Alexander Volkanovski joins Khabib Nurmagomedov, Jon Jones and Valentina Shevchenko in the 5-star athlete club of EA Sports UFC 4

After update 17 of UFC 4, the game's five-star athletes list has been reworked. Dominant featherweight champion Alexander Volkanovski is the latest addition to the list.

'The Great' joins an elite list of athletes including former undefeated lightweight Khabib Nurmagomedov, former light-heavyweight champion Jon Jones and long-reigning women's flyweight queen Valentina Shevchenko.

According to EA's website, middleweight kingpin Israel Adesanya and UFC double champ Amanda Nunes are also part of the highly exclusive list.

However, former featherweight champion Max Holloway, reigning welterweight kingpin Kamaru Usman and former UFC double champ Daniel Cormier are also part of the 5-star list, despite the same not being updated on EA's official website.

Interestingly, it is 'DC' himself who adjusts ratings and allots star points for the UFC 4 roster. EA had previously claimed that star ratings of athletes are subjected to changes based on the athletes' real-life performances.

The overall in-game star ratings of athletes depend on three separate stats, namely striking, grappling and health.

For example, Conor McGregor's in-game avatar sports three and a half stars in grappling, four and a half stars in striking and four stars in health, giving the Irishman an overall four-and-a-half-star rating.

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What are the biggest gameplay changes in EA Sports UFC 4?

The biggest gameplay strides UFC 4 has made are a result of the expanded use of its revolutionary Real Player Motion Technology (RPM). RPM was initially introduced in UFC 3 for striking and character movement.

However, in the case of the latest game, RPM is equipped to deal with clinching and takedown scenarios as well. The updated takedown mechanics includes a plethora of new animations.

Watch the gameplay trailer for UFC 4 below:

New moves like power carry and diving takedowns have also been integrated into the game's takedown options.

Apart from this, a new grapple assist system has also been introduced to the game to make it more approachable to new players. Legacy controls, however, are still available for seasoned players.

Submission mini games are also a new feature in the game. Players will now be presented with two mini-games depending on the type of submission scenario the fighters have engaged in.

Ground and pound during submissions and submissions chains have also been included in the updated gameplay.