Since picking up the UFC licence from THQ back in 2012, EA Sports have been on a consistent bi-yearly release cycle, dropping a new game usually in February or March before the end of the financial year. This year in part due to COVID, the game wasn’t formally announced until the beginning of July and has now been released five weeks later. So without a full PR camp, does EA Sports latest offering land a knockout blow? Or are we left scrambling on the ground…
GRAPHICS & PRESENTATION
In terms of graphics and presentation there isn’t a whole lot different from UFC 3. Fighters models are still great and the cuts and swelling that appear on the competitors during fights still impresses me. I have long thought the menus could do with a serious overhaul, but that is true of all the EA Sports titles. Another unavoidable negative is fighters coming out to generic music. As fighters tend to use licenced songs it’s unrealistic to expect EA to acquire all these tracks, but it does take a bit away from the entrances.
GAMEPLAY
As you would expect, the gameplay is more of an evolution rather than a revolution. The stand-up is pretty similar to the last offering, which isn’t a bad thing at all. Early in your career, your blows will lack any significant power, but once you upgrade these aspects the feedback on your controller really lets you admire how devastating a clean shot can be. The only area that’s lacking in this respect is the ground and pound, which feels a bit muted.
The ground game has been simplified which was a welcome change for myself and no doubt countless others. The legacy options are still available via the settings if you are a masochist, but the new mechanics work much better. On assisted mode, you now hold left on the stick to initiate a submission, right to work towards the ground and pound and up to stand up. This lets you get used to the basics and once you feel comfortable you can move on to the more accomplished hybrid controls and test your skills.
CAREER MODE
Creating a fighter and taking them from a fresh-faced rookie to championship glory is at the core of UFC 4. When first starting up the game you are immediately met with the character creation and then thurst into the admittedly basic story cutscenes. Your trainer is a fictional ex-UFC fighter who is going to lead you to glory. In a nice touch, you start with a few amateur fights against opponents with different styles that are sandwiched in-between tutorials for said styles.
It’s a good move from EA to funnel you down this path automatically without even the option of the main menu as it both acts as a tutorial for the game and it’s new mechanics, while also sewing some seeds of investment between you and your created fighter. After a short, or slightly more prolonged stay in the WFA you will receive an offer from Dana White to join the UFC and this is when your career kicks into high gear.
Fight camps are well done. When you accept an offer you will have either five or six weeks until the fight. Within that timeframe you can do promotion, study tapes of your opponent, learn from another fighter or do some sparring. Each week you have 100 points to spend (think of these as hours in the week), and so you have to make the best use of your time. An ESPN interview may cost 40 points, whereas a tweet to promote the fight will only take up 10 points.
Sparring is key to have your fighter in peak condition for each fight. These sessions, as well as levelling up individual strikes by using them frequently, also provides upgrade points that you can use on a whole bunch of areas. Kick and Punch speed/power, movement, stamina, chin, takedown defence and so much more. You really can build your fighters strengths to fit your style and it feels great.
My only career mode negative is that eventually it becomes a little stale. I played on normal difficulty and quickly levelled up my kick power, chin and jumping front kick. Despite a few close encounters I managed to rack up a 38-0 record, joining Conor McGregor and others as a champ-champ along the way. However, no created fighters ever appear. Towards the end, it was 2031 and I was defending my title against Gunner Nelson for literally the sixth time. Seeing other unknown fighters come up alongside you would have been cool.
OTHER MODES
EA Sports know that while some enjoy the ground game, many want to just slug it out standing and so in comes both Knockout Mode and Stand & Bang. Think of these as a peace offering for those who miss the dorment Fight Night series. Knockout Mode has you fighting in an underground lair in some sort of octagon ring where each fighter has a health bar, similar to games like Tekken. Stand & Bang is basically bare knuckle fighting and follows all the same rules as a UFC fight with no takedowns. These fights take place in a back yard. Online is present as ever and has a bunch of UFC veterans ready to wax you, should you wish to pit your skills against the best.
VALUE
Career mode will take you a minimum of 10 hours and is something I definitely see myself playing through again. I developed my fighter into a lethal kickboxer but with the improvements to the ground game, I am really interested to try and play through a career as a wrestler and see if I can master the grappling. Becoming the GOAT in career also unlocks Anthony Joshua, Tyson Fury and Bruce Lee for free-play. KO mode and Stand & Bang are fun additions and the online gives the game loads of replay value if you can be competitive.
TROPHIES
UFC 4 comes packing a good list. There are plenty of trophies assigned to the main mode – career, which I was able to pick up during my 38-0 hall of fame run. Others are related to winning in certain ways and simply sampling the other modes. The two trophies that now stand between me and the platinum are both obtained via online wins and I just don’t have the skill (yet) to get the job done.
VERDICT
Overall EA Sports have taken the formula of the previous games and made subtle improvements. Career mode is great fun, even if it does lose some steam by the end. The new KO mode allows players who don’t want as technical a battle to stand and bang, while online will retain a base of players until the inevitable UFC 5. Marry all this up with big improvements to the ground game and you have not only the best UFC game to date, but one of my favourite fighting games on PlayStation 4.
-VDZE ✌️
A review code for this product was kindly provided by the publisher. Reviewed on PS4 Pro.
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