This one is for the those who
remember when the WWE was the WWF. This is for the 20-somethings and
30-somethings that remember the Legion of Doom, the Ultimate Warrior, and Hulk
Hogan’s three "demandments:" to train, to pray, and to eat your vitamins. The
WWF was full of craziness like that, and WWE Legends of Wrestlemania is THQs
newest attempt to bring us back to that amazing era of pro-wrestling.
First and foremost, Legends of
Wrestlemania has a spectacular roster of wrestlers, ranging as far back as the
early 1980s. I got a nostalgic rush as I scrolled through the characters and saw
guys like Hacksaw Jim Duggan, Brutus the Barber Beefcake, Junkyard Dog, Hawk and
Animal, and of course favorites like Hulk Hogan, The Rock, and Andre the Giant.
There are even a few of the well-known managers, like Mr. Fuji and Jimmy Hart to
accompany your wrestler to the ringside. In total, there are more than 40
wrestlers and managers from the sport’s past. And as I’ve said, it’s a fantastic
collection.
If for some reason you’re not happy
playing as one of these superstars, the game includes a Create a Legend mode,
where you can mold your own wrestler. There are myriad options for customization
in this mode, so you can really grab hold of the creative reins. Besides
controlling the size and shape of the various parts of the wrestler’s body,
you’ll be able to choose face paint, tattoos, apparel, and just about anything
else you can think of putting on a wrestler. The main reason for the inclusion
of this creation tool is the Legend Killer mode, where you can improve your
created wrestler’s abilities by defeating the proven legends of WWE in a
six-tiered gauntlet arrangement.
The other main gameplay mode is
called Wrestlemania Tour mode, and it is the main innovation of Legends of
Wrestlemania. In this mode you’ll have the opportunity to Relive, Rewrite, or
Redefine selected matches from Wrestlemania’s history. To Relive the match,
you’ll be tasked with completing certain objectives, such as performing a
specific famous maneuver that occurred in the actual match. In Rewrite, you may
have to change the outcome of a match. For example, try leading Bret Hart to
victory over Shawn Michaels in their famous Wrestlemania XII duel. Redefining a
match allows you to alter the circumstances and conditions of the match. It’s an
interesting mode that adds even more nostalgia by letting you relive some of
your favorite moments from the storied past of the WWE.
In addition to the more elaborate
gameplay modes, comes a pretty diverse exhibition mode in which you can take
part in a laundry list of wrestling match-types. This list includes favorites
like Steel Cage, Tag Team, Hell in a Cell, Battle Royale and a handful of others
types. The greatest, of course, is the Royal Rumble – an epic match in which 30
wrestlers take part. And to have the superstars on this game’s roster all take
part in the same event is pretty exciting.
Now that you know what your options
are, let’s get into the details of gameplay. The controls have a bit of an
arcade feel to them; there are no confusing combos and no complex maneuvers to
remember. This makes it relatively easy for anybody to jump right into the game.
On a basic level, your options are strike, grapple, reversal, and block. Then
you have maneuvers like the Irish whip, turnbuckle climb, and rope bounce. To
use your wrestler’s signature finishing move, you’ll have to build up your Chain
Level meter. This meter serves a number of other purposes as well, including
allowing you to perform more powerful grapple maneuvers as you build it up. You
can also sacrifice some of your meter to produce bonuses – such as strength
boosts, health recovery, etc. – by executing taunts. These can be
momentum-shifting maneuvers, but be wary of depleting your meter too much …
you’ll need that meter to eventually execute your finishing move. Overall, the
combat is decent and only slightly repetitive.
Legends of Wrestlemania does a
pretty good job presentation-wise; the menus are arranged well and easy to
navigate. And to add to our list of nostalgic moments, the game cycles through
the wrestlers’ intro music as you navigate. In terms of graphics, the game
shines in certain area, and, well, "shines" in others as well. The ring looks
great, the crowd is actually quite convincingly crowd-like, and the wrestlers’
signature entrances are fantastic. The character models, on the other hand, kind
of just "shine." They’re simply a little too plastic and shiny for a next-gen
game. I’d like to see more texture, so skin looks more like skin. I’d also like
to see a little more depth added to the announcers. I know that you’re
eventually going to hear phrases repeated, but it happened within the first
couple of matches I played. If the announcers are only going to say three or
four things the entire time, maybe it’s better if they’re not there at all. The
music and crowd noise, on the other hand, are excellent.
WWE Legends of Wrestlemania is not
the deepest, most involving game you’re going to play this year. What it is, and
what it deserves credit for, is a time-machine back to WWF/WWE circa 1990. There
are so many "Oh wow! I forgot about that!" moments in this game that you may
find it hard to keep from smiling. It’s a fun game with plenty of replay value
in the way of multiplayer and various modes, but don’t expect a blockbuster or a
flawless gaming experience here.
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Gameplay: 6.9
The gameplay has an arcade feel to it, with relatively simple-to-learn
controls. This keeps the learning curve down, and there’s just enough depth to
keep things interesting. Occasional unresponsiveness and repetitive gameplay
take the score down a few notches however.
Graphics: 6.4
Legends of Wrestlemania looks pretty good, but it’s not excellent. It’s not
going to wow you. The character models need more detail and texture to cut down
on the shiny plastic look.
Sound: 7.2
The inclusion of every wrestler’s intro music – which you can also hear when
browsing through the menus – is a nice touch. The announcers get old quickly,
with too many repeated phrases.
Difficulty: Medium
Easy to pick up and play, but difficult to master. I dare you to try
surviving the Royal Rumble, which is one of the game’s achievements by the way.
Concept: 8.2
I love the idea to put all of WWE’s most famous superstars into one game. It
is literally brimming with nostalgia, and that’s usually a good thing. The fact
that the game lets you revisit specific matches from the sport’s history
enhances this feeling even further.
Overall: 7.0
This is a fun game, and for wrestling fans of old, it will surely unearth
some long forgotten memories. There is some lasting appeal in terms of different
gameplay modes and multiplayer options, but I do expect the appeal to fade as
the nostalgia wears off.
