Boxing is a full-body workout. Deceptively so — you’re just moving your arms, how tough could it be, right? But if you’re throwing a punch correctly, you’re putting your entire body into that motion. A boxing punch should involve a whole set of simultaneous movements that engage your legs, your core, your shoulders, and your arms. Fitness Boxing 3 cannot offer the same experience as an in-person trainer correcting your every move. But it does provide a series of easy-to-learn routines and daily workouts that ramp up into a regimen that could whip you into shape about as well as attending regular in-person group boxing classes.
As the first paragraph demonstrates, I’ve taken in-person boxing lessons. (Before I got into boxing, I also taught karate professionally for years; I have a black belt in Uechi-Ryū.) So, I have a lot of opinions about martial arts training. It should therefore come as no surprise that I would recommend you take at least one in-person boxing class if you want to really understand how to maximize the workout that you can get from it. Fitness Boxing 3’s virtual trainers won’t be able to tell if you’re punching incorrectly and not using your entire body to the extent that you should. In fact, when I missed a punch in-game, Fitness Boxing 3 would almost always give me a “Perfect” or at least an “OK” score on it; the motion sensitivity of handheld Joy-Cons is far from pristine. But because I’ve taken boxing classes in real life, I knew when I was doing it right, and so I was able to correct my own form and get a great workout from the routines in this game.
Let’s just say you have no intention or time or energy to take an in-person class. How will Fitness Boxing 3 fare as your sole teacher? Well… fine, if a bit lifeless. After completing the first few days of daily workouts in FB3, you can select from a roster of trainers and, over time, unlock different outfits for them. You can even decide how much they compliment you during a workout (I personally found this creepy, although some might find it encouraging — do whatever helps you). They all have somewhat dead eyes and narrowly defined body types (the women in particular are teeny-tiny) that don’t much resemble the diversity of the real people who pursue boxing at real-life gyms around the world. That body diversity at my gyms always inspired me, but again, we’re assuming you’re not going to go to a gym and this game is what you have.
After several days of FB3 workouts, if you are performing the exercises correctly (and perhaps even if you aren’t), you will get the accompanying muscle soreness that will illustrate the potential long-term benefits of boxing. The game includes all of the actual standard punches and typical combinations that real boxing instructors will teach their students, and it teaches them to you much more slowly and methodically than most classes, which is the main benefit of this game (I definitely felt intimidated and lost at my first in-person group class; it got easier, but obviously a group class isn’t going to go at your pace). You won’t have the benefit in FB3 of learning to use a punching bag (something most in-person classes will incorporate and provide, along with gloves and hand wraps), but even just punching the air for 35 minutes — if you actually use your full body each time — will leave you drenched in sweat and developing muscle mass in places that many other workouts don’t touch.
Dissimilar to going to a gym, playing FB3 rewards you with various typical gamification systems to keep you logging in day after day; you’ll earn points and unlock trophies for completing different workouts and routines, and your trainer will soon start encouraging you to work out harder and longer (within reason). If that’s the sort of motivation that helps you stay on track with a new exercise regimen, FB3 will hit all of the right notes.
Its soundtrack will not. In theory, FB3 is a rhythm game in which you hit the punches to the beat of the music that plays in the background. Because the Joy-Con motion tracking is so forgiving, however, this barely matters, and the game’s music is boring and forgettable. Once you’ve got the hang of the standard punches and the timing of most combinations, turn off the audio and put on a soundtrack of your own. I punched along to the speed of my own workout music and still got “Perfect” hits the majority of the time (and had a much better time doing it, since a good workout playlist is half the fun of working out, I say).
The last big downside of Fitness Boxing 3 is: It’s Fitness Boxing 3, and that’s it. By that I mean, it’s just boxing. Traditional boxing combinations, over and over. There’s a lot of variation within that framework, but it’s not like a real boxing gym where there are other options — hitting the bag, running drills, working up to sparring sessions, maybe even incorporating some free weights. This game is just… punching the air. That’s all, every single time. And if you’re anything like me, you need more than one kind of workout in your week, or you get bored. (It’s like how I need to constantly be making new workout playlists or I get bored. Same deal.)
Luckily, the Nintendo Switch has some excellent workout video games on offer. Ring Fit Adventure is a longtime favorite in our household, as well as the Just Dance series. I would also recommend fleshing out your home gym with a set of free weights and a copy of Casey Johnston’s weightlifting book for total beginners (Liftoff: Couch to Barbell).
Fitness Boxing 3 is another great addition to my current home gym setup and ongoing video game library of workout options, and I was surprised by how comprehensive it was. I had personally fallen off the wagon with boxing after the COVID-19 pandemic hit, and the game reminded me how much I love it — and it let me remember that in a simple, approachable way that didn’t make me feel bad for how many years it’s been. Whether you’re trying to get back into boxing or you’re a total newcomer to the sport, Fitness Boxing 3 will teach you the basics and show you how intense the ramp-up can become. It just might inspire you to buy a punching bag… or even go to a place that has a lot more of them.
Fitness Boxing 3 was released Dec. 5 on Nintendo Switch. The game was reviewed on Nintendo Switch using a download code provided by Nintendo. Vox Media has affiliate partnerships. These do not influence editorial content, though Vox Media may earn commissions for products purchased via affiliate links. You can find additional information about Polygon’s ethics policy here.
The post Fitness Boxing 3 can and should kick your ass appeared first on Polygon.
