Is the UFC picking the wrong fight with EA sports?

The more I think about it, the more it dawns on me that the UFC is inviting a major rival to come in and do serious damage to the image that the UFC is the only promotion that even matters that the UFC enjoys with many casual Spike watching fans.

Fight Night is a hugely popular series with many gamers who are not avid boxing fans, and the UFC game has garnered a lot of attention itself, and no one can understate Madden's success. Madden is a cultural phenomenon to the point it has transcended sports games. EA is a marketing juggernaut and has the clout and ability to advertise on major networks, ESPN and even Spike. During a UFC event EA had a SpikeTV Fight Night sneak preview recently.

They could do the same thing with their MMA game during a UFC broadcast and use the UFC's popularity directly against them. EA Sports is not something to be taken lightly. EA nearly launched their own video game console, their games are that successful, and they managed to choke out fellow titan Sega in the NFL market by eventually securing exclusive license of the NFL and it's trade marks.

While the UFC claims EA blew them off and only began this game after THQ's success, the president of EA Sports, who was on hand for the Strikeforce card, confirmed that this game has been in development since 2007, shortly after the UFC signed with THQ.

The UFC is making a mistake being so violently competitive with others in the business. Peter Moore seems like he himself is a fan of MMA and appeared to have some knowledge of the sport. Dream and Strikeforce have had a relationship for a while and now have formalized an agreement, adding immediate depth to many divisions, Strikeforce has been successfully co-promoting with other promotions and making money, even crappy ones like EliteXC, and CBS and EA sports are big-time backers. Strikeforce knows how to promote fights. EA knows how to make good video games and sell them. And with stars like Carano, Cyborg Mousasi, Fedor, Couture, Nick Diaz and up and comers like Bobby Lashley and King Mo about to break through with a lot of charisma, the game is poised to do well. Fact is, Strikeforce, EA and the UFC's rivals are not going to go away. Not this time.



Sometimes I think the UFC has blinders on. Being able to bully around people selling T-shirts and MMA managers and fighters is one thing, taking on the whole world is another.


Why do you think the UFC has made friends with everyone from Tito to Pat Miletich? They understand they need to lock up errant names out there that could go in the video game.

You don't really think other companies are trying to capture some of the UFC's market share because they are offended by the UFC's attitude, do you? If the UFC acted like humanitarians and never spoke a bad word about anybody, would Strikeforce just lay down? Would EA say, "We'll wait until the THQ contract runs out before jumping into it."

Fact is, Strikeforce, EA and the UFC's rivals are not going to go away even if the UFC was a non-profit run by the Pope.

I am not implying that by any stretch Jaro. They would exist either way. It's the UFC that is making it personal and is drawing the line in the sand here. That is their mistake. It's not as if EA and Strikeforce would really assault the biggest, most respected and best known brand first.

From my understanding, even with the UFC game with THQ, it was still possible for the UFC to allow it's fighters and it's trademarks to appear in this game. The negotations happened for this in 2008 after Couture returned, but fell through.

Strikeforce has never done a ppv, EA didn't want to compete with the UFC. Now both are possible realities. The UFC is making them competitors, not the other way around.

In two years the MMA landscape could be dramatically different. Forget Fedor for a moment, guys like Melendez Lashley, Shields, Mousasi and Diaz are all legit possible stars that Strikeforce could build around. Another year of development and another relative unknown could be in this discussion in just twelve months.

Fact is, EA and Strikeforce and MMA diaspora will treat the UFC and
this game differently now that the UFC has made it clear they are a
hostile competitor.

Even if it is not the UFC's doing, EA sports will bring a major spotlight to Non UFC fighters.

I wonder if the whole Fitch saga had taken place now, with strikeforce looking legit, if he would have bowed down to the UFC the way that he did, or if he would have said "OK I'll go to Strikeforce."

Ea is doing something good for MMA.. they are going to let UFC nutthuggers know that there is more out there then just UFC.. i know there will be alot of strikeforce guys on EA MMA but im also hoping they put Dream guys in there too..

I think the significant difference between the other gaming franchises you named and this situation is that in this country at least the name value resides with "UFC", not "MMA". EA has quite the marketing machine behind them, but are they really going to be willing to throw significant amounts of money behind the MMA project to try to make up the immense gap in brand recognition that they're starting out with?

Personally I kind of doubt it. I don't think EA would put a ton of money behind promoting a football game without the NFL or NCAA licenses and without the best known teams and players, and that's essentially what they'd be attempting to do here.

If I had to wager on it, I'd guess that the game underperforms and EA drops the project after only a couple attempts at it.

I don't think EA's game will ever actually make it out, I think they will get bad reviews when the test the game. The only way the game could have enough competitive fighters is to make it an open weight game like the old PRIDE game. You can choose anyone to fight anyone. They just won't have enough at each WC to make the game worth playing IMO.

What they will do is make a look-a-like and call them names like "Spider boy" or "Man of Ice" or in Stephan Bonners case "He who loses to old, bald man". But that is what they will do and I like the concept of choosing whether or not you get to fight in a cage or a ring. But I think without all the names that the UFC carries legit wise, the game is due to fail. Eventually what will happen is the UFC and THQ will broker a deal with EA sports, then you will be talking about the greatest MMA game of all time.

could they use old MMA legends like Gracie, Tank, Severn? Some of them have to own their own rights.

EA's game will get bad test reviews and won't come out? Is that a real opinion from a real person? My fuckin lawd.

It's all about gameplay and create a fighter mode. All EA would really have to do is design a create a fighter with obvious features to let people create guys not in the game and share them online. Liddell's hairstyle, Rampage's chain, similar post fight celebrations.

EA is instant brand recognition. Do you think everyone who bought all the hugely successful fight night bough them for Pacman or Oscar De La Hoya?

Wolfgangsta wrote:

EA's game will get bad test reviews and won't come out? Is that a real opinion from a real person? My fuckin lawd.

Yeah I said it!

OUSOONERSOU wrote:

Wolfgangsta wrote:

EA's game will get bad test reviews and won't come out? Is that a real opinion from a real person? My fuckin lawd.

Yeah I said it!

EA's game will get awesome reviews. EA will have great gameplay and that is what gamers look for.

WTF?!

Game buyers don't care if Tamden McCory, Damien Maia and Gray Maynard are also featured in the game. If the game has great gameplay, a few known names, a great create a fighter and the ability to share created fighters, then it will be successful.

Think about it, it will be advertised in every Madden booklit sold, all over EA's website and with a good commercial campaign. EA sports will break the stranglehold the UFC has over MMA.

Wolfgangsta wrote:

Game buyers don't care if Tamden McCory, Damien Maia and Gray Maynard are also featured in the game. If the game has great gameplay, a few known names, a great create a fighter and the ability to share created fighters, then it will be successful.

Think about it, it will be advertised in every Madden booklit sold, all over EA's website and with a good commercial campaign. EA sports will break the stranglehold the UFC has over MMA.

They might as well use Street Fighter characters. Will it be an open weight game? How many fighters can they really have at each WC? They are going to have to get creative to even make it competitive to play. I think this thing will tank, just my opinion. Not even EA can make this work.

There have been hundreds of fighters in Pride and the UFC that are not in the game, and EA will will get many of them and many of Strikeforce, Japanese, and other modern stars.

The game won't tank because Machida, GSP or Silva isn't there. Fight Night Round 3 didn't have Mayweather, and it didn't have Tyson. It did amazing.

What you are failing entirely to understand is that the majority of the people who will be buying this game will buy it because of game play. They will buy it because it's an EA game with good game play.

You have no evidence the game will tank.

Wolfgangsta wrote:

There have been hundreds of fighters in Pride and the UFC that are not in the game, and EA will will get many of them and many of Strikeforce, Japanese, and other modern stars.

The game won't tank because Machida, GSP or Silva isn't there. Fight Night Round 3 didn't have Mayweather, and it didn't have Tyson. It did amazing.

What you are failing entirely to understand is that the majority of the people who will be buying this game will buy it because of game play. They will buy it because it's an EA game with good game play.

You have no evidence the game will tank.

yeah Wolfy I don't have any evidence and you are right I am being overly critical, I'm just saying I don't think it will do very well. Tanking is an exaggeration. If they do use old names then that will help. Fight Night still had plenty of great fighters like Hopkins, Leonard, Ali, Robinson, Oscar, plenty of great fighters and legends. I do see your point Wolf. If they can fill the roster with past names that would go a long way IMO.

I have a feeling EA has other names signed and just hasn't announced them yet.

Wolfgangsta wrote:

I have a feeling EA has other names signed and just hasn't announced them yet.

do you think they have fighters currently in the UFC not named yet? or are you thinking more about legends and other talent in MMA?

Both really. I bet Ortiz would backstab Dana and not tell him about his EA deal until he's fought Coleman. I hope that's the case.

The problem you are missing Wolf is that exclusivity rule they all signed with the UFC. Don't get me wrong, I think having a 10 year exclusivity rule is fucked up and not in the fighter best interest, but they did sign it and even if they can break it in court it will take years. The only difference between what the UFC/THQ platform is and what EA sports does is that fighters will get paid for being on the next game and I think DW will do that. What they did to Thales and McCrory was messed up and I think DW has given up too much power to LF and he got overruled.

There are fighters in this game in the UFC game. Not everyone in the UFC game signed it.

True, but it is against the law to use someones image without appropriate compensation. So if THQ paid some fighters, prior to anouncing their deal with the UFC, then they could use them. It just depends on how contracts are figured or how good your lawyers are.

Actually I hope Bruce Lee, Chuck Norris and a bunch of fictional characters are in it. Spider man, Zangeif, whatever. Maybe some boxers too. Fuck ya.