UFC Undisputed 3 Review – Our Tale of the Tape

Game Reviewed: UFC Undisputed 3

Developer: THQ

Publisher: THQ

Platform: [Reviewed: Xbox 360], Playstation 3

Genre: Fighting

Rated: T for Teen

If you ask any UFC fighter how it feels to step into the octagon, they’d probably say it’s their battlefield. You’ve got to be ready for war when someone’s starring you down and the ref signals for a fight. Over the last several years, THQ has managed to replicate this same experience in the gaming world.

Undisputed 3 brings a wide variety of changes, beginning with the preset option of controls. Pro Controls are the heart of the ground game. It helps you with your rotating and transitions. Following is an optional tutorial to get you set up in the octagon.

Presentation is everything, and the small add-ons create a world of difference in Undisputed 3. One will appreciate the time placed into the development. Perfect example is the attachment of entrances. This little addition, gives the anticipation fans would expect from a pay per view event, also including an extraordinary pair as commentators calling the action right in the moment.

Every fight genuinely feels like a real fight; not like it’s ever shown to be a huge issue in the previous installments. Simply, what more can be done? You’ll notice the update to the damage system as you continue to dominate a particular part on your opponent. Whether you’re swinging at your opponent, or stringing a combo, you can feel the damage and some moves still feel a bit clunky, but the controls do more than enough to deliver.

There is a new graphic-based submission system which brings up a screen where you fight for the submission against an opponent. Once you begin the submission sequence and the screen appears, the object is to follow over the opponents colored bar. The longer you hold in, the better your chances are of winning.  You can be placed in the same situation as the defender where you will need to stay clear of the opponents bar. Being blunt, this would’ve been much better as an optional feature as the concept can take away from the overall gameplay.

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Winning fights will allow you to earn points which can be used in the UFC shop to buy clothes, cutscenes and even unlockable fighters like Dan Severn and Chuck Liddell.

Pride is also new in Undisputed 3, having fighters split up respectively into their own groups.  Stephen Quadros and Bas Rutten commentate the action that takes place in the ring. While Pride literally keeps its original game style, rules, look and feel, the effectiveness is exactly the same.

Career has been beefed up and slimed down at the same time, both for the best. You’re to climb the ranks and become one of the greatest fighters of today. BJ Penn is the man to knock off, but there are plenty of people and training that will guide you there.

The amount of training exercises needed to complete between fights were shortened, though you can choose to simulate, risking fatigue for the next fight. You can choose to create your own fighter or new to this year’s installment, choose an established fighter like Anderson Silva and push him through the ranks, all the way from the bottom.

UFC have yet to disappoint its fighting fans. One thing to point out is replay value. Expect to play around the clock and be entertained as you pummel your opponent into a knock out, possibly imagining them as that one bully from your earlier childhood. The lasting impression seems to only last for so long though. So, Undisputed 3 is definitely worth picking up now, just questionable how you’ll feel about it after a short while.

The Scores

Gameplay: 4/5

Visuals: 4.75/5

Audio: 5/5

Controls: 4.5/5

Value: 4/5

Overall Rating: 4/5