Overview:
In this thread I'll try to articulate what I believe to be the pros and cons of Ultimate Team in UFC 3 as best as I can. I'll try to keep this as objective as possible as there are both positives and negatives to UT this time around (though I personally sway towards the negative).
WARNING: This is going to be a VERY LONG post.
Ultimate Team Balancing:
As far as gameplay goes, this is a huge let down for the mode. As fighters will often follow a bias in their fighting style and will pretty much have to stay within it. Not only due to base attributes, but more importantly move slot configuration aswell.
It is then up to the player to decide how they can then patch their fighters weak spots, which is pretty folly considering the move slots available within the styles. I'll use a 'Striker' as an example as that's my preferred playing style. With the weak grappling they have and the FOUR grappling slots they have available, I'll have to decide whether to increase TDD primarily or BOT as any other area would not be viable.
This makes matches against grapplers a HIGHLY FRUSTRATING experience as you're pretty much hopeless once it becomes a grappling match and in some cases, may as well put the pad down (this is assuming you increased TDD and your opponent manages to get that 1 takedown).
Likewise, if you're a grappler and are struggling to get a fight to the ground, it can be an equally frustrating experience as you have next to no chance on the feet.
Fighters typically have a total of 15 slots to place moves, I'd propose that these slots are not restricted to move type, making the styles as no more than a set of base attributes to work on.
Move Attributes:
Before I get deep within this topic, I'll point there has been alot of improvement with the functionality of moves since UFC 2 UT. As you're now able to use the same move for multiple fighters and will not have to consistently switch moves between fighters (you can even search for fights through all fighters now, or swap fighters through a HUGE collection).
On the down side, moves are very random in the attributes they assign, some are even counter-productive. E.g: An Inside Trip that REDUCES TAKEDOWN ability or a Guillotine that REDUCES BOTTOM or SUB DEFENCE
This often results in having to make frequent compromises when selecting moves, as by strengthening one area you are weakening another (this could be fixed through attribute cards in UFC 2)area which may be vital to your fighters game.
For example; cards that improve TD often reduce TOP or vice versa.
Another criticism of moves I'd like to add, is one/two gate submissions within Ultimate Team. Submissions like the 'Mighty Wiz Bar' may aswell be a 'win button' against fighters with poor SUBD or the CCON to deny it.
Create Fighters vs Real Fighters:
This was a huge factor in what made Ultimate Team more unique and attractive as a mode in UFC 2 imo. Players from the get-go could create their very own fighters, build them up and compete. As of right now and particularly due to the championship edition of the game; there is a consistent repetition of the same fighters and those using those fighters are surely coming across consistent MIRROR MATCHING (GSP, Silva and McGregor).
Created Fighters are considerably rare and especially in the case of 3* versions where the only reliable way of obtaining one is through the Create 'Gold CAF Fighter Item' in sets.
Even then, when you do eventually pick up a CAF Fighter Card, you may be in for a surprise when it's a fighting style you dislike to play with.
Perhaps CAF Fighter cards could eventually be upgraded from silver to gold etc, or allow CAFs to change style and height/reach?
With the way fighters CURRENTLY work in this mode, it is very likely we'll end up with a cesspool of Conor McGregors in LW, Amanda Nunes' in WBW, Robert Whittakers in MW or Daniel Comier/Stipe Miocic in HW when more players secure those 4*/5* champions.
Daily Tokens/Challenges:
Daily Tokens are an interesting addition, but I have gripes in which the way they are obtained. You are required to perform a SPECIFIC TASK with a SPECIFIC FIGHTER, some of which are unethical. For example; you may be required to win viaSUBMISSION with a BRAWLER.
Brawlers are stand-up based fighters, I'm pretty sure the ground and in some cases even the clinch is one of the last places I'd want to be in, especially if my opponent is a Grappler GSP.
Matchmaking now is much more strict and based on rank; if you're in the top 100, you will be placed with other top players where it can be very competitive and is best to play according to your strengths and not a 'farming mentality', otherwise fishing for that sub could result in a free win for your opponent.
Could it not be implemented so that Daily Tokens could be awarded through other means such as Solo Challenges, Single Player, completing an online fight (like the UFC 2 daily reward packs) or even simply as a Daily 'Log In' reward?
Consumables:
This has improved since the beta, as boost slots are both permanent and temporary. However, perks remain exclusively on limited time and I often don't even bother putting them on as I'm having to consistently switch between a collection I find undesirable.
The Ranking System:
This I believe has been a significant improvment from the last game, ranking functions essentially the same way as Ranked Championships. Rank is based on Division points for the whole team. There are no rankings confined to singular weight classes or fighters. Record cannot be manipulated through the deletion of fighters and there is no starting at Div 1 again for new ones.
In this thread I'll try to articulate what I believe to be the pros and cons of Ultimate Team in UFC 3 as best as I can. I'll try to keep this as objective as possible as there are both positives and negatives to UT this time around (though I personally sway towards the negative).
WARNING: This is going to be a VERY LONG post.
Ultimate Team Balancing:
As far as gameplay goes, this is a huge let down for the mode. As fighters will often follow a bias in their fighting style and will pretty much have to stay within it. Not only due to base attributes, but more importantly move slot configuration aswell.
It is then up to the player to decide how they can then patch their fighters weak spots, which is pretty folly considering the move slots available within the styles. I'll use a 'Striker' as an example as that's my preferred playing style. With the weak grappling they have and the FOUR grappling slots they have available, I'll have to decide whether to increase TDD primarily or BOT as any other area would not be viable.
This makes matches against grapplers a HIGHLY FRUSTRATING experience as you're pretty much hopeless once it becomes a grappling match and in some cases, may as well put the pad down (this is assuming you increased TDD and your opponent manages to get that 1 takedown).
Likewise, if you're a grappler and are struggling to get a fight to the ground, it can be an equally frustrating experience as you have next to no chance on the feet.
Fighters typically have a total of 15 slots to place moves, I'd propose that these slots are not restricted to move type, making the styles as no more than a set of base attributes to work on.
Move Attributes:
Before I get deep within this topic, I'll point there has been alot of improvement with the functionality of moves since UFC 2 UT. As you're now able to use the same move for multiple fighters and will not have to consistently switch moves between fighters (you can even search for fights through all fighters now, or swap fighters through a HUGE collection).
On the down side, moves are very random in the attributes they assign, some are even counter-productive. E.g: An Inside Trip that REDUCES TAKEDOWN ability or a Guillotine that REDUCES BOTTOM or SUB DEFENCE
This often results in having to make frequent compromises when selecting moves, as by strengthening one area you are weakening another (this could be fixed through attribute cards in UFC 2)area which may be vital to your fighters game.
For example; cards that improve TD often reduce TOP or vice versa.
Another criticism of moves I'd like to add, is one/two gate submissions within Ultimate Team. Submissions like the 'Mighty Wiz Bar' may aswell be a 'win button' against fighters with poor SUBD or the CCON to deny it.
Create Fighters vs Real Fighters:
This was a huge factor in what made Ultimate Team more unique and attractive as a mode in UFC 2 imo. Players from the get-go could create their very own fighters, build them up and compete. As of right now and particularly due to the championship edition of the game; there is a consistent repetition of the same fighters and those using those fighters are surely coming across consistent MIRROR MATCHING (GSP, Silva and McGregor).
Created Fighters are considerably rare and especially in the case of 3* versions where the only reliable way of obtaining one is through the Create 'Gold CAF Fighter Item' in sets.
Even then, when you do eventually pick up a CAF Fighter Card, you may be in for a surprise when it's a fighting style you dislike to play with.
Perhaps CAF Fighter cards could eventually be upgraded from silver to gold etc, or allow CAFs to change style and height/reach?
With the way fighters CURRENTLY work in this mode, it is very likely we'll end up with a cesspool of Conor McGregors in LW, Amanda Nunes' in WBW, Robert Whittakers in MW or Daniel Comier/Stipe Miocic in HW when more players secure those 4*/5* champions.
Daily Tokens/Challenges:
Daily Tokens are an interesting addition, but I have gripes in which the way they are obtained. You are required to perform a SPECIFIC TASK with a SPECIFIC FIGHTER, some of which are unethical. For example; you may be required to win viaSUBMISSION with a BRAWLER.
Brawlers are stand-up based fighters, I'm pretty sure the ground and in some cases even the clinch is one of the last places I'd want to be in, especially if my opponent is a Grappler GSP.
Matchmaking now is much more strict and based on rank; if you're in the top 100, you will be placed with other top players where it can be very competitive and is best to play according to your strengths and not a 'farming mentality', otherwise fishing for that sub could result in a free win for your opponent.
Could it not be implemented so that Daily Tokens could be awarded through other means such as Solo Challenges, Single Player, completing an online fight (like the UFC 2 daily reward packs) or even simply as a Daily 'Log In' reward?
Consumables:
This has improved since the beta, as boost slots are both permanent and temporary. However, perks remain exclusively on limited time and I often don't even bother putting them on as I'm having to consistently switch between a collection I find undesirable.
The Ranking System:
This I believe has been a significant improvment from the last game, ranking functions essentially the same way as Ranked Championships. Rank is based on Division points for the whole team. There are no rankings confined to singular weight classes or fighters. Record cannot be manipulated through the deletion of fighters and there is no starting at Div 1 again for new ones.
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