Will UFC pack a bigger punch now with EA behind it?

All you Ultimate Fighting Championship (UFC) fans who were unhappy with THQ's adaption of the world-famous fighting sport(brand), Rejoice! Why?

EA, arguably the king of sport sims, announced in their E3 2012 press conference that they are buying the license to the UFC games from the original publishers, THQ...

Zuffa Co., the people who took UFC to where it is today, seemed very happy handing over it's license to EA. Zuffa President Dana White took to the stage,“We’d like to thank THQ for creating some of the most critically-acclaimed sports videogames of this console generation, and we’re excited to enter a new relationship with EA that will help us deepen our connection with fighting fans around the world," a very pleased Dana White continued,“There’s no one better at creating authentic sports videogames than EA Sports, and we’re excited to have a partner who shares our vision of deep, connected and multi-platform global game experiences.”

Before THQ was handed UFC's rights, Dana White first took them to EA. At the time, UFC wasn't the juggernaut it is today and so, probably unconvinced by the profit potential from the franchise, EA declined the offer. Unperturbed Dana White soon found a home with THQ. A year later, THQ brought 'UFC Undisputed' to consoles and was met with positive reviews from critics and gamers alike. While THQ and Zuffa were delighted with this, EA on the other hand probably rued their loss. To counter this success EA brought out their own martial art game 'EA Sports MMA' minus the UFC name. While gamers and critics labelled it a better game than it's half-brother, it just didn't sell as well as EA had hoped.

THQ seem to be happy with the exchange too "We’ve relished our relationship with UFC over the last several years and believe that the UFC gaming brand is in great shape. THQ’s more focused strategy moving forward meant that transferring the license to EA made sense to all parties," said THQ CEO, Brian Farrell.

No matter how many people accuse EA of interferring in it's developers' games, its a known fact that when it comes to sports entertainment brands in the world, EA is King. It's awards-winning brand, EA Sports, has produced some of the best selling videogame franchises. It's arsenal includes  Madden NFL football, FIFA Soccer, NHL hockey, NBA LIVE basketball, NCAA Football, Fight Night boxing and Tiger Woods PGA Tour golf. It will be interesting to see if it can include it's new UFC game in that stable.

Whats your take on this? Are you guys excited with EA being in control of future UFC games? Or do you think it was better off in THQ's hands? Let us in your thoughts below.