Fury vs. Usyk: Can Undisputed bring boxing back to video games?

If you want to settle an argument over a fantasy matchup in your favorite sport, video games are the way to go.

Football fans have EA FC, basketball has NBA 2K, and Formula 1 games have been keeping gas geeks happy for years.

However, this was not the case with boxing. until now.

Ever since giant Electronic Arts rang the bell with its seminal boxing simulator Fight Night in 2011, the sport has been underrepresented in the gaming world.

The company changed its focus to focus on the UFC, leaving a gap in the market for a high-profile, dedicated boxing series.

Now Sheffield-based independent studio Steel City Interactive hopes to put the sport back on the digital map with Undisputed.

They're off to a good start – Tyson Fury, featured on the cover of the special edition of The Game, is in the news ahead of his big fight with Oleksandr Usyk.

Both appear on Undisputed as part of a 70-strong roster that includes legendary fighters past and present.

It took four and a half years to get there, but studio head Ash Habib, who founded the company with his two brothers, says the game's humble roots are a far cry from the bright lights of main event battles. He says it was.

“It literally started with [retired boxer] “Ryan Rose came to my house, sat in my living room, and I showed him this concept that we had spent months creating,” Ash says.

“He said, “I can't be part of this, I want to be part of this.

“And that obviously opened some doors.”

Ash said Ryan and other boxing industry officials helped him get the fight in front of other fighters who similarly liked what they saw.

From there, the development team used motion capture and digital scanning to create a life-like version of the game, and were able to broker a deal to bring boxing's top talent on board.

This sparked a healthy interest in the game among boxing fans, drawn to Undisputed's promise of an authentic and realistic recreation of the sport, similar to the Fight Night series.

This has enabled Steel City to attract investment and grow into a company of around 70 people based in offices adjacent to one of Sheffield's huge manufacturing plants.

Ash said the team had high expectations for the match, but admitted it was “a bit of a poisoned chalice.”

“There hasn't been a boxing match in such a long time, so I think naturally there's a lot of anticipation and excitement for this fight,” he says.

Undisputed has been available on PC as an early access game for some time, allowing players to get their hands on a work-in-progress version before its official release and provide feedback on any bugs or gameplay features they'd like to see improved or added.

The game has a vocal community of fans, and concerns over the lack of progress have grown in recent months.

Ash acknowledged that many people had made “valid points” and acknowledged that the pace of updates was not as fast as the studio had hoped.

But he insists the developers are taking feedback on board.

“One thing I learned is that game development is not easy from the outside looking in,” he says.

“And when you actually have to see what's involved, it becomes a different ballgame.

“I think the current state of the game is that we're very happy with the changes we've made.”

Another challenge facing developers today is the current state of the gaming industry, which has seen thousands of layoffs and studio closures around the world.

The top end of the industry has been particularly hard hit, with major companies such as Microsoft and EA also making significant cuts.

But smaller studios like Steel City are also facing problems.

Ash said the studio has received “tremendous support” from the boxing industry, which has made it less reliant on gaming industry investments.

As such, he says it's important for the game to “give back” to the sports scene, and one way to do that is to involve up-and-coming boxers.

One of them is Dalton Smith, a 27-year-old professional from Sheffield. He has been involved with the Undisputed project since its early stages.

Dalton says having a video game dedicated to a sport can help keep fans interested and even get them interested in trying out the real thing.

He thinks boxing will benefit if Undisputed takes off.

“The other biggest sports have their own games, and they get stronger every year,” he says.

“And it's just bringing attention to those sports. And, you know, whether it's the UFC, whether it's boxing, whether it's football, they're probably going to play in each match, and It all comes back to inspiring young people.”