If there's one thing that immediately sets Def Jam: Icon apart from other fighting titles, it's got to be the fact that the music isn't just a backdrop to the unrelenting brawling - in this baby it's also a weapon!

Just when we thought we'd seen it all with hip-hop fighting games, Electronic Arts have come up with a class one genuine innovation that brings a little something extra to an already tried and tested formula. Why just pummel your opponent with your fists and feet when, with a flick of the right analogue stick, you can get your character to perform some virtual scratching that triggers an environmental attack (usually an explosion)? Sweet!

Def Jam: Icon casts you in the role of a new wannabe music producer who's trying to break into the bling-encrusted hip-hop industry. After winning a fight in a nightclub, you come to the attention of an industry Mr Big who takes you in and (GTA-style) lets you work your way up the hierarchy by running errands. These errands generally involve pounding the living daylights out of someone, while earning some green and unlocking characters from the Def Jam stable along the way. Def Jam: Icon offers a surprise departure from the wrestling orientated combat of Vendetta and the ice cool Fight For New York; this time around, EA have opted for a slower street brawling approach with just a smattering of some of the more familiar wrestling moves and throws.

As I've already mentioned, the developers have put some serious thought into ways of elevating the game from being a simple button-mashing experience. As well as using the music as an actual weapon, there are interactive environments that really add to the thrill of bare knuckle street brawling. The pumps explode in the petrol station, and a helicopter tail swats you (or your opponent) if you get too close on the rooftop arena. You can use parked cars as weapons on the block, while everything else detonates like firecrackers on the Fourth of July (or Guy Fawkes night, depending which side of the Atlantic live).

In the versus - or 'throw down' - mode you get to choose from a star studded gallery of big hip-hop brawlers, including Big Boi, T.I, Jim Jones and, my personal favourite, Lil Jon, to name just a few. It has to be said that there isn't a huge difference in the characters' fighting styles, but c'mon, you get to be the Wu Tang's Ghostface Killah and stomp on fellow Clan member Method Man's plums while nodding your head to Ante Up. Are you feeling it?

As you'd expect, the music accompanying the action is nothing short of top drawer, cream of the crop hip-hop. The game also allows you to use your own tunes by utilising the My Soundtrack facility. Presumably for non hip-hop lovers, the option exists to use some other genre of music - but singing along to Girls Aloud while squaring up to The Game could take some getting used to! Graphically, Def Jam: Icon is eye candy of the highest order; not only do the characters look like their real-life counterparts, but they come with amazing facial expressions that change depending on how well they're throwing down. The arenas, although small, take full advantage of the monster processing power of the 360 with an astonishing level of detail, excellent lighting effects and sublime shadowing. Compare Def Jam: Icon to the likes of Ghost Recon, Gears of War and Rainbow Six, and it more than comfortably holds its own. Def Jam: Icon also comes with a robust multiplayer option for those of you itching to scratch to the beat and knuckle up online.

There are only a few minor niggles that detract from what would otherwise be an A-list offering. The absence of a health status bar often makes it difficult to tell which fighter is the worse for wear. Def Jam: Icon relies on a visual system, where you gauge how close a character is from biting the big one by the amount of claret on their face and how beat up they look. Once a character is on his last legs, the screen goes black and white, meaning that someone's about to lose. Some mention has already been made in the lack of variety in fighting styles. Be warned: this is no Dead or Alive. Because this is definitely not a martial arts or wrestling fighter, it's often difficult to distinguish fighting techniques. Street brawling is, after all, street brawling. EA could, however, have been a little more generous with the special moves; after a few hours, you'll probably realise that grabbing your opponent and throwing him into one of the environmental hazards - or executing your virtual scratch to trigger an explosion - are more reliable ways of winning a bout.

There are some minor drawbacks, but with its innovative fighting style, thumping tracks and visual excellence, Def Jam: Icon offers some fresh new school flava that you really have to savour with your neighbour. Go buy it!

Reviewed by Kizzi Nkwocha for AceGamez (All Rights Reserved).