I finally got it in the mail on Tuesday, been playing a bit of it. Really good gameplay, really deep, and its taking a while to learn everything about it so its good when you're playing. It's too bad everything outside that just seems to drag on.
The menus really are crap. I didn't believe it was a big bother reading the reviews, but going through it and playing career mode, wow. Everything is so needlessly long winded with the menus. Reading email in career mode, putting sponsors on your shorts, everything takes like 10 screens to go through. Then when you want to start playing, it loads and you're waiting, then have to skip as much of the introductions as possible as well. Really dumb, something so simple could be so annoying.
Right now in fights I'm trying to figure everything out. I'm not used to the transitions yet and how to move from one to another. I know how, but I don't know exactly which one goes to which, or how to get out of a situation when you're on the offensive in the guard and someone is holding your head towards them. I guess punching is the only way I can think of, or moving the right stick back, neither seem to work well. Also its really difficult to time strike reversals and block right now.
As for career mode itself and sparring, I think I have down how to gain maximum points in it. I can get about 25 each time or so by throwing punches, and more if I knock the guy down or can get a takedown. I'm doing HORRIBLE in camps though. I have been through 3 and haven't been able to move up a level in that discipline. For one, once you start it, and you see a definition up on the thing, some of them don't tell you how to execute it, so I have no idea what it is to do it.
And secondly, I can't ever seen to pull off a complicated combo. Such as: [STRIKING] Y, X, LT + Y. I'll do it EXACTLY like the instructions, yet it won't count it. I'm not sure why, its really stupid. I think the STRIKING command refers to hitting the button over and over from striking distance, and then at the right moment move to the next button then the next, all while you're in that 'range' away from the opponent. I had a hard time even doing that stuff in tutorial mode since it wasn't explained at all, and what I just said was the only way I could get it to work. But in camp mode its stupidly difficult to do it to a guy who's moving towards you and punching at you. It wouldn't be a big deal if it was simply the three button press, I did that over and over again, but they had to make things needlessly complicated.
Maybe I'll get the hang of how to do all this, at least the gameplay I know I'll get better at. I don't know if this career mode problems will get any better.
