Pre-order incentive for EA Sports UFC 2
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The first EA Sports UFC struggled with its identity, as the publisher not only marketed the game but tailored its gameplay to attempt and attract consumers who were simply never going to be interested in it. One of the first indicators of that ill-advised decision was the announcement of Bruce Lee as the pre-order bonus and a major marketing push centered around the legendary martial artist and actor who of course never actually had any association with the UFC.
Post-release EA Sports UFC was handled in a much different manner as developer EA Canada appeared to recognize what had to be done as major changes were made to transition the game to more of a simulation that would satisfy MMA fans. The announcement of the EA Sports UFC 2 pre-order incentive is another hopeful sign of a shift in philosophy.
There will be three fighters included this time around. The first two to be announced are legends in the sport with Bas Rutten and Kazushi Sakuraba. There’s still the possibility of the third being someone unusual – and there’s probably some story behind that person’s identity being held back until a later date – but at least there’s some focus being put on the history of the sport rather than solely a gimmick.
Bas Rutten is a kickboxer who competed in the original Pancrase event in September 1993 and became arguably the biggest star in Pancrase history. After winning the King of Pancrase multiple times, he transitioned to the Octagon and won the UFC heavyweight title. He is now a member of the UFC Hall of Fame.
Considered as one of the greatest Japanese mixed martial artists of all time, Kazushi Sakuraba was the first Japanese champion in UFC history. He is known as the ‘Gracie Hunter’ due to his wins over the famous Gracie family including: Royler Gracie, Renzo Gracie, Ryan Gracie, and Royce Gracie.
EA Sports UFC 2 will release on March 15 and is available for pre-order on Amazon in both the standard $60 version and the deluxe $70 edition which includes bonus Ultimate Team content.