UFC Undisputed may be a sports simulation, but the series has roots in fighting games, says the game's producer, and UFC 3 will pay tribute to those roots when the game releases in January.
Developer Yuke's Future Media Creators told me at E3 that the point of UFC Undisputed 3's competition mode is to get the game sanctioned as a tournament game for events such as the Evo Championship Series.
If included, that would be a first for a game that is primarily a sports simulation.
The competition mode levels out each fighter's attribute ratings and balances the fighting styles. That would mean a bout is won or lost purely on the human fighter's skills, knowledge of his character's move set, and his ability to execute it.
UFC's E3 presentation made repeated references to fighting games and said it will honor their traditions when the game releases in January. The most notable fightng-game feature is a repositioning of the camera angle, from a three-quarters overhead shot to an inside-the-ring profile of the two combatants, a view more familiar to fighting series games.
"We really think this is a fighting game at its core," producer Neven Dravinski said in the game's video presentation. "You will see things that you see in Tekken and in Street Fighter. You will see things such as canceling strikes."
Dravinsky added that professional fighting-game contestants were brought in to consult on UFC 3's development.