Fight Night Round 3 is coming out for nearly every gaming platform this year--but the version that has had most fight fans talking has been for the Xbox 360. It's for good reason, too--the game's visuals are simply what next-generation gaming is all about: amazing-looking fighter models, lighting effects that feel at once natural and stunningly complex, and a solid frame rate throughout. But talking about Fight Night Round 3's graphics is simply telling what you already know (besides, the gameplay videos and screenshots speak volumes). Gameplay, on the other hand, is a different story. What is it about Fight Night Round 3 that's so special? What makes it a worthy next-gen follow up to previous games in the series? For the answers, we turned to a person who's been in the trenches of EA Sports' boxing game from the beginning--our created boxer, R.C. Dozier. He's an up-and-comer in the virtual boxing world and, when he's not too punch-drunk from taking stiff shots to the grill, he has agreed to fill us in on the progress of his boxing career, all the way up from amateur status to middleweight champion of the world...that is, if he makes it that far.

R.C., take it away!

Diary of a Contender, Part 1

Hey, everybody. I'm R.C. Dozier, and believe me, I aim to have a belt around my waist within the next 10 to 15 years. And I don't mean the kind of belt that's there to hold your pants up. No, I'm talking about the kind of belt with some gold on it! Some people may think that my goals are too lofty, my right hook is too weak, and my chin is made of half-melted butter, but they're wrong. At least about the last one. I've taken enough punches to the head to know my butter chin is fully frozen.

Hagler, Leonard… Dozier? Our imaginary middleweight is certain his name is set for Fight Night glory.

Anyway, I'm here to tell you about my career in Fight Night Round 3. Like many of the all-time greats, my fighting career started in the third grade. You see, I've got what the doctor types refer to as "pronounced" ears--they're easy enough to spot in FN3's create-a-boxer mode. They look like two shanks of pale steak attached to each side of my head. Any time some little kid decided to call me a name back in the day, I'd rearrange his jaw for him. Pretty soon, my third grade teacher, Mrs. Purseworth, caught my left jab and told me the words that would forever change my life: "One day, R.C., you'll get knocked out by the best."

So from that day forward I've worked toward becoming a great pugilist in Fight Night Round 3. So far, my career has been an uphill struggle--I've been toiling away in the amateur ranks for a number of months now. I guess that's how all the greats began--Duran, Hagler, de la Hoya--all of them started from humble beginnings. I plan to add my name to that pantheon of greatness. If I'm going to get knocked out, I plan on getting knocked out by the best, just like Mrs. Purseworth said!

As soon as I decided that boxing was my life's career, I gave up my job and started training full-time. Early on, I had to decide what kind of fighter I wanted to be and choose my style. Now, I don't want to weigh you down with too much insider lingo, but one of the most important thing about any boxer is his style or stance. Everyone's got their own particular way of fighting in Fight Night Round 3, and your best bet is to pick a style and really learn its intricacies. Luckily, you've got a number of choices right off the bat. Do you want to be a speedy puncher who likes to throw lethal uppercuts? Or would you prefer to slug it out using a mummy stance? Personally, my style is a bit wild and I rely mostly on my speed. I may not hurt you much if I hit you, but you can be sure my glove is going to find your face. A fighter has to protect himself in the ring, too, and you've got a number of different block styles to choose from right away in Fight Night 3. I went with the "classic" block style, because I like to get as much parrying in as I can. Other fighters go for that cross style that's great for simply blocking punches. It's all a matter of preference--and my preference is to keep my good looks as long as I can.

For my first fight, I had two opponents to choose from: a guy named Maurice "The Butcher" Tillman or some chump named Brevin "Dollar Bill" Daniels. Daniels was 4-0-0 with zero knockouts at the time, and he seemed more like a good fit for me--especially since taking on a guy named "The Butcher" didn't seem like a great way to start off a long career in the fighting biz. If I could beat "Dollar Bill," I thought, it would be just the beginning of the cash money I would see throughout my career.

I was ready for the fight, but it looked like Dollar Bill didn't even want to be there when the announcer called his name. His ring entrance was straight goofball, and I knew that if I stuck to my game plan, I could take this fool down easy. I started off quick, breaking him down with my patented stinging left jabs. Every once in while I tried to nail him with a big haymaker but, to his credit, Dollar Bill had his parrying together. The second time he knocked my hand away and blasted me with a strong right hook, I knew that I'd better stick with my "stick and move" approach if I was going to win the fight.

How this guy gets those Dumbo ears into his headgear is beyond us.

Heading into the fourth round, I had a couple of knockdowns on Dollar Bill and started getting cocky. But Dollar Bill didn't fold, keeping his defense up the entire bout and even scoring a late knockdown as the bell rang in the fourth and final round. Honestly, it wasn't my body that was hurt from that shot as much as it was my pride. This was Fight Night Round 3, after all. If I was going to make a name for myself, I was going to have to step up my game, big-time.