‘EA UFC 3’ Introduces An ‘Enhanced’ Dana White As Their Final Secret Character

There’s a scene midway through the HBO’s classic WWII miniseries Band of Brothers in which a new sergeant is mingling with his men, playing poker. Captain Dick Winters, the stoic, clean-as-a-whistle leader of the group pulls him aside to reprimand his sergeant for his actions. The sergeant doesn’t understand the issue, so Winters says: “What if you’d won? Never put yourself in a position where you can take from these men.”

Now, in the extremely well-made EA UFC 3, president Dana White is on an equal level with his fighters. Many of whom have to work second jobs in order to make it in the biggest MMA organization in the world. It presents a sort of tone-deafness both EA and the UFC are known for. There are ranked fighters still not in the game, but White, because, perhaps, he’s on TV so much, is a fighter in the game, and according to gameplay developer Geoff Harrower he’s on legal “supplements.”

Some fans are finding humor in the fact that the UFC’s possibly second-biggest star is in the game, but MMA Media and old-school fans are lukewarm at best.

https://twitter.com/SecretMovesMMA/status/974336407304056832

https://twitter.com/samboy4327/status/974346086709112832

Of course, you just don’t have to use Dana if this bugs you. Or, MMA fans who wish he hadn’t killed Strikeforce/Pride/WFA/the meaning of championship belts can always just have him stand there and get beat up. Either way, it’s a weird addition when Mike Perry or Curtis Blaydes still aren’t in the game.

It’s a difficult balance between pure entertainment and a game, so no one can blame EA for taking risks, but this seems odd. Roger Goodell isn’t in Madden and shouldn’t be. Why not Don Frye? Sakuraba? Any number of UFC Hall of Famers instead?