The saying goes that the third time's a charm, and that's just the case with UFC Undisputed 3. Instead of sticking to the usual annual release, THQ took some extra time to insure UFC 3 was the best video game representation of the MMA sport to date. The most important mechanic to nail in these games is the fluidity of fighting and maintaining controls that are simple enough to use without getting frustrated. New comers to the franchise are still going to need some time with the game to get comfortable, but those that have been around since the first game should be able to jump right into the action. Luckily for the newbies there is a better tutorial system that pretty much sticks with you the entire time you're playing unless you decide to turn it off. In the past you would need to use the right thumbstick for semi-complex maneuvers to pull off transition changes when on the ground or in a clinch, or to perform submissions and submission escapes. This year offers the opportunity to use an “amateur” control scheme, which only incorporates using the right thumbstick in simple left to right or up and down movements.
The fighting is more fluid and the graphics have been slightly upgraded, but the inclusion of Pride Mode is perhaps the game's best feature. This takes the action back to the brutal days of MMA complete with head kicks and long rounds of tested endurance. This isn't just a change of rules, either. THQ went all out to represent Pride as authentically as possible, complete with the goofy ring announcing, flashy stage intros, and commentary from Bas Rutten and Stephen Quadros. The first thing I always like to do with a wrestling or MMA game is check out the character creation and career mode. The career mode in the first two Undisputed games left a lot to be desired. I found them to be more frustrating than fun, and I never felt enveloped into my fighter's career in the UFC. UFC Undisputed 3 actually has one of the coolest and most helpful feature I've seen in a creation system. There is now a preset option that allows the player to rotate a cursor up to 360 degrees to change and mold the way you want your face to look.
You can use a preset for the entire face or select individual parts. Doing it this way makes the creation process much faster for getting exactly what I want without having to cycle through a list of parts. You're still able to edit your fighter's appearance throughout your career; something I really appreciate and took plenty of time abusing. I mean if you're fighting for a handful of years, your look is going to change a little bit. Career mode has been improved enough to make it seem like less of a hassle, but I'm hoping some extra time is put into it for the next game. There's less emphasis on building up your stats and more time actually spent training and jumping into the Octagon. What I don't like is that you only have about two training sessions to raise your stats before a fight. This makes it difficult to upgrade your stats, learn and upgrade new moves, and set your game plans. By the time my fighter had gone 17-0, I had only learned and upgraded 3 new moves and was rated at a level 70. I think if you have a guy that has gone 17-0 in three or four years then he should be pretty highly rated.
This featured review concludes on the next page, please click Page 2 below to read more of our final impressions of the MMA title UFC Undisputed 3.
