News Post

Fight Night Boxing Franchise on Indefinite Hold, Focus is on EA Sports UFC

10:42 AM - May 24, 2013 by Steve_OS

The Fight Night boxing franchise has been placed on an indefinite hold, according to IGN, as the focus is on EA Sports UFC. Fight Night Champion was released over 2 years ago. It makes you wonder if the series will ever make a comeback.

Member Comments

# 21 Dos_Santos @ 05/26/13 04:00 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by JerseySuave4


	You don't know casual boxing fans? A casual boxing fan is someone who doesn't follow boxing on a regular basis but when there's a big fight they'll watch. That line about being a fan or not isn't true. You can be a casual fan of something. I wouldn't call myself a fan of soccer but I follow it because I need to for work so even though I won't watch MLS matches most of the time, i'll watch Premier League when it's on. And you need to make sure you read things before you comment on them. I specifically said boxing will never die because of hardcore fans and the popularity of the sport internationally. But boxing in the United States is behind the NFL, NBA, MLB, UFC, NHL, Nascar and Soccer in terms of relevance. Mayweather is the last name remaining that casual fans are interested in paying to see. Boxing has done a TERRIBLE job over the years building up new names. Go ask a someone who says they watch boxing every now & then who Canelo Alvarez is and most wouldn't know. My brother i'd consider a casual boxing fan and when I was over his house to watch the Mayweather fight he asked me who would he fight next and I rattled off 3 different names and he knew none of them other than Amir Khan. Will boxing go on after Mayweather? Of course. But tell me who is drawing in the casual fan? The Mayweather-Guerrero fight was advertised during March Madness, they had a 24/7 type show on Showtime, they had advertisements in magazines, but it still couldn't do 1 million PPV buys.

Lol. I guess you are serious.

# 22 JayBee74 @ 05/26/13 04:59 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by JerseySuave4


	You don't know casual boxing fans? A casual boxing fan is someone who doesn't follow boxing on a regular basis but when there's a big fight they'll watch. That line about being a fan or not isn't true. You can be a casual fan of something. I wouldn't call myself a fan of soccer but I follow it because I need to for work so even though I won't watch MLS matches most of the time, i'll watch Premier League when it's on.

So you wouldn't call yourself a fan of soccer but you grudgingly follow it because of work.

Wow, these casual fans are really passionate about their sports!!!

# 23 jmarcguy @ 05/26/13 07:12 PM

I think here in the US, boxing has dropped off. I see a crazy crowd in London at the Froch fight last night.

I liked FNC! Many flaws but it wasn't bad. Maybe waiting will allow them to do a more polished game. I'm not giving up. I played numerous boxing on Nintento back in the day. I waited forever for Knockout Kings on PS1. I hope I don't have to wait that long for my next game!

# 24 JayBee74 @ 05/27/13 10:30 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by JerseySuave4


	And you need to understand the UFC is already elite.

You actually used elite and UFC in the same sentence.

# 25 N51_rob @ 05/27/13 11:32 AM

Enough of the back and forth bickering. If you are not a fan of boxing or the Fight Night series, this probably isn't the best thread for you.

# 26 SHAKYR @ 05/27/13 01:57 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by JerseySuave4


	Again, Floyd Mayweather being the highest earning athlete is not reflective on the overall sport. I have repeatedly said, other than Mayweather (and Pacquiao since you want to add him to the conversation) casual fans don't care about what's going on in boxing. Floyd fights 1-2 times per year and is the highest money earner because of what he makes off of those fights but he makes $0 dollars off of endorsements according to that same SI article. So the most well recognized and popular/hated/relevant person in the sport has 0 endorsements. You see Pacquiao in the Hennessy commercial but to most fans he's now no longer relevant after getting dropped by Marquez. No other guys are making Floyd Mayweather money. When Floyd is gone who are people going to be paying to see on PPV every fight who can do over $1 million buys? And you need to understand the UFC is already elite. They get more tv coverage than boxing. And boxing will not overtake it as much as you want that to happen because young athletes these days no longer are looking to grow up as boxers, they're going towards MMA. These college wrestlers look at MMA as a future after wrestling is over. There hasn't been a relevant Heavyweight in years. You guys can all keep coming at me like what i'm saying is crazy but you guys are obviously all hardcore boxing fans and big fans of boxing games. You frequent boxing sites, you follow the sport, you enjoy the games, so you're going to be under the impression that the majority feel the same way you do but the pulse of the nation doesn't reflect it. Again, if there was such a outcry and demand for a new simulation boxing game, there would be a game being made. They aren't just committing to the UFC as a priority over boxing because of the hell of it. And I stress again, boxing will never die. It's an International sport and there are some countries in which it is the most popular sport. But in the United States, it's behind the NFL, NBA, MLB, NHL, UFC, PGA, NASCAR.

Your post is wrong in so many ways. If a person wasn't in the whole boxing atmosphere on the pro and amateur level they would be believe you. The amateur circuit is doing well(I'm a trainer) there are many local, national, and international shows.
Now, to address Marquez vs. Pacquiao! Only a person who doesn't know boxing would think Marquez wasn't a factor. Marquez was always dangerous to Pacquiao because of his counter-punching ability. There are so many up and coming star in boxing.
Boxing has always had it's droughts. Always!!

# 27 Jukeman @ 05/27/13 01:57 PM

Lol young athletes I know are either playing basketball, football or are in a boxing gym...

Not many MMA gyms are in the urban community as far as I know. Heck most HS in those area's don't even have wrestling teams...

Boxing may not have the coverage that It used to have but MLS doesn't have that much coverage either but yet soccer in America is growing everyday.

# 28 SHAKYR @ 05/27/13 05:29 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Mt Oread


	I've loved boxing video games. I would say FNR3 was my favorite of the recent batch. But it's been obvious for years that boxing is on a serious decline. I went from watching PPV Tyson fights (and others) to rarely watching any at all. I grew up loving Ali fights. I hope Tommy Morrison was going to be a stud. But I would still have called myself a casual fan of boxing. I played boxing games on all console systems, incuding the heavy sim Boxing by Activation on the 2600. There is just no way, from a business standpoint, that a traditional boxing game makes sense on a console now. Doubly so if fans desire a realistic sim. A full on arcade boxing title might still do well, but UFC has taken over the mindset of the genres most likely customers. So I'm bummer, but not surprised. I was more surprised that EA invest in FNC. I think the writing was already on the wall.

EA want a monopoly on MMA. EA MMA did not sell well. The amateur boxing scene is doing well. http://standnfight.com/usa-national-...ng-rankings-2/

# 29 JayBee74 @ 05/27/13 07:13 PM

Off topic a bit, but do any of those MMA games have a "strike only" mode?

# 30 N51_rob @ 05/27/13 07:31 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by JayBee74


	Off topic a bit, but do any of those MMA games have a "strike only"* mode?*

Not the one that I have played, but if you can make your fighter a striker and do your best to keep the fight on your feet. But if you don't develop some semblance of a ground game you have a hard time against the better fighters.

# 31 allBthere @ 05/28/13 11:46 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by JayBee74


	Off topic a bit, but do any of those MMA games have a "strike only"* mode?*

I would like that, kind of like a K-1 mode since they don't make those games any more

Peter Aerts!

# 32 Armor and Sword @ 05/28/13 02:16 PM

I really enjoy FN4. Never bought FNC. Is it a sim boxing game? Oh no. Not really. But it is a really fun game, the boxers look great plus all the CAP boxers I DL let me do plenty of what if classic match-ups.

The career mode was meh. So the replayability was limited to fight now mode for me.

I am not surprised by this move.

I still have and play from time to time my edition of Title Bout (the best boxing game ever made) board game. I have the 1990 version and have created plenty of my own fighter cards as well. An awesome game to this day.

# 33 steelcityjames @ 05/28/13 03:54 PM

i have the 1990 version of Title Bout also. GREAT GAME. used to play it for countless hours!!!

# 34 SHAKYR @ 05/28/13 07:56 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Armor & Sword


	I really enjoy FN4. Never bought FNC. Is it a sim boxing game? Oh no. Not really. But it is a really fun game, the boxers look great plus all the CAP boxers I DL let me do plenty of what if classic match-ups. The career mode was meh. So the replayability was limited to fight now mode for me. I am not surprised by this move. I still have and play from time to time my edition of Title Bout (the best boxing game ever made) board game. I have the 1990 version and have created plenty of my own fighter cards as well. An awesome game to this day.

So, you wouldn't be against Fight Night adding depth like Title Bout Championship Boxing if it meant we will only get a offline single player version. I would love it myself.

# 35 Armor and Sword @ 05/28/13 11:20 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by SHAKYR


	So, you wouldn't be against Fight Night adding depth like Title Bout Championship Boxing if it meant we will only get a offline single player version. I would love it myself.

If Fight Night had the depth of Title Bout.....I would be in heaven. Because visually and control scheme wise....Fight Night 4 is a great game. But the simulation aspect is lacking. No question. Out of the ring it could be so much more. And in the ring it just needs to be tuned properly to play more sim.

Title Bout is the best Boxing Sim ever made so far. But it lacks the fun factor of being the boxer and throwing the punches. It is a text game. And I prefer the board game with the fast action cards LOL. Old School gamer here.

I wish EA or any game developer would make a true sim/action boxing game. It is not an easy task. But it can be done.

# 36 JayBee74 @ 05/29/13 12:06 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by allBthere


	I would like that, kind of like a K-1 mode since they don't make those games any more Peter Aerts!

Yes, I liked the old K1 game. I remember Peter being one of the better ones. Seems like a simple option.

# 37 SHAKYR @ 05/29/13 01:42 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Armor & Sword


	If Fight Night had the depth of Title Bout.....I would be in heaven. Because visually and control scheme wise....Fight Night 4 is a great game. But the simulation aspect is lacking. No question. Out of the ring it could be so much more. And in the ring it just needs to be tuned properly to play more sim. Title Bout is the best Boxing Sim ever made so far. But it lacks the fun factor of being the boxer and throwing the punches. It is a text game. And I prefer the board game with the fast action cards LOL. Old School gamer here. I wish EA or any game developer would make a true sim/action boxing game. It is not an easy task. But it can be done.

EA Fight Night producers never intended to make a sim/realistic game. They want to make a hybrid arcade game with sprinkled with very little sim/realism. I used to debate and go back and forth with the producers with emails. I told them what was going to make Fight Night fail and what would make Fight Night succeed.
I even emailed two documents to the producers one for Fight Night Round 4 and another well written Document for Fight Night Champion. "Fight Night, a boxing fan's Wishlist, What's the producers had in their hands" http://www.operationsports.com/SHAKY...n-their-hands/

Did you noticed the tendencies remind you of the tendencies setup in TBCB? lol!

# 38 Money99 @ 05/29/13 04:05 PM

What kind of career mode did Title Bout offer?

# 39 Angel_G @ 06/07/13 09:55 AM

Well they need Floyd on the game along with Canelo, Marquez, Gutierrez, Rios, etc. Too many missing players.

# 40 SHAKYR @ 06/07/13 10:39 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Angel_G


	Well they need Floyd on the game along with Canelo, Marquez, Gutierrez, Rios, etc. Too many missing players.

Fight Night could have added every boxer from the past, present, future, their sparring partners and children. If the gameplay or core mechanics doesn't reflect a realistic/sim experience EA is going to keep losing fans.
The boxing fans who have played the Fight Night series for years expected a whole lot more from EA FIGHT NIGHT TEAM. The Champion Mode was the straw that broke the camel back, fans couldn't take anymore, especially when games like MLB: The Show and NBA 2k have so much going for them.

No one wants to collect "Action Figures" with names. The boxers never really represent the ways and actions of who they are supposed to be and not everyone loves playing online. Please don't give the producers excuses because Fight Night Champion was made the way it was on purpose.

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