I still love boxing and I wish there were more to choose from. I don't believe that you really need real boxers to sell the game. Give us a great player editor, great game play and the game should sell. Take all the money that is given to real boxers and invest it into hiring great programmers and building a solid boxing experience.

I hear that argument all the time, but has there ever been a commercially successful sports game that didn't feature real to life characters or teams in the last 5 years? I can't think of any, and if there has been some....there aren't many.

Simply put, a boxing game (as a sim) would NOT be profitable for a big studio without real characters...

Yes, it's unfortuate that the sport of Boxing has virtually disappeared from the average guy's interest. With the poor showing of the US Olympic team in China, that will continue for another 4 years at least, as that was always a jumping off point for new talent to introduce themselves to the public going back to Ali, Frazier, Foreman, Holyfield, SR Leonard, the Spinks brothers, and quite a few others.

With most of the interest today focusing on Ultimate Fighting, etc. I doubt boxing will ever be as big as it once was. I love a good boxing game. But I really enjoy playing with Ali and other former big names. Since I know them so well and their style, I get much more out of a game like that if it is done well, in a sim style.

If it is an arcade game like a Ready to Rumble, that is fun for awhile, but it is the sim aspects and fighting with former big names that appeals to me, and will keep me playing longer.

Some of this may be a generational thing. I grew up in the '60s and '70s, so I remember first hand the great boxers starting with Cassius Clay, who changed his name to Ali. My first big fight was Ali-Frazier 1. Great time to be a boxing fan with Ali, Foreman, Frazier, Norton, etc. Ali was pretty much done though after the 1975 Ali-Frazier 3, even though he won, he was getting older and the all the punches were starting to show their toll.

Having experienced the great boxers first hand back then, I really enjoy getting to box with them in a game. I dont think someone born after that period would have the same experience. Because of this reason, Ultimate Fighting games are the future for the younger generations.

I always thought it was because they don't do well in sales.

I think alot of it has to do with the fact that there hasn't been a videogame that atually depicted the sport in a realistic fashion. Most boxing fans are hard core fans and for them to buy a boxing game it would have to be realistic in some sort of way. Most of the videogames Fight Night etc...become boring and unrealistic thus turning off fans and ultimately hurting sales...It looks like Rd 4 is trying to become that sim boxing game that boxing fans are craving for...

Thudias, fight night rd 3 was one of eat's biggest successes commercially on this gen of consoles so I doubt that is it...

Your first point hit the nail right on the head; boxing just isn't that popular anymore. When is the last time a big fight was on network TV the way they were back in the 60's and 70's with Howard Cosell calling the action (DOWN GOES FRAZIER!)? I don't think the market would support multiple games. Either people can't afford pay-per-view to watch the fights or they think the sport is fixed. People such as Don King have really harmed the sport's reputation.

Matt, while I think you are right on, the problem is that boxing doesn't have any big names anymore. If there were a couple of marketable guys, tons of people would buy the pay per views. The evidence is with UFC, since they are a very successful entity and the popularity is growing. It's not because of the sport so much as the guys you can get behind. They know how to market personality.

Boxing doesn't have something that is marketable and they (more importantly) don't have a central headquarters to market from...so no one is serving the sports interest but their own. That's the unfortunate reality.

As far as how that ties into games, it means you have to license different guys who think they are worth more than they really are. That means the cost of producing a good solid realistic game is just a bit out of whack nowadays.

If Title Bout Championship Boxing had Fight Night like graphics and minus the names(you could add them yourself) it would kick the Fight Night series dead in the butt. You have older guys who love this game and some of them are crying for graphics. Us die-hard boxing fans will snatch a boxing game up if it's done right. Look at the mockery 2k let's Venom do and it got sales, until people found out the game was garbage.

in response to sdwinder's eluding to fighting with recognizable boxers from the past, it might be a good idea to the the all pro football 2k8 route. come out with a game with all legendary boxers from years past. or maybe boxers that resemble those boxers with different names, and then we can change the names ourselves. just a thought.....

i meant "go" the all-pro football 2k8 route.....although it might be a much more difficult task getting legendary boxers than former football greats. especially a game with a decent sized roster of fighters. as well as better tv presentation as well (maybe hbo or showtime) and better announcers too-maybe steve albert is available...

thank god for fight night round 4 or there would be no boxing games

considering the state of boxing today....with so few big, marketable names, and some retiring soon (del la hoya, hopkins, etc. ) i can see something like a fight night: legends coming out in the near future. that would be awesome. i mean, look at the cover of of fight night round 4. it even has two legendary fighters on it. maybe ea sports should go that route with the next installment. especially with the new fighting engine, it could be the best selling game of the fight night series.

The old saying says, "if you build it them will come!" The popularity of a sport or who's the big names in it has nothing to do with sells it helps but fans want authentic gameplay. Gameplay,customization, depth, and options is what captures customers attention. Why do you think the game Victorious Boxers is so popular today amongst boxing fans......and games like Title Bout Championship Boxing(depth and options)?