Words: Will Nelson
Nintendo's Punch-Out!! might be the video game series most synonymous with boxing, but it isn't the greatest of all time. In fact, pound for pound, that title goes to 2011's Fight Night Champion, a game that's easily remained the heavyweight of the sports genre.
Okay, I'm out of boxing puns.
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With Fight Night Champion recently turning 10, and it being on Xbox Game Pass courtesy of EA Play, it absolutely beggars belief that EA still haven't put out a sequel. Instead, the publisher has focused on UFC titles. So this is me telling you to play it, because someone has to.
What Fight Night Champion absolutely nailed was the player's relationship between concurrent offensive and defensive strategies. Using either the face buttons or the right stick, you can perform jabs, straights, hooks, and uppercuts, with the triggers used to block and dodge. Successfully bouncing between blocking, combinations, and dodging isn't easy, but get it right and it's incredibly rewarding.
The game has an absurdly high skill ceiling, but luckily that's balanced by a lot of customisation. Standard difficulty options are accompanied by sliders for both you and your opponent's awareness and speed. These options almost turn the game from an arcade style fighter to a boxing sim like it's nothing.
All the while you need to manage your stamina, which slowly loses its total if you continually drain yourself with too many unsuccessful punches. You can't gas yourself out in the first few rounds and expect a win, especially if the opponent is playing smart and dodging you at every turn, because then you're in round 10 with no stamina and your arse on the floor.
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The genius of this stamina system comes with how it perfectly marries itself with the player's mental and physical state. A 12-round fight will set you back almost an hour in real time, so imagine trying to keep up not just your own skill and stamina, but managing it in game along with changing strategies.
Plus, there's a sweet replay camera for knockouts, which can lead to some incredible moments when you're holding on for dear life.
Finally, Fight Night Champion has two long-form gameplay options, Champion and Legacy modes. Legacy is your fairly typical run-of-the-mill FIFA career mode. Pick a boxer and rise through the ranks whilst spending experience on upgrading different aspects of your prowess.
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Champion mode is where the game really shines, though. You play as Andre Bishop on his quest to become the GOAT, and while the story itself is your typical Rocky affair, each and every fight presents you with a unique challenge. Maybe you've got a cut above your eye you need to protect, a broken hand, or have an opponent with a very specific fighting style you need to adapt to.
Champion mode thus becomes a vehicle for interesting and varied fights, ones that asks more of you than any other. Oh, and the final boss is an absolutely killer 12 rounds from hell, but totally worth it.
So EA, where's a new Fight Night game? While Fight Night Champion is almost perfect, and still holds up incredibly in both graphics and gameplay, a true next-gen boxing experience wouldn't go amiss.
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The adage that boxing and ballet aren't so different holds true in Fight Night Champion, with rhythm and endurance holding them together like glue. It's time, surely, for it to return to the ring.
Follow the author on Twitter at @WillNelson1998, and GAMINGbible at @GAMINGbible.
Featured Image Credit: EA
Topics: EA, Xbox Game Pass