VICTORIOUS BOXERS REVOLUTION (Nintendo Wii - First Glance Video Game Review)
May 7, 2008 by KNDY · Leave a Comment
“It has its quirks but ‘Victorious Boxers Revolution’ is a fun game on the Wii, especially for anime and manga fans who enjoyed ‘Hajime no Ippo” and the ‘Fighting Spirits’ video game series as well. Cool storyline and definitely for those wanting a great workout since Wii Sports Boxing!”
TITLE: VICTORIOUS BOXERS REVOLUTION
COMPANY: XSEED GAMES
CONSOLE: Nintendo Wii
RATING: TEEN - Blood, Cartoon Violence
I have been wanting to purchase “VICTORIOUS FIGHTERS REVOLUTION” for awhile now. I enjoy fighting video games and the same that goes with boxing video games.
I am fully aware that many video game reviewers didn’t like this game but because a lot of Japanese-based games, I’ve learned to experience the game myself, regardless of the bad review and of course, learn for myself.
Part of my wanting to play this video game is my appreciation for the anime and manga series of “Hajime no Ippo” or “Fighting Spirit”.
What VBR does unlike the previous VB games on the PlayStation 2 is to utilize the Wiimote and nunchuk for control. The lengthy storyline is a summarization of what happens in the anime and manga series and featured in a pretty cool manga-esque style with full voice acting (English dub only).
The storyline revolves around the character Makunouchi Ippo. A high school student that is bullied until one day he was rescued by a boxer and taken to Kamogawa Gym. And from there, the storyline of a young man inspired by his savior and wanting to become stronger and also become a boxer.
So, in storyline mode, the cutscenes are told by CG but the characters are drawn out ala manga form. The storyline starts from the beginning of Ippo’s career and you start from the beginning as you fight other fighters and then eventually start competing.
With each boxer you beat, you open that boxer and they get added into the character queue. There are a total of 25 different fighters with their own techniques and powerful special moves that one can master.
Of course, because it is going on a pre-determined storyline, there are some quirks such as beating someone but then in the storyline, you actually lost the match.
As for the fighting, I know a lot of reviewers had problems with the fighting mechanics. Especially the camera angles. There are times that the fighter just moves out of the screen but I looked at that as the fighter AI was just avoiding me by sidestepping and thus I had to adjust and move around so I can lay the final punch on the opponent. So, I know this was a major sore point for reviewers but for me, it didn’t affect my enjoyment of the game. I looked at it as a challenge that sucker was too scared to fight and trying to evade my punches by sidestepping around me.
By playing this game, I didn’t come expecting “Fight Night” controls or mechanics, I came into this as an boxing game based on a anime and manga series that I enjoyed and just have an all out enjoyable boxing experience. I’m halfway through the game now and so far, I’m enjoying it.
As much as I enjoyed Wii Sports boxing and how challenging it gets as you progress, I found the variety of characters and their special boxing moves much more enjoyable to fight against. And I found the storyline to be really engaging and the English dub dialogue didn’t bother me as much as it did other reviewers.
For those who hate long cut scenes, you do have the option to press a button to skip forward.
As for our J!-ENT factor in this video game, there are no J-pop songs from what I heard. Unfortunately, there is no option to change to Japanese dialogue and have English subtitles.
I do like the manga-like hand drawn segments combine with the CG for the cut scenes.
Personally, one thing I loved about Wii Boxing is the workout. With VBR, after learning the moves from the tutorial and then going out and starting the game, the matches were pretty cool and you really get into it. A very good work out as you learn to throw jabs variety of punches, uppercuts, hooks and blocking. By day two, I was sore…but the Wii has been more to me than a console for gaming (and watching YouTube), it has been a console that has helped shed some pounds and just really getting involved with the overall boxing work out since Wii Sports Boxing.
And so far, VBR has really got me going and by day 2, I was feeling the pain (not as much as the pain I received when I trained for boxing for real and lasted only a day… but that’s another story) but ready to take on the game again!
And as you an tell from my first glance review, this is one is a positive one. I enjoyed the lengthy cut scenes and storyline, I didn’t mind the English dub and nor did I mind the the controls either. Sure, the controls had some quirks but not as much to prevent me from enjoying the game.
I enjoyed “VICTORIOUS BOXERS REVOLUTION” much more than I expected. A lot of fun so far!
So, would you like this game? I’d say give it a try now that you can find it cheaper these days or at least rent it.
+ Cool storyline and fans of “Hajime no Ippo” would definitely enjoy this game!
+ A game that really is a good workout!
+ Definite improvement over the past VB games in look and the interactivity with the Wiimote and nunchuk was pretty cool.
+ The variety of characters you go up against and unlock with their own special moves.
- Wish they offered the original Japanese language for those who prefer it with English subtitles.
- There are some control issues but not enough to hinder my enjoyability of the game.
