UFC 2009 Undisputed - Review

Added May 30th, 2009 by Karmum

Off the top of your head, can you name the last UFC game released, and when? Probably not. But to answer the question, the game was UFC: Sudden Impact and was released in April of 2004. That was five years ago. No previous UFC games have garnered positive acclaim. Five years later, the creators of the Smackdown franchise, Yukes, release a new UFC game hoping to continue this almost non-existent video game franchise. The ultimate question is: does UFC 2009 Undisputed live up to the billing, or will it get knocked out in the first round?

The first thing players are going to be flustered with is the control scheme in UFC 09. The tutorial attempts to help and demonstrate many of the grappling and technical moves in UFC 09. The end result of the tutorial will leave you in a huge daze. For example, much of the controls are mapped to the right thumbstick. Depending upon the predicament you’re in, you need to rotate it in a certain direction. As you tangle with your opponent on the mat, you are going to be furiously rotating your thumbstick in different directions. Chances are you will not obtain satisfactory results.

Once you manage to get ahold of the control scheme, everything takes off from there. Submissions are absolutely satisfying, as you hear the crack of people's arms and legs being bent and split. When you perform the awesome punch that knocks down the opponent for good, you simply want to jump off your couch in excitement. That punch will then flash in a series of FNR-like replays, as the commentators agree with your devastating KO. Mouthpieces fling out of the fighter, faces rock like waves, and bodies fall to the ground in rag-doll fashion. What more could you ask for?

One of UFC 09's biggest strong points is the pure enjoyment of entering the octagon and just mashing away on your opponent. UFC 09 is going to be one of those games where you have a group of people on the couch; screaming and trash-talking will ensue as you take down the person right next to you.

UFC 09 was built from the ground up, and certainly shows with some impressive visuals, ranging in different categories. Character models, referees, and even the women of UFC, simply look great. Sweat will trickle and radiate. Blood will stain bodies, faces and the mat. The fighters can sustain a lot of damage. Cuts and bruises will immediately become visible after several hits. Another daunting feature of UFC 09 is its selection of fighters, which ranges several different classes and boasts more than 80 different characters.

Something that will pop its ugly head out quite often will be various clipping and collision detection issues. One of the most annoying things in UFC 09 isn't going to occur in the ring, instead in the menu display. UFC 09 takes its time to load aspects, including a loading screen for simply bringing up the options menu. At one point, you’re just going to become annoyed because you want to enter your career mode. Try to be patient as three-to-four multiple things have to load before you are able to do what you want.

Broadcasters, Mike Goldberg and Joe Rogan, head the commentating for UFC 09, and do a pretty good job. You will hear the commentators and crowd react to lethal blows. Combinations of the typical rock and metal music head UFC 09's soundtrack. Just in case you aren't a fan of the soundtrack in UFC 09, commentary from previous UFC fights and interviews can be heard while you are browsing the different menus. Sounds during the fight are also satisfying, and the fans in the crowd will roar when somebody is knocked out, and let you know when they are tired of you repeating the same type of kicks and punches during a match.

Another big feature in UFC 09 is the career mode, which will allow you to create your own fighter, a nobody, and make your way to the top of UFC. You can obtain sponsorships, which you can flash on your fighter's trunks. Various options in career mode include: ability to spar with trainers, allowing you to build up needed skills to win fights; train one of three different abilities (cardio, speed, strength); and also check email and your ranking. Training and sparring is week-by-week, so you must choose one or the other for those seven days. Your character doesn't age, so you can create a 40 year old rookie and still make it to the top.

When you decide to stop duking it out in career mode, your other option is to hit up the online portion of UFC 09. You work on an online rank system, so the more matches you play, the more opportunities you have to level up. Through my experiences, I didn't have a difficult time finding matches, but that is probably thanks to my good connection speed. UFC 09 is meant to be played with actual people, and if you cannot get anyone over at your house, playing online is definitely a great alternative.

So, how is UFC 09 Undisputed? Well, it certainly is not the Undisputed Champion, that’s for sure. The superb career mode and the tremendous selection of fighters are definitely going to occupy your interest, because there is definitely a never-ending amount of matches you can dream up. UFC 2009 Undisputed is a good game, but the control scheme is holding it back from being a great game. UFC 2009 Undisputed has the flash, the look, the gameplay, but doesn't have the style and easy pick-up-and-play feel to make it that undisputed, unbeatable champion.