Atari 2600 (Boxing) Game Boy Advance (Boxing) Playstation (Activision Classics) Playstation 2 (Activision Anthology) PSP (Activision Hits: Remixed)
9.0 out of 10
Before Mike Tyson’s Punch-Out arrived on the NES and showed everyone how fun a boxing game could be, Activision released a boxing game for the Atari 2600 known simply as ‘Boxing.’ This title, while very simplistic, may be the best sports game out of the entire Atari 2600 library. It’s nothing fancy...Just fun.
The game has a top-down viewpoint where one player controls a white boxer and the other controls a black boxer while they stand within a ring that almost resembles a picture frame more than anything else. The boxers look like they’re only heads with arms sticking out of the sides, and a big ol’ nose sticking out the front. The goal is to punch your opponent’s nose in and score points. Whoever has the most points at the end of the time limit wins. That’s it. There are no fancy moves...No combos, just punching and dodging to the best of your abilities while your opponent does the same. A game this simple really shouldn’t be as fun as it is.
Now, you can play the game on single player and have some fun. The computer isn’t over-the-top difficult, but it’ll provide you with some challenge if you fight it. But for the most fun, challenge a friend and go at it. Even if neither of you have ever played a game before, you’ll likely have a blast here...It’s almost like Pong in that respect. It’s very simple and very much a pick-up-and-play kind of game. Trash talking amongst yourselves as you pummel each other can be good times, too. Either way, facing the computer or a friend, you’ll likely enjoy your time with Boxing.
Graphically, Boxing is VERY simple...Even by Atari 2600 standards. The entire screen is olive green....with tan ropes and turnbuckles that almost look like they form a picture frame. Within this ‘frame’ are the two boxers, which I described how they look earlier. That’s it. Granted, everything works, but there could’ve easily been more work put into the graphics here to make it stand out a bit in the sea of Atari 2600 games. As far as audio goes, there’s barely any. No background music here. The only sounds you hear are the sounds of a blocked punch, a punch that connected, and the ring bell at the end of the fight. That’s all of the audio in the game. Again, like the graphics, it all does its job and all....But a little more effort in this area could’ve really helped the game stand out more.
Despite the cosmetic flaws, Boxing is a very enjoyable game. It looks like it’s too simple to be fun, but after a minute or two of playing with a friend, you’ll quickly see that this is actually a very enjoyable game. If you can look past the overly simplistic graphics and almost lack of audio, you’ll find an Atari 2600 gem hidden here. It’s hard to believe that a game with gameplay this simple, that looks and sounds this bland, can deliver such a knockout punch....But it does. - Ape
1980
