Crispy Gamer News

THQ, already known for its hit WWE SmackDown vs. RAW series, apparently has enough stroke to even put the fighters of the Ultimate Fighting Championship down for the count. According to a Sports Illustrated report, UFC fighter Jon Fitch has been terminated from the franchise (along with many of his American Kickboxing Academy teammates) for refusing to sign away rights to his image for use in THQ’s upcoming UFC video game.

According to the report, the problem stems from UFC’s requests that fighters sign a merchandising deal giving the UFC rights to use fighters’ likenesses in various licensing deals for life. The issue with Fitch apparently finally came to a head when he was approached with the THQ deal.
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THQ is showing three new fighting games at E3 this week, and today the company offered some broader details on each. WWE SmackDown vs. Raw 2009 is getting a more refined cooperative play mechanic across the board, if you believe the hype coming out of L.A. The game will offer new tag team finishers, and a new “hot tag” feature which gives your team the momentum to finish the match quickly. The other interesting feature is co-op storyline, which lets players take on the story mode together for the first time since that awful Xbox game RAW 2. Finally there’s a new create a finisher mode, which let’s you create the end all be all move.

THQ also announced additional details about WWE Legends of WrestleMania, a brand new video game property currently in development for the Xbox 360 and PS3. The game aims to bring home the oldsters who remember the 80’s and 90’s when the WWE was still the WWF and Hulk Hogan, Andre The Giant and Macho Man Randy Savage were ruling the roost. The game will feature forty WWE legends, recreations of historic matches and events, a new grappling system, Create-A-Legend mode, and online play. WWE Legends of WrestleMania is scheduled for release in March 2009 to coincide with WrestleMania 25 in Houston, Texas on April 5, 2009.

Finally, first details on UFC 2009 Undisputed have been revealed. The game based on the popular mixed martial arts sport will feature the top stars in multiple divisions, a new fighting system that will be easy to pick up and play, a create-a-fighter mode, character development, and a single player story mode that challenges players to fight their way to the UFC Hall of Fame.

Check out our E3 Hub Page for the latest features and commentary from the Crispy staff.

THQ today announced that its new Ultimate Fighting Championship game, UFC 2009 Undisputed, will be released in spring 2009 for the Xbox 360, PS3,and mobile devices. The game, which is based on the popular mixed martial sporting event, features 80 top fighters in UFC competition across all five weight classes using a multitude of martial arts disciplines like Muay Thai, Kickboxing and Brazilian Jiu-Jitsu and more. The game will also feature all the commentators, announcers, referees, trainers, Octagon girls that you’d expect to see when watching a UFC “event.”

And that what THQ is trying to push here with this game - a home experience that puts you in the heat of a live event as a combatant. Finally THQ says that they have created an all new fighting engine to power this game, though details on it were not availablre at press time. The company will also include a create a fighter mode, various single-player modes and the promises of future downloadable content.

It has been awhile since there has been a UFC videogame from THQ, so here’s to hoping that the company behind the WWE video games will do it right the first time. You can learn more about the game by visiting www.thq.com….