Trading blows with the Fight Night Round 4 producer

EA SPORTS' Mike Mahar details the new Fight Night Round 4 boxers making their way to PlayStation Store in The Champions Pack.

Firstly, take us through what is included in The Champions Pack.

The Champions Pack includes the following boxers, plus new trunks, gloves and boots for your created fighters:

Oscar De La Hoya
Vitali Klitschko
Wladimir Klitschko
Old George Foreman
Middle Weight James Toney

Were the new fighters chosen by the developers or are they the most requested by the community?

We're taking our cues from the community by actively trying to sign boxers they request in our forums and message boards.

We also try to ensure the new boxers bring something unique to the gameplay experience. For example, the middleweight version of James Toney is a very different fighter to the heavyweight James Toney.

There are more high profile fighters being requested by the community and while I can't guarantee anything, we're going to try our best to sign them too.

Taking each new fighter in turn, can you describe their fighting styles and their key attributes?

Oscar De La Hoya - what can I say that hasn't been said about this all time great? We're offering a prime De La Hoya with great foot work, lightning quick hands and a devastating left hook to the body or head.

Vitali Klitschko started as a kick boxer but at 6'8", he is one of the biggest heavyweights in the world. When using Vitali, take advantage of his reach and power by keeping your distance and smothering your opponent when they get in close.

Wladimir Klitschko is slightly shorter than his brother but perhaps a better athlete. He has a unique combination of size, strength, speed, and athleticism. Wlad is a pure boxer who can throw successive quick jabs and left hooks. When using Wladimir, try to create space to unleash quick combinations.

Old George Foreman - in his prime George Foreman was one of - if not the most -devastating punchers in heavyweight history. When using George make use of your guard to close the distance to your opponent and unleash straight lefts and rights. Every punch George throws can put an opponent to sleep.

Middleweight James Toney has good hand speed and a very slick defence. When using James Toney take advantage of his outstanding counter punching skills. He can frustrate opponents with his ability to avoid punches.

How do you go about determining each fighter's relative strength, particularly when comparing ones from different eras?

It's tough comparing boxers from different eras, for sure. First we develop a baseline - who throws the hardest punches or has the quickest hands, for example. We then rank and assign all attributes for all fighters according to that.

After completing this relative ranking we use statistics such as win records, knockouts, belts won, successful title defences and opponent strength to determine the relative quality of boxers from different eras.

Have members of the Fight Night team ever stepped into the ring together for research purposes?

Absolutely - we've been training on and off for years. Now that the game has shipped we're back in the ring training and sparring several times a week. Most notably, Brian Hayes, our gameplay producer, had the opportunity to spar several rounds with Sergio Mora, the former super welterweight champion of the world.

Now that you've had time to monitor online play habits, have there been any trends that surprised you?

I'm astonished at the skill and technique of some of the online gamers I've encountered. There have been several instances when I've fought someone who was using a technique or style that I've not seen before, particularly when it comes to creating counter punch opportunities.

It also amazes me that after only a couple of weeks of the game being live we had many players with over 400 or 500 fights under their belt. That's an average of over 30 fights a day!

Are online players gravitating towards a certain weight or fighter?

It's hard for me to say. I've fought in each of the weight classes but mostly in the Middleweight division. I can say that we see a flood of new participants in the Online World Championship mode every day, trying to fight their way to the top and earn a shot at the belt.

Is The Champions Pack just a taste of the Fight Night Round 4 DLC to come?

The Champions Pack is just a taste. The Fight Night Round 4 production team is on the message boards and forums every day and we receive hundreds of private messages from our users. We're going to continue to offer content for a long time to come, based on community feedback.