Have you ever come across an arcade boxing machine?
It's very simplistic. There are no analog sticks or directional buttons. There is simply a small punching bag that folds in and out; you hit it with as much power as you can muster, and a score appears on the screen. That's the entire game. There is a compelling element to such simplicity, so it's unsurprising that a crowd was gathered around the machine when I strolled around the WASD game event recently in London. I was at WASD to interview Ash Habib, the founder of Steel City Interactive, about his new game, Undisputed, the most promising traditional boxing game since EA's Fight Night Champion.
People may have been excited over the boxing machine - and indeed, I gave it a try too, which unfortunately sent my glasses flying out of my front pocket - but actual boxing represents much more than the simplicity of hitting something as hard as possible. It requires far more strategy, footwork, polished skill, and timing, along with various other elements. Undisputed (which is now in early access via PC, with console versions planned) is trying to capture much of this complexity and break new ground in the realm of boxing games.