I was wrong, I'll admit it. Xbox 360 good, my opinion bad.

If you've been following this blog or listening to my podcast you know I have had nothing positive to say about the Xbox 360 or the games for it. Well, I was wrong..very wrong. I had the chance to sit down with a 360 and play EA's new Fight Night Round 3...for about 2 hours! Now its not like EA has been known for putting out a bad game (I am a huge, I mean HUGE, Madden Football fan) but they do not disappoint with this title.
Round 3 may not max out all of the capabilities of the 360 but it sure looks that way. In order to make the experience more believable EA has forgone the onscreen health meter. The graphics are so realistic (i.e. characters' facial expressions and body movements) that the health meter isn't a need anymore. Just pay attention and you'll see if your opponent looks or acts tired, dazed, or is getting ready to clobber you. Round 3 introduces a new way to turn the tide with "impact punches" These are special hits that devastate your opponent from a dynamic first-person cutaway view. So you play the game in 3rd person but as you're either about to knock out your opponent or he's about to knock you out the game switches to 1st person mode. Now that's a fresh idea.

As you can see in the picture above, that character renders are unbelievable! From the light reflection and shadows on the body, dripping sweat, to the pores on the skin, its hard to tell that you're playing a video game and not watching a live fight. EA has gone so far as to make a deal with ESPN in order to replicate all the "Friday Night Fight" venues and even allow you to recreate the great fights of the past (i.e. Ali-Frasier). The icing on the cake? You'll get to compete against anyone in the world with on-line game play with Xbox Live®, PSP (oh yea, its coming to the PSP) and PlayStation 2 online. Now I've got to buy me a 360!