Dual Review: Sports Edition
Do you ever feel like there just isn’t enough time to read about new console sports games? No? Me neither, but that didn’t stop me from mashing together two new sports games into a single review under that extremely flimsy premise. To be honest, there are a lot of titles to cross the desk here at Pixel Hunt, and not all of them are enthusiastically snapped up for review. Sports games are often victims, considering they’re usually “improved” carbon copies of the previous year’s installment. So to make the whole process a bit easier (mainly for me), sit back and enjoy a special Pixel Hunt Dual Review: Sports Edition.
We begin with UFC: Undisputed 3, developed by veteran wrestling game studio Yuke’s. Your initial experience here can be a little frenetic if you don’t follow UFC in general. Matches veer back and forth from boxing to kick-boxing to wrestling to what you’re pretty sure is just a good old-fashioned man cuddle. It’s not always clear who’s currently winning or how mounting another man is helping him get there (it can’t hurt-Ed).
But persevere and you’ll find that UFC3 actually houses quite a complex and well-balanced fighting system that does a damn good job of translating the frantic struggle and sometimes sheer luck that’s found in a real UFC match. Most matches are short, vicious affairs ending in the first round. If you don’t keep your guard up almost any hard strike to the head has the possibility to daze you, and once dazed you’re only a few hits away from being knocked out completely.
This is what I liked about the game. It’s visceral, and not just in that marketing execu-speak way. Heavy punches and kicks can take a while to wind up but when they hit there’s a meaty smack that really satisfies. This sensation is taken up to 11 when an opponent is knocked to the mat, as finishing the match often requires you to pounce on them and unceremoniously punch their head into paste. The game doesn’t give you a health bar so the only way you can gauge your damage is by the visible cuts and bruises that build up on your character during a bout. Visible damage also lets you know what areas you should begin to concentrate on actively guarding, as TKOs can occur when any body part is damaged to its limit.
While your first inclination might be to create a stand-up boxer for simplicity’s sake, the game features some pretty deep customisation options to allow you to really create a fighter with your own personal style. The three basic styles are striking, grappling and submission, but each can be tweaked with its own flavour. Muay Thai fighters, for instance, can throw devastating knee attacks from clinches while Sambo style fighters have a unique array of leg takedowns and submissions.
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