============================================================================== Fight Night Round 3 Punch FAQ (Version 1.0; Mar 11th 06') Written by: Aj_the_one ============================================================================== ------------------------------------------------------------------------------ Table of Contents ------------------------------------------------------------------------------ A. Introduction B. Version History C. Jabs D. Straights E. Hooks F. Crosses G. Uppercuts H. Haymakers I. Legal Stuff J. Credits ------------------------------------------------------------------------------ A. Introduction ------------------------------------------------------------------------------ What's up people. It's me again and since I already put out two FAQ'S on this game I figured that I should make another one. I decided in this FAQ to highlight the different types of punches in the game and reveal their strenghts and weaknesses. My opinions in this guide will be based on basic boxing knowledge and technique. I'm working on a FAQ to show who you have to beat to get the different punch, base, and blocking styles. As usual I hope my guide is of use to you. ------------------------------------------------------------------------------ B. Version History ------------------------------------------------------------------------------ Version Final- FAQ started ------------------------------------------------------------------------------ C. Jabs ------------------------------------------------------------------------------ This punch is fast and weak. Depending on the style you are using, the punch will be slower. Your boxer throws his lead hand out and brings it back fast. The main purpose of this punch is to throw your opponent of guard and more importantly to set you up for a straight or a combo. Strengths- This Punch is great for keeping your opponent at a distance and doing a little bit of damage until you find an opening to do a great amount of damage( With hooks, uppercuts or Haymakers). Also this punch has excellent recovery speed whether it is parried or not. Weaknesses- I will tell you again... This punch is weak. You will have to pay attention to the health meter to actually see damage. Fortunately I have noticed no other weaknesses in this is this punch. MY Opinion- If you are using a speed or balanced style, use this punch alot especially if you find yourself overpowered in a fight. Jab and move until you get an opening to tear into your opponent( This is called stick-and-move). If you like power styles, this punch loses a lot of it's effectiveness because it gets slower which means you can't use this to open up your opponent effectively. Best if used with a speed or balanced punch style. ------------------------------------------------------------------------------ D. Straights ------------------------------------------------------------------------------ This Punch is like the jab being that it's also kind of fast but it's more powerful. Your boxer throws his power hand straight ahead and brings it back fairly fast. This punch is designed to take advantage of the reach you have over your opponent(if any). This punch has the most reach of all the punches you can throw. Strengths- This punch does a okay amount of damage, certainly more than the jab. But even more than the damage done is the reach this punch has. When you throw this punch not only is fast but it will hit your opponent if he is a good distance from you. Also it has good recovery speed meaning if parried your opponent won't have alot of time to destroy you with a barrage of punches or even worse a haymaker. Weaknesses- It's Fast but it's not that fast. This is only real weakness that I spotted in this punch. My Opinion- Much like the jab if you like using a speed or balanced style, you will enjoy using this punch to keep your opponent at a distance and also to put it together with the jab for a jab/straight combo which is fast and does a nice amount of damage. For Power styles this punch will do a good amount of damage for the amount of time it will take for it to come out. Also no matter what style you use the reach is the same. Effective for all styles. ------------------------------------------------------------------------------ E. Hooks ------------------------------------------------------------------------------ This is my favorite punch in the game and for good reason. With this punch your boxer throws his lead hand in a hook which aims for the right side of your opponent( assuming your boxer is right-handed). Strengths- For speed styles exellent combination of speed and power. With Power styles they aren't as fast but are stronger and will damage your opponent fast. Will also swell up your opponent's face pretty fast. Weaknesses- Really slow recovery if the punch is parried. If your opponent guesses right and parries this punch you will be defenseless for at least 2 or 3 seconds. Also don't miss with this punch because if it doesn't connect your boxer will finish the sweeping animation of the punch and you will be left wide open. My opinion- Based on the speed and power of this punch, I would suggest that you make this punch a big part of your arsenal no matter which style you are using. When throwing this punch you must be aware of how close your opponent is and also make sure that you are going to connect with the punch because if you don't hit your opponent you'll be wide open for about a second which is enough time to get a good shot in or start a combo. Best for hook master, good for all styles. ------------------------------------------------------------------------------ F. Crosses ------------------------------------------------------------------------------ Another one of my favorite punches. Your boxer throws his power hand across his body(hence the name cross) aiming at the left side of your opponent. Since this punch is coming from your boxers power hand, it's slower but it has more power than a hook. Strengths- Power. Simply put. When you throw this punch behind a lead punch ( A jab or a hook) the damage that will be done is excellent considering the amount of time the combo takes. Weaknesses- Like the hook this punches greatest weakness is it's recovery speed. You must make sure that you are going to hit your opponent when you throw this punch because if you miss the recovery will be slower than the hook and you will get punished. My opinion- With a speed boxer, you can throw hook/cross combinations and watch the life of your opponent go down really fast. Power styles will do the same thing( in terms of power) only faster due to the increase in your punching power. Of course it will be slower but even with the speed decrease it's still a deadly punch( by itself it loses some zip but it's still good). Best for sinister cross, speed styles(combos), good for all other styles. ------------------------------------------------------------------------------ G. Uppercuts ------------------------------------------------------------------------------ Throughout the course of this guide I'm pretty sure you've noticed that I am favorable to speed punches. Well with the uppercuts I can make an exception because not only will a well-timed uppercut knock your opponent back it will also take a chunk of life. Depending on how you throw your uppercut( with your lead hand or your Power hand and how extreme your movement of the right analog stick is) the damage will differ as will the stunning effect. If you throw the uppercut with your lead hand it won't be as powerful as one thrown with your power hand but it will still be strong( also it's not faster. This is the only punch in which the speed is equal regardless of which hand the punch is thrown with lead or power) but it won't knock them back unless you get a full motion with the right analog. An uppercut thrown with your power hand will knock your opponent back(depending on the motion you use) and will do alot of damage. Strengths- Power and the ability to knock your opponent off-balance. When you get a full range of motion on the analog and you throw a sweeping uppercut the damage on these things are ridiculous especially if you catch him with a counter punch. Weaknesses- Aside from the recovery time if this punch is parried, it really doesn't have a weakness. If you miss with the lead uppercut the recovery time isn't that bad and power uppercut has a recovery time slightly worse than the cross. My Opinion- If you are good with the right analog then throw these whenever you get the chance( especially if you need to slow down your opponent) because they will cause damage and will also knock him back and put him on the defensive. Just be caeful when you throw them. Best for Lethal Uppercuts, Power styles, good for all other styles. ------------------------------------------------------------------------------ H. Haymakers ------------------------------------------------------------------------------ What more can I say but DAMN!!! The haymakers are back and believe me, they are just as deadly as they were in Round 2( though not as cheap). They also added to haymakers to the original: The stun punch and the Flash KO Punch. The Stun Punch puts you in first person mode and makes your punches stronger, making it easier to knock down your opponent. The Flash KO Punch drains your opponent's life to critical no matter how much they have. With the exception of the Flash KO Punch when you counter a punch with a haymaker you will get an adrenaline boost in which you can throw punches without losing stamina. Also new to the haymakers are their ability to turn a fight around. If you are about to be knocked down you can turn the tables by hitting your opponent with a haymaker. If you connect with a haymaker it send your opponent into the knockdown moment and gives you the chance to knock him down. Needless to say these things are strong as hell!! Strengths- Power!Power!Power! and more power. These punches will destroy your opponent when they connect. Also If you counter a punch with one of these you will get an adrenaline rush which allows you to throw as many punches as you want!! Come on it's just ridiculous how powerful and beneficial these punches are. Weaknesses- Now you know they couldn't have possibly made the haymakers perfect so the imperfection in this punch is the speed... on all levels. It's a long time to wind up and throw a haymaker and if it gets parried your opponent has about 4 or 5 seconds to do whatever they want( be it a 5-hit combo or a haymaker). My Opinion- Whenever you counter a big punch from your opponent make sure that you throw a haymaker because it will make your fight that much more easy. Most of the time if you hit him with a haymaker he will go into a defensive mode only countering and not throwing any punches. These punches will be the key to sucess in the hard fights that you will have. Also Joe Frazier's special punch is a haymaker(the announcer calls it) and it does damage. It's easy to throw to the body and I recommend the punch because it has good range to it. ------------------------------------------------------------------------------ I. Legal Stuff ------------------------------------------------------------------------------ This FAQ may not be reproduced under any circumstances except for personal or private use. It may not be placed on any web site or otherwise distributed publicly without advance written permission. Use of this guide on any other web site except for www.gamefaqs.com and www.ign.com or as part of any public display is strictly prohibited, and a violation of copyright. Copyright 2006 Armand Sellers ------------------------------------------------------------------------------ J. Credits ------------------------------------------------------------------------------ - As always the people who read my FAQ and find it useful - GameFaqs for reading and accepting my FAQ - EA sports once again for making this great boxing game - My girlfriend for buying the gae for me