LADYDRAGON.COM - Crave Entertainment Announces UFC Tapout 2 Exclusively For Xbox

Thursday June 27, 2002

Crave Entertainment Announces UFC Tapout 2 Exclusively For Xbox; Next Title in Successful ``Real Fighting'' Game Franchise Boasts a Completely Overhauled Engine, New Features and New Game Modes

Jens Pulver Bas Rutten Josh Barnett

Crave Entertainment, a leading publisher of videogame entertainment products, today announced that UFC(TM) Tapout 2 is currently in development exclusively for the Xbox(TM) video game system from Microsoft.

Tapout 2 is being developed in Japan by Dream Factory, and is the follow-up to the successful real fighting game released for Xbox earlier this year.

Tapout 2 will feature a new look, thanks to a complete overhaul of the core UFC game engine. "With the changes in the engine, an enhanced AI, upgraded Career Mode and new fighting moves, we're practically putting the gamer right in the middle of The Octagon," said Rob Sandberg, senior producer at Crave Entertainment. "Tapout 2 will look and play noticeably different from any previous version, and I think fighting game fans will be very impressed."

The redesigned model and animation system will result in fighter models with more points of articulation, and movements will appear more fluid and life-like. The new engine will also allow for real-time mesh deformation, so when players move and flex their muscles, you'll see the skin move and ripple with them. AI fighters will even taunt players to fake them out and throw off their timing.

Tapout 2 will feature the most mixed martial arts brawlers in any UFC game to date, including UFC stalwarts Tito Ortiz, Chuck Liddell, Carlos Newton, Pat Miletich, and B.J. Penn. Several new fighters, such as current UFC Middleweight Champion Murilo Bustamante will also be making their debut in UFC: Tapout 2. The road to fighting immortality won't be an easy one; with an improved AI, fighters will behave even closer to their real life counterparts, use more attack combos and grappling, use more counter and reverse moves, and be much more aggressive overall than in the previous version. Tapout 2 will also feature a new array of fighting moves, including standing clinches, side mounts and half guards.

The fan favorite Tournament Mode returns in Tapout 2, where up to eight human and/or computer controlled fighters battle in an open-weight free-for-all. The Career Mode continues to expand, allowing players to create their own fighters from scratch, using a wide variety of body types, clothing, faces and hairstyles. Through training and sparring against computer-controlled opponents, players will develop an ever-increasing repertoire of moves and abilities, drawing from up to 10 different martial arts styles with a greater number of kicks, strikes and grapples than before.

The Training Mode will allow the player to experiment with the different abilities of their created fighter and how to best use his techniques in the Octagon. Then the player can take his fighter to the Championship Mode, and compete for the UFC title belt. For an added challenge, players can defend their hard-won title against seven of the UFC's all-time best in Legend Mode.

    The visual improvements won't be limited to just the fighters; fight presentation will be improved to more closely resemble the UFC broadcast events. An improved interface, enhanced sound, a new music soundtrack with a customizable playlist and the ability to play ripped music from the Xbox hard drive are additional new features awaiting fight fans when Tapout 2 ships this November.

    About Crave Entertainment

    Based in Los Angeles, Crave Entertainment is a privately held publisher of videogame entertainment products. The company's best-selling line-up features top brands and franchises such as Ultimate Fighting Championship and Tokyo Xtreme Racer.

    Crave produces games for the major console platforms including Game Boy(R) Advance, Nintendo GameCube(TM), the PlayStation(R) game console, PlayStation(R)2 computer entertainment system, the Xbox(TM) video game system from Microsoft, and for the PC. For more information about Crave Entertainment, visit http://www.cravegames.com.

    About Xbox

    Xbox (http://www.xbox.com ) is Microsoft's future-generation video game system that delivers the most powerful games experiences ever. Xbox empowers game artists by giving them the technology to fulfill their creative visions as never before, creating games that blur the lines between fantasy and reality. Xbox is now available in North America, Japan, Europe and Australia.