The Thrill of the Fight 2 will be released in Early Access this November

The Thrill of the Fight is one of the most popular VR boxing games of all time. After eight long years, a second title has been announced.

After nearly a decade of speculation, we heard promising signs of a sequel earlier this year. We now have official screenshots and a beta release date from the developers.

Relive the thrill of battle

The original The Thrill of the Fight, first released in 2016, is essentially a VR boxing simulator. It includes various game modes for fun and fitness. The simplicity of the game is its greatest strength and its greatest weakness.

Warming up and training

You can't experience The Thrill of the Fight without the heat of the gym. The game features several warm-up modes, including a peanut bag to practice rhythm, a heavy bag to build punching power, a dummy to practice aim, and a speed ball to practice your footwork.

Another game mode called “Extras” was probably where this particular boxing title showed the most character. This setting pits more stylized opponents with special abilities such as increased speed or stamina, forcing the player to develop certain skills.

Get into the ring

The Thrill of the Fight 2 features a new and improved VR gym. Image: Halfbrick Studios.

The game features two main gameplay modes. One is essentially an arcade mode where you face off against a generic AI opponent in your home dojo, “Hazegood's Gym”.

There's also a story mode, but don't expect any plot or character development – you just move from one opponent to the next. These opponents have different fighting styles and become increasingly difficult to defeat. And the ring and crowd keep getting bigger, which is a nice touch. Even after you've defeated the biggest and baddest opponent, don't expect a belt ceremony.

The lack of a narrative can be a little disappointing, but the different difficulty levels for each enemy give this original title a lot of replay value.

… and that's it

The original Thrill of the Fight works with haptic wearable accessories, but that's about its only real highlight. Many features that would make a lot of sense for a boxing simulator – including PVP modes and hand tracking – were noticeably missing.

Aside from the seasonal extras, the game received few updates over the years, leaving fans waiting for more. However, there was no reason to complain as the game didn't cost a fortune with its $10 price tag.

Brand new thrills

Thrill of the Fight 2 has been highly anticipated almost since the original's release. This is in part because advances in VR technology have fans eager for updates.

This is also because the developer of the game, Sealost Interactive LLChas been promising a sequel for years. Players who ask for things like merchandise on social media (I want my Hazegood's Gym shirt!) have long been told that the team is too busy working on another title to care about fan service.

To be honest, the game was produced almost entirely by the passion of developer Ian Fitz. Fitz had no experience in game development and the first version of the game was a side project. An important part of the game's development was Fitz quitting his job to devote himself full-time to the series.

Of course, a teaser trailer that Meta released in mid-September created excitement and anticipation. The teaser trailer, which contains neither gameplay footage nor information about the features, was certainly a good teaser. But now we know more.

Everything we know about The Thrill of Fighting 2

For one thing, it is no longer just Ian. In a press release obtained by MIXED, Fitz says that he has Halfrbick Studios – the company that gave us Fruit Ninja and Jetpack Joy Ride.

Both games share some similarities with The Thrill of the Fight – namely, developing simple mechanics in an intuitive and endlessly fun way. If that doesn't convince you about the game's direction, rest assured. The press release states that the partnership was born in part out of Halfbrick CEO Shainiel Deo's love for the original game.

A screenshot of the new avatar customization interface for The Thrill of the Fight 2. Image: Halfbrick Studios

The second game's features include elements we've come to expect from the first, including responsive physics, addictive gameplay, and a focus on a realistic boxing experience. It also includes some of the features fans of the original most requested: multiplayer modes and customizable avatars.

A more engaging trailer from Halfbrick Studios showed gameplay that focused on multiplayer gameplay and showcased improved graphics. According to the release, multiplayer gaming will include direct PVP modes and rank-based matchmaking.

The new images and videos of the game also have some gifts in store for fans. For example, a sign on the wall shows us what is still not “Hazegood's Gym” from the original title, but “Fitz's Boxing Gym”.

There's no word yet on wishlist features like controller-free hand tracking. Also, while the original game was released first on PCVR, then Quest, and later VIVE, so far we only have release footage from Meta, which raises the question of if or when it will come to other platforms—and whether cross-platform gameplay or even avatars will be available.

See you in the ring

We don't have a date or price predictions for the new game, but the Halfbrick trailer gives us November 21st as the release date for multiplayer early access.

Sources: Press release

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