Xbox 360 EA Sports MMA demo out now

By Wesley Yin-Poole Published 28 September, 2010

Available later for PlayStation 3.

EA Sports has put out an Xbox 360 demo for its MMA game. Grab it from Xbox Live Marketplace now and it'll be ready for you when you get home.

A PlayStation 3 demo is expected "later today", although that's later tonight for us Brits.

The demo features the Fight Now mode and two weight classes: heavyweight and middleweight. Strikeforce champ Alistair Overeem and former professional wrestler Bobby Lashley are your heavyweight playable fighters, and Jiu-Jitsu fighters Jake Shields and Jason "Mayhem" Miller are your middleweights.

The demo's Fight Now mode puts you in the Strikeforce cage at the HP Pavilion and tests you across four different skill levels. There's a tutorial in there, too.

You can unlock "Classic" Randy Couture for the full game by sharing the demo with others.

EA Sports MMA aims squarely at the success THQ has enjoyed with its superb UFC Undisputed franchise. Christian Donlan went hands-on for Eurogamer and returned battered and bruised.

Game is out on 19th October.

Picture of Wesley.

About Wesley Yin-Poole

Wesley is Eurogamer's news editor. He likes news, interviews, and more news. He also likes Street Fighter more than anyone can get him to shut up about it.

Read more articles from Wesley by visiting the Wesley Yin-Poole archive page.

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Comments (26) Latest comment 2 years ago

Comments for this article are now closed, but please feel free to continue chatting on the forum!

  • Deckard1 #1 2 years ago

    Played this a bit earlier and I was a bit disappointed to be honest - something feels off about it. Might just need to learn how to play in properly though I suppose.

  • JahB #2 2 years ago

    Why is there no Fedor in my demo?

  • tachometer #3 2 years ago

    Randy "Chase me!" Couture is my favourite!

  • riceNpea #4 2 years ago

    ' EA Sports has put out an Xbox 360 demo for its MMA game. Grab it from Xbox Live Marketplace now and it'll be ready for you when you get home.

    A PlayStation 3 demo is expected "later today", although that's later tonight for us Brits. '


    i'm confused. are EG articles written by brits or yanks? the first statement must be american and the latter british. how does it work? is this an american site first adapted for europe?

  • TheStatics #5 2 years ago

    ^ ?

  • coolbritannia #6 2 years ago

    The first statement is for the 360, the 2nd is for the PS3 and contains a clarification from EG of EA's statement for us, the BRITISH audience. FFS learn to read before you try and be a smartarse man.

  • riceNpea #7 2 years ago

    it was an honest question.

    the reason i asked is because the article was posted at 18 47 so i thought it was odd to say to get it from XBox Live now and it will be ready when you get home. i don't know what time you finish work but i would say the majority of brits are already home at that time.

    no need to be rude britannia

  • kingmong #8 2 years ago

    @riceNpea it may have be an honest question but it didn't make any sense :)

  • riceNpea #9 2 years ago

    no perhaps not. not everyone would've noted the time the article was posted. i wasn't clear. thanks for pointing that out kindly.

  • TFM_Excalibur #10 2 years ago

    This is fantastic compared to ufc, the submission system isn't broken, which you know, is always a bonus, the damage modelling is superb, my only real gripe is the walking animation, its like mma fighters ice skating.
    The online has to be better, to be fair, it can't be any worse.
    Edited by TFM_Excalibur at 28/09/10 @ 21:17

  • Shikasama #11 2 years ago

    I wish EA sports would stop assigning so many controls to the stick. Means this is a no buy for me.

  • Gorgonnae #12 2 years ago

    You can use buttons instead of the right stick if you want too.

  • stoopidgreg #13 2 years ago

    the demo feels so unresponsive. not impressed :/

  • RKOwned #14 2 years ago

    Downloading both demos now. Not expecting much though. Would rather have had the Castlevania demo today.

  • xentar #15 2 years ago

    This will be another long day at the office for me.

  • Shikasama #16 2 years ago

    Gorgonnae - good info, I'll give it another go with the face buttons

  • TheJuriel #17 2 years ago

    I was very lukewarm about EA MMA based on the gameplay vids I'd seen, but this demo really surprised me. Animations are much smoother than UFC's, which is a big thing for me, and the graphics didn't look as bad as I thought. Controls feel a little sluggish, but perhaps it just takes getting used to.

    Going to hack at it with my MMA friend, and we'll see if it actually delivers on the positive first impression.

  • xentar #18 2 years ago

    @TheJuriel - dont hesitate to post further comments, I cant wait to get ago myself after I found out my UFC 2010 gathers dusts for two months already while 2009 was played on weekly basis till 2010 release.

  • DAN.E.B #19 2 years ago

    "something feels off about it."

    The lack of UFC licence

  • sifujames #20 2 years ago

    Has it arrived on the Euro PSN yet?

  • asphaltcowboy #21 2 years ago

    Thank you for providing the link to the marketplace! Always annoying when there isn't one despite the article being specifically about the demo! :)

  • TheJuriel #22 2 years ago

    Dang. After playing the demo some more, trying to learn if it has depth to it (since there is no tutorial included, smart going there), I may have to revise my opinion.

    The sluggishness of the controls keeps bringing the feel down, the fighters seem to regenerate health in an instant (I kick their leg to 0%, and after a takedown+instant rise, they're as springy as they ever were right away), the grappling system still doesn't feel anything like a grapple should feel like and lacks positions (where's my rubber guard, where's my north-south?), the animations are smoother than in UFC but just as repetitive, TKO endings are abrupt and weak-sauce...

    I wonder if there is anything more to this than what you see right away? As it is, I had a lot more fun with both UFC demos.

  • HMAN #23 2 years ago

    Name a fighter that has actually used rubber guard to great effect in MMA? Thats why it isn't in. It works for Eddie Bravo because he's a weirdly formed individual who isn't particularly athletic /hates 10thPlanet
    I agree that the TKO animations are awful and some what abrupt. Punches and kicks seem to have no weight behind them. I do like the submission system though and unlike UFC 2010 it is possible to submit the CPU.

  • beatwolf #24 2 years ago

    feel shit imo. sluggish controls, no ufc license, punches and kicks feel like they come from 13 year old girls.. getting ufc 2010 instead :p

  • HMAN #25 2 years ago

    The whole "ZOMG no UFC license" bugs the hell out of me. UFC does not equal MMA. There are/have been other organisations. Pride was way better than UFC for example.

  • xentar #26 2 years ago

    had only limited time to try it but to be honest, it didnt make a great first impression. The controls are... not explained well. The MMA 101 tutorial is the worst tutorial of any game released this year which is quite bad considering the complexity of controlling your guy on feet and on the ground. I know they took the analog punching from fight night but it doesnt seem to sit well with this kind of game.