When Peter Moore took the stage at E3 2009 and announced that the company was working on a mixed martial arts game, the news ignited something of a firestorm in the MMA world. THQ had barely just released its UFC Undisputed game, and skeptics wondered why EA was hopping onto this particular bandwagon. UFC president Dana White dumped kerosene onto those flames when he said that he tried to meet with EA before and was ignored, after telling him that MMA wasn’t a real sport. Never one to mince words, White had an ultimatum for fighters: Anyone who appears in EA’s game wouldn’t be in the UFC anymore.
And that was before we’d even seen the first screenshot.
Months later, we’ve had the chance to see the game in action. The game looks great, which is no surprise considering that it’s built with a modified version of the engine behind the astonishingly good looking Fight Night: Round Four. The demo featured Fedor Emelianenko and Brett Rogers, fighters who faced off in a recent Strikeforce event, and their digital counterparts were convincingly detailed, down to the scar on Fedor’s brow. That said, is there room for two MMA games? After talking to the producer and seeing a presentation of the game, we have to say there is. Aside from obvious differences in rosters and venues, each game seems to be approaching the sport from a slightly different angle. The good news is that EA appears to be taking it all very seriously.
EA Sports MMA’s executive producer Dale Jackson isn’t shying away from comparisons between his game and UFC Undisputed. “It definitely makes us run that much harder,” he says. “I have to deliver an experience that’s going to be compelling for everyone and make sure that I’m delivering the best possible game. And someone has a head start. But I love competition. I love winning. I look forward to finding ways to win this competition.”
One of the tools that might help EA win out is the game’s affiliation with Strikeforce. The MMA association will be a premier league in the game, bringing a number of high-profile fighters with it. In addition to Fedor and Rogers, Strikeforce middleweight champion Jake Shields and Jason “Mayhem” Miller will be in the game. Frank Shamrock and Mauro Ranallo will be providing commentary, and ring announcer Jimmy Lennon Jr. and referee “Big John” McCarthy will be providing in-ring support.
The demo, which was running on an Xbox 360, highlighted some of the game’s depth and strategy. Despite what some might believe, MMA fighting is substantially more complicated than two guys clawing at each other in a cage. There’s an incredible amount of strategy at play, such as knowing your opponents’ strengths and weaknesses, figuring out how best to approach him and reserving your stamina so that you don’t run out of gas in the middle of a fight.
EA Sports MMA hopes to represent some of that strategy in its games in some exciting ways. As much as we tend to focus on a game’s looks, Jackson wants to make it clear that there’s more to the game than what you see. “Visuals aren’t the most important thing, but they’re the foundation that lays the groundwork for authenticity, so that you’re never taken out of the experience by the visuals. Gameplay is where that authenticity is really going to come in.”
It starts with something as relatively simple as a fighter grabbing his opponent’s foot during a poorly timed kick attempt. Depending on who you’re playing as, you can choose to throw a strike from that position or use it as an opportunity to take your opponent to the mat. On defense, the character with the caught foot can push out of the position before any damage is done.
“Everything we add to the game, we have to think how do make it so a standup striker or a wrestler who wants to stay on his feet and strike the whole game can stay within their gameplan and stay within their comfort zone or take someone out of their comfort zone,” says Jackson. “If we have this and the only thing you can do is take a guy to the ground every time you caught a kick as a standup striker, I’m in a miserable spot there. This gives you those opportunities. Everything we put into the game we look for how we can make sure that everyone can fight within their styles.”
You cannot post new topics in this forum You cannot reply to topics in this forum You cannot edit your posts in this forum You cannot delete your posts in this forum You cannot vote in polls in this forum
