Reviews

I was really looking forward to playing this superb strategy game again , I had vague memories of it being very in depth and easy to play , but hard to complete.

You start off by applying for your boxing license , until the forms filled in ,you can go no further , after inspection by the British boxing council you are granted a license and can manage up to 6 boxers , I chose just a couple to control.

You name the boxers yourself which can be as realistic as you want or as daft as you fancy , I simply chose Mike Tyson and Frank Bruno but with a bit of imagination you could have a bit of a laugh getting Bart Simpson etc challenging for the title !

Onto the main menu , you have 5 options , Advance the date – which moves the day along , Filing cabinet – in which you can check your boxers records , current rank , contracts etc , Phone – this is were the bulk of the office work is done , negotiating fights with other promoters , ringing up various boxing boards to sanction fights and sending out scouts to check on rival fighters , The door – this takes you to the gym and physio room , if a fighter is injured you can get all the details you need here and also put your fighter into peak condition ready for each fight.

As the days pass you must change the fighters training schedule , this keeps you busy , making sure each part of their ability gathers up to maximum strength , any less than this and your fighter could struggle during the next fight , sometimes (which is a pain) a fighter will injure his hand in the gym or cut his eye sparring , you can try and cancel the fight but more often than not it will be too late.

Onto the main fight screen , its very atmospheric for a strategy game , the text commentary is excellent and your fighter is graphically represented with a mugshot that gets more and more battered as the fight progresses , the rounds can be sped up if you wish , but its advisable to read every line and adjust your tactics at the end of each round accordingly. When the bell rings and you have your fighter back on his stool , you can patch him up if he’s cut or bruised and throw water at him if hes been knocked about a bit . It’s a vital time and can make or break a fight.

The first fights are fairly easy , allowing you to get into the game without too much trouble , as you progress up the rankings they do become a lot tougher , you can win local belts , national belts and then onto the world titles , it became an obsession to get my fighter to world champion , I was scanning the fights weekly for changes in the rankings as my man moved up the long ladder , I finally managed it after playing it every night for four weeks and he then decided to leave me for another promoter , that’s just way too realistic for my liking !

Overall it’s a great game , it has that bit of magic that can keep you playing for hours without you realising , it’s a bit of a hidden gem and I personally think it is the best sports strategy game on the spectrum.