Def Jam: Icon (Xbox 360)

Def Jam Icon, the successor to Def Jam: Fight for NY, is the third installment in the hip hop fighting series series and the first not developed by AKI Corporation.

Battles are fought one-on-one with characters named and built after 30 famous artists such as Redman, Ghostface Killah, Ludacris, Sean Paul and more, each with a different style. There is less focus on wrestling now, but players can still grab and throw opponents to have the environment damage them as well. The locations include rooftops, street, a gas station – opposed to the arenas and wrestling rings of the previous titles.

The 6 available styles are Ghetto Blaster (Street Fighting), Street Kwon Do (Taekwondo), Black Panther (Kung Fu), Muay Fly (Muay Thai), Beatboxer (Boxing), and Jah Breaker (Capoeira). There is no HUD, you have to deduct the damage from the characters themselves. In any fighting mode, you’ll find that the environment will bounce around with the beat of the song playing during a match, allowing for special attacks and additional damage.

If none of the characters suits you, you once again can create your own character with an advanced F.A.C.E. system. This time, you can customize everything from a skin blemish to a funny nose. ICON provides a soundtrack of 29 songs. The fighters perform better when one of their own songs is playing.