Multiplayer

There is an offline multiplayer mode as well as an online mode for breaking faces from around the world. The multiplayer is the saving grace for the game, since playing against a human opponent gives you a better chance of winning. The online play is smooth and generally lag-free, and was good fun but I just couldn't play it for too long.

Another time-killer is the Boxer Factory, which let's you create your own boxer and upload him online. The boxer can then be downloaded by others and can be used along with their own creations. The customization options are plenty, and ensure that you can create a unique boxer with the toolset. The boxers available in the game have been very well designed and characterized, each with their own style and strengths. Every boxer has a special ability -- like Romeo can stun you with his counter-parry, while Voodoo will make you punch yourself. Some of these abilities seem unfair, as they are really tough to counter.

There are many boxers available by default but you can unlock more by playing the various modes and winning matches. Once you win a match you can view the highlights as well as upload them for others to see. The highlights can be viewed from multiple angles including first person. The highlights, titles as well as various other achievements are all added to a section called Bragging Rights. These can be used to show-off your achievements and share them with other fighters from all over the world.

The game has excellent presentation and visuals, with cel-shaded graphics and a good soundtrack. The art and character design is fresh and innovative with some amazing face deformation effects.

The fact remains that FaceBreaker is a very solid product with some really good production values, but the gameplay just doesn't offer enough. It's supposed to be a casual game yet it can get frustratingly difficult at later levels, which is not what you expect from a casual game. The combat system isn't exciting and gets too repetitive, and the outcome favours the one who can mash buttons faster. This is no Fight Night round 3 but it ain't a casual fighting experience either, it's lost somewhere in between.