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It’s no more or less important to know why you’re fighting than it was in Def Jam Vendetta – the ring’s the thing man. The plotline which is loosely thrown together and largely unimportant to the actual combat is that you were working for your uncle at a repair shop trying to earn a clean living until you made the mistake of breaking up a fight with a cop, and now his crew is sweating you so hard that you lost your job and had to take up fighting to earn a living. Your best and really only choice though is to hit the streets in a place like The Heights, where you’ll be thrown into your first brawl. After that you go to the map and select where you want to be – you can even go to the tat shop if you have the in-game credit earned up and the brand you want burned on your body unlocked. For what it’s worth your training partner is Henry Rollins, but I have to say if they were going to pick one jacked up locking rock artist with enough credibility to look like he belongs in a fighting ring he’d be right up there with 50 Cent in terms of his physique. The tutorial mode before you start is a nice bonus – it gives you the chance to get the hang of moves and combos you’ll need later on during the fights. What I can’t combine kickboxing and submissions together like an MMA fighter, I have to pick either/or? Oh well – in an ode to the original Vendetta I’ll choose wrestling. Once you get beyond this and picking your character’s voice you’re allowed to choose one of five fighting styles. In the game’s Story mode though you’ll have to choose from one of five pre-fabricated characters or sculpt your own – no option to play through this mode as Redman I’m afraid. At the game’s start only 11 of a possible 68 characters are listed as unlocked, but considering you can play as Havoc, David Banner, Redman and Xzibit in a Battle it’s not as though you’re lacking in choices. Other options on the main menu include Story, Battle, Unlock, Ad Hoc, Options, Extras and High Scores. Obviously you wouldn’t pay three times as much as you would for a CD just to get this soundtrack, but you could enjoy listening to the music here for a long time without even playing the game. “America’s Most” by Meth & Red, “Make it Hurt” by Busta Rhymes, “Nuff Respect” by Big Daddy Kane and “Pistol Grip Pump” by Volume 10 are a few among the many choices, and there are more to earn during the game (or you can unlock ’em with cheat codes). Rugged certainly applies to the soundtrack in “Def Jam Fight for NY,” which in a pleasant surprise you can immediately access right from the game’s main menu under Beatbox without having to unlock it first. Don’t get me wrong, they were the bomb on Genesis, but it’s nice to see something a little more RUGGED out there these days.
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Hip-Hop sure has come along way in video games since the days of Toe Jam & Earl. It probably didn’t help that I never saw the game on shelves anywhere either, but just in time for the holidays this one turned up in plain view. Why didn’t I buy it six months ago then after seeing the trailer? Quite honestly, I forgot.
DEF JAM: FIGHT FOR NY PORTABLE
His most memorable line was, “I’MA RIP YA TONGUE OUT POTNAH, AND WIPE MY ASS WITH IT.” Anyway this seemed like a no lose proposition – a sequel to a game I already loved, in a portable format you can play at any time without the need for a console and a TV.
DEF JAM: FIGHT FOR NY PSP
About half a year ago I downloaded a trailer with my PSP for what seemed to be a sequel to the game, which largely featured Redman recording dialogue for his character in comically over-the-top fashion. That night the video game which cost nothing was more interesting to watch than the show I had paid for – we could have just ordered pizza and watched Vendetta from start to finish instead.
DEF JAM: FIGHT FOR NY TV
In fact the game was so popular that during one particularly boring PPV we put the TV on split screen and turned on the Cube just to see if my homeboy Chad could outwrestle the game’s final Suge Knight-like boss, which he did to an eruption of cheers all around.