I don't know if I'm a slow learner or I'm just used to the controls from the previous games but I feel so lost compared to the other THQ UFC games as well as the EA sports MMA game. I was a fan of the most recent batch of MMA games form both EA and THQ and even when i didn't always agree with gameplay mechanics in the past, I at least could work with them.

From what I gathered in the tutorial they took out a lot of the nuances in the stand up like bobbing and weaving. As for the takedowns and ground game, I have little confidence in anything I'm doing. When I do the quarter circle turns you're suppose to do, I never know if I'm being blocked or timing it wrong or timing it perfectly for that matter. Nothing is coming as easy to me in these games. I understood the ground game in those other games, and i understand that it's a complicated system to put into a video game, but this one is really leaving me scratching my head. I don't know when I'm being blocked. I don't know if I'm blocking correctly. I just don't know how to mix all the martial arts in this game.

It really feels like a long time EA sports franchise in that it teaches you a few things that are new to get by but not why they are important. It's great that I can perry shots and all, but how do a execute on them? It's like they expected you to play last years game, but this is the first one.

I'm going to keep playing and hopefully get into it, but right now I'm a little let down. I didn't feel like there was a lot of hype on the site for the new UFC game but I wanted to know how everyone else (if any) is handling the game.

Maybe start a new fighter with Beginner difficulty. I had a rough start too, couldn't get past the second dude you have to fight in carreer. Once you get used to all the techniques, this game is really really good. That coming from a sports game hater.

The game does a better job throughout the career telling you how to play the game than it does in it's initial tutorial. I feel like they could have explained the fact that you can double tap the left analog stick to step sideways away from attacks as well as holding down (I don't remember right now) R2 or L2 and tapping the left analog stick to bob and weave. It's in the game, the game just never tells you about it until your coach in career tells you to work on your stand up game. Also, regarding that, I've noticed a bug in the career training sessions where the game tells you to pull the analog stick one way but means the opposite. Good thing though is that if it happens, just do the complete opposite of that for the duration of the training session as it doesn't reset until next time. Also, I found the whole "stop your opponent from transitioning" training to be weirdly inaccurate. I'll do the exact same button prompts and it will fail once, succeed once and succeed by doing the complete opposite once for no reason other than the effect is the same. I sort of wish that part was a little more reliable. But at the same time, the career training parts adds so little points compared to a fight victory that skipping the annoying ones doesn't really lose you much points if any.

The ground game is annoying, but it basically amounts to stop your opponent with right stick, and in the middle of that madness notice when they tell you to push the left stick in some area to progress your hold and do the right stick thing all over until it succeeds. But that also means you're playing against stats as well. Hell, I could barely make it work in the training sessions in career. So that specific part I just skip. It's unfortunate that a game that revolves around mixed martial arts have such an issue making a compelling case for playing the ground game.

As soon as you've parried a shot, you instantly hit them back (preferably with a haymaker shot). It's a small window (like most things in this game) and you'll notice if you're successful or not. Beyond that, I've found that the more I play the game, the less I rely on those big shots. So now I might parry someone, do a regular shot combo and move around instead of just hammering on the haymakers.

Overall I really like the game, I spent a good 10 hours straight playing it yesterday when I bought it (to my wife's shock as she came home from work [I'm on my vacation now, she's not]) and I found the game, as you say, sort of treats itself as a new game in a franchise as opposed to a completely new game needing to tell the player everything up front. That being said, I haven't tried the tutorial in the menu, if that's different than the starting one. I wouldn't say I am let down, but I will say that they have a bunch of concepts here that I really like and I am sure if they make another one it have a chance to be really good.

Have to say though, I really like how they give you points in career to improve your fighter. More focus on giving you points for fights than being successful at weird gym mini games. That being said, aside from some ground game stuff, most of the career gym stuff in this game is pretty applicable in the fights so they're actually not bad. So they could have gone either way.

So stick with it, it'll get better.

I'm having problems with the clinch and ground passing. It doesn't make a lot of sense to me. Are you actually doing different passes by rotating the stick in different directions, or are those just so the opponent has to counter with a different direction? Seems like when the other dude is riding me cowgirl (I don't know what the actual term for this shit is) all I can do is move to that position where he's on my back, which seems like a bad idea, and then back to underneath him. How do you get out of this other than just standing up? Also why does the fight keep breaking when I have someone on the ground?

I only played the EA MMA game before, I don't watch the sport. I liked that game, but the submission system in this one is infuriating. I just want a new Fight Night, goddammit.

I'm stuck in that same cowgirl, bronco, cowgirl loop, as well.

Also, defending the takedown seems nearly impossible outside of the tutorial. Does size factor into stamina or is it kind of even across weight class? Because my bigass dude gets winded so quickly, it's not even funny.

@ihateyou: @larrydavis: The transition is always out and up. And the side you want is depending on the way you want to move. You want to transition to the right, you go right and up. You want to go to the left, you go left and up. You can do special transitions by holding L1 also. So for example to get in full mount from the left side of the opening, you would circle out left and up on the right stick. That way you bring your left leg over his knees to his right side.

@sterling: Yeah, I get this. I mean I didn't know if there was any actual difference between the directions in terms of what position it'll put you in. In that cowgirl-bronco loop the same thing happens no matter if I try left or right.

I'm now trying to just play this like Fight Night, staying standing up as long as I can and getting up when taken down ASAP, but it seems like I'm just fighting against stats. I pound on this dude (only like the third in the career mode, and his stand-up rating is the lowest of all of his stats) and nothing, while he hits me twice and it's like I've bladed.

Just so you guys know there is a menu option called "Challenges" which is really just a way more detailed tutorial that happens to be scored.

This. Really should've called it advanced tutorial or something. Pretty helpful. Also not an easy game to pick up and play, especially if you have no past MMA game experience, but after some practice you get it down.

It's not just you. Some things are incredibly complicated and are either glossed over, explained poorly, or just flat out not mentioned in the in-game and online tutorials. It's a good (not great) game that's unfortunately further hampered by it's high learning curve. In my experience, this is actually pretty typical of EA sports games.

There's some good info not mentioned in the game here: http://www.easports.com/ufc/tipsandtricks

So I figured out the key. Once you actually beat the first guy that gives you a ton of attribute points, just dump them all into submission and you win. I'm like 15 fights into the career and haven't lost, most I win in a minute or so. Once I tried to just fight stand-up but despite countering like a motherfucker and bashing his head a ton he never went down, it just went to decision and I ended up with some minor career damage.

Here's a video showing the game-winning technique:

Also it turns out in addition to that weird on/off thing with the FMV stuff, video captures remove all the announcer and commentary voice. Which I think is fantastic.

Yah, Challenges is where you want to go. However a bunch of stuff just isn't explained correctly or at all.

Takedowns are supposed to be one continous sweeping movement on the stick.

Takedown defense you have to HOLD RT + down on the right stick. Not just press them. For whatever reason, in the tutorial pressing them is good enough. (It's still not very good.)

While on the ground on offense holding LB + RB gives you another striking option.

You have to remember to hold RT while trying to block transistions.

While on the ground and doing transistions holding LB can give you more options. For example when in side control your normal options are north/south or mount. Holding LB enables the crucifix or an arm trap.

@penderton said:

Yeah, this is pretty how much you get out of the mount position ("cow girl"). Amazing that this isn't explained in the tutorial...

In game tutorials are not great, the tutorial videos on their website (here) does a way better job explaining everything. Hope its useful

My winning formula for carrer is pretty much dump everything into power and speed. It takes me 10 secs on average to get a KO. It's not fair or fancy but it made me flyweight champ lol

My biggest issue in this game is that I have yet to defend a takedown while in a real fight. I know that you need to hold R and flick/hold RS down, but it seems impossible. I can win any fight standing, but when it seems impossible to stop the AI from just taking you down when you have the lead. I am playing on hard, if that makes any difference.

Otherwise, I am loving the game. It has enough challenge to where you aren't just an instant powerhouse.

@sniper26: Try flicking RS down and holding it, I found that helps with the timing. On hard and specially pro it will be hard stopping takedowns from a good wrestler, specially if you are gassed or stunned.

@theveej: Does seem to work better. I just keep realizing how much I hate ground combat in this game. Everything is fantastic, but fighting on the ground is just not fun to me. I also just can't do anything half the time vs the AI. End up on the ground half the round. Makes the game seem boring at times.

I have to agree about the tutorials, I don't think some things are covered at all, at least I've not seen them in the career mode or challenge mode.

The EA site however has all the moves on there, I found it really helpful for improving my game, I recommend checking it out. Tutorials

UFC Tips and Tricks

EA SPORTS UFC Official Tips & Tricks Series

EA SPORTS UFC - 28 Ways to Score a Tapout

although even with the EA tutorials, challenges & career mode. i am stick having trouble getting the right feel of defending takedowns, controlling clinches, blocking transition passes, doing takedowns etc... basically anything involving the sticks besides striking seems to be difficult to execute properly