The Illusion of Listening: Why Undisputed Fans Need to Stop Saying “SCI Is Listening”

By Poe | The Boxing Videogame Blueprint / Realistic Boxing Gaming Blog

1. The False Narrative of “Listening”

Every time Steel City Interactive (SCI) announces a patch, a content drop, or a new boxer pack, certain fans and content creators rush to social media declaring, “See? SCI is listening!”
But are they really?

When you look closely, what SCI is doing isn’t listening — it’s strategic filtering. They’re picking and choosing feedback that suits their marketing and business schedule, while quietly ignoring the deeper, foundational issues that would transform Undisputed into a true representation of the sport of boxing.

Listening would mean revisiting movement physics, AI individuality, punch mechanics, stamina logic, and realistic fatigue — all of which have been criticized since the early access launch. Instead, SCI continues to polish around the edges, never digging into the foundation.

2. Selective Updates Masquerading as Progress

Let’s be honest — Undisputed has received a steady drip of “updates,” but most of them fall into one of three categories:

Cosmetic additions (new gear, camera angles, menus).
Boxer packs (often reskinned fighters or redundant names).
Minor gameplay tweaks that avoid addressing the real issues.

Fans have waited years for core systems like tendencies, capabilities, and traits to be implemented. These are the backbone of realism — the tools that make each boxer feel unique rather than identical clones with different faces.

Instead, SCI has turned to surface-level distractions. The updates look busy on paper, but functionally, the game feels like it’s been frozen in place since the earliest versions of early access.

3. DLC Dependency and the Monthly Distraction Cycle

SCI has fallen into a familiar industry pattern: DLC dependency.
Almost every month, they release a new DLC pack — another boxer, another skin, another “legacy” name. And each time, the conversation shifts away from the state of the gameplay to “Who’s next?”

This pattern isn’t accidental. It’s strategic.
When you can’t showcase gameplay depth, you keep the public distracted with names, cosmetics, and hype cycles. The casual players get a temporary dopamine rush, while the deeper issues remain hidden under the surface.

4. The Content Creator Defense Mechanism

Here’s where it gets even more concerning — some of the very people who should be holding SCI accountable have become their loudest defenders.

Many Undisputed content creators go into defense mode the moment DLC or updates drop. They act as unofficial shields for SCI, deflecting legitimate criticism by framing any dissatisfaction as “negativity.”
These creators, consciously or not, become part of the PR pipeline.

When they defend every DLC or patch as “proof that SCI is listening,” they help reinforce a false sense of progress. But in truth, these monthly releases are distractions that buy SCI time — time they aren’t using to address realism, AI, or authentic boxing representation.

5. The Divide in the Fanbase

The fanbase has split into two camps:

The Casuals – They enjoy the boxers’ names, the flashy entrances, and the novelty of new DLC packs.
The Realists and Sim Fans – They see through the marketing. They want stamina to matter, movement to feel human, and strategy to define outcomes — not button-mashing or speed exploits.

SCI’s selective listening caters almost exclusively to the first group. They prioritize the short-term hype of casual fans over the long-term loyalty of the sim community that built the foundation of this game’s support.

6. The Missing Features That Still Matter

If SCI were truly listening, we’d see these long-promised features front and center by now:

Tendencies and Capabilities: To make each boxer fight like themselves.
Referee and Corner Systems: For realism, pacing, and immersion.
Clinch and Defense Overhauls: To add tactical depth and authenticity.
Creation Suite Expansion: To let the community fill in what SCI refuses to build.
AI Upgrades: Smarter opponents who adapt to styles and situations.

Instead, the development roadmap has become a DLC catalog.

7. The Strategic Illusion of Progress

SCI’s approach has become a masterclass in controlled perception.
They’ve found that if they keep doing something — even if it’s minimal — fans will argue over “how much progress” was made rather than asking the real question: Was progress made in the right direction?

Adding more boxers when the existing ones don’t fight like themselves isn’t progress — it’s inflation. Expanding menus without improving mechanics isn’t listening — it’s marketing.

8. What Real Listening Would Look Like

True listening would mean:

Publicly acknowledging core issues, not burying them under “upcoming content.”
Establishing open testing or feedback programs with sim-minded players.
Fixing mechanics before selling more boxers.
Making gameplay transparency the standard — not the exception.

Real listening is uncomfortable because it means accountability. And that’s something SCI has avoided masterfully.

9. Final Word: The Silence Behind the Noise

Fans aren’t wrong to want to believe in Undisputed. The potential is enormous — the roster, visuals, and ambition are undeniable. But blind optimism is not the same as progress.

When you see monthly DLC packs and hear content creators defending SCI like a reflex, remember: activity is not authenticity.
SCI isn’t listening — they’re strategically filtering what they hear and selling the illusion of progress to buy time.

Until they confront the deep issues at the heart of their boxing simulation, Undisputed will remain what it currently is: a game with great names, good graphics, and no real boxing soul.

Poe’s Game Intel

Monday, October 27, 2025