EA Sports UFC 3

Coming at this as both a seasoned gamer and a fan of the world of MMA/General Combat Sports and Sport games as a whole, I am very much conflicted in regards to this title to be quite honest. As a game I believe it captures the depth of the sport very well, highlighted best in the MyCareer section where one can eventually, through 'training' sections, master a whole variety of moves and martial art styles that best fit your characters build and your grasp of the mechanics of the game. As such it has a serious stake for the best detailed sports video game that is console based, easily outranking EA's flagship sports offering in the FIFA franchise which is I'd argue a lot more dumbed down than others and putting this iteration amongst say, 2K's NBA games for detail and variety. Graphically it renders many fighters and even the own custom builds rather well and the captures of the moves and strikes are nothing short of exceptional with the camera work capturing great essence of an MMA fight to a very high standard which I must complement highly. Its user interface is also rather a pleasant one with every game mode easily mapped into a single section that one can navigate with no stress. Online is a section I cant really comment on as personally I choose not to subscribe to the Xbox's gold membership and thus cant play such features but given anecdotal reviews from friends when speaking on this particular feature, UFC 3 is entertaining in both a local co-op and online multiplayer sense and provides some fun competition and challenge when playing, which is a rather respectable feat. However, there are far more negatives to this title from my perspective which I shall now cover. Offline play has no real range, only two match fixtures outside of the normal 3-5 round bout format and no allowance for weight mixtures that would add more fun to solo or local co-op play, think multi divisional championship fights or just a mode of chaos where you could match stars of the smaller divisions against those of the heavier ones i.e Conor McGregor vs Jon Jones and have fun with the laxed rules and system opposed to feeling the real life divisional monotony in game as well with the transcendent stars being the best rated avatars offering no competition in that sense. Furthermore, ultimate team is a completely redundant feature here, I'd argue that applies to other sport games as it is a means to gain later micro-transactions but here it is particularly pointless. The game mode seems to have no structure like the divisions in FIFA, or rewarding challenges in NBA 2K20, and is so limiting which is perhaps an issue of the sport, football has an 11 a side team and smaller games offer new rules and approaches, like the newly implemented VOLTA aspect of FIFA 20, basketball has positions and rolling subs allowing for in game variety and the very rewarding nature of 2K20 makes that game mode fun rather than grinding and costly. UFC 3 however has none of these things and is a pathetically small mode in comparison to its monolithic peers which are far more refined. Leaving only MyCareer in a gameplay sense, it is again underdeveloped. FIFA is very linear and not as interactive or staggered as this, NBA has recently seen college basketball levels implemented though usually that narrative doesn't really carry on over multiple seasons which is a shame but its progress nonetheless. UFC is far more rushed, having recently only bought this I began a career mode slot based off my own carefully crafted avatar, worked my way to undefeated stardom and in a matter of less than 6 Hours total gameplay had achieved the status of GOAT, after triggering that cutscene the game may as well force you to end that save and start anew, as every fight post that stage has been extremely onesided and repetitive but also has no inbetween, its the same Megan Olivi starring UFC Minute clip and nothing more which is a boring repeat and really begins to grate after a while. The progression in the career mode is very minor compared to previous titles, having owned the first EA UFC game when that was produced for current gen consoles that was a far more varied approach to the game featuring videos with then current stars such as Georges St-Pierre and Chuck Lidell, behind the scenes workers such as Mike Volce and of course Dana White with each video diary signalling a progression of the career which seems to have fell by the way side as time has progressed. It's DLC support also feels very poor, with the only offering being a Bruce Lee pack that comes with that avatar in a version for every weight class and that's it. No other cosmetics that would invoke a time of earlier UFC eras that allowed customisation (See Jon Jones and his Nike deal for instance) and not even a feature for cosmetic items such as flags that could be used pre and post fight or a gym building section for Mycareer use etc. sure it'd be an oversight to have them excluded from the base game were it an option but still, one would appreciate that personal touch fell to the game rather than its very generic feel otherwise. That issue also stems from the roster, having fighters of old like Kimbo Slice and a novel appearance of Dana White are mind boggling, they should be DLC offerings to at least make a sense of care and interest from the developers side opposed to what feels like a cash grab and little else. That prior point is all but proved by the use of McGregor, a legend in the field of mixed martial arts, ablazed on the cover and digital cover in his personal full flare donning two weight class belts solely to sell units off his name, sure that the point of a cover star but at least the appearances of Virgil Van Dijk and co. in FIFA 20 represent the shifting, modern culture of the worlds game and do have some in game value as they have appearances in ultimate team as opposing players and feel part of the world rather than just a shill. On the whole its proof there is a market for fighting games and the world of MMA in the video game world but the shallow depth of game modes reeks of greed and a desperate cash grab. Entertaining to a degree and with the special edition being currently available for a sub £20 fee in the UK on the Xbox store, if you're interested in that world then its worth a buy, otherwise avoid until a potential fourth game which might be a superior title after all there is a clear route to success with such a format.

amazing game at the start but after a while it gets kind of boring career mode is always fun though

There is some blood when people get hit and the campaign focuses a lot on social media but it is a enjoyable and fun game as long as you understand the game is fake

I know I might be to young to play but I honestly think 11+ should be fine . The game is based around UFC which once you explain to your kid that it is a sport not just two men fighting it is fine. The actual gameplay/fighting isn’t that bad.

great game i love the gameplay