Essential Hires for a Realistic Boxing Video Game (Steel City Interactive or Any Studio)

These are the roles you cannot skip if you want a true sim boxing game. Anything outside this list risks bloating the budget without adding core realism.

Leadership & Direction (3 total)

Game Director (Sports/Combat Specialist) – 1 person – Oversees vision and realism.
Creative Director (Boxing Focus) – 1 person – Protects authenticity across all systems.
Technical Director – 1 person – Guides technical choices, performance, and pipelines.

Boxing Authenticity & AI (4 total)

Tendencies, Capabilities, Traits & Attributes Designer – 1 person – Builds the style/personality database for every boxer.
AI & Tendency Engineer (Boxing AI) – 1 person – Implements adaptive fight styles.
Professional Boxing Consultant – 1 person – Retired pro or elite trainer for realism checks.
Boxing Historian / Stats Analyst – 1 person – Ensures era-accurate tendencies and rosters.

Core Gameplay Development (5 total)

Lead Gameplay Programmer (Combat Systems) – 1 person – Implements punches, movement, stamina, and damage.
Physics Programmer – 1 person – Handles glove impact, hit reactions, and falls.
Animation Programmer (Combat) – 1 person – Integrates mocap with responsive controls.
Fight Systems Designer – 1 person – Balances stamina, damage, clinching, and vulnerabilities.
Procedural Animation Engineer – 1 person – Handles fatigue posture, weight shifts, and dynamic foot planting.

Animation & Mocap (3 total)

Lead Animator (Boxing Specialist) – 1 person – Oversees punch, defense, and footwork animations.
Mocap Director – 1 person – Directs real boxers in mocap sessions.
Mocap Cleanup Artist – 1 person – Prepares animation data for gameplay.

Presentation & Broadcast (3 total)

Presentation Director – 1 person – Oversees cameras, commentary flow, and fight-night atmosphere.
UI/UX Designer (Sports Focus) – 1 person – Builds fight HUD, menus, and career mode interfaces.
Commentary Writer / Audio Director – 1 person – Creates dynamic, context-aware commentary.

Testing & Stability (2 total)

QA Lead (Sports Focus) – 1 person – Oversees testing for realism and stability.
Network Engineer – 1 person – Ensures stable online play and lag compensation.

Essential Team Size

Minimum for a true sim: 20 key hires
SCI currently has: 3–4 of these roles (Game Director, QA Lead, some Audio/Narrative staff)
Critical Missing Roles: All AI authenticity hires, combat programmers, mocap specialists, and presentation leadership.

Why Cut the Fat

Roles like extra marketing assistants, multiple environment artists, or oversized narrative teams can come later — after the core boxing experience works. The above list ensures that the mechanics, authenticity, and presentation are locked in first, which is what sells a simulation boxing game to both hardcore and casual fans.

Phase 1 – Build the Realism Core (First 3–4 Months)

Goal: Establish the vision, secure authenticity, and start AI/boxing systems early.

Game Director (Sports/Combat Specialist) – If not already in place.
Creative Director (Boxing Focus) – Protects boxing authenticity from day one.
Tendencies, Capabilities, Traits & Attributes Designer – Builds the style/personality database; critical for AI realism.
AI & Tendency Engineer (Boxing AI) – Starts coding adaptive fight styles early.
Professional Boxing Consultant – Guides realism in all decisions.
Boxing Historian / Stats Analyst – Feeds historical data into boxer templates.

By the end of Phase 1, you have the boxing brain trust and AI foundation locked in, so the rest of development builds on a realistic core.

Phase 2 – Core Gameplay Systems (Months 4–8)

Goal: Make the fighting itself feel authentic before adding presentation polish.

Lead Gameplay Programmer (Combat Systems) – Implements punches, movement, stamina, and damage logic.
Physics Programmer – Starts work on glove impact, knockdowns, and body physics.
Animation Programmer (Combat) – Bridges mocap with gameplay systems.
Fight Systems Designer – Balances mechanics like clinching, damage, and fatigue.
Procedural Animation Engineer – Adds weight shifts, foot planting, and fatigue posture.

By the end of Phase 2, you should have a playable prototype with realistic boxer movement, punches, stamina, and basic AI.

Phase 3 – Animation & Mocap Integration (Months 6–10)

Goal: Replace placeholders with real boxing animations.

Lead Animator (Boxing Specialist) – Directs the animation style.
Mocap Director – Oversees shoots with real boxers.
Mocap Cleanup Artist – Cleans data for integration.

By the end of Phase 3, the game looks and moves like boxing, not a generic brawler.

Phase 4 – Presentation & Fight-Night Atmosphere (Months 8–12)

Goal: Make the game feel like televised boxing.

Presentation Director – Creates authentic camera work and arena atmosphere.
UI/UX Designer (Sports Focus) – Builds the fight HUD and menus.
Commentary Writer / Audio Director – Starts scripting context-aware commentary.

By the end of Phase 4, the game has a broadcast-level presentation layer to sell the realism.

Phase 5 – Testing & Online Stability (Ongoing from Month 10 onward)

Goal: Ensure the experience holds up in solo and online play.

QA Lead (Sports Focus) – Oversees ongoing testing for realism and bugs.
Network Engineer – Builds lag compensation and stable matchmaking.

Hiring Priority Rule

Early hires = Direct impact on authenticity and mechanics.
Mid hires = Animation and presentation once the core works.
Late hires = Stability and polish roles for final refinement.

Poe’s Think Tank

Wednesday, August 13, 2025