How about some Muay Thai kickboxing or Brazilian
Jiu Jitsu?
Thats right people, the new Ultimate Fighting
Championship game UFC 2009 Undisputed is out and I must say it's quite a
bit of fun.
It
has been five years since we last stepped into the virtual
octagon and this latest incarnation is a pretty good attempt at capturing
what the UFC is all about.
Starting up the game for the first
time I can't stress the importance of the tutorial (I highly recommend
sitting through it) because of the complexity of the control scheme.
THQ have done their best at mapping out the
control system, and it suits the UFC to a tee.
However,
I would say that this game is not pick up and play friendly, it will
take some time to master the controls. When you do though the reward is so
good.
The tutorial and an in-depth training mode is
where you will be honing your skills for the ring.
Standing
attacks are the most basic commands in the game, square and triangle
are your left and right fists, while X and circle are your legs.
Holding
L2 will modify your attacks from high to low and also, depending on the
distance between you and your foe, will also determine what punch or
kick will be thrown.
R1 and R2 are for blocking, R1 is to block
high attacks and R2 for low attacks, however blocking isn't that
effective. It can be slow and most of the time it comes down to chance.
Also,
something you have to take in to account while blocking, is that, the
more blows you take the less effective your punches become. The more fatigued you become the more blows you take.
But Standing attacks and
blocking isn't what UFC is all about, it's the counter attacks and
ground work that set this fighting game apart from all the rest.
This is where UFC 2009 Undisputed can get
technical and kind of tricky.
Ground
controls translate seamlessly through the right analog stick. There are
a series of minor and major transitions you can naturally move through.
Much like what you would see in a typical UFC bout on TV.
Armbars and choke holds are just a few of the
techniques used in getting your opponent to submit.
There are three modes to choose from in UFC 2009
Undisputed - exhibition, career and classic fights.
Exhibition mode throws you straight into the
action. Choose a fighter from any weight division and get ready to
rumble.
Classic
Fights,
change history or simply relive famous
title fights, like Stephan Bonnar versus Forrest Griffin match,
which is credited as launching UFC into the mainstream and putting MMA
on the map in the U.S.
Winning the fight in the way it played out in real life, unlocks a highlight reel from the actual match.
Career mode, create your own character, develop
attributes, perfect moves and become the greatest fighter of all time.
It
took me an hour to create my character because of how in depth the
feature is.
Choosing things like build, skin tone, eye colour, hair, scars and even
what fighting disciplines you want your fighter to use.
You have to choose two fighting disciplines, one
for toe-to-toe fighting and the other for ground work and grappling.
There
are a variety of mixed martial arts disciplines to choose from,
including Judo, Muay Thai, Wrestling, Kickboxing, Boxing and Brazilian
Jiu-Jitsu.
Along the way you learn new fighting techniques to
use in the Octagon.
Career
mode is where you will spend most of your time, coordinating from a
calendar menu you manage your fighter telling them when to
train, rest
and fight.
You manage the training process through
attributes such as strength, speed and cardiovascular health.
It
is very important to check when your next fight will be because you use stamina
every time you do something like train or make a public appearance, your stamina, or lack there of carries over into each week.
So if you do to much and don't
leave enough time to rest before a fight, your stamina bar won't be at
100% this makes your chances of winning the fight slim.
Once you
have played through career mode and built up your fighter you either
challenge your friends or take him online and test your skills against
the best.
One
aspect of the game I really enjoyed was the 'flash knockouts', hitting
an opponent at the right moment will trigger a mini slow-mo moment and
the screen will go a black and white tone, it builds to the drama and
lets you know that your opponent is about to go down.
UFC 2009 Undisputed the game doesn't run at the same fast pace as the real life counterpart, but it still is
satisfying to play and I think fans of the franchise will still enjoy the technical side of the gameplay.
UFC fans and non-fans alike will have fun with the
game once they get the hang of the complex control scheme.
The
career mode is fun and well thought out, the combat is great and
visually pleasing, and the classic fights mode is sure to please UFC
fanatics.
Overall THQ have done a great job in, breathing
life into the franchise and I can't wait to see whats in stall
next.
