|
|
By Anthony De Franco  March 17, 2010, at 12:58 am  Sponsorship is a huge part of Mixed Martial arts. Let’s be honest, your favorite fighter could not sustain himself without help from the brands we know and love in the MMA community. Hell, certain websites even devote whole stores to MMA Brands.
UFC 2009: Undisputed did a decent job of representing this, but a lot of the cooler brands (Silver Star, Dethrone Royalty) were missing, and the menu was buried deep in the Create-a-Fighter. So deep, in fact, that I know people who just completely ignored this facet of the game. THQ has promised to rectify this in the sequel, and has taken the first step by re-launching their website and adding a “partner” list.
Here’s the full list, transcribed by yours truly. I’m sure someone will steal this, so if you do and don’t give us credit…Fuck you, sir.
- UFC
- Affliction
- American Fighter
- And 1
- Bad Boy
- BSN
- Cage Fighter
- Clinch Gear
- Death Clutch
- Dethrone Royalty
- Ecko MMA
- Fairtex
- The Fight! Network
- Fighters Only Magazine
- FYT
- Hayabusa
- Headblade
- Hitman Fight Gear
- Hostility
- Lugz
- Metabolic Adaptation
- MMA Connected
- MMA Elite
- MMA Warehouse
- MMA Fighting
- MusclePharm
- MicroTech
- Nogi
- NuVasive
- One More Round
- OTM Fight Shop
- Pain Inc.
- Punishment Athletics
- Premier Fighter
- RVCA
- Silver Star
- Sinister
- SPIKE TV
- SPRAWL
- Suckerpunch
- Take A Nap
- TapouT
- Throwdown
- Toe 2 Toe
- Tokyo Five
- Venum
- Warrior International
- Xyience
- Yard Barker
- Yuke’s
Wow…that is a list, people. Anything in Bold is new for 2010.
Here’s some interesting things. First off, we share two sponsors with the game, MMA Warehouse and Yard Barker. Speaking of Yard Barker, isn’t it interesting that there are Media sources in there as well. How about MMA Fighting? Any chance we get to see a virtual Ariel Helwani? I sent him a tweet. Waiting to hear back.
Also, Clinch Gear is still in the game, huh? That is interesting because it is owned by Dan Henderson. As everyone knows, Henderson has left the UFC for the “greener” pastures of Strikeforce.
Most importantly, all the awesome MMA brands are there. That means lots of cool logos, T-Shirts, Fight Shorts, and other cool stuff in UFC 2010: Undisputed, and that means a more authentic experience.
By Anthony De Franco March 1, 2010, at 2:25 am There is a lot to report in the world of video game MMA. THQ has begun the UFC 2010: Undisputed news cycle as they are going to release a new blog post every tuesday and Thursday, and do a Q & A with the community every two weeks. Be sure to get your questions in on their forums to make sure that they get answered.
Of course, We’ll be here to break down the news for all the true MMA fans. You know, all the people who are more excited about Gogopalatas than Kimbo Slice.
Let’s get started with some of the answers from this week’s Q & A:
Q: Are there going to be TKO’s due to injury and stoppage in Undisputed 2010?
Yes! Victories in 2010 can be achieved in a number of ways, one of which is stoppage due to cuts and injury. Did anyone tune in to UFC 110 and see the Bonnar fight that ended due to ref/doctor stoppage? ‘Stoppage’ was one of the biggest requests from our fan base, so we just had to implement these victory conditions.
A welcome addition for sure. MMA is a complex sport that has a lot of different ways to end a fight, and as such all of them should be represented in virtual form. It remains to be seen if Herb Dean is going to dive in and pull you off of your counterpart, but I hope he does.
Q: KO animations: have they changed?
Completely. Last year, we divulged that KO animations were a combination of animation and free form physics. The same is still true this year, but we changed a few things…We’ve emphasized the physics share of the equation much more. This makes the Knockout a much more high fidelity experience. How the KO looks will also be a product of how a player gets his lights put out: depending on where and how hard you land a strike, you’ll get a different looking KO. Cant wait to see some community compilations come May!
Last year, one of my biggest gripes with the game was the flying mouthpieces. While it was cool the first few times, it just made the whole thing feel fake. Now, no word on if that still happens, but we do get new KO animations. Let’s just hope that knocked out fighters don’t end up looking like ragdolls.
Q: Whats up with the game menu this year?
We redesigned the entire navigation system so you can get to where you want quickly and easily. ‘Nuff said.
Thank you, Jesus. Last year’s game was so clumsy in terms of menu navigation that it made not want to change the sponsors on my shorts in career mode. Seriously, it took SIX clicks of the “A” button to change one logo on my shorts. Does that make any sense to anyone? It’s good to hear that this complaint was heard. Hopefully the menu system makes more sense the second time around.
Alright, that is it from the Q & A, so let’s move on to the Blog entry regarding submissions.
We’ve kept the bread and butter subs that you know and love from last year’s Undisputed, but we’ve added some great variations and new options for those who want to use them. We saw a ton of people asking for the full Omoplata submission in 2010, which you’ll now be able to execute in the virtual octagon. Even the rare and elusive Gogoplata is making its Undisputed 2010 debut. Nothing spells ‘awesome’ like an shoulder lock to submission, right?
We’ve also added the Americana, D’Arce (think Thiago vs Swick in UFC 109), Peruvian Necktie, Achilles lock, Ankle Lock, Heel Hook, Arm Triangle, and tons of leg locks, just to name a few. You’ll even see some Ultimate fighters breaking out their signature subs on the mat, like BJ Penn’s rear naked choke by way of arm trap (think UFC 101 and his submission of Kenny Florian).
In addition to over twice as many new submissions along with their own distinct animations, there are new positions from which you can attempt a submission. Your posture when in the guard will affect what submission you can initiate. So if you’re down posture, you’ll be going for a Kimura whereas if your postured up, you’ll be going for a kneebar.
Another complaint from last year’s game was that there simply were not enough submissions. Now, that should be solved as just about every submission I can think of that I’ve seen in a fight in the last five or six years is in there. Well, actaully, there is no anaconda choke, which has to annoy Antonio Rodrigo Nogueira.
Nothing lifeshattering, but some good reveals nonetheless.
By Anthony De Franco February 18, 2010, at 2:21 am There are plenty of careers on the line at UFC 110. That’s part of what makes it the most interesting card we’ve had in months. However, there is some debate in the community about the UFC cutting some of the losers on Sunday morning.
After UFC 109, when the organization cut six fighters, there are worries that the clear-cutting could continue. With legends like Wanderlei Silva and Mirko Cro Cop, and vets like Keith Jardine on the chopping block, there could be some wholesale changes on the way home from Australia. Let’s take a look at some necks on the line and assume they lose. Should they stay?
- Stephan Bonnar - All these years later, and Bonnar is still living off the good will that he created for himself when he put the UFC on the map with Forrest Griffin. Since that war took place on that magical night in 2005, Bonnar is 5-6 in the UFC. Until UFC 100, you could have made the argument that all his losses had come against top competition, but then he lost to Mark Coleman. Oh yeah, there is also that whole horse steroids thing.Bonnar is fighting a decent opponent in Krzysztof Soszynski, but he still should be out as he loses. However, his saving grace may be Strikeforce. Would Scott Coker want Bonnar if he is cut by the UFC? I think we are going to find out.
In or Out?: Out.
- Wanderlei Silva – The Axe Murderer is an MMA legend. He was the best fighter in the world for most of his tenure in PRIDE. His blinding strikes put down many a fighter for a long winter’s nap. However, that success has not translated to the UFC as he is just 1-3. I personally believe that he won the Rich Franklin fight, but whatever. Now, he makes the drop to 185, which he should have done a long time ago, to fight Michael Bisping.Silva has also just had facial surgery to remove all the scar tissue that 10-plus years of fighting has accumulated on his face. He won’t cut as easy and won’t be as easy to knockout.Silva is a real legend, and his action-filled style always is exciting. He’s safe.
In or Out?: In
- Mirko Cro Cop – No PRIDE star has struggled more than Cro Cop. He claims to have a mental block from fighting in the cage, but I think that it has more to do with lack of steroid testing in Japan and Cro Cop getting up their in years.That’s not mention that his flawed gameplan of relying on head kicks has stopped working as mixed martial artists have become more skilled.If he loses to Rothwell, he’ll be 1-4 in the UFC. At some point, even the most insistent PRIDE fans (Jason) will have to admit it’s over.
In or Out?: Out
- Keith Jardine – Jardine has always been overrated in my opinion. His “unorthodox” (DING!) striking can be neutralized by the fact that he has a tendency to go down VERY early in fights. Of his five UFC losses, three of them have come in the first five minutes. To make it worse, he already trains at Greg Jackson’s. He just doesn’t have what it takes to make it as a contender in the UFC.He simply isn’t all that good, and in a crowded division, there really isn’t any room for him to hang around to be a gatekeeper.
In or Out?: Out
By Anthony De Franco February 9, 2010, at 7:17 am I always like to highlight well done videos and pictures from across the web. People are a lot funnier than the realize most of the time.
Here is another one from the Bloody Elbow community, from a guy who refers to himself as LBO.
Come on, that’s funny.
|
|
Tags: 
