u/domitoritorio

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My thoughts on the PTC AI.

The issue with it constantly circling to the left and clinching is particularly noticeable in Standing Mode.

In Roomscale Mode, you have a few options to create distance using your own footwork, but even then, its pivots and clinches happen way too frequently.

So, you jab him. Throw a hook anticipating his pivot. Re-align your body. Clinch. It all becomes a mechanical loop.

You can win this way, but your own actions get dragged into a single repetitive pattern, stripping away any actual feeling of boxing.

You could try to keep your distance, but he’s just going to stick to you again anyway.

On top of that, trying to back off leaves you open to getting hit. The punches are weak, but it's infuriating—it feels like you're being tested by dirty tactics.

And the moment you trade a single punch, he circles around and clinches again. So the absolute optimal counter becomes throwing a right hook on the assumption that a clinch is coming. It lands, sure, but the sheer repetition is maddening.

The excessive clinching cuts into your cardio workout, and all that endless spinning around makes you dizzy. There’s definitely room for improvement. I’ve reverted to the live version for now.

At first, I was hyped about the new AI behavior.

I was also glad that landing punches felt easier.

But in my opinion, this is a game. Expecting an AI to act strategically like a human is a pipe dream. Even if you make the motions realistic, its actual behavior isn’t human.

An AI needs to serve its purpose as an AI. Instead of focusing on making the AI act "realistically" (which just ends up suffocating the player), the design should focus on expanding the player's strategic choices and making the fight fun.

For example, a specific AI move shouldn't be built around "simulating how a real human fighter acts." It should be designed with the explicit goal of "prompting a specific reaction from the player."

Things like, "Dodge this attack with head movement," or "This action is a counter opportunity—try landing a cross here!" I want the AI to be designed with that kind of intention. Do you get what I mean?

What are the required conditions to inflict that effect on the opponent where, after a punch, the screen goes white, shakes, and you hear a ringing "keeeeen" in the ears?

If I could throw that punch intentionally, it seems like it would make it a lot easier to control the fight.

I installed the PTC version. Fighting against the AI is absolute blast.

I’m taking a break from online multiplayer for a while. Gonna pause the rank grind and just play around with the AI.

One thing occurred to me just now: while the AI feels significantly more realistic, it might have gotten a bit weaker? Since ease of combat and enemy difficulty are inherently a tradeoff, I know it’s a tough balance to strike.

Also—and this has been an ongoing issue—it feels like head movement isn’t being properly evaluated in AI fights.

In real life, head movement isn't usually flashy; it’s micro-adjustments. It’s not just about completely dodging a punch, but also about deflecting critical hits and taking the edge off the damage.

I really think defensive movement needs to be properly factored into the game’s core mechanics.

Furthermore, even if the game calculates penalties and bonuses through damage values, the player's subjective feeling of "this is unfair" won't go away unless they actually recognize that their actions are being evaluated.

If landing a jab gives a bonus, show it with subtle visual or audio cues. If spamming incurs a penalty, make that penalty visibly clear to the user.

Otherwise, all that remains is the experience of thinking, "I played like an absolute legend! Can't wait for the results! Wait, WHAT?! How did I lose?! This is garbage!" Players get zero actionable feedback from this result screen to reflect on their performance, leaving them stuck in a loop of never actually getting better.

Can anyone summarize the current damage system specifications for the live version of this game?

I've shared what I've compiled so far. Let me know if I'm missing any information.

■ First Hit System Not implemented yet. Once implemented, it will drastically alter the game balance. It's the ultimate ray of hope for out-boxers.

■ Jab & Combo System

• Multiplier Stacking: Clean jabs dealing 5 to 25 damage apply a damage multiplier to the opponent (up to 17.5%).
• Cashing In: Landing a non-jab punch (like a straight or hook) consumes 100% of the stacked multiplier, boosting the attack's power significantly.
• Maintenance & Decay: While jabs themselves only gain 40% of the active multiplier, continuously throwing them refreshes the timer. The multiplier disappears after roughly 2 seconds without attacking.

Example 1: Jab (10) → Jab (10) → Jab (10) → Hook (20)

• 1st punch: Jab (Base DMG: 10)
  • Damage Dealt: 10 (No multiplier yet)
  • Stacked Multiplier: 10% of 10 = +1.0%
• 2nd punch: Jab (Base DMG: 10)
  • Applied Multiplier: 40% of stacked 1.0% = +0.4%
  • Damage Dealt: 10 × 1.004 = 10.04 (Slight increase)
  • Stacked Multiplier: Previous 1.0% + Current 1.0% = +2.0%
• 3rd punch: Jab (Base DMG: 10)
  • Applied Multiplier: 40% of stacked 2.0% = +0.8%
  • Damage Dealt: 10 × 1.008 = 10.08 (Slight increase)
  • Stacked Multiplier: Previous 2.0% + Current 1.0% = +3.0%
• 4th punch: Hook (Base DMG: 20)
  • Applied Multiplier: 100% full application of stacked 3.0%
  • Damage Dealt: 20 × 1.03 = 20.6
  • Status: Stacked multiplier fully consumed and reset to 0%.

Key Takeaway: The jab's own damage goes up slightly with each hit (10.04 → 10.08), but the main objective is cashing in that stacked multiplier all at once with a heavy hit like a hook.

Example 2: Jab (15) → Hook (40)

• 1st punch: Jab (Base DMG: 15)
  • Damage Dealt: 15
  • Stacked Multiplier: 10% of 15 = +1.5%
• 2nd punch: Hook (Base DMG: 40)
  • Applied Multiplier: 100% full application of stacked 1.5%
  • Damage Dealt: 40 × 1.015 = 40.6
  • Status: Stacked multiplier fully consumed and reset to 0%.

■ Counter & Anti-Spam

• Counter Cap: The base damage bonus from counterattacks is capped at +20%.
• Cost of Whiffing & Guarded Hits: Throwing consecutive missed or blocked punches accumulates an internal "Spam Penalty." Taking a counter hit while penalized increases incoming damage by up to 26%.
• Clean Hit Protection: Spam penalty does not accumulate while landing hits. Additionally, counter detection pauses for 1.0 second immediately after taking damage.

> Currently, the risk-to-reward ratio for counters is off, and the penalties for spamming are too lenient. Unless someone has exceptional footwork, offense holds a massive advantage.

■ Punishment (Cumulative Damage)

• Permanent Accumulation: Long-Term Punishment does not reset between rounds, making short-term damage build up much faster in the late game.
• Knockdown Behavior: Stacked punishment does not reset even after a knockdown.
• Short-Term Punishment: Increases upon taking hits; recovers over time. Crossing the threshold results in a knockdown.
• Long-Term Punishment: Increases upon taking hits; non-resettable cumulative damage throughout the fight. High Long-Term Punishment causes Short-Term Punishment to build up faster, leading to easier knockdowns.

■ Body Shot Damage

• Even without a successful guard, body damage decays if the enemy drops their hands low.
• Damage also decays on hits near the beltline/lower abdomen.
• However, hits trigger a heavy "THUD!" sound effect regardless. Even low-damage hits sound massive, so don't panic if your guard fails.

■ The Optimal Ranked Meta (Ignoring Real Boxing Logic)

First, go to the dummy or mirror mode to research and practice punches that deal 50 damage. Usually, these are heavy wild swings or an in-fighting style like Mike Tyson—weaving low and driving through the core. Jabs and straights also deal more damage when you twist your shoulder to turn your body sideways (like in fencing).

To be fair, these punches would hurt in a real fight, too.

Even after taking on the risk of spam penalties, counter damage (+26%), and jab multipliers (+17.5%), mindlessly swinging 50-damage punches targeting high and low still yields a higher win rate in damage trades.

Even if the opponent lands 20 or 30-damage punches, landing just 2 or 3 of your 50-damage swings makes up for it completely.

Even if you take a massive counter hit dealing over 50 damage, swinging heavy remains the superior strategy in the damage race.

Pulling off the acrobatics required to block 4 punches in a row offers very little reward.

The only defense that actually works is footwork.

However, the current scoring/win-condition system (Long-Term Punishment score) puts little weight on landing jabs via out-boxing, favoring in-fighting outcomes instead.

Evading or blocking won't deal damage to the opponent (obviously).

Defense consumes significant stamina and time. If you have resources to allocate to defense, those resources are better spent dealing damage instead.

As long as you deal more damage than your opponent, you win—no defense required.

Because of this, players practice DPS optimization against dummies or mirrors, turning actual matches into DPS-rushing contests.

That said, this meta will crumble once the First Hit System is introduced, so practicing this playstyle now might not even be worth the time.

■ My Idea In real boxing, fighters rarely throw continuous 4 or 5-punch rushes over and over again.

No matter how fatigued or unfocused a real human gets, it isn't reflected in the game's toughness stats.

The game should drain internal stamina regardless of whether the opponent blocked or whiffed.

Specifically, throwing continuous rushes should apply a temporary debuff that speeds up Short-Term Punishment accumulation.

If in-fighting rushes carry no risk, the tactical enjoyment of skill-based play gets ruined.

While this game obviously isn't real combat, allowing strategies that exploit game mechanics beyond the developer's intent is an issue that needs to be addressed.

■ To Everyone Please share any tech, guides, or system mechanics info you might have!

Can you defeat elite opponents with a rating above 2000 in room-scale mode using standing mode? They can quickly step in from outside the area and backstep out of the area. Your stepping range is limited, making it easy for them to outbox you. On the other hand, if you carelessly try to engage in infighting, your opponent is skilled and can counter at will. In other words, I think you need to be overwhelmingly superior in skill to your opponent when fighting under these conditions. I think the hint is to use left and right. I kind of understand that, but I still don't have the skill to outmaneuver them and defeat them. Also, in this game, a punching style like Mike Tyson's, where you crouch down and then bounce up a bit before throwing, is very powerful, isn't it? If you rush in like that, I think the benefits of the damage from the rush outweigh the spam counter system, penalties, and the risk of being countered. In other words, if you divide that hook into left, right, up, and down, and switch to an uppercut against an opponent who is good at vertical movement, the probability of being blocked repeatedly is low, and it's powerful enough to get through the guard, so the risk is low. However, if both sides do that, it usually turns into a messy fight. Because of the lag in offense, there's no guarantee of hitting the intended target, and winning that way seems a bit uncertain. I want to win by securing a point difference with a defense unaffected by lag, but they have an advantage when it comes to outboxing. If any of you use standing mode and fight against room-scale opponents, could you share any strategies or philosophies you keep in mind?

P.S.:

There's an option on the matchmaking screen to fight in the same movement mode. Using that would ensure a fair fight. However, this time I want to discuss techniques for fighting in a disadvantageous environment, so please share your ideas.

https://reddit.com/link/1v8iojn/video/b1tstvnh7vfh1/player

When I watch other people play, they seem to have the ability to easily land hooks and uppercuts.

And they can move their heads freely within their opponent's range, as if it were their own backyard.

And they have strong punching power.

Let's get back to my challenges.

I'm good at step-in jabs, but not so good at backhands. Even with dummy punches, my crosses don't have much power.

When I enter my opponent's range, even if I move my head, I get beaten up by the AI. And my hooks and uppercuts seem to get tangled in their arms and don't feel very effective.

Please share your thoughts, techniques, and training methods for cool infighting within my opponent's range.

Is my boxing form clean and skillful? When I watch it myself, I have a bit of a self-bias that makes it look pretty good, but to someone with martial arts experience, does it look like a ridiculous dance?

But I want to be stronger and cooler.

Regarding training in Career Mode:

How do I get an "Excellent" rating in sparring?

I don't really understand the evaluation criteria, and I don't feel satisfied whether I succeed or fail.

Also, I don't really understand the evaluation criteria for "Excellent" and "Poor" in offense and defense.

It's just a mini-game, so I'm not too worried about it, but if you have any knowledge, please share it.

I trained so hard today that my clothes were soaked with sweat. Thank you for making this game. Since playing VR boxing, I've regained a lot of healthy self-confidence.

Question : Can players with a real boxing career easily complete the campaign mode of Thrill of the Fight 2, even on Hard or Outclass mode?

I occasionally lose to the AI ​​on Normal difficulty.

Here's what happens:

* I win most matches.

* I sometimes get knockdowns. I've never gotten a KO.

* I occasionally lose to incredibly strong AI.

I've never formally trained in boxing or martial arts; I'm self-taught.

Therefore, I'd like to know what other players' experiences are like.

I haven't done any training other than VR boxing.

I'm very happy about that. I'm very grateful to the developers.