Fight Night Round 3 Preview

It's time to designate a night to the fight. This one we can talk about – only the "club" must be kept a secret. We'll pile in the fans, the enthusiasts, the average Joes. We'll sell 'em overpriced items and scalp ringside seats. We'll bring the masses together not to fight the good fight but to watch the good fight – to leave the viewers in awe.

Viewers were left in awe at Sony's 2005 E3 Press Conference, where EA unveiled the first taste of Fight Night Round 3: a PlayStation 3 tech demo that was confirmed as a full-fledged game. We are not yet at the new console's launch, this is the time of the year when EA throws its hardest punches, delivering new boxing games for virtually every console. The PlayStation 2 version, though less visually impressive than its highly anticipated PS3 cousin, is an extremely impressive boxing game. It's got all the hard-hitting, combo-dealing, face-deconstructing action you've come to expect from the best-selling franchise – plus a new level of cinematic intensity that'll have gamers shouting, "Whoa, did you just see that!?"

Fight Night Round 3 comes out swinging with the continuation of EA's trademark "Total Control" system. This one's tricky, throwing a few unexpected moves at the player, asking them to do things they've never had to do in a fighting or boxing game before. Punches are dealt with the right analog stick. This feature is not as uncommon now as it was a few years ago, but the subtleties and nuances of landing a successful hit are potentially revolutionary. Pushing the stick in one direction (forward) executes a hit; pushing it left or right changes which fist is going to unleash that hit. It's a simple-sounding control method that is much more difficult to master than it sounds. As any fighting/boxing fan knows, the time spent mastering the game is often the most fun.

Training games help you get into the game, where X marks the spot of a dummy to indicate the combo sequences that should be executed. There's a weightlifting mini-game that tests your ability to sensitively touch the right and left analog sticks. Bobbing and weaving is as easy as holding down one button and pushing the left analog stick in various directions. The art of mastering evasive techniques is quite elaborate, and the challenge ahead of gamers looking to master quick block moves is a whole other story.

Players will get a modern-day taste of retro boxing via ESPN Classics, a mode where you get to control a champion boxer in a memorable fight. Control Ali or Frazier in their classic bout. Relive the excitement of Jones Jr. Vs. Hopkins, Leonard Vs. Duran, Gatti Vs. Ward, or one of six (or more) other classic battles. One of the battles was locked and did not say who the contenders were. Will others open up as the game's requirements are met? We're keeping our gloves crossed.

Upping the ante on computer animation, Fight Night Round 3 is stuffed with as much visual prowess as you're going to get out of the PS2 (presumably. We'd love to see EA prove us wrong with Fight Night Round 4). Each boxer was modelled, textured and designed to look exactly like their real-life counterparts. The results are nothing short of amazing.

The action is very close in this game, and yet the players never fail to keep up a convincing performance. Hits, even light hits, send heads back and forth, moving so freely to the point where you wonder if the neck is still completely attached. Upon being knocked down, players are treated to a cinematic slowdown where the camera repositions itself to show the boxer getting pummeled.

The slow-motion effect is a detailed, real-time showing of the events that just took place – events that you initiated, either by being a champion or by being the loser on the other side. This is very cool to watch. It's extremely effective at achieving the immersive, ultra-intense level the developers were going for. Only the Xbox 360 and eventual PlayStation 3 versions could be better.

Coming soon to game consoles everywhere, Fight Night Round 3 is striving to be EA's most accomplished boxing game yet. At this stage in the game it already has enough entertaining content, top-tier contenders, and challenging gameplay mechanics to make players feel like they really accomplished something. With that in mind, Fight Night Round 3 should have no trouble becoming the champ. Look for it to be crowned at the end of the month.