Rocky (2002 video game)

Rocky is a fighting video game published by Rage Software and released in 2002. The game is based on the Rocky movies.

For the 1987 Sega Master System version, see Rocky (1987 video game).
Rocky
North American PS2 cover art
Developer(s)Rage Newcastle PS2 & Xbox
Steel Monkeys GC
Virtucraft GBA
Publisher(s)Rage Software (PAL)
Ubi Soft (North America)
Director(s)John G. Avildsen 
Platform(s)GameCube
PlayStation 2
Xbox
Game Boy Advance
ReleaseXbox
  • PAL: October 18, 2002
  • NA: November 17, 2002
PlayStation 2
  • PAL: November 15, 2002
  • NA: November 18, 2002
GameCube
  • NA: November 17, 2002
  • PAL: November 22, 2002
Game Boy Advance
  • NA: November 17, 2002
  • PAL: February 10, 2005
Genre(s)Fighting
Mode(s)Single-player, multiplayer

In the game the player controls Rocky Balboa on his journey from a club fighter, facing opponents like Spider Rico, until his championship bout against Apollo Creed and beyond. The game sticks closely to the movies, with all included characters being at least mentioned in the movies. In at least the PAL markets the PS2 and Xbox versions of the game were packaged alongside the original Rocky DVD release. A sequel was also made, called Rocky Legends.

Gameplay

The gameplay mirrors that of other boxing games of its generation.

In Story Mode, the player takes control of Rocky Balboa fighting many opponents, either new or already existent within the film series. Regular boxing match rules apply to any fight: winning depends on how many punches the player has landed or if the opponent has been knocked down and not gotten up within a ten-second time limit. The maximum number of rounds in a match is 15, and a round may last for a maximum of 180 seconds. Story Mode also includes training minigames, where the player can increase Rocky's stats. Each individual minigame increases a specific stat:

  • Punching Mitts: Strength
  • Speed Bag: Speed
  • Skipping: Stamina
  • Sit ups: Determination
  • Heavy Bag: Movement

Besides Story Mode, other modes include Exhibition Match, Sparring, and Knockout Tournament.

Audio and video content used from the film series

The game's intro movie features film footage edited from the five movies showing the main boxers and ends with an advert for the Rocky DVD. The remaining five cutscenes feature CGI footage using the in-game character models and original film audio recreating segments from the films. The song "Gonna Fly Now" is the only one from the movie series featured in the game, the rest of the score being created in-house.

Development

The game was developed for Xbox and PlayStation 2 at the Newcastle upon Tyne studio of Rage Software. A derivative GameCube conversion was developed by Steel Monkeys in Scotland, and a Game Boy Advance version with different gameplay by Virtucraft. It was published by Rage Software, and in the US additionally by Ubisoft.

Reception

The game was met with positive to mixed reception. GameRankings gave it a score of 78.75% for the Xbox version,[1] 76.61% for the PlayStation 2 version,[2] 72.30% for the GameCube version,[3] and 58.63% for the Game Boy Advance version.[4] Metacritic gave the game a score of 74 out of 100 for all console versions[5][6][7] except the Game Boy Advance version, which was given a score of 63 out of 100.[8]

Owing to positive critical reception and sales, after the closure of Rage Software the developers of the lead version formed Venom Games to create a sequel, Rocky Legends, this time published directly by Ubisoft.

References
  1. "Rocky for Xbox". GameRankings. Retrieved November 3, 2014.
  2. "Rocky for PlayStation 2". GameRankings. Retrieved November 3, 2014.
  3. "Rocky for GameCube". GameRankings. Retrieved November 3, 2014.
  4. "Rocky for Game Boy Advance". GameRankings. Retrieved November 3, 2014.
  5. "Rocky for Xbox Reviews". Metacritic. Retrieved November 3, 2014.
  6. "Rocky for PlayStation 2 Reviews". Metacritic. Retrieved November 3, 2014.
  7. "Rocky for GameCube Reviews". Metacritic. Retrieved November 3, 2014.
  8. "Rocky for Game Boy Advance Reviews". Metacritic. Retrieved November 3, 2014.
  9. Marriott, Scott Alan. "Rocky - Review". AllGame. Archived from the original on November 18, 2014. Retrieved November 18, 2014.
  10. Marriott, Scott Alan. "Rocky (GBA) - Review". AllGame. Archived from the original on November 18, 2014. Retrieved November 18, 2014.
  11. Edge staff (November 2002). "Rocky (Xbox)". Edge (116). Archived from the original on February 16, 2003. Retrieved November 3, 2014.
  12. EGM staff (December 2002). "Rocky (Xbox)". Electronic Gaming Monthly (161): 258.
  13. Reed, Kristan (October 22, 2002). "Rocky (Xbox)". Eurogamer. Retrieved November 3, 2014.
  14. Leeper, Justin (January 2003). "Rocky (GBA)". Game Informer (117): 122. Retrieved November 3, 2014.
  15. Helgeson, Matt (December 2002). "Rocky (Xbox)". Game Informer (116): 144. Retrieved November 3, 2014.
  16. Provo, Frank (December 20, 2002). "Rocky Review (GBA)". GameSpot. Retrieved November 3, 2014.
  17. MacDonald, Ryan (November 19, 2002). "Rocky Review". GameSpot. Retrieved November 3, 2014.
  18. MacDonald, Ryan (December 6, 2002). "Rocky Review (GC)". GameSpot. Retrieved November 3, 2014.
  19. Harkin, Justyn (December 30, 2002). "GameSpy: Rocky (Xbox)". GameSpy. Archived from the original on November 2, 2005. Retrieved November 3, 2014.
  20. Hodgson, David (December 20, 2002). "GameSpy: Rocky (GCN)". GameSpy. Archived from the original on December 4, 2005. Retrieved November 3, 2014.
  21. Fryman, Avi (November 27, 2002). "GameSpy: Rocky (GBA)". GameSpy. Archived from the original on November 6, 2005. Retrieved November 3, 2014.
  22. Hodgson, David (December 20, 2002). "GameSpy: Rocky (PS2)". GameSpy. Retrieved November 3, 2014.
  23. Tha Wiz (December 8, 2002). "Rocky - PS2 - Review". GameZone. Archived from the original on October 5, 2008. Retrieved November 3, 2014.
  24. Lafferty, Michael (December 8, 2002). "Rocky - GC - Review". GameZone. Archived from the original on September 28, 2008. Retrieved November 3, 2014.
  25. Zacarias, Eduardo (November 25, 2002). "Rocky - XB - Review". GameZone. Archived from the original on December 10, 2008. Retrieved November 3, 2014.
  26. Lafferty, Michael (December 3, 2002). "Rocky - GBA - Review". GameZone. Archived from the original on August 29, 2008. Retrieved November 3, 2014.
  27. Dunham, Jeremy (November 11, 2002). "Rocky Review (Xbox)". IGN. Retrieved November 3, 2014.
  28. Dunham, Jeremy (November 11, 2002). "Rocky (GGN)". IGN. Archived from the original on March 7, 2007. Retrieved November 3, 2014.
  29. Dunham, Jeremy (November 11, 2002). "Rocky (PS2)". IGN. Retrieved November 3, 2014.
  30. "Rocky (GC)". Nintendo Power. 162: 222. November 2002.
  31. "Rocky (GBA)". Nintendo Power. 165: 162. February 2003.
  32. Zuniga, Todd (January 2003). "Rocky". Official U.S. PlayStation Magazine: 130. Archived from the original on June 27, 2004. Retrieved November 3, 2014.
  33. "Rocky". Official Xbox Magazine: 142. December 2002.
  34. Robischon, Noah (November 15, 2002). "Rocky Review (Xbox, PS2, GC)". Entertainment Weekly (682): 144. Retrieved November 3, 2014.
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