The legendary Takashi Nishiyama, the mastermind behind Street Fighter, has embarked on an exciting new venture: a boxing game developed in collaboration with The Ring, a prestigious boxing magazine. This thrilling announcement was made by Turki Alalshikh, Chairman of Saudi Arabia’s General Entertainment Authority, via his official X account. Alalshikh, who acquired The Ring in November 2024, shared that this untitled game will feature original characters and fuse "The Ring’s unmatched authority in boxing with game developer Dimps’ decades-long experience in crafting classic games."
Together with legendary Japanese video game designer Takashi Nishiyama, I am proud to announce a forthcoming boxing game presented by The Ring featuring original characters.
This strategic partnership between myself and Nishiyama brings together our unmatched authority in… pic.twitter.com/LRWyyZzkpz
— TURKI ALALSHIKH (@Turki_alalshikh) May 5, 2025
Dimps, Nishiyama's company, recently released Freedom Wars Remastered in January 2025, a reworking of a PlayStation Vita game for modern consoles. According to Alalshikh’s tweet, development on this new boxing title is set to begin soon.
The Saudi Arabian royal family's interest in Japan’s gaming industry has been on the rise. Notably, in April 2024, it was disclosed that the Saudi Crown Prince’s foundation acquired 100% of the shares of Japanese game company SNK. The Ring Magazine has also been actively involved in promoting SNK's upcoming title, Fatal Fury: City of Wolves, through a boxing match collaboration event at Tottenham Hotspur Stadium in London on April 26, 2025. Interestingly, Nishiyama himself has a storied history with SNK, having created the Fatal Fury series and produced numerous games in the Metal Slug and King of Fighters franchises during his time there in the 1990s.
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Japanese fans have expressed a mix of surprise and curiosity regarding the announcement of the collaboration between The Ring and Dimps. Responses on social media platforms range from enthusiastic exclamations like “What?!! I want to play it!” to eager anticipation about the final product.
@ryo_redcyclone, an active Street Fighter enthusiast on X, commented on the news, drawing on Nishiyama's past statements about Street Fighter: “Commenting on the first Street Fighter, Nishiyama said: ‘I chose to focus on street fighting because established sports are restricted by rules.’ This time he is making a game based on boxing, a sport with rules, so I’m curious to see how it will turn out.”
Much of the discussion revolves around whether the structured rules of boxing might limit Nishiyama's creative flair, particularly known for his quirky characters and unconventional moves in previous fighting games. Street Fighter, for instance, features Balrog, a character resembling Mike Tyson, who uses moves like kicks and the Buffalo Head, which clearly contravene professional boxing regulations. It remains to be seen whether The Ring and Dimps will opt for a realistic depiction of boxing or venture into more rule-breaking territory with this new title.
