Fight Night 2004

Fight Night 2004

Developer(s) EA Sports
Publisher(s) EA Sports
Platform(s) PlayStation 2
Xbox
Release date(s)
  • NA April 5, 2004
  • EU April 30, 2004
  • JP August 5, 2004 (PS2)
Genre(s) Fighting game
Mode(s) Single player, multiplayer

Fight Night 2004 is a 2004 boxing video game developed by EA Sports. It is the successor to EA's previous boxing series, Knockout Kings. Four sequels followed, Fight Night Round 2 in 2005, Fight Night Round 3 in 2006, Fight Night Round 4 in 2009 and Fight Night Champion in 2011. Its chief features are a career mode, in-depth and reasonably realistic fighting and an analog stick-based control scheme dubbed Total Punch Control, which was re-used, with enhancements, in the sequels.

Total Punch Control

With Total Punch Control, most maneuvers, including punching, leaning and blocking, are performed with the left or right analog sticks, modified by the left or right triggers. For example, with the default controller configuration, moving the right analog stick up and to the left will cause the fighter to throw a straight punch with his left hand, while holding down the right trigger while performing the same movement and then holding R1 will cause the fighter to raise his guard to the left side of his head, ready to attempt a parry.

Soundtrack

Reception

Reception
Aggregate scores
AggregatorScore
GameRankings(PS2) 84.96%[1]
(Xbox) 84.72%[2]
Metacritic(PS2) 85/100[3]
(Xbox) 85/100[4]
Review scores
PublicationScore
Edge7/10[5]
Electronic Gaming Monthly8.5/10[6]
Eurogamer6/10[7]
Game Informer9/10[8]
GamePro[9]
Game RevolutionB[10]
GameSpot(PS2) 8.8/10[11]
(Xbox) 8.7/10[12]
GameSpy(PS2) [13]
(Xbox) [14]
GameZone9/10[15]
IGN(PS2) 8.6/10[16]
(Xbox) 8.4/10[17]
Official PlayStation Magazine (US)[18]
Official Xbox Magazine8.9/10[19]
BBC Sport80%[20]
The Village Voice8/10[21]

Fight Night 2004 was met with positive reception upon release. GameRankings and Metacritic gave it a score of 84.96% and 85 out of 100 for the PlayStation 2 version,[1][3] and 84.72% and 85 out of 100 for the Xbox version.[2][4]

The Village Voice gave the PS2 version a score of eight out of ten and stated that "Taking on generic career-mode opponents can't match fighting friends."[21] BBC Sport gave the game an 80% and said, "The road to the top is a long one and things become repetitive long before you get the chance to glove up against "The Greatest". And training - which is essential to boost your power, stamina and chin - becomes a real chore."[20] Maxim also gave it eight out of ten and said, "Instead of the usual push-button pugilism, throw punches using the analog stick—the direction and speed of the stick determine the swing; the trigger controls handle bobbing, weaving, and blocking."[22] Playboy gave it a score of 75% and said that the game "adds a bit of bob and weave through a control system that allows you to swivel your fighter at the hips."[23]

References

  1. ↑ 1.0 1.1 "Fight Night 2004 for PlayStation 2". GameRankings. Retrieved November 7, 2014.
  2. ↑ 2.0 2.1 "Fight Night 2004 for Xbox". GameRankings. Retrieved November 6, 2014.
  3. ↑ 3.0 3.1 "Fight Night 2004 for PlayStation 2 Reviews". Metacritic. Retrieved November 7, 2014.
  4. ↑ 4.0 4.1 "Fight Night 2004 for Xbox Reviews". Metacritic. Retrieved November 6, 2014.
  5. ↑ Edge staff (May 2004). "Fight Night 2004". Edge (136): 107.
  6. ↑ EGM staff (May 2004). "Fight Night 2004". Electronic Gaming Monthly (179): 87. Archived from the original on June 4, 2004. Retrieved November 7, 2014.
  7. ↑ Reed, Kristan (May 5, 2004). "Fight Night 2004 (PS2)". Eurogamer. Retrieved November 7, 2014.
  8. ↑ Helgeson, Matt (April 2004). "Fight Night 2004". Game Informer (132): 88. Archived from the original on February 2, 2008. Retrieved November 7, 2014.
  9. ↑ Four-Eyed Dragon (May 2004). "Fight Night". GamePro: 84. Archived from the original on March 9, 2005. Retrieved November 7, 2014.
  10. ↑ Silverman, Ben (April 29, 2004). "Fight Night 2004 Review". Game Revolution. Retrieved November 7, 2014.
  11. ↑ MacDonald, Ryan (April 5, 2004). "Fight Night 2004 Review (PS2)". GameSpot. Retrieved November 7, 2014.
  12. ↑ MacDonald, Ryan (April 5, 2004). "Fight Night 2004 Review (Xbox)". GameSpot. Retrieved November 7, 2014.
  13. ↑ Padilla, Raymond (April 4, 2004). "GameSpy: Fight Night 2004 (PS2)". GameSpy. Retrieved November 7, 2014.
  14. ↑ Padilla, Raymond (April 4, 2004). "GameSpy: Fight Night 2004 (Xbox)". GameSpy. Retrieved November 7, 2014.
  15. ↑ The Bearer (April 14, 2004). "Fight Night 2004 - PS2 - Review". GameZone. Archived from the original on December 30, 2008. Retrieved November 7, 2014.
  16. ↑ Dunham, Jeremy (April 2, 2004). "EA Sports Fight Night 2004 (PS2)". IGN. Archived from the original on July 13, 2007. Retrieved November 7, 2014.
  17. ↑ Dunham, Jeremy (April 2, 2004). "EA Sports Fight Night 2004 (Xbox)". IGN. Retrieved November 7, 2014.
  18. ↑ Varanini, Giancarlo (May 2004). "Fight Night 2004". Official U.S. PlayStation Magazine: 97. Archived from the original on April 26, 2004. Retrieved November 7, 2014.
  19. ↑ "Fight Night 2004". Official Xbox Magazine: 71. April 2004.
  20. ↑ 20.0 20.1 Trickett, Alex (September 24, 2004). "Let's Play: Fight Night 2004". BBC Sport. Retrieved November 7, 2014.
  21. ↑ 21.0 21.1 Catucci, Nick (April 6, 2004). "Greatest Boxing Title Knocks Off Fighters to K.O. Competition". The Village Voice. Retrieved November 7, 2014.
  22. ↑ Porter, Alex (April 5, 2004). "Fight Night 2004". Maxim. Archived from the original on April 1, 2004. Retrieved November 7, 2014.
  23. ↑ "Fight Night 2004". Playboy: 38. April 2004.

External links