THE FIRST BELL · 2009

ORIGINS OF
CAGE GRIND

Cage Grind began years before its current name. In 2009, Jay Jones launched CageWars.net: a persistent browser game about creating an MMA fighter, building a career, and climbing toward a championship.

THE ORIGINAL GAME

CAGEWARS.NET → ONLINECAGEFIGHTING.COM

CageWars.net was renamed OnlineCageFighting.com in 2010. Its dark metal presentation, public rankings, fighter economy, persistent careers, and living activity feed became the earliest version of the world Cage Grind continues today.

The surviving pages and screenshots were recovered from the Internet Archive. They preserve product history—not the original PHP source or a specification for rebuilding it.

Archived Online Cage Fighting logo
The game’s post-CageWars identity.

RECOVERED FROM THE ARCHIVE

THE FIRST CAREER LOOP

Archived CageWars dashboard showing a fighter card, inventory, challenges, and rankings
Dashboard. Fighter health, level, record, earnings, popularity, attributes, possessions, challenges, and rankings shared one screen.
Archived CageWars fighter profile with record, style, weight class, attributes, and inventory
Fighter profile. Opponent scouting made identity and progression visible.
Archived CageWars store with popularity, health, strength, and skill items
Store. Useful upgrades and flashy lifestyle purchases both shaped a fighter’s career.

THEN AND NOW

THE LINEAGE, NOT THE BLUEPRINT

HISTORICAL MECHANICS

Confirmed in archived CageWars and Online Cage Fighting pages.

  • Asynchronous player challenges and opponent scouting
  • Strength, Size, Skill, Endurance, health, experience, and popularity
  • Sparring, cage fights, nine weight classes, rankings, and champions
  • Earnings, level-gated purchases, lifestyle items, and bounties
  • Teams, smack talk, fighter statuses, and a live world-news feed

CURRENT CAGE GRIND SYSTEMS

The modern game carries the intent forward with its own rules and architecture.

  • Power, Speed, Chin, and Cardio, with regenerating Energy and Health
  • Pace, offense, and tactical fight plans; knockouts, named submissions, and judges’ decisions
  • World rankings, championship bouts, and Open Gym scouting with ranked-fighter clones and coaching advice
  • 12 daily fights and Daily Heat: five qualifying straight wins unlock three extra fights; ten earn a CEO shoutout and +5 Aura
  • Daily Drops, Victory Packs, and collectible gear with two loadout slots per category
  • Follower-based sponsors, Aura-driven Fight Skins, and evolving entrance music
  • A shared Cage Feed with callouts, sponsor reactions, fighter profiles, and referral drops
  • A mobile-first fighter profile with career progression and locally saved fight history

THE NORTH STAR

BUILD A FIGHTER. LIVE THE CAREER.

Preserve the feeling of starting unknown, making consequential choices, becoming part of a living fight world, and earning a place at the top. The original implementation belongs to its era; the player fantasy is timeless.

ARCHIVE SOURCES

2011 CageWars homepage · 2009 gameplay guide · 2010 Online Cage Fighting homepage