A lot of attention has been on the recent release of the new EA Sports FC 24 game – the first drop of the annual game that has not been affiliated with FIFA. But if you like your sports a little more violent, then you might rather be hearing all about the new UFC release.

The fifth edition of the fighting game has just dropped and is already getting rave reviews. With any of these kinds of titles, there is always some pressure to introduce something new to convince gamers to buy. The UFC series is just the same – and the new title is well worth checking out.

As the official game of the Ultimate Fighting Championship, you can expect all the big names and events that feature on any of the best UFC betting sites. Let’s take a look at what can be expected of the EA Sports version of the biggest organization in mixed martial arts.

What is EA UFC 5?

For any of you who have been living under a rock for the last few years, UFC is the Ultimate Fighting Championship. This is an organization that puts on and promotes the biggest bouts in mixed martial arts. There are many other organizations out there – but UFC is the big one.

As with other major sports, EA has gotten in early and licensed the game that can be played on either PlayStation 5 or Xbox Series XIS. There are no plans to release a version for PC. It won’t come as a surprise to any of you that this is the fifth edition of the game and one that has been eagerly anticipated by gamers and UFC fans alike.

The cover stars for this latest edition of the UFC game are former women’s flyweight champion, Valentina Shevchenko, and the current men’s flyweight champion, Alexander Volkanovski.

Game Modes

So what sets this latest edition out from the rest of the competition – and the previous versions released by EA Sports?

The very popular Fight Week game mode has been brought back and gamers can compete in game week challenges in the build-up to actual UFC events. By completing the challenges, you can unlock rewards. There is also the opportunity to make your picks for the real UFC events. Correctly predicting the outcome of the big bouts will move you up the Fight Week leaderboard and earn you UFC Coins. You can also get more coins by taking on fights through the Fight Week Contracts feature.

For anyone who loves UFC fighters but has wondered what their favorites would be like with different characteristics or skill sets, the Alter Egos game mode is definitely worth a look. Legendary UFC fighters are presented in real-life moments – but you have the ability to unlock different fighting skills and styles. Essentially, you have the opportunity to change the course of history.

The Online Career Mode is one of the most popular in the game and gives you the chance to take your custom fighter up through the ranks, just like the professionals. Evolution points can increase a fighter’s ability and help you move up the ranks in your chosen weight division. There are also XP Boosts and a Punch Card to add specific attributes to your fighter.

There are plenty of game styles to choose from, so you can make your UFC 5 experience as realistic as possible – or switch to what is essentially an arcade mode. EA Sports seems to have handed over the reins to the gamer with this one, allowing you to choose the kind of game you want to play in every session.

Fighting Tips

Even if you have played all the previous UFC titles, there are always some modifications made to force you to re-learn some of your techniques. This game is no different, although you will be happy to find out that the basics are just as before. You won’t be starting from scratch if you already have some experience with this series.

One note of caution to any gamers who perfected the spinning attacks in UFC 4 though. These don’t seem to be quite as effective this time around. It is still a good way to attack your opponent, but the controls are a little different and that makes it harder to execute the desired move. This could be just a new game thing – but don’t rely on a spinning attack to get you out of trouble straight away.

The other fight element that could really have an effect on your success with UFC 5 is that it has gotten far more realistic when it comes to the damage caused by headshots. Obviously, this was always a big part of any bout but there seems to be more potential for losing a fight now if you are not thinking about defense. The facial damage feature can also mean that fights can be stopped when that wasn’t always the case before.

UFC 5 Verdict

As with any of these sports series titles, whether you want to buy a new version of the game depends on your budget and your desire to have the latest edition. But there is enough in UFC 5 that is new and exciting to make a purchase worthwhile.

EA Sports are well known for producing the best version of sports games across the board and UFC falls into that category. With all the online and career fight modes available here, we would definitely recommend UFC 5 if you are at all interested in mixed martial arts – or even just fighting games.