This isn't the first rather low-key debut for a new intellectual property from EA this year. Boom Blox for the Wii had an unimpressive first month, but the title bounced back to sell pretty darn good. You could probably knock us over with a feather is Facebreaker followed the same pattern.

Fortunately, EA has Madden, Mercs 2, Warhammer Online and Spore to soften the blow. Like a giant pillow stuffed with cash. So soft.

EA's Facebreaker TKO'd, Sells Just 52k [GameDaily]

Predicatably, EA have plumped for plenty of tracks that have titles with references to fighting, a couple of hipster-bait acts and a good dose of agression-promoting guitarwork.

Fujiya & Miyagi's Sucker Punch, Dropkick Murphys' The Warrior’s Code, Knock Me Down by The Rivers and Tigarah's Girl Fight are representin' for People With Combat-Related Song Titles

Full listing after the bump.

ARTIST - SONG
Boys Noize - Arcade Robot
Boys Noize - Oh!
Dropkick Murphys - The Warrior’s Code
Fort Knox Five feat. Mustafa Akbar - The Spirit of 75
From First To Last - Worlds Away
From First To Last - Two As One
From First To Last - We All Turn Back To Dust
Fujiya & Miyagi - Sucker Punch
Gogol Bordello - 60 Revolutions
Kenna - Out Of Control (State of Emotion) – Free Donuts and Shellfish XXXChange with Ronnie Darko Spankrock Remix
Kinky - Uruapan Breaks
Los Mocosos - Bandolera Era (Reggaeton Remix)
Ozomatli - Street Signs
Tone Loc feat. Peaches - Wild Thing (Peaches RMX)
Prophet Omega - Criminal
Quit Your Day Job feat. R.A. The Rugged Man - Warmachine (Remake)
Santogold - Creator
Sweatmaster - Animal
The Go! Team - Universal Speech
The Hives - Square One Here I Come
The Procussions - Fight Here
The Rivers - Knock Me Down
Tigarah - Girl Fight
Tone Deaf Junkies - Kwaai Techtic
Wolfmother - Woman (MSTRKRFT Remix)

Music to Break Faces To - FaceBreaker Soundtrack Revealed [GDN]

Graphically, the game delivers, but I was a little surprised, slightly disappointed even, at how simplistic the controls were.The four face buttons let you throw high punches, low punches, strong punches and perform a grab and throw. To block a punch you pull a trigger and to duck a punch you hold in the corresponding punch button.

While you can move your fighter around with the joystick, this doesn't really seem to come into play much. Mostly you want to be close enough to duke it out and I found myself relying on the duck buttons to avoid blows, rather than moving my fighter away from the fight.

What stripping down the controls so significantly does it create a button-mashing brawling that can be fun to play at times, but that may not deliver a game that with a lot of staying power.

I had fun bashing in the face of Tristan's pugilist, and occasionally having mine bashed in, but I can't imagine it would be a game I'd want to play for any length of time. And while the simple controls seem like a perfect fit for young gamers, the over-the-top cartoon violence and T-rating seems like it will filter out most of the people who will most want to keep playing the game.

They also have video of a digital Peter Moore beating Ms. Kardashian, which may dovetail with some EA Sports erotic fanfics you've been writing.

Kim Kardashian in Facebreaker: Exclusive! [GameDaily - photo via WENN]

Oh, and a FaceBreaker demo is out too. Yay.

Demo: Madden NFL 09 And Guest [Xbox Live's Major Nelson]

UPDATED: Planet Xbox 360 just pointed us to their screenshot, and it's convincing. (Above).

Ever want to roundhouse punch EA Sports honcho/former Xbox chief Peter Moore in the jaw? Astoundingly, word is you can do just that in Face Breaker, coming out Sept. 5. ButtonMasher reports thusly:

While previewing Face Breaker at the EA booth it was mentioned that Peter Moore’s face had been scanned and entered into the game using the boxer editor. The face, which is creepily accurate, can be attached to any of the bodies and manipulated. Peter asserts that he suits a more chiseled look but the demonstration featured him as a blue monkey.

From talking with them more about the addition to the game it seems that his face will be included in the retail build of the game and will more than likely be an unlockable character.

That's a pretty shrewd move. Not sure how many sales it will do on that feature alone, but I'll put it in my GameFly queue.

Here's what the rest of the game will look like, btw.

Break Peter Moore's Face [Button Masher, thanks reader Paul K.]

Screenshot of Peter Moore in Face Breaker [Planet Xbox 360]

[Because the comments before the update might seem confusing out of context, here's the original shitty shoop I did to illustrate this - OSG]

After watching this video of character Spin beating the brains out of a square-jawed, muscle-bound opponent, I'm a bit psyched.

FaceBreaker enters ring Sept. 5 [GameSpot]

That, and the over-the-top characters might be a bit too far over that top there. "I can't feel my face!" *giggle* No.

'From First to Last' Steps in the Ring with Arcade-Style Boxing Game Facebreaker From EA Sports

Suretone/Artwerk Artists Showcased Via Music And Likenesses In All-New Game As Their New Album Hits Stores & Tour Begins

REDWOOD CITY, Calif.—(BUSINESS WIRE)—The worlds of new music and gaming collide in the ring as Electronic Arts Inc. (NASDAQ:ERTS) today announced that Suretone/Artwerk band From First To Last will be showcased in EA SPORTS' upcoming arcade-style boxing game, FaceBreaker™. The band, whose self-titled debut album was released last week, will have three new songs on the FaceBreaker soundtrack as well as being featured as animated characters within the game itself.

"FaceBreaker is the beginning of a classic new EA franchise," said Steve Schnur, EA's Worldwide Executive of Music and Marketing. "It looks and plays like no other game on the market today and deserves a soundtrack to match. We were looking for a left-of-center band to connect with a great soundtrack opportunity, and From First To Last is the ideal act to showcase in this game. Add in their new album, their upcoming Warped Tour appearances and a few surprises still to come, and you've a 360˚ partnership that totally 'gets it'. Simply put, we've matched the new with the new like never before. The dual impact of FaceBreaker and FFTL is going to be undeniable."

Along with lending their music and likeness to the game, From First To Last will also promote the game during 45 shows on their upcoming spring and summer tour. The band will hold public presentations of FaceBreaker via projection screens prior to each concert, and band members will pull selected fans on-stage before their show kicks off to demo the game.

Additionally, EA will feature game demos, merchandise and the FaceBreaker band bus at each stop of the tour, as well as exclusive FFTL downloads, profiles, band playlists, contests and more on the FaceBreaker website. To round out the marketing campaign and create online buzz, From First To Last will also participate in the making of 10 viral videos of live concert footage married with FaceBreaker clips to be released on the web.

"By signing FFTL to EA's music publishing company Artwerk, we've made a commitment to create unique marketing opportunities for them," says Schnur. "In addition to FaceBreaker, their music will be featured in the soundtracks of several other top EA titles in the months to come. FFTL's music, concert tickets and merchandise will soon become an even bigger part of their fans lives. The ultimate goal is for the guys who we believe to be the best post-hardcore band in North America today to be heard by the largest global audience possible tomorrow."

"World's Away", along with other tracks from FFTL's new self-titled album are available on EA's music website at www.ea.com/eatrax. More information on From First To Last is at http://www.fromfirsttolast.com/.

Electronic Arts just put out a short teaser for their upcoming Fight Night meets cartoons game, Facebreaker. It looks like it has potential, though I'm a little concerned that it's essentially just a reskinned Fight Night.

FaceBreaker (Xbox 360) [1UP via Maxconsole]

"FaceBreaker reinvigorates one of the great genres in sports videogames. Arcade boxing takes me back to my roots in this industry, and this game signals our shift to adding more approachable fun to our product lineup. In no time at all, you'll be picking up the controllers and knocking your opponent around the ring, smashing faces, and having a riot."

REDISCOVER THE JOY OF PUMMELING WITH FACEBREAKER

An All-New Intellectual Property from EA SPORTS Brings Back Arcade Boxing
Chertset, UK - January 31, 2008 - Electronic Arts Inc. (Nasdaq: ERTS) announced today that FaceBreaker™ - an all-new intellectual property - is under development at EA Canada and will be released for the PLAYSTATION®3 computer entertainment system, Xbox 360™ video game system from Microsoft and the Wii™ in 2008.

"We're very excited to announce FaceBreaker, an all-new franchise from EA SPORTS that is fun, fresh and innovative," said Peter Moore, president, EA SPORTS. "FaceBreaker reinvigorates one of the great genres in sports videogames. Arcade boxing takes me back to my roots in this industry, and this game signals our shift to adding more approachable fun to our product lineup. In no time at all, you'll be picking up the controllers and knocking your opponent around the ring, smashing faces, and having a riot."

The renaissance of the arcade boxing genre is upon us. Created by the same team that developed the award-winning Fight Night Round 3, FaceBreaker offers irreverent fun, immersive gameplay and eye-popping stylized graphics. In this in-your-face, arcade world full of ego-wielding characters, each boxer comes to life with unique attributes and distinct personal style, including Romeo, a Latin lover known for his pelvic thrusts, and Molotov, an oversized Russian demolitions expert with a penchant for fighting dirty. Add a little personal motivation to your fight by uploading a photo of your face to create a realistic likeness using Photo Game Face, and go toe-to-toe with a real-life friend or foe.

Laugh out loud as you pummel your opponent with a barrage of blows to the face and watch in satisfaction as your progress is illustrated by real-time facial deformation. With haymakers, face shots and body blows, wait for the right moment to drop a super punch to make your presence known. Taunt your adversaries and flaunt your talent, by tying one hand behind your back to add ultimate humiliation to your bout. In FaceBreaker, it just feels good to rearrange your opponent's face.

EA SPORTS™ is the leading interactive sports software brand in the world, with top-selling titles and franchises including Madden NFL Football, FIFA Soccer, NHL® hockey, NBA LIVE basketball, NCAA® Football, Tiger Woods PGA TOUR® and NASCAR® racing.

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