Let Boxing Fans Have Their Game:

A War for the Soul of Undisputed

When Undisputed was first revealed to the public, it wasn’t marketed as just another arcade fighting game. It was pitched as the definitive boxing simulation—a spiritual successor to Fight Night Champion, a project backed by real boxers and fueled by real fans. That promise hit home. It gave boxing purists hope.

But now? That vision is being chipped away by louder, less invested voices: YouTubers chasing clicks, MMA fans looking for a new toy, and super casual players who balk at anything that requires depth. These groups are not only distorting the expectations around Undisputed—they’re influencing its development path.

This isn’t about gatekeeping. This is about preservation. Boxing fans aren’t trying to hijack your games—we’re asking that you don’t hijack ours.

1. Let Boxing Fans Drive the Direction — Not the Tourists

Let’s be brutally honest: if you're not a fan of the sweet science, you shouldn't be directing its digital future.

Boxers and hardcore fans have never tried to infiltrate UFC, Street Fighter, or WWE communities demanding realism or fundamental changes. But when a boxing sim finally emerges from the shadows after over a decade of drought, suddenly everyone wants to reshape it into something more familiar to them.

Why?
Because they don't want to learn.
They want immediate gratification.

That’s not how boxing works. This is a sport built on discipline, timing, footwork, tactics, and mental warfare. If you want a taste of that world, join us—but don't try to rewrite it because it doesn’t fit your button-mashing comfort zone.

2. The YouTuber Effect: Sugarcoating the Decline

Let’s get specific. YouTubers are not just reacting to Undisputed—they're shaping its public perception. And many of them are doing more harm than good.

They claim to be “honest reviewers” but rarely push back against SCI’s failings.
They constantly hype “improvements” while ignoring the absence of foundational boxing features.
And worst of all, they’re helping market a product that’s drifting further from what was promised.

It wasn’t a YouTuber who created the Undisputed trailer that pulled in over a million views. That was SCI’s in-house vision—the very one that inspired so many boxing fans to invest emotionally (and financially) in the game.

Instead of holding the developers accountable to that standard, many creators now help lower it. They market what the hardcore fans never asked for, never needed, and never wanted.

3. Casual Fans: Loud, Entitled, and Misguided

The casual crowd has a louder voice than ever—and they’re drowning out the fans who actually care about the sport.

Let’s break it down:

They want to throw 150 punches per round with no stamina consequences.
They think parries should happen every other second.
They complain when footwork isn’t “instant,” not realizing real fighters use angles, not teleportation.
They whine when realistic mechanics slow the game down—even though that’s literally how boxing works.

And yet, developers are listening to them.

That’s the danger. When the volume of noise outweighs the quality of feedback, games start pivoting away from their core identity. And make no mistake—Undisputed is pivoting.

4. Boxing Is Not MMA — Stop Conflating the Two

We respect MMA fans. We love the athletes. But Undisputed is not a UFC game, and boxing is not just “striking without kicks.”

MMA titles like UFC 4 prioritize flashy moves and dynamic sequences because that’s how mixed martial arts is structured. Boxing, on the other hand, is about rhythm, ring generalship, setup punches, counters, feints, inside work, clinching, and scoring strategy.

What boxing fans want from Undisputed:

Boxer-specific traits and tendencies (Ali doesn’t fight like Marciano)
Referee logic with fouls, breaks, and warnings
Proper clinch mechanics
Damage zones and realistic KOs
Dynamic footwork and cut-off strategies
True stamina, fatigue, and recovery systems
An AI that adapts like a real cornered boxer would

These aren’t luxury features. They’re boxing essentials. But when outside audiences dismiss them as “too much” or “too niche,” the devs take shortcuts to appease those louder, less educated players.

5. Boxing Fans Must Get Louder—And More Organized

This isn’t just a vent session. It’s a rally cry.

If boxing fans want to reclaim Undisputed, we need to be smarter, louder, and more unified than ever. That means:

Commenting with purpose across every dev post and YouTube video
Documenting feature regressions and broken mechanics
Creating our own content that pushes realism and accountability
Amplifying legit voices in the community—those who understand boxing and care about its representation
Calling out sugarcoaters, not with hate, but with facts

And if the devs keep listening to the wrong voices, we amplify ours until they can't ignore us.

6. YouTubers: If You Love the Game, Stop Enabling Its Decline

Some of you built your entire following around Undisputed. That comes with responsibility.

You are not just content creators—you are curators of perception. You can’t keep pretending everything is fine while the core mechanics rot beneath shiny new coats of paint.

Stop calling arcade updates “game changers.”
Stop defending missing systems with “early access” excuses—it’s been years.
Stop marketing gameplay that doesn’t reflect what boxing is.
And stop gatekeeping criticism. Fans aren’t “haters” for demanding the actual sport be respected.

If you want to be part of the solution, use your platform to advocate for depth, not dopamine.

Final Round: Stop Glazing. Start Demanding.

What Undisputed is becoming is not what it was sold to be.

And boxing fans have every right to be angry. We have every right to push back. We have every right to take up space in this conversation—more space than the tourists, casuals, and content creators chasing affiliate links.

This game should have been the NBA 2K of boxing.
A living, breathing boxing ecosystem.
A tribute to the sport.
An educational experience for new fans.
A competitive playground for purists.

Instead, we’re watching it drift into the same forgettable territory as every other “almost” sports game. And we say: no more.

The Core Demands:

- Full sim control options and sliders
- Boxer-specific styles, traits, and behavior
- Functional referee and foul system
- Real stamina and fatigue mechanics
- Clinching and inside-fighting
- Proper scoring and AI corner tactics
- Career depth and presentation
- A community built around boxing—not engagement metrics

Closing Statement:

Let boxing fans have their game.
Let us build the foundation.
Let others learn what boxing is—not overwrite it with what they already know.

This isn’t a matter of “letting everyone have fun.” This is about letting the sport of boxing be respected—digitally, strategically, and culturally.

Poe’s Think Tank

Wednesday, July 23, 2025