As a sport, boxing can be a mixed affair. On the one side of things, you have the bouts that are promised to be absolutely legendary and then end up being over in a matter of minutes due to a mistimed issue or one boxer easily overpowering the other. Mike Tyson USED to have a legacy like that until he eventually came apart at his own madness. However, on the other, you could see a bout between two welterweights that goes the full twelve rounds and unleashes the drama that the sport is known for, with one fighter swaying himself on the ropes and then suddenly coming through with a burst of speed and the upset by the judges' panel. I could mention Muhammad Ali's infamous Rope-a-Dope, but the judges didn't really have any say in the verdict because Ali always left 'em lying on the mat. Either way you go, however, there's a fascination watching the sport, where two boxers enter and are determined to pound their competition until there's slabs of meat left.

EA Sports has gotten better in capturing the essence of the sport over the years, avoiding the Don King-esque corruption and instead focusing on what makes the sport so fantastic- the brutal, intense boxing action. They started off simply with the likes of the Toughman Contest and eventually making their way into the Knockout Kings franchise, but it's with the birth of the Fight Night brand that they've finally given players the complete control over a boxer that they deserved. With Fight Night, players can use the dual analog sticks on a control pad to move around their boxer and control their punches, whether they're delivering quick jabs or moving in for the kill with a dizzying haymaker. The first game, Fight Night 2004 delivered well enough, but Fight Night Round 2 catapulted the series with insane replays that showed blood and sweat flow, as well as improvements on the control.

But the series is about to see what I feel is its best year yet. Fight Night Round 3 takes all the goodness that the series has grown into thus far in terms of control and mixes it up with a couple of new features that act as pure essentials for the brand. Not only that, but part three marks the evolving of the series onto a portable machine (the Sony PSP), as well as the next generation consoles (the Xbox 360 and eventually the PlayStation 3). It should go down as the best chapter in the series yet.

Let's talk about the controls for a minute. Like in previous versions, you'll still have handling over your player's punches, as well as defensive maneuvering and getting in position for the "kill" in the match, going for the KO instead of trying to last the round. But EA's tweaked it a little bit. The haymaker's still around, but now coming into play is a new EA Power Punch, an even MORE powerful move where you can prime the fighter for a super blow and, if it connects, you put the opponent on the ropes and eventually leave them laying on the mat. If it doesn't, however, you leave yourself in a prime position to get pummeled. Timing is everything, as you might have learned with the haymaker.

But there's something new here that's worth mentioning, and that's the first-person mini-game. If you find yourself dizzied somehow, your view switches to this first-person view and you find yourself actually looking through the eyes of the boxer, as your opponent gets ready to put you down. This puts defense further into play, as you have to move your gloves about to avoid getting knocked down through successive blocking. This is a fantastic new feature and it makes me wonder what would become of the series if EA just included it as an option as a default view throughout the entire match. It'd be fascinating, that's for sure. "Who needs a first person shooter? I'm first person boxing, bitch!"

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