Compared to the gigantic releases from EA (EA Sports MMA) and THQ (UFC Undisputed 2010), 505 Games’ entry into the MMA arena with Supremacy MMA is relatively small. However, that doesn’t necessarily mean that Supremacy will be drowned out by its massively sponsored and promoted brethren. I got a chance to preview all three games during last weeks E3 and what I can tell you definitely is this: EA and THQ are going to be locked in an MMA video game showdown, while Supremacy is a different breed of game altogether.

Before I say more about Supremacy MMA I would like to take a minute to have a heart to heart with those UFC and Strikeforce loyalists who may find themselves trolling a non-affiliated MMA game. MMA is not a three letter acronym like MLB, NHL or NBA — it’s not a league. MMA stands for a style of fighting. Mixed martial arts allows for a variety of techniques and skills, from a variety of traditional martial arts and not-so-traditional martial arts and much as Dana White and Scott Coker are trying to mainstream the sport by injecting more rules and safety measures into it the fact is, MMA was an illegal sport (and still is, in many states) and used to be a much more violent sport than it is now. So it is from a lens of acceptance for MMA’s bloody ancestry that I take a look at Supremacy MMA.

Here is the breakdown. EA Sports MMA is aligned with Strikeforce and UFC Undisputed 2010 is aligned with UFC. Because of these sponsorships each of these games only features fighters from its aligned league and and is subject its whim. Supremacy has no such sponsorship. So while you may not get to talk shit with Mayhem, grapple with The Natural, or compete with King Mo’ for the LightHeavyweight title, you will get to do some things that the other games can’t do on account of their mainstream sponsorships. You’ll get to break some bones, amputate some limbs, cavort with strippers and gamble on cock fights in 505′s Supremacy MMA.

During my chat with Casey Lynch, Director of PR at 505 games I asked him what the biggest draw would be to the company’s entry into the MMA video game market. Without a moments hesitation he said, “No rules is by far the biggest thing”. Apparently the good people over at 505 don’t want to be bogged down by the intricacies of small joint manipulation and would rather focus on the underground roots of the sport. The underground roots of the sport are supposed to be what gives Supremacy that “rockstar vibe” that the other MMA games are so desperately lacking. While this may not win over hardcore UFC and Strikeforce junkies, it does create a game that is more much accessible to gamers who just want to physically destroy another fighter in the classic MMA style. And of course by “classic” I mean the barbaric, gory past-time of our MMA forefathers.

The version of Supremacy that we got to scope during E3 was about 35% complete in terms of build, but the game was conceived of almost 4 years ago and has spent almost a year in development. The build represented a first pass at the physical aesthetic of the fighters, and the demo didn’t show any clinch or ground work, just straight up punch and kick beat downs. So I wish that I had more to report about cage dynamics, groundwork and story mode (which is supposedly really special but I couldn’t charm them into leaking any of the info) but you’ll have to settle for upright action.

When compared to EA Sports MMA and UFC Undisputed 2010, the demo of Supremacy looks fast, really fast. Both EA and Undisputed have intricate and complex clinch and groundwork systems but the upright fighting is sluggish in both games. The punch and kick physics leave a lot to be desired in all three games but in Supremacy it is effectively masked by speed. The demo featured a nameless muay thai fighter taking on an equally anonymous karate fighter, who kicked, roundhoused, and jabbed until he landed a knee to lower leg that snapped the tibia of the muay thai fighter that we got to watch in a Romeo Must Die bone break scene. Very very cool!

I know what you’re thinking, this game has the potential to be over the top kick-ass, or be gimmicky like . . . well . . . Over The Top. But think about this, Kung Fu Factory, the developer for Supremacy, worked on the first MMA videogame, Ultimate Fighting Championship for Dreamcast, UFC Undisputed, and was the only third-party developer to work on the Mortal Kombat franchise. KFF’s impressive fighting game pedigree leads me to believe that this game may end up being the sleeper hit of the MMA video game race.

Also, here is one last thing to think about. During the press conference when asked about a cock-fighting mini-game, developer Daryl Pitts said, “That’s a very, very good question. But no comment!”. He may as well have winked and started doing the Flarhgunnstow with how excited he was. So I guess it all depends on what you want out of your MMA video game. Do you want realistic Strikeforce and UFC action, fraught with rules, intricate control schemes and cage physics, or do you want broken limbs and cock fights? The choice is yours my friend!

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