Prepare for the fight of your life.
- NA release: 14th November 2002
- EU release: 22nd November 2002
- JP release: N/A
- Developer: Steel Monkeys
- Publisher: UbiSoft (NA), Rage Software (EU)
- NGC Magazine Score: 78%
- Mods Used: Widescreen Code
Released to coincide with the release of the first five films on DVD (which the game nicely tells you about before you get to the start screen), this is a boxing game featuring a ton of characters from the Rocky films, including multiple versions of characters that appeared in multiple films (so there are five versions of Rocky Balboa, plus a bonus playable Rocky statue). The main mode of this is “movie mode” which pits you against fighters from each film, with a CGI cutscene before the final fight of each film.
The boxing itself is well done, with a good amount of punches available to you with intuitive and simple controls. It’s enjoyable to play, and nice and smooth. There’s no gimmicks or flair, but it doesn’t really need it. At its core it’s a fun boxing game, which is more than what you’d expect from a licensed film tie-in. Between matches you can also boost your stats with some training minigames.
Although one thing that will get on your nerves is the Rocky theme. It’s a good theme, but it plays in the opening video, on the main menu, before every fight, after every fight and on the training menu. It’s just a bit too much. That said, it’s more of a nitpick than a major flaw, as the game is still fun.
Fun
Those expecting a fast-paced slug-fest should be wary, though. Rocky isn’t the most accessible of fighters. But once you get your hear around the whole ducking, diving, blocking, opening-spotting and countering aspect of the fighting style, it’s actually very enjoyable. Rocky isn’t any old button-mashing beat-’em-up – to succeed, you have to consider what you’re doing.
Geraint Evans, NGC Magazine #74
Remake or remaster?
A re-release would be good.
Official Ways to get the game
There’s not official way to get Rocky.
Europe
Japan
North America
GameCube Games by Date
2002: Jan, Feb, Mar, Apr, May, Jun, Jul, Aug, Sep, Oct, Nov, Dec
2003: Jan, Feb, Mar, Apr, May, Jun, Jul, Aug, Sep, Oct, Nov, Dec
2004: Jan, Feb, Mar, Apr, May, Jun, Jul, Aug, Sep, Oct, Nov, Dec
2005: Jan, Feb, Mar, Apr, May, Jun, Jul, Aug, Sep, Oct, Nov, Dec
2006: Jan, Feb, Mar, Apr, May, Jun, Jul, Aug, Sep, Oct, Nov, Dec
Looks like a pretty neat take on the film series. I like the idea of being able to fight with different versions of characters from each movie. Kind of like Hyper Street Fighter 2 (though Rocky actually predates that game by a year).