World Championship Boxing Manager 2 Developer Interview: Experience the Journeys of Classic Boxers

Boxing (or some form of martial arts) has been around for basically as long as boxing has been around since the dawn of time.

Celebrate ancient traditions (and modern advances in boxing) by coaching, coaching, and leading fighters to victory (or defeat) in World Championship Boxing Manager. You can earn it now as part of IGN Plus. .

Plus Member – Get your World Championship Boxing Manager 2 key here IGN Rewards Page. Not a Plus member? SIGN UP NOW.You can also follow the developer twitter.

Developer Interview: Creative Director Andrew Marsh

I spoke with Andrew Marsh, Creative Director of WCBM2, to discuss the development of the game, its goals, and what players can expect when they enter this retro (but familiar) management sim. .

Producing a sequel to the popular retro management simulation

Boxing games have been around since very early in gaming history, and the team at MegaCat was interested in creating a boxing management game for several reasons. One of its big draws was that it told stories ranging from up-and-coming boxers to underground club martial artists to high-paying martial artists, shady underworlds, big spotlights, and everything in between. That was it.

The team was also drawn to the style of the original World Championship Boxing Manager (WCBM), so the idea of ​​creating a sequel based on the (beloved) original was appealing to the retro-loving team. Yes, we took this opportunity to make iterative improvements. Based on the original, it adds new quality of life improvements and a whole new phase of the game.

fusion of old and new

Nothing was too much trouble for the development team. They want to provide a classic experience for older players, while making it easy for new players, especially those new to management sims, boxing, or retro gaming, to join in. I was thinking style game. While playing the original game, they first started by streamlining and modernizing it, then looking for new elements that could be introduced to make it more enjoyable for players.

Like the original, players take on the role of a boxing manager who seeks to discover up-and-coming boxers and build their careers, but unlike the original, there is more interaction when it comes to actual matches. occurs. We don’t just focus on adventure games.

In the original game, the announcer simply told the player how the boxing match unfolded, but in WCBM2, the player watches the fight unfold, watching the fighters strike and expend energy. . Between rounds, the player can restore a small amount of the boxer’s health or endurance and tell him to continue or change his current strategy. All this is unique to his WCMB2, creating a fascinating rhythm of strategizing on weekdays and seeing if his training pays off when he fights on Friday night.

representative of the sport and its champions

I enjoyed the strategic rhythm of planning a boxer’s training sessions, choosing tournaments to enter, and managing the boxer’s “big picture” strategy as he fought round after round. MegaCat’s team makes puzzle-solving and strategy-making an important part of the sport.

Another addition is the “Knowledge” section with lots of interesting information about boxing, including techniques, equipment and more. Beautifully detailed artwork depicting his gloves in various styles of boxing and many other works on display, great for someone like me who doesn’t know much about the more complex aspects of the sport. is.

The development team also spoke with classic boxers (and their financiers) to gain first-hand knowledge of the sport, bringing a higher level of realism and crafting a story that players will enjoy in WCBM2. Story mode lets you play as more than a random boxer. Sure you can, but you can also manage Sugar Ray Robinson before his career even started. Even if you’re not into simulation games, give it a try. You may find new (and old) ways to have fun.

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Brian Barnett writes reviews, guides, features and more for IGN and GameSpot. You can fix his antics on Twitter (@Ribnax), backlog d (Livenax) & Twitch (Livenax) Or check out his fantastic video game talk show, The Platformers. convulsions & apple podcast.