This EA Sports game is killer. After Tiger Woods PGA Tour 2004 this is the first game that kept me excited about playing offline. It's not easy to learn, but once you figure out the hooks and jabs, you're addicted. The controls are just great, the second analogue stick is used to control punches, the left one to control your body, pretty intuitive, all in all.

In addition to the great gameplay, the career mode is what finally gets you addicted. Even though you can adjust the looks of your boxer (pretty much everything is configurable, like in Tiger Woods PGA Tour 2004), you can't change it anymore. You earn experience, skill and money. Before each fight you schedule, you have to go through a training camp. The better you score, the more experience/skill points you can allocate. For each win, you get money. The money you use to buy custom moves, dresses for your Julies, tatoos, taunts, and whatnot.

Great one!