Fitness Boxing 2: Rhythm & Exercise review — Punch 2020 in the gut

I don't know about you, but I've put on several 2020 depression pounds since March. Now that the year is coming to a close, I've been able to take stock with where my body currently is at, and it definitely isn't where I'd like it to be. So, when I saw that Fitness Boxing 2: Rhythm & Exercise was coming out on Nintendo Switch, I was interested. However, with so many exercise games on the market right now, I was extremely skeptical it would provide a decent workout.

After spending several days testing it and exercising along to various tunes, I can definitely recommend it as one of the best workout games on Switch. It gets my heart pumping, makes me sweat, and works much more of my body than I expected.

What I love about Fitness Boxing 2: Rhythm & Exercise

I never played the original Fitness Boxing game, so I was honestly blown away by how helpful Fitness Boxing 2 was for getting my body exercised and my heart pumping.

A typical training session starts you off by doing stretches to get your body ready for more intense movements. Once that's done, the punching match begins. The virtual instructor had me bounce back and forth to a rhythm during sessions, which got my heart going. There are several different kinds of punches to master, and each works different parts of your body.

It provides a good workout, but it's the extra features and inclusions that push it further.

My husband and I have both resolved to start getting back into shape before the start of 2021 so I was happy to find that Fitness Boxing 2 offered a two-player mode. While accessing the game on my account, he was able to log into his own and input his weight, height, and other data. Then the game was able to save his progress on his profile as we excercised.

If you only have one set of Joy-Cons, you can each take one and then do a partial punching session where only one of your arms is getting exercised. But since we have extra Joy-Cons in the house, he was able to hold his own set and punch with both arms.

I'm the kind of person that absolutely hates running or any other form of cardio. This game was able to distract me from how I was bouncing around by giving me a gauge to follow. The sessions never felt like they went too long and it provided plenty of breaks to keep me from completely losing my focus. The fact there are multiple modes to choose from means you can tailor the workout to your energy and capability level.

When I started a new game, I was asked to input my weight and height. Unfortunately, I had to use the internet to help me out as the game uses kilocalories and kilograms and cannot switch to feet or pounds. But being able to look at my stats and see how much I had accomplished each day proved to be another incentive that kept me working harder. By the way, if you're self-conscious about your weight, the game lets you password protect your account so no other users can see your data.

Exercise games are all the rage this year since we're stuck inside, with Ring Fit Adventure being the best-known fitness game on Nintendo Switch. The unique Leg Strap and Ring-Con accessories allow you to jog to an RPG or do various stretches. However the game also costs a decent amount more than most other Switch games, and is tough to find.

If you're looking for a cheaper option, then Fitness Boxing 2 will be perfect for you since it doesn't require any extra accessories other than the Joy-Cons that come with the Nintendo Switch. That also means that you don't have to find a place to put that bulky Ring-Con. All you have to do is pull the Joy-Cons off your Switch and you're ready to go.

At the end of a session, the game has you stamp the calendar to show that you worked out for the day. This gave me more incentive to keep exercising everyday since I didn't want to see a missing stamp on my personal calendar. Additionally, the game allowed me to set up reminders, which makes the Joy-Cons rumble and the light around the Home button flash at a time that I specified each day to remind me that it's time to workout.

As you continue to play, you unlock more songs to dance to, including popular tunes from singers like P!nk, Justin Timberlake, and more. These versions don't actually include the singer's voices, and the music is simplified, but they still got me going when I needed the adrenhaline boost. You'll also earn clothing which you can use to dress up the instructor of your choice.

Speaking of, there are nine instructors total and you can change the way they look by editing their clothes, skin color, hair color, or eye color. They also speak to you differently. Some are more abrupt and others are sweeter. I chose Karen who is anything but the pejorative internet slang that her name embodies. I didn't much care for the clothes her character started with, so I was happy to work towards unlocking something better.

Does Fitness Boxing 2: Rhythm & Exercise provide a good workout?

It most certainly does. I was skeptical about how much exercise a boxing video game would be able to give me. However, I was thoroughly surprised by how much Fitness Boxing 2 worked various parts of my body. After the second day, I had a really hard time lifting my arms and my calves hurt as well.

You can choose from three main workout modes: Light, Medium, or Heavy, with the latter leaving me dropping buckets of sweat. If you need a calmer exercise day, you can simply have it lead you through a stretching session. I often went with some mild to moderate cardio.

Since only the virtual instructor is present, it's up to you to keep yourself motivated and actively try harder. Otherwise, you won't get a lot out of these workout sessions.

However, it's not meant to give you hardcore exercise, nor will it help you learn about boxing itself (more on this later) but it provides good cardio to get your whole body moving.

What I don't like about Fitness Boxing 2: Rhythm & Exercise

I was really impressed with how much cardio I got from playing Fitness Boxing 2. However, the game does have a few shortcomings.

I started to feel pretty cool as I threw specific punches or flung my whole body into a movement. However, I'm absolutely certain that if a real boxing instructor saw me working out they'd be thoroughly embarrassed by my body positioning. As the player, this isn't fully my fault. The virtual instructors try to be helpful and give tips throughout the boxing sessions to try to get you into the proper positioning. However, it's up to you to pay attention and make the right adjustments. Since boxing is about form as much as it as about fitness, don't expect to get into sparring any time soon.

Additionally, the game doesn't fully explain that there are moments when your feet and legs need to stop bouncing in order to get back into your starting stance before the next set of punches arrive. If you don't catch this, you'll continue bouncing when you shouldn't, which puts you out of beat and might even make you lose your balance when you try to throw a punch.

This also makes it so you're likely to get a bad score until you figure out what's expected of you. To prevent this, I had to constantly dart my gaze over to the helpful foot placement gauge to make adjustments accordingly.

Fitness Boxing 2 is a lot harder to play on Nintendo Switch Lite since you need to have Joy-Cons in hand while playing, which the Switch Lite doesn't come with. Of course, you could always purchase an external set of Joy-Cons and then connect them to your smaller Switch. However, staring at that small screen instead of being able to hook your gaming system up to your TV makes following the instructions and hitting those timed punches far more difficult. If you get a Switch Lite stand and put it somewhere at eye level, it might be doable. This is a similar issue across a lot of fitness games, however, so you're probably already aware of the limitations.

Should I buy Fitness Boxing 2: Rhythm & Exercise?

This definitely isn't a game for hardcore fitness enthusiasts who are looking for a mindblowing workout, but it can be a fun way to get some cardio in each day. If you're like me and have a hard time exercising or haven't been able to hit the gym in awhile, then I highly recommend getting Fitness Boxing 2. It made me work up a sweat and got my heart going each day. Best of all, the timed punches and upbeat songs kept my mind distracted so each session flew by.

I was even able to exercise with another person at the same time. Being able to compete and see our scores at the end of each round kept us motivated and working towards perfecting our timing and punches.

Another awesome thing about this fitness game is that it costs $30 less than Ring Fit Adventure, Nintendo's other popular workout game. And since it only requires you to use Joy-Cons, you don't have to worry about finding a good place to store extra accessories.