Punch Club
Overview -
'Punch Club' is a life sim that sees players working hard to raise a character from a deadbeat into the world's greatest fighter in pursuit of the man who killed his father. Along the way, players will train hard, find love, fight crocodiles, and, with the addition of a free expansion, 'The Dark Fist,' become a superhero and fight the monsters terrorizing the city.
Video Review
The spritework is lovely, and gives each location in the game a huge amount of character. Where the jokes seen in the writing fall flat, the visual gags work extremely well. Things like Jay and Silent Bob hanging around outside of a convenience store or a bar that looks exactly like the one seen in 'Fight Club' are a nice touch, ensuring the game has plenty of personality.
Audio Review
The main theme of the game, an obvious 8-bit riff on the soundtrack in 'Rocky' is amusing at first, but when it becomes clear that the same song loops throughout almost all of game, it quickly became incredibly grating. There's not enough music here, and almost no audio outside of the music. While the music isn't bad, the audio desperately needs more variety.
Final Thoughts
I didn't enjoy 'Punch Club' as much as I wanted to, mostly due to mechanical gripes that bugged me throughout my entire playthrough. Despite these issues, it's a charming little game that the developers have only improved with the addition of free content. While it makes a few missteps in some critical areas, for fans of life sims or boxing movies, this is definitely worth checking out.
