If you’re a player like me who dives right into career and online modes with the idea of learning on the job, you’re going to be frustrated when you first begin to play EA Sports UFC 2. You’re going to lose fights and grow increasingly flustered with the manner in which it happens. Trying to manage blocking high and low, stopping transitions and takedowns and servicing that annoying stamina meter will get under your skin because of the sheer finger twisting complexity of it all. However, if you tough it out and deal with the game’s steep learning curve, you’ll likely be engrossed with the action inside the cage. Unfortunately, the same cannot be said about what happens outside of it.
Let’s get this out of the way: EA UFC 2 is absolutely gorgeous. For the most part, the player models are all rendered beautifully and possess all the little traits that make them unique. The presentation is also top-notch, as everything is included, from the graphical overlays and Bruce Buffer’s introductions to ring walks complete with several fighters’ actual theme music. Hearing Robbie Lawler enter the Octagon to “Hold On, I’m Comin’” and seeing Ronda Rousey stomp to the cage to Joan Jett’s “Bad Reputation” gives EA UFC 2 that extra touch of authenticity the previous installment in the franchise lacked. The way damage mounts up as a fight progresses is also something to admire. Cuts open and spill blood onto the canvas and the fighters. It all feels dynamic, as different bruising and cuts exist based upon the location and impact of the strikes. Nothing feels better than slicing open an opponent with a short elbow and watching the blood decorate the canvas.
As for the fighting itself, the standup remains the game’s strongest point. Fighters play to their strengths, and things like height and reach matter. Animations are of the eyebrow-popping variety, except for a few weird moments where limbs get tangled and you levitate off the canvas when being swept off your feet. Knockout animations are sure to have you yelling at your TV in amazement, as they can be vicious. Also improved is the manner in which fights end. You may annihilate your opponent with a spinning roundhouse, but those follow-up strikes to ensure that he or she has been separated from his or her senses are necessary.
The biggest issue with every MMA game has been the grappling system. Although it hasn’t been completely rectified, this game represents a step in the right direction. Rather than the complicated turn-based quarter turns for position, EA UFC 2 deploys a simpler method that uses visual cues and simply has you hold the stick in a given direction to perform a transition. It sounds simple, but in practice, it’s fairly challenging, as you’re trying to keep an eye on the HUD and your opponent’s movement to decide how to make your next move. It takes a lot of time to master, but it’s fulfilling when you do finally figure it out.
What you’ll find is that, like many MMA fighters, being a jack of all trades will get you nowhere fast. Pick a few things that you’re good at and master them. In my case, being a dynamic striker with takedown defense and menacing ground-and-pound was the way to go. I’ll never be as good as I’d like to be with submissions or in the clinch, and that’s fine with me because I’ve figured out how to get by without it. Of course, the game still remains a little unbalanced, as striking to a finish is easier than trying to work your way into a submission. However, it’s not nearly as difficult as it once was. The stages of submission still exist and it slows down things considerably, as it doesn’t allow for you to sink in a quick choke or slap on a desperation triangle. However, I found it much easier to score numerous submissions with Rousey’s armbar.
While the action in game is deep, fun and intriguing, it’s everything that’s outside of the cage that suffers.
EA UFC 2 still suffers in modes. Career mode bears the brunt of this by being bare bones and extraordinarily thin. You can create a fighter or import one from the roster, start on “The Ultimate Fighter,” work your way through the undercard, get a title shot, win a title and fight until you retire. In between, there is training, which consists of small mini games meant to improve your fighter’s skills but can also result in injuries. There are also random fight events that show you nothing but tell you in text that you slept too long and missed a training session or increased your fan base because your highlight package had been broadcast to the masses. It would be nice if these modes had scenes or something that allowed you to feel the impact. Otherwise, you are just rummaging through screens to get to the next fight. It doesn’t really capture the essence of MMA outside of the cage.
There is the Ultimate Team Mode that has been transplanted to EA UFC 2 where you create your team of fighters and take them online or fight CPU opponents to build them into title challengers. You use packs that can be purchased with coins earned in fights that will upgrade your fighter. It’s a pretty unique angle but still doesn’t save the extraordinarily dry career mode.
All in all, EA UFC 2 is great fun online and with friends. However, the career mode will need some tweaking to give the single-player experience a little more life. With a slick graphics package and significant improvements everywhere else, it’s certainly worth your time.
Andreas Hale is the editorial content director of 2DopeBoyz.com, co-host of the boxing, MMA and pro wrestling podcast “The Corner” and a regular columnist for Sherdog.com. You can follow on Twitter for his random yet educated thoughts on combat sports, music, film and popular culture.