Review Fix Exclusive: Inside the UFC Knockout 16 App

July 6, 2016 Patrick Hickey Jr. Video Games 0

Review Fix chats with Topps Editor-in-Chief/Director of App Production, Chris R. Vaccaro to learn all about the new UFC Knockout 16 app, from development to release. Working with the UFC, Topps provides another way to stay connected with your favorite fighters.

Review Fix: What makes this app special?

Chris Vaccaro: MMA fans are naturally passionate and the Topps UFC KNOCKOUT app is now an extension of that fandom which further connects them to their favorite sport and fighters. There are many big UFC events throughout the year and our app will give fans another way to experience the excitement in the octagon. With UFC 200 coming up we launched at a perfect time. This is a fantastic opportunity for fans to play along during arguably the biggest MMA event in history. We’re hoping to create new fight fans and please existing hardcore fans at the same time.

Review Fix: How involved has the UFC been?

Vaccaro: They’re very involved in guiding us with wonderful feedback and support on all of our content. They’ve been an outstanding partner to work with and we’re excited to keep building our digital relationship.

Review Fix: What makes each card special?

Vaccaro: Every card is crafted by our exceptional design team with unbelievably beautiful designs that will excite the most detail oriented fight fans, or attract the novice card collector. They’re a piece of art, just like the digital content across all six of our apps at Topps. Each card also scores points based on how fighter’s perform in the octagon in real life. The dynamic scoring ability and real-time scoring experience is second to none and really brings about a unique experience for all fight fans.

Review Fix: If someone isn’t into MMA or UFC, would this be an interesting way to get them interested?

Vaccaro: Absolutely. All of our sports apps allow fans to not only experience the beauty of Topps and card collecting, but also to dive head first into the game or sport itself. You can follow along either at the arena or by watching on television or your device. Fans can learn about their fighters, and find themselves in a completely digital experience that continues to revolutionize the card collecting experience. You can be a new fan watching UFC for the first time and pick up the intricacies of our app quickly, or you can be a diehard fan with more knowledge than most and have a similarly rewarding experience.

Review Fix: What’s next?

Vaccaro: Topps is working towards the relaunch of our soccer app, Topps KICK, and our football app, Topps NFL HUDDLE, for August. We’re excited to kick off new seasons in both apps with new cover athletes, more fun and engaging content and countless memorable digital moments ahead.

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About Patrick Hickey Jr. 14316 Articles
Patrick Hickey Jr. is a full-time Assistant Professor of Communication & Performing Arts and Director of the Journalism program at Kingsborough Community College and is the chairman of the City University of New York Journalism Council. He is the Founder and Editor-In-Chief of ReviewFix.com. He's also a former News Editor at NBC Local Integrated Media and National Video Games Writer at Examiner.com where his work was mentioned in National Ad campaigns by Disney, Nintendo and EA Sports. Hickey was also the Editor-In-Chief of two College Newspapers before he received his BA in Journalism from Brooklyn College. Hickey's work has been published in The New York Daily News, The New York Times, Complex, The Hockey Writers, Yahoo!, Broadway World, Examiner, NYSportScene Magazine, ProHockeyNews.com, GothamBaseball.com, The Syracuse Post-Standard, Scout.com and the official sites of the Brooklyn Aces and New York Islanders. His first book, The Minds Behind the Games: Interviews With Cult And Classic Video Game Developers was released in April 2018 and is chock full of interviews with legendary developers. His second book in the series, The Minds Behind Adventures Games, was released in December 2019. His third book, The Minds Behind Sports Games, was released in September 2020. His fourth book, The Minds Behind Shooter Games, was released in March 2021. The Minds Behind Sega Genesis Games and The Minds Behind PlayStation Games were released in 2022 and The Minds Behind PlayStation 2 was published in January 2023. Hickey is also a contracted comic book writer, currently penning his original series, "Condrey," as well as "The Job," "Brooklyn Bleeds" "Dem Gulls" and "KROOM" for Legacy Comix, where he serves as founder, owner and Editor-in-Chief. Hickey Jr. is also a voice actor, having starred in the 2018 indie hit and 2019 Switch, PS4 and Xbox One release, The Padre (also serving as English language Story Editor), from Shotgun With Glitters. The sequel, The Padre: One Shell Straight to Hell was released in February 2021- Hickey also served as a Story Editor and Lead Voiceover performer. He has also done narration and trailers for several other titles including The Kaiju Offensive, Relentless Rex and Roniu’s Tale. Hickey is also the lead voiceover performer on Mega Cat Studios’ upcoming title WrestleQuest, responsible for nearly 90 characters in the game, as well as Skybound's Renfield: Bring Your Own Blood, where he voices both Dracula and Renfield, as well as several other characters. He also stars in Ziggurat Interactive’s World Championship Boxing Manager 2, where he performs the VO of nearly every male character in the game. He also worked on the Atari VCS’s BPM Boy.

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