The legendary Takashi Nishiyama, renowned for creating Street Fighter, is now embarking on an exciting new project: a boxing game developed in partnership with the iconic boxing magazine, The Ring. This groundbreaking announcement came directly from Turki Alalshikh, the Chairman of Saudi Arabia’s General Entertainment Authority, through his official X account. Alalshikh, who acquired The Ring in November 2024, shared the thrilling news on May 5, 2025.
This upcoming, untitled game promises to feature original characters, blending The Ring’s unparalleled expertise in boxing with the extensive experience of Dimps, Nishiyama's company, known for crafting classic games. Dimps’ most recent release, Freedom Wars Remastered, a revitalized version of the PlayStation Vita game, hit modern consoles in January 2025. Development on this new boxing title is set to commence soon, as per Alalshikh's tweet.
The Saudi Arabian royal family has shown a growing interest in Japan's gaming sector. In April 2024, they acquired full ownership of SNK, a prominent Japanese game company, through the Saudi Crown Prince’s foundation. The Ring has also played a role in promoting SNK’s latest venture, Fatal Fury: City of Wolves, by organizing a boxing match collaboration at Tottenham Hotspur Stadium in London on April 26, 2025. Nishiyama, who worked at SNK during the 1990s, was instrumental in creating the Fatal Fury series and contributed to other flagship SNK titles like Metal Slug and King of Fighters.
Japanese Reactions to The Ring x Dimps Collaboration
The announcement of this collaboration has elicited a range of reactions from Japanese audiences, from excited surprise with comments like “What?!! I want to play it!” to genuine curiosity about the game’s final form. X user @ryo_redcyclone, known for his Street Fighter content, shared his thoughts: “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.”
A significant point of discussion revolves around whether the structured rules of boxing will limit Nishiyama’s renowned creativity, especially given the unconventional characters and moves seen in his past fighting games. For instance, Street Fighter’s Balrog, a clear nod to Mike Tyson, incorporates moves like the Buffalo Head that defy professional boxing regulations. It remains to be seen whether The Ring and Dimps’ new boxing game will lean towards realism or embrace rule-breaking flair.
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