The Bouncer Image
Metascore

Mixed or average reviews - based on 20 Critics What's this?

User Score

Generally favorable reviews- based on 18 Ratings

  • Summary: A typical evening at a local bar erupts into chaos as members of a Special Forces strike team descend through the roof to kidnap a young girl, Dominique. Three bouncers--Sion, Volt, and Kou--come to the rescue, only to see the invaders grab Dominique, retreat through a window, and escape. Now it's up to you to save Dominique either alone or simultaneously with three friends. With The Bouncer's 3D combat environment, battles can take place anywhere. Expand
Score distribution:
  1. Positive: 3 out of 20
  2. Negative: 1 out of 20
  1. 90
    Brings more than just fierce punches and kicks -- it features an engaging story and plenty of gameplay modes that offer a high replay value. Hands down, this is one of the best PS2 games.
  2. Great graphics, good sound, mediocre gameplay. We were soooo close.
  3. It is lacking mostly in the game play department, which frankly, isn't very exciting. It presents little variability and this allows it to get old fairly quick.
  4. One hell of a disappointment and one of the worst experiences I've ever had to endure on my shiny DVD-playing black box.

See all 20 Critic Reviews

Score distribution:
  1. Positive: 8 out of 12
  2. Negative: 2 out of 12
  1. SionB.
    10
    This Is A Great Game. Good Graphics Great Characters And Great Way Of Puting There Fighting Skills.
  2. The Bouncer is an odd, atypical sort of fighting game. Unlike its traditional brethren - Street Fighter, Tekken, Soul Calibur - The Bouncer assumes more of the feel of a RPG with the same traits as a fighting game. In fact, this game could be more akin to an old-school side-scrolling fighter from the days of yore if one has an open imagination. Nevertheless, Square's attempt at a trendy Japanese spiced fighter is a true sleeper, even when it was released. The graphics are fantastic considering when it was released, everything clean and well polished, with a similar feel in visuals to that of Square's Final Fantasy X. Combat is limited to only a handful of different attacks for each of the three playable characters in the story mode. However, these do not inhibit for some heated combat with multiple attackers at once.

    The story is short, and you can breeze through The Bouncer in speedy fashion. But there's a huge replay value, with lots of backstory told through the loading screen. Playing as each character offers a different perspective on the story, allowing for some conversations to be heard, while other details are left out for a separate playthrough with another character. And of course, there's a nifty multiplayer mode that allows you to control any of the characters you earn throughout your main-game adventures.

    A final nifty feature is the leveling system, giving the game an added feel of role-playing. Experience points are earned with each battle, allowing you to learn new attacks and improve your health/defense/power. You're forced to spend them wisely as you level up your characters. Though this is by no means a popular game, The Bouncer offers an unique take on a fighting game that few other games have attempted. It's worth it!
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  3. Will
    7
    Great presentation and graphics, but not much in the way of gameplay. It's a nice showpiece.
  4. I was really disappointed in this game when I got it and I was a kid. I was thinking that it would be like Streets of Rage. Square really screwed up. Terrible fighting game. People who like this don't own sega genesis and its many fighting games that are far superior. This game made me depressed because it was supposed to be a promising launch title. Bad controls bad fighting. Expand

See all 12 User Reviews