Supremacy MMA PS3 Review

Publisher – 505 Games – Developer – Kung Fu Factory – Genre – Fighting – Players – 1-2 – Age Rating – 18+ – Other console/handheld formats – Xbox 360

With few big name fighters or promotions attached, 505 Games probably realised that Supremacy MMA was going to struggle at retail, so they made it controversial instead, and have even marketed it as the most controversial MMA game yet. The excellent EA Sports MMA failed to make a mark, despite actually having some big name fighters and a relationship with Strikeforce, so Supremacy MMA was going to need something to help sell it.

It’s not only the controversy that could help shift a fair few copies of Supremacy MMA, there’s also the fact that the game has been simplified for those who may not have got on with some of the complexities seen in rival MMA games. Developer Kung Fu Factory’s heart was definitely in the right place – stripping it down and aiming for fun as opposed to mechanical depth.

The results are obvious and the intuitiveness can be seen from the off. It’s a simple case of two attack buttons, a grapple button, a parry button, and simple stick movements during the ground game. Fighters also have power bars in the same vein as a fighting game, while it forgoes such things as flash KO’s, with fights only coming to an end when energy is depleted or through a tap out, which itself is only possible when energy levels are low. Those are of course the basics, but the game doesn’t really get much more complex than this, which certainly opens it up to a wider audience if nothing else.

Fighting styles are also distinct, with wrestlers being very different from boxers and so on. There are 14 fighters in total, with a mixture of real life and fictional fighters, and the boast that it is the first MMA game to feature female fighters, despite UFC: Sudden Impact doing it back in 2004. Maybe 505 Games missed that one.

None of Supremacy MMA’s boasts really hold up well. There are some good animations (some of the brutal moves in slow motion will certainly make you wince), although many of the others are far too stiff, while the controls don’t feel quite as responsive as they should. Circling the arenas has you having to hold down a shoulder button, which is odd, unwarranted and certainly very puzzling.

The game certainly has control and animation issues, but it also feels bland and like a missed opportunity. There’s just no rhythm or much real excitement to the fights, and rival games may have their complexities, but it would be worth getting to grips with those as opposed to putting up with Supremacy MMA’s problems.

Modes include Supremacy Stories and Femmes Fatales, the first has you taking fighters through decent storylines, while the latter has you doing the same with one of two real life female fighters, while also being the only way in which to pit the two characters against each other. The stories are presented nicely with mostly still cartoons, but on the whole they’re short and full of foul mouthed dialogue.

Outside of the stories there’s tournaments and multiplayer. The online multiplayer is currently a laggy mess, of which isn’t helpful for a game that requires timing. Hopefully this will be sorted out soon – it’s hardly going to attract players in this state, although such a problem should have really been fixed before the game was launched.

Visually, Supremacy MMA is underwhelming. The brutality is certainly detailed, with fighters looking like they have stepped off the set of a horror movie after an opponent bashes their face in – blood and bruising is definitely convincing. But I already mentioned the overly stiff animations, and detail elsewhere is definitely lacking. On the whole, it just looks dull and lifeless.

Don’t get me wrong, there’s fun in here, but it’s much milder than it should and could have been – and for a game that had so much potential as well. You see, Supremacy MMA is overly bland and sits uneasily between a fighting game and an MMA game, and there’s much better from both genres on the market. It could have been a great entry point for those confused with rival MMA games, but instead it’s one that is perhaps better forgotten.

4/10