How many remember when the Sony Playstation first came out they advertised on the back of the system's box was an ad for a boxing game titled "Boxing for Playstation". Of course it said coming soon, which evidently means four years later, because Sony's boxing game has just now been released. It does have a title. Its called Contender, and it is for Playstation.
Contender is a boxing game from the ground up. You start out as a light weight fighting your way up in dingy small time clubs. With time and effort you can become the heavy weight champion of the world. Contender does not feature any superstars of the sport. This is a Boxing simulator. It even provides you with a coach.
Unfortunately the graphics fall short of the concept. These polygon fighters truly look POLYGONAL. The chest, arms, stomach, head, are all separate pieces which all blend together to create a virtual character. That's the way its suppose to work. Contender's fighters look more like action figures. The arms are connected directly to the torso, no shoulders here. Its very blocky looking which loses its realism. The control falls short too. You need to strengthen your hands before you'll want to attempt this round. It took Sony four and a half years to make this game, which obviously wasn't long enough.
PUBLISHER: SONY
GRAPHICS: 4 SOUND & MUSIC: 6 CONTROL: 4
SECRETS: 4 ORIGINALITY: 5 FUN & REPLAY: 3.5
OVERALL: 4
(thanks to ign for the screen shots)
