Fight Night: Round 2 [PS2]

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Boxing bears a few ironic nicknames -- one is "the gentleman's sport" and another is "the sweet science." Of course, to the untrained eye, it looks like neither. But boxing is just as skill-oriented as fencing and as much a marital art as karate. It has also proven difficult to model in a video game, since smacking buttons doesn't really capture the subtlety, strategy, and skill of the sport. Fight Night Round 2 is easily the best pugilistic translation gaming has ever seen. It captures almost every aspect of boxing, making it more than an arcade game and more than a sports game -- it's a true simulation.

The key innovation of the series is the "Punch Control System." The idea is simple: The left analog stick has you dodge, move, and aim, while the right stick lets you punch. Bring the stick to the left and hook it forward and you get a left hook. Down and up is an uppercut. Jabbing is just as easy. Blocking uses the right shoulder button, and you can watch your fighter block every part of his body.

At first this is very confusing -- boxing fans are typically used to smacking buttons like mad and not intently watching an opponent for weakness and throwing combos. But once you get the hang of it, this is boxing. Block, block, jab, hook, jab, jab, body blow, knock him out! It looks and feels right... and whether you win or lose, you feel tired. It's a tense game, and one that lets you feel like you've experienced the fight without risking brain injury or severe exhaustion.

The graphics are terrific. Each boxer looks and moves authentically, and the game makes excellent use of "rag-doll physics" to simulate a groggy fighter falling to the canvas. Various "pain skins" are used to simulate damage. Eyes swell up, blood sprays along with sweat, and bruises show up painfully. This shows you, round-by-round, just how much punishment you're taking and how much you're dishing out.

Fight Night 2 also casts you as the cut man. Between rounds, players can minimize damage by sealing cuts and reducing swelling. This is crucial, because even the stoutest fighter can go down if damaged enough, and the ref will call the fight if your man takes too much damage.

The game offers full tournament modes. You can play as stars from all weight classes or make your own fighter. The greats are here, including Ali, Roy Jones Jr., Foreman, Spinks, Ray Leonard, Marciano, and more.

Announcers have been changed. EA has ditched the hip-hop DJ from the last game and cast a guy who sounds like a real boxing announcer. This was a shrewd move, as the last game felt silly with a smart-aleck announcer surrounding such a serious simulation. The game also features improved scoring and stats. Oh, and the swimsuit-adorned round-card models are still distracting.

Audio is especially important. EA has spent a lot of time on dynamic crowd noise (a sucker punch always makes 'em boo) and just as much time on the sound of the punches. To the designer's credit, the haymakers don't sound like bombs going off (a la Rocky), just a meat tenderizer doing its work. The audio experience makes the whole game even more visceral.

Even better is the cool way knockouts are handled -- the screen gets all woozy and the ref leans over you to begin the count. You've got to move a green circle to the center of the rapidly shifting double-vision screen with the left stick, and then a yellow circle with the right, to stay conscious and clamber up for redemption or more punishment.

Multiplayer Fight Night was playable on the PS2 last year, and it's still available on that service. Better still, it's now available on Xbox Live, and the built-in ladder system and rankings make the whole experience more worthwhile. Boxing is such a tactical game, playing against another human is a must. Unfortunately, although Fight Night 2 is a terrific multiplayer game, it's not optimized well for laggy online games -- our match-ups have been very hit-and-miss, depending on the connection.

As terrific as last year's Fight Night was, something crucial was absent -- clinching. Or as non-boxing fans call it -- hugging. Now, if you get backed into a corner or are looking to buy some time, you can reach out and grab your opponent. This is a serious drain on your stamina, but, like in real boxing, it's a valid tactic and the last game felt incomplete without it.

With the introduction of clinching, the innovative punch system, the deep tournament and career options, the graphics and realism, the improved presentation, and most of all, the obvious love of boxing infused into the game, Fight Night Round 2 is the best representation of the "sweet science" that gaming has ever seen.