Genre: Sports
Developer: Gray Matter
Publisher: EA Sports

Along with The Need for Speed, Foes of Ali makes a case that the 3DO can, indeed, compete with the Saturn and Playstation on graphical terms. The boxers, arenas, and other objects around said arenas are all polygonally represented, and make use of exceptionally high resolution textures for a game of this era. In the first person mode, special effects such as blurring and double vision come into play. This is, undoubtedly, one of the most gorgeous 3DO games ever.

On any platform, this is one of the best sounding games I've laid ears to. The crowd roars and gasps are all recorded from real events, smart aleck spectators shout jeers to the contenders, and every jap, hook, and uppercut is audibly demonstrated to startingly conveyed. Even the arena bell is indistinguishable from the real thing. Truly, a game with audio this good could only happen on a CD, and the developer was wise to choose the 3DO as the target platform.

There are slews of game modes, including tournaments, careers, and real, historical matches from Ali's career. Additionally, there are many boxers to choose from, complete with the statistics and history of each fighter. The actual gameplay accurately represents the sport, and each fighter can lean, block, and perform body and head hits of different varieties. Where the gameplay lacks is in fluidity; the fighters feel far too stiff, and there is no such thing as "bob 'n weave" here.

Between the realism, the modes, and the number of boxers, this is a complete package, and is a very enjoyable game even to those who know nothing about boxing. Hardcore fans will find that this game, mostly, represents the strategy and atmosphere of real boxing. Playing through the game's modes also proves to be very educational, providing detailed history on boxing and many of the famous fighters to step into the ring. All in all, this is a splendid game with perhaps only a few shortcomings.