EA Sports UFC 6 Review – Complacency At The Top

Reviewed on: PlayStation 5 Platform: PlayStation 5, Xbox Series X/S Publisher: EA Sports Developer: EA Vancouver Release: June 19, 2026 Rating: Mature Legendary boxer Marvin Hagler once said, “It’s difficult to get up and do roadwork at five in the morning when you’re sleeping in silk sheets.” While this refers to getting rich through combat sports and therefore losing the work ethic you once had, the notion could also be applied to EA Sports and its lack of competition. The Madden franchise, with its NFL exclusivity, has long drawn the ire of fans for a perceived lack of innovation due to its monopolization of the NFL video game space, and after spending many hours with EA Sports UFC 6, I’m starting to worry the same problem might have transposed to this franchise as well. To be clear, the gameplay in UFC 6 is the best this franchise has seen. Thanks to new ways of differentiating the fighters, either via animations, movements, tendencies, or signature ways of attacking, EA Vancouver finally cracked the code on making combatants feel distinct. And those fighters largely look incredible; though your mileage will vary based on fighter popularity, the biggest stars’ likenesses are often dead-on in UFC 6. This permeates the experience, whether you’re playing a quick one-off fight in the game’s capable online suite or diving deeper into longer-tail modes. UFC 6 carries forward the series’ pedigree of action-packed fights inside the cage; though grappling options are always available, in my experience, wrestling-heavy affairs are rare. That’s a good thing, as grappling continues to be a sore spot, straddling the line between being too cryptic and too mindless. Instead, fights often quickly develop into high-speed chess matches and violent car crashes. Thanks to improved blocking and more variance in striking, it pays to be...