Punch Club Review

Review Punch Club | I can’t imagine how hard the exercise routine from UFC’s fighter McGregor is. I don’t think the word ” fun” is frequently used looking at his schedule, diet and free time. Punch Club from developer Lazy Bear Games gives you an idea how a professional fighter manages his day. Is it fun? Find out, by dodging incoming blows and reading this review.

THE GOOD

• In the beginning the fighting system seems pretty basic but that’s only half the truth, fights later on require some deep knowledge and strategic pickings of special moves. Always doing heavy hits is a recipe for disaster, wear your opponent down and the way to victory is open.
• Highly detailed retro-graphics with a lot of references for memorable movie characters. It’s clear that the developer didn’t take the lazy way for visuals, each location is spot on and you’ll frequently look around just to see what’s lying around.
• For a game like this I was really surprised to see an interesting multiple choice story. The game encourages you to replay it, and you have quite a few outcomes. You would think Punch Club is a pure fighting sim but it actually features some great character building and moral choices. You could call it a Telltale fighting series from Rambo, but maybe that’s stretching it a bit.
• Having a simulation game like this on Xbox is an excellent example on genre diversity. It is genuinely fun to play something fresh and new on consoles. I am very happy that Lazy bear games wasn’t lazy and releases Punch Club on consoles.

MIXED FEELINGS

• Every new day you lose some of your hard-earned strenght, stamina and agility progress. Earning money for food, keeping a good relationship and catching sleep on time makes it difficult keeping your stats up for all the fights. Maybe even a little too difficult for my taste. I understand that the developer wanted to give players some challenge but the balance between gaining and losing stats is very tight, really on the edge of becoming frustrating.

THE BAD

• For some players Punch Club can feel a little empty, besides clicking on locations and clicking again to tell your fighter what he has to do you won’t have much gameplay. Fights are automatic, working out is automatic. What I want to say is, the game plays a little too much on his own and I’m sure some players will dislike that.

Score: 77% | Punch Club is not a typical console release, it is a fresh and unique simulation game that has a surprisingly deep story. Don’t be afraid to try something new, Punch Club’s fights are worth it.