Following in the footsteps of EA Sports Madden NFL 12 and THQ’s WWE 12, fans will get to vote on the cover athlete for UFC Undisputed 3 from THQ and Zuffa. Gamers can  vote on the forthcoming installment in the critically acclaimed mixed martial arts (MMA) video game franchise based on the Ultimate Fighting Championship by visiting www.ufc.com/ufcundisputed3 through September 30, 2011. The five choices are renowned UFC fighters UFC lightweight champion Frankie Edgar, UFC welterweight champion Georges St-Pierre, UFC middleweight champion Anderson Silva, UFC light heavyweight champion Jon Jones and UFC heavyweight champion Cain Velasquez.

In addition, by casting their votes, select consumers will have an opportunity to enter a sweepstakes to win tickets for a future UFC live event.  UFC Undisputed 3 is currently in development for the Xbox 360  and PlayStation 3 with a scheduled release of January 2012.

“Letting fans vote for the UFC Undisputed 3 cover athlete is a unique way for us to connect with our extensive worldwide audience of UFC fans, fighting game enthusiasts and more casual sports followers,” said Danny Bilson, Executive Vice President, Core Games, THQ.  “We look forward to seeing if Jon Jones, Anderson Silva, Georges St-Pierre or Cain Velasquez has what it takes to grace the cover of what will be the most invigorating MMA videogame release to date.”

“We are excited to let fans choose the cover athlete for UFC Undisputed 3,” said UFC President Dana White.  “Frankie, Georges, Anderson, Jon, and Cain are five of the most popular athletes in our sport and each wants to be on the cover.  We love making our fans a part of the process and we’ll leave this one up to them.”

UFC Undisputed 3 will take players inside the virtual Octagon with focus on intense toe-to-toe combat, impressive visual presentation and significantly increased accessibility, including the debut of PRIDE Mode, two new weight classes and an impressive playable roster of more than 150 UFC fighters.  PRIDE Mode will enable players to fight for the first time in the renowned Japanese MMA organization and include official commentators Bas Rutten and Stephen Quadros, authentic environments and notorious MMA rules, including the ability to execute soccer-style kicks, head stomps and ground knees to the head.  Finishing an opponent will be more important than ever through devastating new moves, responsive striking controls, refined visual presentation and the introduction of a brand new, graphic-based submission system.  In addition, players will now enter the Octagon with a choice between traditional and simplified gameplay control options, enabling them, regardless of skill level, to experience the intensity of UFC and nuances of MMA combat while executing simple standing strikes or more complex ground and transition mechanics.

Players will also experience the excitement of a live UFC event through significant visual improvements, including the introduction of much-anticipated fighter entrances, new camera positions, improved facial animations and a gritty, high contrast appearance.  They will enter into battle with an unparalleled choice of more than 150 playable UFC fighters, including talent from the newly added featherweight and bantamweight divisions.  Rounding out the virtual UFC experience with a significantly revamped online experience, as well as a variety of new and returning gameplay modes, UFC Undisputed 3 lets players have their fights – their way – to deliver the most intense, competitive and engaging experience to date for the franchise.

About the Author

John Gaudiosi

Editor-in-Chief

John Gaudiosi has been covering videogames for the past 20 years for outlets like The Washington Post, CNET, Wired Magazine and CBS.com. He has focused on the convergence of entertainment and videogames for outlets like Video Business, Home Media Magazine, Entertainment Weekly, The Hollywood Reporter and Variety. He currently serves as Editor-in-Chief of Gamerlive.TV and is also a freelance game columnist for Reuters and writes for outlets like Forbes.com, NVISION, Official PlayStation Magazine, EGM Now, Geek Monthly, PrimaGames.com, and Yahoo! Games. John also serves as the video game expert for NBC in Washington D.C. and has produced videogame documentaries for The History Channel and Starz Entertainment. John was named one of the Top 50 Game Journalists in the world by Next-Gen.biz in 2007. He is the co-author of Scholastic Books' How to Get into Videogames, Prima Publishing's Madden: Twenty Years of Videogame Football and Electronic Arts: The Official History.