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EA Sports has delivered a bloody good time with UFC 5, a title that truly feels like a new-gen experience in the octagon. EA has given the MMA Simulator series a few years off since UFC 4‘s 2020 release, and it’s paid off significantly. In that time, a new game engine has helped UFC 5 become the most realistic-looking fighter on the market that is incredibly satisfying to play and easy for newcomers to enjoy.
EA’s Fight Night Round 3 blew players away when it was released on Xbox 360 in 2006 with its revolutionary visuals and slow-motion impact knockouts that showed off what the new hardware was capable of. More than 15 years later, EA has done it again with UFC 5 on current-gen consoles.
Presentation That Is As Bloody As It Is Beautiful
Incredible lighting techniques help the sweat and blood of each fighter glisten in an octagon that now grows a tapestry of blood during a fight. Improved face rigs and strand-based hair physics have dramatically enhanced the likeness of each fighter in the game. Each fighter looks better than ever, including surprising DLC additions of iconic fighters like Bruce Lee, Mike Tyson, and Muhammad Ali. However, with UFC 5‘s new damage system, it can get difficult to recognize the legends after the end of a brutal bout.
Damage taken throughout each fight accumulates and can even open up areas for opponents to focus on to win a fight. Too much damage to a particular area will weaken its usefulness, and spamming attacks will exhaust any fighter, making careless players easy targets in the ring. Between the new damage system’s cuts, bruises, swelling, and bleeding damage, UFC 5 has more than 64,000 different combinations of injuries that can accumulate and affect a fighter’s performance. While EA chose not to recreate the grossest injuries MMA has seen, a new mechanic introduces a doctor who can call a fight if an injury becomes too dangerous.
While EA is known for releasing annual sports games, it’s clear that EA Vancouver benefited greatly by having the extra development time for UFC 5, which shows. From the incredibly impactful sound design that explodes with any significant strike to the dramatically epic slow-motion replays, UFC 5 proves what being given more time than EA’s annual releases can accomplish.
Fighters Of All Shapes, Sizes, and Skills Levels Can Fight
Players can create fighters and learn what it takes to be a UFC champ in the game’s Career Mode. UFC 5‘s updated control mechanics are introduced within the mode’s first few levels, making even inexperienced players feel comfortable on the mat before too long. EA Vancouver has also taken a page from Street Fighter 6‘s book with a new AI-assisted control scheme that simplifies controls to the point where the game will decide which type of punch and kick should be used in battle. However, the AI assistance felt too simplified, with only one button for punching, kicking, clenching, and takedowns. UFC 5‘s new controls are not too difficult to master with the game’s tutorials and Coach Davis’s help.
Tutorials and running practice drills against the AI before a big fight are an easy way to learn how to execute moves, while Evolution Points that can be assigned to boost a fighter’s stats permanently. Other UFC fighters also teach the player’s character new techniques that can be set to almost any button with UFC 5‘s incredibly varied accessibility options. Different game styles with adjusted rules and gameplay mechanics can be toyed with in the game’s options for offline modes. For example, players can remove the chance of taking specific injuries, shift the gameplay to focus on knockout brawls, or a personal favorite, one option that removes the helpful HUD and strives to be as realistic as possible with the “Simulation” setting.
Many changes have made UFC 5 an excellent entry for new players. The previously complex submission minigame no longer breaks up the action. Instead, once two fighters are made to show off their ground game, each fighter controls UFC 5‘s new “Seamless Submissions” with a single joystick, similar to a rock-paper-scissors bout. Legacy controls also welcome EA UFC veterans to flex their skills and discover new depths against newer players who can now stand a chance with updated controls.
Single-Player Content Is Plentiful, But Multiplayer Feels More Substantial
Not every mode in UFC 5 supports the AI-assisted controls, with the online modes locked into the “Competitive” game style rules so that all players are on equal footing. While players can jump into a Quick Match to start fighting online, UFC 5 offers more than the standard matchmaking multiplayer mode. Online Career mode is separate from single-player and allows players to create four different online fighters. There, they will rise up the online ranks and level their fighters’ stats while learning new moves to fight against other human players. UFC 5 also includes more modes that will be updated regularly with new challenges for offline and online players.
Blitz Battles is another online mode that tasks players to win short matches with ever-changing rules, which embraces a more arcade-type feel. Fight Week is a new mode that will sync with real-life UFC events and even allow players to bet on the outcome of anticipated battles to win in-game currency and compete in the Fight Picks leaderboards. Fight Contracts will also provide updated daily challenges for offline battles against AI opponents that grow in difficulty over the course of a week. Fight Week content begins the week of November 6 ahead of UFC 295 and was unavailable during the review period.
If online multiplayer seems intimidating, offline modes will provide many hours of entertainment, especially with UFC 5‘s customizable local multiplayer. While Career Mode’s story and cut scenes help build a narrative around the player’s fighter, its gameplay loop can start to feel stale quickly. Players complete the same training exercises and organize promotional events leading to their next fights. Spending a weekly allowance of points to conduct such activities can also be used to learn new techniques. UFC 5‘s Campaign could have benefited from some drama or a storyline that saw fighters clash outside the octagon.
Final Thoughts & UFC 5’s Review Score
While there are many good things to say about UFC 5, it still has some bugs with its physics to work out. There are times when parts of character models will bend and contort in unnatural ways, which is hard to miss during slow-motion finisher replays. Still, the game has improved many of its animations from previous installments and delivered a level of realism with its visuals and presentation that has set a new bar. EA’s UFC 5 is a wonderful showcase of what current hardware is capable of and a brutally good time, especially with hard-hitting multiplayer matches with friends.
EA Sport’s UFC 5 releases worldwide on October 27 for PlayStation 5 and Xbox Series X/S. Screen Rant was provided with a PlayStation 5 digital download for the purpose of this review.
