I was able to play through some additional matches of the full version of EA Sports UFC on the E3 show floor. By now everyone has had some time with the demo, so most folks have started to make up their mind in terms of where they think the gameplay is (or isn't). The control scheme is equally divisive, with many feeling that it's too complicated or alienating for casuals (a market that EA is clearly targeting). About the only thing almost everyone is agreeing on is the staggeringly good visuals, which continue to impress right before release.

The arena presentation is fantastic, with full crowds, lighting treatment, corner and cut men, ring girls, announcers, camera men and amazingly detailed fighters. I found it particularly crazy late in fights, as the crowd was going wild and both fighters were looking like they'd been through hell (thanks to the amazing damage modelling that the game has). As the corner guys come in between rounds to make sure the fighter is okay, everything just looks absolutely spectacular.

As for the gameplay, I was fairly bullish on it during my impressions of the recently released demo, but I was wary of the control scheme, as it most certainly isn't friendly to casual or mid-level players. It's pretty much an all-or-nothing proposition, as you really have to understand what you can do in all possible situations. That's the thing with MMA: you never know where the fight may go, and you have to be ready for anything.

This isn't to say EA is immune to criticism here. Without a doubt, the controls aren't intuitive enough (or at least, they aren't explained in a substantive way). Most folks I played against on the show floor had little concept of how to play the game, and it took me trying to explain things in a somewhat abstract way for them to understand how to get offensive and defensive. I can't say for sure what form the full retail game tutorial will take, but I feel the demo should've contextualized the controls in terms of blocking and guarding against transitions in such a way that people understood about blocking high/low or guarding a pass attempt to the left or right. As it is, it's just a jumble of tutorial prompts that don't give users any way of understand why they're doing what they're doing.
 

Still, I've played a good deal of MMA and fighting products (including the THQ games), so I have a very solid grasp on how the game is set up. It's one of those control schemes that rewards patience, observation and timing, and mastery is achievable if you put in the time. I had some particularly good matches on the show floor near the end of the day on Thursday, where my opponent actually knew how to counter on the ground and was patient in the stand-up exchanges.

One match had me as Lyoto Machida and my opponent as Shogun Rua. We exchanged leg kicks and some counter hooks, and we had some entertaining clinch exchanges that resulted in some good pummels and knees to the head and body. When things hit the ground, we both had some success. I was able to pass his guard reasonably well and land damage, but he managed to sweep me on several occasions and go for some submissions. Once things were back standing, I was able to flatten Shogun several times, nearly stopping the fight on all occasions. I finally was able to put him away in full mount in the fourth round, but not before I'd been put in some danger as well. I had another match against a human opponent where I was TJ Grant and he was Frankie Edgar. It proved to be epic as well. Matches like this gave me great hope for the online component of EA Sports UFC.

Similarly, I had some very entertaining scraps against the AI. I set the difficulty to “Hard” (second-highest) and the clock to real time, and then I attempted some matches where I'd be at a disadvantage. It was fun trying to avenge Mark Hunt's loss against JDS, and I had two close fights when doing so. The first encounter was an absolute barn burner, and Hunt was gassing quite a bit in the championship rounds (even though I'd been fairly conservative with him). JDS looked a bit fresher, but I was able to sloppily secure some takedowns and do some damage to JDS. He rocked me several times, but Hunt had the iron will to keep going. It was a great match that I lost by decision, but it was a very satisfying loss. My second attempt resulted in a second-round flattening of JDS, as Hunt was able to clobber him with some vicious lefts and drop him to the ground.
 

One of the biggest compliments I can pay to EA Sports UFC (so far) is that matches can turn on a dime, and they don't end in predictable ways (which happened often in the THQ games). As evidenced in my match against Shogun, he was nearly beaten about five times, but even with his head in the “red,” he persevered and showed some serious guts. These long wars really feel epic, and the body language of the fighters, stamina fatigue, damage modelling and crowd reaction really sell it.

Then again, I've still noticed some input lag on strikes, and it would've been great to have the game running at 60fps. There are moments where fighters will kick each other at the same time, and some strikes do happen far too often. Still, this is the curse of videogames — user input means someone can throw a dozen high kicks if they want. The only way to discourage it would be some sort of charge system where you could spend a use or two on a special attack, but then your fighter would have to work up to it again. As is, less skilled fighters are going to go big with flashy moves, and that can make the game look a bit sloppier than it actually is.
 

I'm really interested to see more of EA Sports UFC, including the career and online modes. Even though this product looks to be more for the hardcore than the casuals, it's got me excited to see all that it has to offer. Hopefully it's mostly good news when we all get to play it next week.