make this game worth every moment you waited and every cent you pay for it.
Graphics, Sound, and Animation
There’s not a whole lot of improvement as far as graphics go, but the look is still slick. The characters are a little bit on the cartoony side, but not enough to take anything away from the seriousness of the action. There are over twenty different areas to brawl in, and they all look excellent and fit the mood of the environment, such as the dankness and dim lighting of the Foundation and the lively Jamaican atmosphere of the club called Babylon.
Great sound is a given. Every aspect of the audio in this game, the music, attacks, and the real-life voiceovers from the performers themselves makes this game even sharper. The dialogue can be a little on the vulgar side, but evidently, it has become a staple in a many of today’s “rated M for mature” games, but you’ll get no complaints here. Of course, the soundtrack is all hip-hop, and provides a tight blend of the new school and old school. The list includes newer tracks such as Lil’ Kim’s “The Jump Off” and “Make it Hurt” by Busta Rhymes and retro classics like L.L. Cool J’s “Mama Said Knock You Out” and Ice-T’s “O.G. Original Gangster,” and there are even some game-exclusive tracks to knock some skulls to. Even if you don’t like hip hop, go ahead and turn it off…the vivid in-game sounds will still keep you at the stick. Every crack, slam, and thud is where it’s supposed to be; wood sounds like wood, concrete sounds like concrete, and flesh connecting to either material sounds like it hurts like hell.
You do have to deal with a few minor flaws in the animation and framerate, as they won’t always agree with the moves you’re trying to pull off. It’s nothing to bash the overall play or appearance over since the action stays fast throughout each bout. There are a few camera issues that can hinder the play, such as the crowd or columns getting in the way from time to time when it zooms in on the action.
Fight for N.Y. offers an impressive audio/visual presentation that rivals, if not surpasses, most fighting games, even with the minor hang-ups. Minor quirks or not, EA Games has done an excellent job.
Replay Value
Talk about “filling a void.” Replay value was something the last game was seriously lacking, but this time around, the new Def Jam is loaded with unlockables and enhancements. Competitors, fighting stages, music, extra match types, and other awards await release as you progress through the story mode. Usually, when you clear the story, that’s it, but not here. You can carry on after the fact, though they aren’t any real story lines, and continue to build on your character, facing tougher opponents in even tougher matches.
Up to four players can duke it out in new, original matches such as the subway match, where the object is to see who can toss the other into the path of a speeding subway train. There are a few other innovative match types, but also included are your basic one-on-one, two-on-two, and your “every man for himself” battle royale style fights.
In Conclusion…
Point blank…if you need a serious bare-knuckle fighting game in your collection, look no further. Def Jam: Fight for N.Y. is everything the hype boasts about and then some. Solid, diverse gameplay makes this title one of the best fighters this year, and no, you don’t have to be a fan of the music to enjoy it. So, if you haven’t parted with Def Jam: Vendetta, now is the time. Do yourself a favor…get this game.
