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Def Jam Icon is the third in the series which
began on the Xbox, GameCube and PlayStation2. Having launched on
both PLAYSTATION3 and Xbox360, and having over a year of sales under
its belt even by now, Def Jam
Icon can readily be found at
retail outlets discounted prices. As the ratio of Beat-‘Em-Ups and
Wrestling titles – of which the series has been considered a hybrid
– on the Current-Generation systems increases, and titles such as
Dead Or Alive 4 and
Virtua Fighter 5 get competition
from the likes of Soul Calibur IV, Street Fighter IV
and Tekken 6, Def Jam Icon provides a cheap
alternative for your fisticuff needs, but is it one that will
provide as much entertainment?
From start-to-finish, Def Jam Icon is a slick
product. Stylish backdrops for Menu Screens and loaded with top-name
Hip-Hop stars, each looking stunningly close to their real life
counterparts. Various Single-Player match options are available,
each establishing their own changes to the basic rules, and a
Single-Player Campaign called Build-A-Label. In Build-A-Label mode,
the player first creates their character using an enhanced version
of EA’s typical system. Having been reengineered time-and-time-again
over the years, the options available to the player are on tip-top
form, and some suitably “street” characters can be made, along with
many which may not be seen as so suitable.
The title features what is seemingly an idyllic view of
the Hip-Hop sector of the music industry for those who are involved
only at the consumer level. Every Cut-Scene-induced decision, bar
none, whether it be who to sign to your label, getting an artist to
remove a track by your artist from his mixtape, and even arguments
between multi-millionaire recording artists are settled with rather
public, very brutal brawls. While, of course, in reality these
decisions are made in board rooms, in Def Jam Icon the player
is given the iconic view of Hip-Hop artists trying to destroy each
other – physically and financially – in the vein that artists today
can only spend large amounts of money on false publicity to attain.
 It’s a hark back to the image of the industry in the mid-90’s; a
situation that no doubt many of the artists included in the title
would appreciate.
Playing along an interesting storyline – including backstabbing,
corruption and plenty of ho’s – the player is not only tasked with
fighting, but also a small amount of management. In no way
comparable to the likes of
Football Manager
or
The Sims,
or even the Empires Mode in
Dynasty Warriors 5: Empires, the
options here are limited to choosing who to sign (by selecting the
appropriate fight), keeping girls happy, whether or not to pay your
artist’s bills, release budgets for records and the clothing which
you own. With actions performed in no more than three Menus, and
only a few button presses required between bouts for success,
Build-A-Label’s management system is fundamentally limited, perhaps
a recognition of the target audience being less fond of text-based
activities than the hardcore, but it will still entertain
regardless.
The fighting within the title is pleasing chunky and well balanced.
Although the Artificial Intelligence often seems to be rather too
in-tune with the environments at times, each of the combatants is
well-designed, and the player-created characters fit well with the
line-up. A large part of the combat involves the interactive Arenas.
By “interactive”, I mean damage-dealing. Each is littered with traps
that are set to the baseline of the track playing during the fight,
and should the player get caught near in a hefty beat, large amounts
of damage will be incurred. While mostly set at a slower pace and in
more free-flowing Arenas, akin to a Wrestling title such as
WWE
SmackDown! Vs. Raw 2008, the gameplay relates closer to a
distance based Beat-‘Em-Up such as the Dead Or Alive series.
While damage can be inflicted by landing heavy close blows, winning
matches relies on a combination of combo-timing and reversals.
The title shines graphically, with some fantastic Character Models
and featuring fantastic damage effects in-game. The Arenas are
cleverly stylised and the on-screen effect of the beating backdrops
and dulled colours make for some
 stunning imagery. Although being
over a year old, there’s been little since that can claim to have
equalled EA’s Hip-Hop brawler. The soundtrack is, unsurprisingly,
littered with well-known Hip-Hop tracks, and may be some not so
well-known. The ability to apply your own soundtrack to the title
and have Arenas bend and shift to your own tunes is a stroke of
genius.
Def Jam Icon is a stylish game from start to finish, and
quite clearly takes it’s Hip-Hop inspiration seriously. A more
essential release for fans of the music genre there simply has never
been in the videogames industry, however, this doesn’t necessarily
transfer to the mainstream or hardcore videogame audiences. Def
Jam Icon’s accessibility is easily it’s worst aspect, relying on
faint whirls of the Right Analogue Stick akin to
Fight Night:
Round 3 to land heavy blows and throws, while Face Button
attacks seem limp in comparison. For the hardcore audience, the
title will provide a decent experience through to completion,
however, it simply lacks the depth of competing titles such as
Virtua Fighter 5.
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