+--------------------------------------+
Def Jam: Fight for NY
Fighter Guide Version 1.07
Handle: Zotmaster
Copyright 2004 Dan "Zotmaster" Christler
Contact: zotmaster(at)mindless(dot)com
+--------------------------------------+



+---------------+
Table of Contents
+---------------+

1. Version History
2. General Information
3. The Finishing Blow
-Styles
-Other Attacks
4. The Def Jam Hall of Shame
5. The Fighters
-001: Baby Chris
-002: David Banner
-003: Baxter
-004: Method Man as Blaze
-005: Bless
-006: Bo
-007: Bone Crusher
-008: Bubba Sparxxx
-009: Capone
-010: Carmen Electra
-011: Chiang
-012: Cindy J
-013: Comp
-014: Fat Joe as Crack
-015: Crazy Legs
-016: Snoop Dogg as Crow
-017: Cruz
-018: D-Mob
-019: Dan G
-020: Redman as Doc
-021: Elephant Man
-022: Erick Sermon
-023: Fam-Lay
-024: Flava Flav
-025: Freeway
-026: Ghostface Killah
-027: Havoc
-028: House
-029: Ice-T
-030: Jacob
-031: Jervis
-032: Joe Budden
-033: Kimora
-034: Lauren
-035: Lil' Flip
-036: Lil' Kim
-037: Ludacris
-038: Mack 10
-039: Busta Rhymes as Magic
-040: Manny
-041: Masa
-042: Meca
-043: Memphis Bleek
-044: N.O.R.E.
-045: Nyne
-046: Omar Epps as O.E.
-047: Pockets
-048: Prodigy
-049: Henry Rollins
-050: Rome
-051: Santos
-052: Scarface
-053: Sean Paul
-054: Shaniqua
-055: Shawnna
-056: Skull
-057: Slick Rick
-058: Snowman
-059: Solo
-060: Starks
-061: Sticky Fingaz
-062: Stingray
-063: Suspect
-064: Teck
-065: Trejo
-066: Trick
-067: Warren G
-068: WC
-069: Xzibit
6. Frequently Asked Questions
7. Close



+----------------+
1. Version History
+----------------+

1.07 - 03.30.06 - An update not even worth noting.  Updated the sites that
are allowed to post this guide.

1.06 - 10.31.04 - Very, very slight update.  Basically just fixed one grammar
mistake I found and updated the sites that are allowed to post this guide.

1.05 - 10.18.04 - I've received enough questions via email to warrant adding
a Frequently Asked Questions section, so there you go.

1.0 - 10.14.04 - The guide is done to my satisfaction.  The Hall of Shame
is bigger than I would have ever hoped it would be.  I must say, though,
I'm definitely happy with my purchase.  If anybody sends me something
that's post-worthy, I'll update this again, otherwise, this is more or
less the end.  It's been fun.

0.75 - 10.13.04 - More strategies and times added.  Added a Hall of Shame
to showcase the worst of the worst.  Also numbered all of the fighters
to make it easier to quickly search for whichever fighter you want to
look up.  Not much left before it's all done.  Also, I modified the way
I wrote my email address since some people feel the need to run spam
bots.  Honestly, get a life, people.

0.6 - 10.12.04 - More strategies and KO times listed.  This guide should
be finished within the next couple of days.

0.55 - 10.10.04 - Added more strategies for fighters as well as some of my
best KO times.  Also added a section with specific knowledge on what can
KO people and what can't.

0.5 - 10.9.04 - Started this FAQ.  The outline is all there and there are
strategies listed for a lot of the fighters.  The rest will be filled in
shortly, as well as my personal best KO times.  The two I remember are
already listed.



+--------------------+
2. General Information
+--------------------+

First and foremost, this guide covers fighting AGAINST - not WITH - any of
the fighters in Def Jam: Fight for NY.  If you're looking for strategies on
how to use each fighter, you're in the wrong place.  These strategies are for
Normal Difficulty, as that is the "Normal" way to play through the game.
Easy mode is for chumps, and Hard mode is for a different player altogether.

Also, this guide is for beating the fighters as quickly and efficiently
as possible.  I've found Kickboxing and Streetfighting to be the best when
it comes to quick beatings, so my custom character I used for these fights
uses those two styles, and only those two styles.  Trust me, it makes it
easier.

If you're a complete newbie and need to learn how to play, look to Camel
Rider's guide.  There's no point in writing up another guide when he's
already got that kind of information posted.  If you're looking to score a
lot of points, again, look at Camel Rider's guide on GameFAQs.  If you want 
to win, win big, and win often, follow my advice.

Generally, the best defense is a good offense in this game.  I find that
being super-aggressive - although still smart - not only overpowers the
computer, but is also reliable against your friends.  With the exception of
a few fighters - Crow being one of them - I almost never, ever block.  Why?
Simple: I don't need to.  Most fights are literally over before they begin
if you know what you're doing.  So keep pounding, and use the environment
to your advantage.  You can accumulate a lot of reliable damage that way.

For the quick KO times, after building my character, I fought each character
three times and simply took my best score from that.  I'm sure I can 
improve almost all of the times if I continue to play.  You can too.

Before that, though, it's important to know exactly what can KO people and
what can't.  Read on.



+-------------------+
3. The Finishing Blow
+-------------------+

Def Jam: Fight for NY is unique in that simply running an opponent out of
life won't knock them out.  It takes an especially powerful blow to end
a fight in this game.  With that in mind, I'll address what can KO people
and what can't.  Unless noted, the victim's life MUST be in the Danger Zone.

-------
STYLES:
-------

Kickboxing: Kick combos.  Note that this attack must come from a Strong
Grapple.  Hit the kick button rapidly to make sure your opponent doesn't
reverse it.  You can KO your opponent even if their life doesn't start off
in the Danger Zone.  The combo must go at least seven hits and it must
eventually bring the victim's life into the Danger Zone.

Streetfighting: Haymakers.  Note that you can deliver a Haymaker from either
a standing position OR from a Strong Grapple.  Both have their uses.

Martial Arts: Flying attacks.  Simply run toward a wall and press either
the Punch or Kick button.  Your character will rebound and deliver a
powerful strike...assuming your enemy is nearby, anyway.

Wrestling: Any Strong Grapple.

Submissions: Obviously, using Submissions.  While not a KO per se, a win
is a win.  Concentrate on one limb for maximum results.

--------------
OTHER ATTACKS:
--------------

-Any Blazin' Move.
-Any weapon.
-Any wall/object attack, except one: if your character runs your opponent's
face against a wall/fence, it will NOT KO your opponent regardless of
whether or not his or her health is in the Danger Zone.  I'm not sure if
this is random or not, although it appears to be.  Fortunately, it doesn't
happen very often.
-Any crowd attack as long as the crowd GRABS your opponent.  If they simply
shove him or her back to you and you attack from there, it will NOT result
in a KO.  If you want to use the crowd, make sure you HIT, not THROW, your
opponent into the crowd.
-Any attack off a turnbuckle or other climbable object.
-Fire.
-Subway trains.  As one would assume, the victim's health does not matter.
-Three attacks against the same window.  Again, health does not matter.
-Ring outs.  Only works in the Dragon House, but it still does the job.



+--------------------------+
4. The Def Jam Hall of Shame
+--------------------------+

In this section, I will immortalize all of the uber-wimps (ie, 10 second
losers) I trash in the game.  May God have mercy on their souls.  Think of
them as milestones of a sort: if you're getting 10 second KOs, you're
getting the hang of pummeling people.  All in the name of progress :)

Chiang
Erick Sermon
Freeway
Ice-T
Lil' Kim
Masa
Memphis Bleek
Nyne
O.E.
Pockets
Santos
Skull
Trick



+-------------+
5. The Fighters
+-------------+

001: Baby Chris
Style(s): Kickboxing, Streetfighting
Blazin' Move: Violator (8/10 Cool Points)
Strengths: Lower Strength, Health
Weaknesses: Upper Strength, Toughness, Charisma
Strategy: With a name like that, no wonder he has no charisma.  Anyway,
stupid name aside, he doesn't fight much better than a baby.  Just avoid
the four-hit combos and instead opt for throwing him at stuff and you'll
do just fine.  Or kick him to death.  Just wipe him out.
Best KO Time: 0:23

002: David Banner
Style(s): Streetfighting, Wrestling
Blazin' Move: Animal Instincts (8/10 Cool Points)
Strengths: Upper Strength, Toughness, Charisma
Weaknesses: Lower Strength, Speed
Strategy: Banner's a little tougher than the average small fry, but that's
only because he blocks occasionally.  By occasionally, I mean it'll
probably only happen once in the fight if you're using Haymaker combos.
Honestly, the best thing he's got going for him is his Blazin' Move,
although his opening taunt is kind of funny too.  Note that if for some
reason you let him take the offensive, he, too, is fond of Haymaker combos.
Best KO Time: 0:16

003: Baxter
Style(s): Streetfighting, Martial Arts
Blazin' Move: Old School Beat (7/10 Cool Points for spankings)
Strengths: Health, Charisma
Weaknesses: Lower Strength, Speed, Toughness
Strategy: Punch/Punch/Punch/Haymaker attacks will not work.  However, 
grabbing him and chucking him into stuff will.  Get a few short punches off
to stop him, then fling him into something.  Pound him from there, and Blaze
if you feel like trying out some cool moves.  Not much of a challenge.
Best KO Time: 0:25

004: Method Man as Blaze
Style(s): Wrestling
Blazin' Move: The Prequel (6/10 Cool Points)
Strengths: Upper Strength, Lower Strength, Toughness, Charisma
Weaknesses: Speed, Health, Lack Of Versatility
Strategy: Although Blaze certainly has some powerful moves, short of
running attacks, he doesn't have any that are particularly fast.  You, on
the other hand, do possess fast strikes, so even if he starts an attack you
really don't need to block: just quickly deliver a punch and you'll hit him.
Blaze also isn't too worried about blocking, so repeated Haymaker combos
make this fight more or less a breeze.
Best KO Time: 0:14

005: Bless
Style(s): Martial Arts, Kickboxing
Blazin' Move: Platinumberg (4/10 Cool Points)
Strengths: Lower Strength, Health, Annoying Personality
Weaknesses: Toughness, Charisma, All-Around Stupidity
Strategy: I hate Bless.  He suffers from a stupid look, a stupid one-liner -
"You think you can freestyle with Bless?" - and to top it off, a stupid name,
especially for a fighter.  "Look out for Bless, his Pedophilia attack is
devastating!" Okay, all kidding aside, he's a little tougher than the regular
fodder but still not too difficult to beat.  He usually counters if you try
to punch him more than twice, so settle with two hits before grabbing him
and tossing his irritating self into something.  Combo him from there and
wipe his annoyance off the face of the Earth.  If you don't mind taking a
little longer, I recommend using Call the Ambulance (Magic) or
Pogo Stick (no one) because it seems much more fitting as a finisher
against Bless.
Best KO Time: 0:15

006: Bo
Style(s): Martial Arts
Blazin' Move: Pop Your Collar (6/10 Cool Points)
Strengths: Toughness, Health
Weaknesses: Upper Strength, Lower Strength, Charisma
Strategy: Bo's a pretty good wall of meat.  He's not very threatening
offensively due to his low stats, but he's pretty good on the defensive
end.  Haymaker combos work sometimes, so feel free to try them, but make
sure you add the wall or crowd into your assault since it probably won't
work all the time.  As long as you keep attacking there's not much to worry
about.  Bo can attack pretty quickly if you let him, but again, if you
stay aggressive, he'll never get any attacks off against you.
Best KO Time: 0:15

007: Bone Crusher
Style(s): Wrestling
Blazin' Move: Never Scared (7/10 Cool Points)
Strengths: Upper Strength, Toughness, Health, Charisma
Weaknesses: Lower Strength, Speed
Strategy: A somewhat tough customer.  His blocking is somewhat erratic as
well.  If he blocks your third attack, he'll most definitely block a fourth,
so in that instance, a grab is your best bet.  If not, try for a Haymaker.
Bone Crusher is fond of grabbing weapons, so make sure you're prepared for
it in the event he moves away from you.
Best KO Time: 0:28

008: Bubba Sparxxx
Style(s): Kickboxing, Wrestling
Blazin' Move: Southern Hang (4/10 Cool Points)
Strengths: Upper Strength, Toughness, Health
Weaknesses: Lower Strength, Speed, Charisma
Strategy: Bubba can be kind of annoying.  His aggressiveness seems to change
from fight to fight.  There are fights where he will literally just stand
there and let me pound the living crap out of him - Haymaker combos gave
me the 14-second KO - and there are other times where he is not only very
aggressive but also enjoys reversing or blocking everything I throw at him.
Fortunately, such instances are rare, so just rely on Haymaker combos for
the most part.  If, for some reason, Bubba starts giving you trouble by
blocking or reversing things, just grab him and deal with him from there.
Best KO Time: 0:14

009: Capone
Style(s): Streetfighting
Blazin' Move: Pushover (9/10 Cool Points)
Strengths: Upper Strength, Speed, Health
Weaknesses: Lower Strength, Toughness, Charisma
Strategy: Not much to this fight.  Capone -might- reverse -one- of your
attacks, but who cares? Haymaker combos will win the day yet again, so
just hammer away.  It is worth noting that Capone has one of the coolest
Blazin' Moves in the game - cool enough that you should use it - so enjoy
being able to get it once you finish beating the life out of him in
Story Mode.  Or hey, if you're feeling generous, let him use it on you in
a fight.  Why not? If you start fighting after that he still won't be
able to beat you!
Best KO Time: 0:13

010: Carmen Electra
Style(s): Kickboxing, Martial Arts
Blazin' Move: Twister (4/10 Cool Points)
Strengths: Upper Strength (must come from her torso), Lower Strength, 
Health, Charisma
Weaknesses: Speed, Toughness
Strategy: I guess I gotta give Carmen a little bit of credit: look at all
the people she outlasted...David Banner, Method Man, Bubba Sparxxx,
Fat Joe...quite impressive considering that she's nothing more than a
token bimbo in the game.  Anyway, this stems mostly from her tendency to
counter anything past two or three hits: especially Haymakers.  Obviously,
grapples are the best fall back here, but don't do them blindly or she'll
probably reverse those too.  Just hit her a few times then toss her around.
Wash, rinse, repeat, move on.
Best KO Time: 0:22

011: Chiang
Style(s): Martial Arts
Blazin' Move: Back Attack (5/10 Cool Points)
Strengths: Speed, Health
Weaknesses: Upper Strength, Toughness, Charisma
Strategy: Chiang is more or less a pushover.  He seems fond of letting you
Punch/Punch/Punch/Haymaker him into oblivion.  Use the environment if you
want to, but as long as you bring the assault early, you can probably beat
him without ever taking damage.  Even his Blazin' Move sucks.  Okay, I'll
give him a little credit: his attacks are pretty quick.  If for some reason
he catches you with one, reverse or block immediately because you'll be
able to stop him before he knocks you down.  Continue your assault from
there.
Best KO Time: 0:10.  Woo hoo! My third 10 second KO! Go me! :)

012: Cindy J
Style(s): Streetfighting, Martial Arts
Blazin' Move: Underground (2/10 Cool Points because Erick Sermon's move
sucks THAT badly.)
Strengths: Upper Strength, Speed
Weaknesses: Lower Strength, Toughness, Health, Charisma
Strategy: Not too much to worry about here, although Cindy is fairly fond
of reversing your attacks.  It's tough to pick up visually because she
won't really clue you in like, say, Ludacris does.  Just fire off a few
punches, grab, and continue from there.  You'll probably get countered
at least once or twice over the course of the fight: oh well, deal with it.
She might get a hit in, but as long as you resume the pressure she's not
much of a threat.
Best KO Time: 0:29

013: Comp
Style(s): Wrestling
Blazin' Move: Claw Buster (7/10 Cool Points)
Strengths: Upper Strength, Lower Strength, Toughness, Charisma
Weaknesses: Speed, Health, Lack Of Versatility
Strategy: An easy fight, although Comp can complicate it somewhat due to
the fact that he is fairly aggressive.  He's fond of hitting you right from
the start, so those of you lacking Jedi reflexes might find that you'll get
knocked down almost as soon as the round starts.  He also occasionally
blocks Haymakers, but not often enough that it whould deter you from using
them.  With that in mind, treat this like any other quick fight and you
should be in pretty good shape: just make sure you're ready for Comp at the
start of the round in case he decides to bring the fight to you.
Best KO Time: 0:18

014: Fat Joe as Crack
Style(s): Streetfighting, Wrestling
Blazin' Move: The Crack Attack (4/10 Cool Points)
Strengths: Upper Strength, Lower Strength, Toughness, Health
Weaknesses: He's fat.  Take a wild guess.
Strategy: Don't expect to get too far hitting this fat sack of fat.  A good
nickname for Crack would have to be "He Who Blocks Everything".  Even if you
do manage to start a Punch combo, trying a Haymaker is asking for trouble.
If you do manage to start the combo, end it at three hits and grab.
There is, however, a fairly mindless way of saying no to Crack - couldn't
resist the joke - that is also fairly effective.  Simply walk up to him and
grab him.  Now throw him into a wall.  Pound him.  Pick him up, and grab him
again.  Throw him into a wall.  Pound him some more.  Repeat.  You may take
some damage, but you will be able to smoke Crack - okay, I'll stop - 
with little effort.
Best KO Time: 0:17

015: Crazy Legs
Style(s): Martial Arts
Blazin' Move: Rocksteady (8/10 Cool Points)
Strengths: Lower Strength, Speed, Charisma
Weaknesses: Upper Strength, Toughness, Health
Strategy: Crazy Legs is one of two extremes: he's either extremely easy, or
extremely hard.  He's extremely hard if you let him start anything.  He's
extremely easy if you Punch/Punch/Punch/Haymaker him over and over again.
His lack of both Toughness and Health means he is one of the quickest KOs in
the game: it usually doesn't even take me 20 seconds to knock him out.
Best KO Time: 0:18

016: Snoop Dogg as Crow
Style(s): Martial Arts
Blazin' Move: 187 (8/10 Cool Points)
Strengths: Everything
Weaknesses: Lack Of Versatility...I guess
Strategy: Well, seeing as he is the final enemy in the main story and all,
it does make sense that he's not quite as easy to KO as everyone else.
Actually, he can be downright tricky: Crow is nothing short of FAST.  WC
recovers from knockdowns faster, but other than that, Crow is the
definition of speed.  This is one of those fights where I break my
"never block" vow: you might want to here.  Even if his first three strikes
hit you, if you can block the fourth - and you should - you can still get
the upper hand.  Obviously, slow attacks are not the way to go here.  Get in
one or two quick hits, then throw him into the nearest object you can find.
The faster Crow's back meets an unfriendly object, the faster you'll win.
Pound him and then quickly continue.  If he falls a fair distance away from
you, let him get up because he'll attack you if you try to pick him up.
Once he gets up, greet him with the worst of intentions.
Continue your assault from there.
Best KO Time: 0:48

017: Cruz
Style(s): Wrestling
Blazin' Move: Flatline (7/10 Cool Points)
Strengths: Upper Strength, Health
Weaknesses: Lower Strength, Toughness, Charisma, Lack Of Versatility
Strategy: Holy crap! Cruz was right! This fight really did only last about
diez segundos! Well, okay, not quite: it lasted twelve...err, doce segundos?
Been a while since I took Spanish.  Cruz was wrong about one thing, though:
he bet on the wrong guy.  Anyway, since the fight is so short, obviously
there isn't very much strategy involved, and indeed you'd be right: Haymaker
combos win the day here.  Keep on your toes at the start though because
Cruz is fond of charging right at the start, so be aware of that: that
distance can disappear quickly.  Once you're in his face, keep pounding him
until he drops.
Best KO Time: 0:12

018: D-Mob
Style(s): Wrestling, Submissions
Blazin' Move: Repeat Offender (3/10 Cool Points)
Strengths: Upper Strength, Lower Strength, Toughness
Weaknesses: Speed
Strategy: To be honest with you, it's a good thing D-Mob never challenged
Crow to a one-on-one fight for control of New York: compared to Crow,
D-Mob is a steaming pile of weaksauce.  Haymaker combos will work most -
although not all - of the time.  If you are looking for an easy win, simply
use Haymaker combos over and over again.  If you're looking for the fastest
KO you can deliver, add a wall into your offensive.  Either way, you're
looking at yet another easy battle.
Best KO Time: 0:17

019: Dan G
Style(s): Streetfighting, Martial Arts
Blazin' Move: Break Beats (9/10 Cool Points)
Strengths: Speed, Toughness, Charisma
Weaknesses: Upper Strength, Lower Strength, Health
Strategy: Dan G's stats are very deceptive.  If you look at his lack of
strength, you'd think he's a pushover.  However, he can be a surprisingly
difficult opponent.  He's very fond of using the environment to his advantage.
If he can climb on stuff to get the jump on you, he will.  It's difficult
to use Punch combos on him as well because he'll usually block anything past
the second hit.  However, if he's blocking, it means he probably won't be
able to counter you if you grab him.  With that in mind, deliver two or three
punches, grab him and chuck him into something.  From there, continue as
usual.  It's worth letting him use his Blazin' Move on you once just to see
it in action before you can unlock it: it's definitely one of the coolest
in the game.  All in all, for being a nobody, Dan G is a pleasant surprise
as far as competition goes.
Best KO Time: 0:36

020: Redman as Doc
Style(s): Martial Arts
Blazin' Move: Balls to the Wall (9/10 Cool Points)
Strengths: Upper Strength, Speed, Health, Charisma
Weaknesses: Lower Strength, Toughness, Lack Of Versatility
Strategy: In relative terms, Doc is a little trickier than most of the
fighters you face.  It's not that he's terribly hard, but he can be quite
a challenge if he gets any momentum going.  Haymaker combos work sometimes,
but Doc reverses attacks too often for you to really rely on it.  Instead,
utilize a wall or the crowd and watch how far away from you he falls when
you knock him down.  Let him get up if you don't end up right next to him
or he'll probably reverse one of your next attacks.  Check out his Blazin'
Move before you finish him off: it's fun to watch.
Best KO Time: 0:39

021: Elephant Man
Style(s): Kickboxing, Martial Arts
Blazin' Move: Good 2 Go (7/10 Cool Points)
Strengths: Lower Strength, Speed, Toughness, Charisma
Weaknesses: Health
Strategy: Elephant Man is fairly adept at blocking your blows, but he's
surprisingly not overly aggressive.  Add in the fact that he's easy to
grab and you've got yet another easy opponent to beat.  Just be careful
that he doesn't grab you, because if your health gets low, he can put you
down with a kick combo.  However, if you keep throwing him into stuff, he'll
never get that chance.
Best KO Time: 0:14

022: Erick Sermon
Style(s): Streetfighting, Wrestling
Blazin' Move: Double or Nothing (1/10 Cool Points.  Lamest.  Move.  Ever.)
Strengths: Upper Strength, Lower Strength, Toughness
Weaknesses: Speed, Health, Charisma
Strategy: Just like Bless is the complete Stupid package, Erick Sermon is
the complete Wuss package.  A wussy looking guy + wussy name + wussy
Blazin' Move = wussy fighter.  Guess how you're going to deal with him?
Yup, you got it: lots of punches, lots of Haymakers.  Actually, I take that
pack: a FEW punches and a FEW Haymakers, as the fight doesn't last 
long enough to make either of those totals amount to a lot.  Please.  
Dust him off and move on.
Best KO Time: 0:10.  Another one bites the dust...

023: Fam-Lay
Style(s): Streetfighting, Martial Arts, Wrestling
Blazin' Move: Final Frontier (3/10 Cool Points)
Strengths: Upper Strength, Lower Strength, Toughness, Health
Weaknesses: Speed, Charisma
Strategy: Haymaker combos still work on occasion, but your odds of getting
reversed go way up if you go past two hits.  There are two other things to
watch out for as well.  First, Fam-Lay is fond of finding weapons when you
aren't beating on him.  Make sure you're ready in case he does grab one.
Also, he's fond of attempting Haymakers of his own.  In the event that you
aren't currently hitting him, get ready to not get hit by it, lest you end
up in a world of hurt.  Just throw him at stuff and don't give him a chance
to do either.
Best KO Time: 0:28

024: Flava Flav
Style(s): Martial Arts
Blazin' Move: Times Up (5/10 Cool Points)
Strengths: Speed, Health, Charisma
Weaknesses: Upper Strength, Lower Strength, Toughness
Strategy: Although he's the coolest real rapper in the game, that doesn't
mean he's the best.  He's a little tougher than some of them though due to
the fact that he will sometimes counter your attacks.  Haymaker combos will
still allow you to knock him out in short order, though, so long as you
continue to hit him.  If you're paranoid that he'll get a good string of
moves off on you, block one of his combos and then grab him.  If you're
like me, shrug off his occasional counter attack and just punch him into
oblivion.
Best KO Time: 0:22

025: Freeway
Style(s): Kickboxing, Martial Arts
Blazin' Move: North Philly (4/10 Cool Points)
Strengths: Lower Strength, Speed, Toughness
Weaknesses: Upper Strength, Health, Charisma
Strategy: Great.  Another Def Jam equivalent to Peter McNeely.  Just keep
using Haymaker combos, yet again: this fight won't last long, just like the
other members of my Def Jam Hall of Shame.
Best KO Time: 0:10

026: Ghostface Killah
Style(s): Wrestling
Blazin' Move: Swing Time (7/10 Cool Points)
Strengths: Everything But Speed
Weaknesses: Booyah! Speed
Strategy: If not for Ghostface's high Toughness and Health - or perhaps
if I were just less lazy than I am - he would become another member of my
Def Jam Hall of Shame, since he pretty much will let you Haymaker combo him
as often as you want.  However, since he has high Toughness and Health and
I am lazy, he survived just long enough to keep that from happening.  Oh
well.  If this were a contest to have Big Things hanging off your body,
Ghostface would be the winner.  However, it's not.  Too bad for him.
Best KO Time: 0:14

027: Havoc
Style(s): Martial Arts, Wrestling
Blazin' Move: Hostility (8/10 Cool Points)
Strengths: Upper Strength, Speed, Toughness
Weaknesses: Lower Strength, Health, Charisma
Strategy: Feel free to use Punch/Punch/Punch/Haymaker combos as often as you
like.  Apparantly, Havoc doesn't mind getting his face punched over and over
again.  Apply liberally and this fight is yours almost as soon as it starts.
Haymaker him into the crowd if you insist on defeating him even faster.
Best KO Time: 0:14

028: House
Style(s): Wrestling
Blazin' Move: House Call (6/10 Cool Points for a lousy pun)
Strengths: Upper Strength, Toughness
Weaknesses: Speed, Health, Charisma
Strategy: Sigh.  House, too, is just a step away from the Hall of Shame.
It seems he's just tough enough to avoid getting KO'd in ten seconds,
but at any rate, you know the drill: Haymaker combos, Haymaker combos,
Haymaker combos.  No wonder he was the test dummy for the Tutorial.
Best KO Time: 0:14

029: Ice-T
Style(s): Martial Arts, Submissions
Blazin' Move: Iceberg (6/10 Cool Points)
Strengths: Upper Strength, Lower Strength, Speed, Charisma
Weaknesses: Toughness, Health
Strategy: As noted below, there really isn't much to this fight other than
Haymaker combos.  If you're lucky, you can KO him in as fast as 10 seconds
(I don't believe it's humanly possible to do it faster), or, if you are a
little less lucky, you'll beat him in 20.  Having low Health and Toughness
really makes Ice-T a pushover because you can pummel him in seconds flat.
Best KO Time: 0:10.  Before you call BS on me, I assure you that, although
it's difficult, it can be done.  Actually, it does take a hint of luck.  
You will, of course, be using the walls to aid in this endeavor.
Obviously, Haymaker combos are the way to go.  You have to hope that on 
the first one, Ice-T hits a wall, or else you won't be able to get it 
done in 10 seconds.  If he does, hit him twice, Haymaker him, pick him up, 
and do it some more.  If you do it right, a sub-15 second KO is possible.  
The only rapper out of this whole cast that I really like is one I can 
KO the fastest.  What a shame.  I only wish I could do it to Bless.

030: Jacob
Style(s): Martial Arts, Wrestling
Blazin' Move: The World Is Mine (3/10 Cool Points)
Strengths: Toughness, Health
Weaknesses: Speed, Charisma
Strategy: He's the jeweler, for Christ's sake! His job is to sell shiny
things, not fight people! That having been said, he's notable since he
can take a lot more damage than most fighters.  However, he's not much of
an offensive threat, nor is he very inclined to do anything against your
nonstop assault of punches and Haymakers.  He sometimes shows a hint of
guts by charging you when the round begins, but in that case, block his
one puny attack and pummel the life out of him.
Best KO Time: 0:13

031: Jervis
Style(s): Streetfighting
Blazin' Move: Perfect Crime (5/10 Cool Points)
Strengths: Upper Strength, Toughness
Weaknesses: Lower Strength, Speed, Health, Charisma
Strategy: Do you smell bacon? Okay, I'll leave the cop jokes at that.
All in all, he's yet another "Probably could go on the Hall of Shame if I
were a little less lazy" character.  The one thing that's notable about
Jervis is that he usually comes out charging.  The charge is really rapid,
so make sure you either block or move out of the way.  Once you hit him
once, though, the fight is basically over because Jervis can't be bothered
to stop you from executing more Haymaker combos on him.  Too bad he can't
use a tazer or something: it certainly would help his cause.
Best KO Time: 0:14

032: Joe Budden
Style(s): Martial Arts, Submissions
Blazin' Move: Pop Off (6/10 Cool Points)
Strengths: Speed, Health
Weaknesses: Toughness, Charisma
Strategy: Okay, Joe's a little tougher than most of his peers since he
does decide to counter or block on occasion, but I still knock him out
faster when I just use Haymaker combos than when I try to mix in grabs.
I don't really know why that is, to tell you the truth.  Anyway, there's
not too much to note about Joe except that he does take to jumping off
the walls on occasion if you decide to let him do that.  He's still
not much of a challenge.
Best KO Time: 0:20

033: Kimora
Style(s): Streetfighting, Martial Arts
Blazin' Move: Phat Special (8/10 Cool Points)
Strengths: Lower Strength, Health, Charisma
Weaknesses: Upper Strength, Speed, Toughness
Strategy: What can I say? There's really nothing to this fight.  Kimora
will, for the most part, just let you punch the life out of her, so go
ahead and do so.  I swear, I think the background is a more formidible
opponent than fighters like Kimora.  If only you could test it out...
Best KO Time: 0:15

034: Lauren
Style(s): Streetfighting
Blazin' Move: No Foreplay (8/10 Cool Points)
Strengths: Speed, Toughness, Charisma
Weaknesses: Upper Strength, Lower Strength, Health
Strategy: Yay! Lauren makes the fights a little more fresh by introducing
a fairly rare concept for AI opponents! What is that, you ask? Blocking!
Yahoo! Okay, seriously.  She blocks every now and then: certainly not
enough to matter.  Just use the usual Haymaker combos and end this.
Wonder what kind of terrain she's trying to blend into with that camo?
Best KO Time: 0:17

035: Lil' Flip
Style(s): Martial Arts
Blazin' Move: Game Over (6/10 Cool Points)
Strengths: Upper Strength, Speed, Health, Charisma
Weaknesses: Lower Strength, Lack of Versatility
Strategy: Stay away from four-hitters and instead rely on throwing him at
stuff.  Considering his stats, Lil' Flip just plain sucks.  Having just one
style really hurts him though.  He also has a really stupid opening one-liner,
as well as a stupid name, but at least he isn't the complete stupid package
like Bless.  For that, I am grateful.  Throw him into stuff and end it.
Best KO Time: 0:29

036: Lil' Kim
Style(s): Martial Arts
Blazin' Move: Queen Bee (7/10 Cool Points)
Strengths: Upper Strength, Speed, Toughness, Charisma
Weaknesses: Lower Strength, Health
Strategy: Just another name on the Def Jam Hall of Shame list.  Just
punch the crap out of her and be done with it.  Not much else to say
otherwise, except that her figure has definitely improved in this game.
Best KO Time: 0:10

037: Ludacris
Style(s): Kickboxing, Martial Arts
Blazin' Move: Stand Up (6/10 Cool Points)
Strengths: Lower Strength, Speed, Toughness, Charisma
Weaknesses: Upper Strength
Strategy: The best advice when fighting Ludacris is to watch his hands.
If his hands are up and very close to his face - like a boxing stance -
he's ready for you and he'll block or reverse whatever attack you use.
If his hands are anywhere else, he's fair game.  He's fairly quick, so
stay away from Haymaker combos in favor of the environment.  Stay on him,
though, because he can get up fairly fast as well.  If you don't get on him
the instant he falls, he's probably going to counter you once he gets up.
Best KO Time: 0:29

038: Mack 10
Style(s): Streetfighting, Wrestling
Blazin' Move: West Thrust (7/10 Cool Points)
Strengths: Upper Strength, Toughness, Health
Weaknesses: Lower Strength, Speed, Charisma
Strategy: The Counter-Strike weapon is about a hundred times more dangerous
than the Def Jam fighter is.  You'd think he'd be a challenge, but all he
wants to do is taunt you and let you Haymaker combo the crap out of him.  
Oblige him and move on.  This fight shouldn't take long.
Best KO Time: 0:19

039: Busta Rhymes as Magic
Style(s): Submissions
Blazin' Move: Call The Ambulance (10/10 Cool Points.  THE coolest Blazin')
Strengths: Upper Strength, Toughness, Health, Charisma
Weaknesses: Lower Strength, Speed, Lack Of Ver...ah, screw it.
Strategy: Magic's fighting style is actually fairly similar to the general
strategy I employ.  Magic favors a few quick attacks followed by a grab.
If he's near a wall or the crowd, he'll throw you into it, otherwise he'll
use a submission move.  Keep your combos short and use the wall liberally.
Magic can recover from attacks fairly quickly, so don't pick him up unless
he's close to you.  Don't let up, keep grabbing and using the wall, and you
can still beat him without taking any damage.  If you are late with any of
your attacks, though, expect to be in a world of hurt.  Enjoy his Blazin'
Move: it's definitely the coolest in the game, especially if it KOs someone.
Best KO Time: 0:30

040: Manny
Style(s): Streetfighting, Wrestling
Blazin' Move: Skull Fracture (4/10 Cool Points)
Strengths: Toughness, Health
Weaknesses: Speed, Charisma
Strategy: I admire Manny both for his use of Haymakers as well as the fact
that he's somewhat aggressive.  I laugh at him, however, for not being
particularly adept at preventing me from punching his lights out whenever
I feel like it.  Unless you throw blind Haymakers, don't worry about him
blocking anything.  If not for his high Toughness and Health, he'd be
another member of the Hall of Shame.
Best KO Time: 0:15

041: Masa
Style(s): Submissions
Blazin' Move: Chiropractor (6/10 Cool Points)
Strengths: Upper Strength, Lower Strength, Toughness
Weaknesses: Health, Charisma, Lack of Reliable KO Threat
Strategy: Masa's as much of a nuisance as you allow him to be, no more, and
no less. Kick or Punch combos still rule the day here.  In the event he takes
you by surprise, stay in the middle of the battleground to make it harder for
him to KO you.  You probably won't need the environment as long as you keep
punching the crap out of him.  Seriously, though.  He's a wuss.
Best KO Time: 0:10.  Number four on my 10-second list.

042: Meca
Style(s): Kickboxing
Blazin' Move: Don't Come Back (6/10 Cool Points)
Strengths: Lower Strength, Toughness
Weaknesses: Upper Strength, Speed, Health, Charisma
Strategy: Punch/Punch/Punch/Haymaker combos work very well.  Due to his low
health, simply doing this, even without involving the crowd, can get him into
KO range in as little as 10 seconds.  I can beat him within thirty despite
getting knocked down once in the fight.  On the off chance he blocks your
punches, simply grab him and throw him towards the crowd or a wall.  Once
you knock him down, simply pick him back up and continue your assault.
Best KO Time: 0:14

043: Memphis Bleek
Style(s): Streetfighting, Wrestling
Blazin' Move: M.A.D.E (7/10 Cool Points)
Strengths: Upper Strength, Speed, Health, Charisma
Weaknesses: Lower Strength, Toughness
Strategy: Who? Oh well.  The only saving grace I have for Memphis Bleek
is that I can't 10-second KO him ALL the time like most of the other ones
on the list.  Basically, I'm saying most of the time, it takes about 15.
Guess how you'll be winning THIS fight? Yup.  Haymaker combos.
Best KO Time: 0:10

044: N.O.R.E.
Style(s): Streetfighting, Submissions
Blazin' Move: Hang Hang (5/10 Cool Points)
Strengths: Upper Strength, Lower Strength, Toughness, Charisma
Weaknesses: Speed, Health
Strategy: Bah.  Yet another yawn-inducing excuse of a fight.  If you
manage to hit him with your first punch, the fight is basically over
because you can use Haymaker combos over and over again from there
until you KO him which, obviously, doesn't take very long.  Just make
sure you stay on him and you can continue punching the life out of him.
Best KO Time: 0:16

045: Nyne
Style(s): Streetfighting, Martial Arts
Blazin' Move: Speedbag (3/10 Cool Points)
Strengths: Speed, Charisma
Weaknesses: Lower Strength, Toughness, Health
Strategy: Yet ANOTHER member of the Hall of Shame.  Maybe it's just me,
but it seems Nyne is a million times harder when you fight him over a
girlfriend than he is at any other point you can possibly fight him.  He
actually seems to be a challenge at that point, almost enough to make me
NOT be aggressive.  Almost.  Any other time, though, he's a weaksauce
piece of ten-second crap.  You know what to do.
Best KO Time: 0:10

046: Omar Epps as O.E.
Style(s): Streetfighting
Blazin' Move: Bombtrack (4/10 Cool Points)
Strengths: Upper Strength, Speed, Toughness, Charisma
Weaknesses: Lower Strength, Health, Lack Of Versatility
Strategy: O.E. might as well stand for Over Easy.  This fight certainly
is.  The simplest way to beat him is to simply use Haymaker combos over
and over again.  If you hit him into a wall, the fight will end even
faster, as if it needed to.  It figures that the two people you can
turn over to D-Mob's side are the two easiest people to knock out.  At
least Ice-T is cool, though.  The only cool thing about O.E. is his
fighting stance is reminiscent of Scorpion's from the old Mortal Kombats.
Best KO Time: 0:10

047: Pockets
Style(s): Kickboxing, Streetfighting, Martial Arts
Blazin' Move: Air Pocket (6/10 Cool Points)
Strengths: Speed, Health, Versatility
Weaknesses: Upper Strength, Lower Strength, Toughness, Charisma,
Almost As Stupid A Name As Bless
Strategy: Pockets makes me hate Bless that much more.  Why? Because if it
weren't for Bless, Pockets would be the most annoying person in this game.
But no.  We have Bless.  DAMN YOU, BLESS! Anyway, we got a 10 second guy
on our hands, so we know what to do with him.  KOing Pockets in 10 can be
a little tough at times because he's pretty fast and somewhat aggressive,
but not to worry: he's not gonna do much damage to you.  Stupid Bless.
Best KO Time: 0:10

048: Prodigy
Style(s): Kickboxing, Streetfighting, Submissions
Blazin' Move: Hell on Earth (7/10 Cool Points)
Strengths: Upper Strength, Lower Strength, Versatility
Weaknesses: Speed, Health, Charisma
Strategy: Here's another guy who falls into the "Probably could be in the
Hall of Shame if I weren't so lazy" category.  The only trick to this fight
is sometimes he starts off by charging you, which means he might get in a
shot or two and delay your domination by five to ten seconds.  Other than
that, the bread-and-butter Punch/Punch/Punch/Haymaker combo still works
wonders.
Best KO Time: 0:15

049: Henry Rollins
Style(s): Kickboxing, Streetfighting, Martial Arts, Submissions
Blazin' Move: 2.13.61 (7/10 Cool Points)
Strengths: Upper Strength, Lower Strength, Toughness, Health, Versatility
Weaknesses: Speed
Strategy: If you looked at his stats, his styles, his look, and his role
in the game, you'd think, "Wow.  What a badass."  To be totally honest with
you, he is...as long as someone other than the computer is using him.
I have a harder time taking out Carmen Electra than I do Henry Rollins.
Why? Because he rarely blocks or counters.  The X-factor is he can do a lot
of damage to you if he charges you from the get-go, but other than that,
talk about a waste of stats and four fighting styles.  Geez.
Best KO Time: 0:16

050: Rome
Style(s): Streetfighting, Martial Arts
Blazin' Move: Rough Night (7/10 Cool Points)
Strengths: Health, Upper Strength
Weaknesses: Lower Strength, Toughness, Charisma
Strategy: Talk about ugly.  Anyway.  Haymaker combos usually won't work:
while Rome usually won't reverse them, he will almost always block them.
If he blocks any of your punches, grab him instead and chuck him into 
something.  Continue from there.  For a change of pace, punch him a few
times, hard grab him, then just kick him to death.  It's up to you.
Best KO Time: 0:35

051: Santos
Style(s): Kickboxing
Blazin' Move: Filipino Pride (7/10 Cool Points)
Strengths: Lower Strength, Toughness
Weaknesses: Upper Strength, Health, Charisma
Strategy: Santos blocks occasionally.  By occasionally, I mean maybe once
or twice in the time it takes for you to pummel him.  See a pattern here?
Just Punch/Punch/Punch/Haymaker him until he drops.  Use the environment for
grins, or use him to test out new Blazin' moves.
Best KO Time: 0:10.  Number five!

052: Scarface
Style(s): Streetfighting, Wrestling
Blazin' Move: The Fix (4/10 Cool Points on the account of no cool
painful-sounding crunching noises.)
Strengths: Lower Strength, Health
Weaknesses: Speed
Strategy: Well, at least Scarface makes you take a little bit of time to
knock you out due to the fact that he likes to block punches.  That's okay.
You can still chuck him into stuff and win this fight without a whole lot
in the way of effort.  Hit him once or twice before doing it, though, or
else he just might counter your grab.
Best KO Time: 0:46

053: Sean Paul
Style(s): Martial Arts
Blazin' Move: Street Respect (7/10 Cool Points)
Strengths: Lower Strength, Speed, Health, Charisma
Weaknesses: Upper Strength, Toughness, Lack of Versatility
Strategy: Sean Paul has some very fast strikes, so he can be a real pain to
deal with.  Don't bother trying to Haymaker him, because he will reverse it
more or less every time.  Also don't try grabbing him unless you've stunned
him because again he'll reverse it.  Your best bet is a Punch/Punch/Punch/Grab
combo.  Fling him into the crowd or a wall and combo him there.  Keep up
the pattern and you shouldn't have too much trouble.  Whatever you do, don't
let him get a combo going.
Best KO Time: 0:19

054: Shaniqua
Style(s): Streetfighting, Wrestling
Blazin' Move: Lap Dance (4/10 Cool Points)
Strengths: Upper Strength, Lower Strength, Toughness, Health
Weaknesses: Speed, Charisma, Sinful Ugliness
Strategy: Wow.  Saying she got beaten with the Ugly Stick doesn't seem
sufficient, nor does saying she fell out of the Ugly Tree describe her
ugliness.  I guess the best way to put it would be to say that she got
beaten with the Ugly Tree itself.  Anyway, if Shaniqua could tap into her
monumental ugliness as a source of strength, she'd be quite a dangerous
opponent.  Alas, she can't.  While she blocks occasionally, that's the
only thing that will deter you from beating her instantly.  Use Haymaker
combos and be glad the fight's over.
Best KO Time: 0:15

055: Shawnna
Style(s): Kickboxing, Streetfighting, Martial Arts
Blazin' Move: Let's Go (6/10 Cool Points)
Strengths: Lower Strength, Speed, Toughness, Charisma, Versatility
Weaknesses: Upper Strength, Health
Strategy: You just might have to do a little bit of work to beat Shawnna.
She does, on occasion, counter or simply block your punches.  Of course,
she's not terribly strong, nor does she do this all the time, so it
shouldn't really deter you from doing so.  She can string some quick combos
on you though, so make sure you're actively attacking her.  The only girl
to even put up token resistance, to be sure.
Best KO Time: 0:24

056: Skull
Style(s): Streetfighting, Submissions
Blazin' Move: Latin Twist (7/10 Cool Points)
Strengths: Upper Strength, Toughness
Weaknesses: Lower Strength, Speed, Health, Charisma
Strategy: Pfffft.  At least he has a somewhat cool Blazin' Move.  Good
thing, since there's absolutely nothing else going for him.  Blah blah blah,
Haymaker combos, blah blah blah.
Best KO Time: 0:10

057: Slick Rick
Style(s): Kickboxing, Submissions
Blazin' Move: The Show (5/10 Cool Points)
Strengths: Upper Strength, Toughness
Weaknesses: Lower Strength
Strategy: Arrrgh, he wears an eye patch, matey.  Anyway, while Slick Rick
is pretty aggressive, he, too, falls easily to some simple tactics.  Avoid
four-hit combos: you'll probably never land one.  Instead, rely, yet again,
on two or three hits, followed by throwing him at something.  Don't let him
seize the initiative and you'll be fine.
Best KO Time: 0:31

058: Snowman
Style(s): Streetfighting, Martial Arts, Wrestling
Blazin' Move: Snowjob (6/10 Cool Points)
Strengths: Upper Strength, Toughness, Versatility
Weaknesses: Lower Strength, Health, Charisma
Strategy: If I was D-Mob, I'd have tossed N.O.R.E.'s weaksauce ass out
before I got rid of Snowman: at least Snowman is somewhat threatening.
Of course, this is balanced out by the fact that Snowman can't be bothered
to block anything, but at least Snowman's pretty good offensively. I
imagine I could shave several seconds off my time but meh, too lazy.
Again, Haymaker combos are your best bet here since it'll keep Snowman
too busy to do anything else, like beat you up.
Best KO Time: 0:17

059: Solo
Style(s): Martial Arts, Submissions, Streetfighting
Blazin' Move: No Way Out (5/10 Cool Points)
Strengths: Upper Strength, Toughness, Charisma, Versatility
Weaknesses: Lower Strength, Health
Strategy: Although having 3 styles makes Solo quite versatile, he, too,
doesn't seem overly concerned with blocking your Punch/Punch/Punch/Haymaker
combos.  Having low health means, again, getting him into KO range is a
breeze.  Don't let up, though, because if he does get his hands on you, he
can do some major damage.  He's also fond of picking up weapons, so make sure
you keep on him.  If you can Haymaker him into something, finishing him off
is even easier.
Best KO Time: 0:14

060: Starks
Style(s): Kickboxing, Streetfighting, Submissions
Blazin' Move: Air Patrol (2/10 Cool Points)
Strengths: Upper Strength, Lower Strength, Versatility
Weaknesses: Everything Else
Strategy: How about that? Someone who likes to block.  Now if only Starks
had the offensive prowess to actually make the fight difficult, it would
be great.  No such luck, though.  At least his constant blocking gives you
a somewhat refreshing change of pace: now that Haymaker combos are usually
out of the question, what else is there to do? Hit him a few times and then
chuck him into stuff! Yippee!
Best KO Time: 0:20

061: Sticky Fingaz
Style(s): Streetfighting
Blazin' Move: Man Up (5/10 Cool Points)
Strengths: Upper Strength, Toughness, Health
Weaknesses: Lower Strength, Charisma, Lack Of Versatility
Strategy: For as late as you fight him in Story Mode, not to mention the
fact that he has two outfits, you'd think Sticky Fingaz would have
mastered the art of blocking.  Alas, he did not.  Feel free to use as
many Haymaker combos as you like, since obviously Sticky isn't about to
do anything about it.  If you're playing Story Mode, though, do the world
a favor and Fire KO him.  Sticky might even make it easier for you since
he randomly decides to do a Haymaker without stunning you first! Whee!
Best KO Time: 0:13

062: Stingray
Style(s): Streetfighting, Wrestling
Blazin' Move: Face Adjustment (5/10 Cool Points)
Strengths: Health, Charisma
Weaknesses: Lower Strength, Speed, Toughness
Strategy: Gotta dig the old school look.  Other than that, though, there's
not too much to this fight.  Stingray occasionally makes it interesting
by blocking or countering one attack, but other than that, there really
isn't too much to this fight.  Haymaker combos are still good here, so
you might as well use them.
Best KO Time: 0:14

063: Suspect
Style(s): Streetfighting
Blazin' Move: The I Made This Blazin' Name Up Assault (2/10 Cool Points.
Actually, it's not even worth the time it me took to come up with the name.
I'd have scored it lower if Erick Sermon's move didn't suck so much.)
Strengths: Everything
Weaknesses: Please
Strategy: How about that? A fight that's actually kinda hard! Kinda! If
you aren't feeling overly confident, this may be one of the few times where
blocking is actually a good idea.  Once you successfully introduce
Suspect's back to a wall, the match is effectively yours since you can
repeatedly toss him into a wall several times for extra damage.  Just don't
attack blindly without stunning him first because you probably won't connect.
Also be careful of Suspect's own Haymakers: since all his stats are maxed,
you'll be in a world of hurt if it connects.
Best KO Time: 0:32

064: Teck
Style(s): Kickboxing, Martial Arts
Blazin' Move: Throw Dem Bows (3/10 Cool Points)
Strengths: Lower Strength, Toughness, Health, Big Bulletproof Vest
Weaknesses: Upper Strength, Speed, Charisma
Strategy: If you're playing Story Mode, kicking Teck is out of the
question since he's wearing that damn vest.  No matter where you are,
Haymakers are a big no-no: prepare to get countered.  Four-hit combos that
end with a weak attack will still usually connect, though.  Be careful
to keep an eye out for Teck trying to get off to a fast start right off
the bat: he's pretty aggressive.  Other than that, rely on a few quick
punches, followed by a toss into the crowd or a wall, and continue pounding
away from there.  Oddly enough, in Versus Mode, the vest doesn't seem
to act like a big hit-resistant vest.
Best KO Time: 0:31

065: Trejo
Style(s): Streetfighting
Blazin' Move: Readjustment (6/10 Cool Points)
Strengths: Upper Strength, Toughness, Health
Weaknesses: Lower Strength, Charisma
Strategy: Trejo's good at not allowing you to Haymaker him into oblivion, but
other than that, he's really not that much of a challenge.  Punch/Punch/Grab
combos will allow you to dispatch him in short order.  Make sure you punch
him a subway ticket :)
Best KO Time: 0:35

066: Trick
Style(s): Streetfighting
Blazin' Move: Kidney Stones (4/10 Cool Points)
Strengths: Upper Strength, Lower Strength, Toughness
Weaknesses: Speed, Health, Charisma
Strategy: Well, Trick seems to like Haymakers enough that not only will
he try to use them on you, he'll let you use them on him! Great.  Another
easy fight, just watch out in case he tries to rush you in the very
beginning.  More often than not, he won't, so there really isn't much
to worry about here.
Best KO Time: 0:10

067: Warren G
Style(s): Kickboxing, Martial Arts, Wrestling
Blazin' Move: Spine Splitter (4/10 Cool Points)
Strengths: Speed, Toughness, Health, Charisma, Versatility
Weaknesses: Upper Strength, Lower Strength
Strategy: Warren G is fond of reversing your attacks, so keep your combos
short and rely on throwing him at stuff, as well as your Blazin' moves, to
do damage.  Warren G will also climb on things to get the jump on you if you
let him, so make him miss and then punish him.  He may reverse your grabs on
occasion, but your success rate will be a lot higher than if you rely on
punch or kick combos.
Best KO Time: 0:24

068: WC
Style(s): Streetfighting, Martial Arts, Wrestling
Blazin' Move: Westside Special (8/10 Cool Points)
Strengths: Versatility, Everything but Toughness
Weaknesses: Yup.  Toughness
Strategy: WC is a very, very annoying opponent.  He's also one of the most
difficult opponents to defeat, especially if you screw up.  He's
super-aggressive but is also fond of pounding on you whenever you mess up.
Keep your combos short: Punch/Punch/Grab is your best bet here.  If you go
above or below that, your odds of getting reversed go up big time.  The
enviornment is your best friend here: use whatever is available liberally.
WC does, however, have a tendency to taunt at inopportune times, so if you
can't get the jump on him before that, try taking advantage of it then.
If you knock WC down, don't bother trying to pick him up unless you're
standing right next to him: he gets up faster than just about anyone else,
which means he'll probably just counterattack you.  Mastering Kickboxing 
makes KOing WC a great deal easier.  Failing that, you're probably going to 
have to rely on either the enviornment or a Blazin' Move to finish him off.
It's either this or hope your blocking skills are on that day.  Your pick.
With a little skill, you can still get a KO in under a minute.  
Best KO Time: 0:25

069: Xzibit
Style(s): Kickboxing, Submissions
Blazin' Move: Front to Back (2/10 Cool Points)
Strengths: Everything but Charisma
Weaknesses: Yup.  Charisma
Strategy: It might help to compare Xzibit to WC because the method for
handling them is more or less the same.  While their moves differ, both are
very fast and unusually aggressive.  Both long and short combos are
no-nos when dealing with either of them.  Both also recover from getting
knocked down very quickly.  Get in two quick hits, grab him, and toss him
somewhere.  Keep in mind that Kickboxing makes Xzibit especially dangerous,
because he can KO you without your life starting in the Danger zone.  
Of course, you can do the same to him, so don't overlook that when 
fighting him.  All in all, Xzibit is definitely one of the toughest 
foes you'll face, although that's all relative: once you get used to the
game, you can beat Xzibit, too, without taking any damage.
Best KO Time: 0:22



+---------------------------+
6. Frequently Asked Questions
+---------------------------+

In no particular order, here are the questions I most frequently get:

QUESTIONS/COMMENTS THAT ARE RELEVANT TO THIS GUIDE:

Q. Why do you use Streetfighting and Kickboxing, and only those two?
A. Streetfighting is, in my humble opinion, the best knockout style in the
game, even more so when it comes to fighting computer opponents.  It's
remarkably easy to pull off Haymakers against most computer opponents,
and to top it off, it hits really, really hard.  Besides that, Streetfighting
offers very fast punches and kicks, which is great against real or computer
opponents to set up other attacks...like Haymakers.

Kickboxing is another fast and useful style.  Besides the fact that it's
cool, its knockout method has the added advantage of being able to
"kick" - couldn't resist the pun - in without your opponent's health starting
out in the Danger Zone.  This is especially useful if you're losing and your
opponent isn't quite weak enough to be in the Danger Zone: with Kickboxing,
he doesn't have to be.

As for not adding a third style, it's because when you have three styles,
one of the three emerges as "dominant", even though you do end up with your
own unique blend of moves.  I originally added Martial Arts, but the result
was absolutely sucktastic: basic strikes were slower than molasses in winter.
Wrestling is slow to begin with, and why bother with Submissions when I can
just punch the living crap out of people? Beats me.

Q. I can beat (insert character here: usually Suspect or Crow) in (insert
time here, usually about half of mine).  Come on, they aren't that hard!
What gives?
A. They aren't that hard.  You're right.  At any rate, there are a few
reasons why my times for those two are comparatively worse:

1. Randomness.  Some characters seem to have really random fighting styles.
They're complete pushovers one time, and tough as hell the next.  Bubba
Sparxxx in particular really fits into this.  On the one hand, I can
pound him into mush - like in my 14 second KO - but other times, he's so
aggressive and so reverse-happy that I've lost to him.  It doesn't happen
often, but there are times where he literally counters every move I do.
Crow and Suspect have been tough at times, whereas other times, not so much.
This isn't as important as the other reason, though:

2. Laziness.  As I stated above, I only gave each character a two or three
round test before giving my best time and moving on.  Keep in mind that
usually, the first one or two fights was devoted to figuring out what did
and what didn't, since Haymaker combos obviously did not work ALL of the
time.  But honestly, the sheer number of fights really got annoying.
There are 69 unique characters in the game: multiply that by three and you
have over 200 fights right there.  That's not including the time I spent
playing through the whole story - twice - to begin with.  Fight for NY is
fun, but not for that long, and DEFINITELY not for that long if you're
playing by yourself.

If you're beating my times, you're either A) Playing one character over
and over again until it's theoretically possible that you know everything
that character will ever throw at you, B) Fighting in the Ring of Fire so
you can just burn everybody, or C) Getting the hang of this game.  In the
third case, great job: I commend you.  That's what this guide is all about.

QUESTIONS/COMMENTS THAT HAVE LITTLE TO NOTHING TO DO WITH THIS GUIDE:

Q. What's your favorite Blazin' Move?
A. Basically anything that gets 8-10 Cool Points.  If you have to know what
special attacks I use, here you go:

Up: Pushover (Capone)
Left: Break Beats (Dan G)
Right: Call The Ambulance (Magic)
Down: Pogo Stick (no one)

Q. Favorite character?
A. Overall, Dan G.  Out of the real guys, WC and Ice-T.  Too bad Ice-T
is a major sack of wuss in this game.

Q. Who's a good character to fight with?
A. Aaagh! I'm supposed to be telling you how to beat the AI! But oh well,
here we go.  Basically, anyone with Streetfighting is a useful character,
but against human players, it's more important to know how to use each
style.  High stats help too.  Henry Rollins is a great choice because he
has great stats and four, count em, four different styles to use.  He's
very versatile as a result.  Obviously, Crow isn't going to suck, and he's
incredible fast, so he's useful.  Suspect has great stats and has the added
advantage of being kind of hard to see in the darker levels.  WC rocks
as well, thanks to his stats and versatility.  Dan G has speed, so out of
the lower-stat characters, he's still a good choice.  One of my friends
can also use Cindy J to dramatic effect: I guess if you're gonna pick a
chick to use, pick her.  Honestly though, just pick whoever most caters
to your style: speed, power, submissions, whatever.  There are 69 characters
plus your Create-A-Fighters to choose from: mix it up!

Q. How do I do (insert move here)?
A. That's what Camel Rider's guide is for.  Check it out: odds are he's
covered whatever it is you're trying to do.  




+------+
7. Close
+------+

This game is surprisingly good.  Coming from a suburbanite white guy like
myself, that says a lot.  It's remarkably fun, especially with four people.

As of this writing, the following sites have permission to post this guide:

www.gamefaqs.com
www.neoseeker.com
www.geocities.com/incomingf5
www.spong.com
www.1up.com

If you have any questions, comments, suggestions, or - let's hope not -
corrections, feel free to drop me a line at zotmaster(at)mindless(dot)com

Copyright 2004-2006, Dan Christler