Topic: Wrestling Fans Unite!

I usually grab the wwe network on and off throughout the year but usually start around WM. So I was watching fastlane 2021 last night to play catch up and wasn't the ending of the match between big e and Apollo crews so awkward? It looked like AC won but big e did? Wierd times.

@NintendoByNature - That’s haad timesth, daddy. I will give you european uppercut to mid section now. What a maneuver!

@bimmy-lee well....If you did, that would be a hard fart victory!!

@NintendoByNature - I’ll see you at the Pontiac Silverdome right here in New Orleans, brother.

Anyone try Retromania Wrestling yet?? I picked it up on Xbox a few weeks ago and been enjoying it alot. They really captured the old school wrestling game feeling.

the Ultimate Muscle (Kinnikuman Nisei ) wrestling game for the GameCube was pretty solid

@Tasuki - I was shocked to see it on the eshop a few nights ago, I thought it was delayed on Switch. What are your thoughts on the gameplay, is it a fun, arcade button masher like the games that inspired it, or is there some strategy to the matches. It has an incredibly weird roster, but it would be fun to pull off a Doomsday Device, or play as the Russian Nightmare. There’s no CAW, correct?

@bimmy-lee In will admit it's very bare bones right now. There is of course a story mode, single match mode comprised of single, and various tag matches and of course a steel cage. Sadly there is now CAW as of now. The devs said that they will be adding modes and of course characters throughout the lifecycle of the game, which to me sounds like they are taking an approach similar to Mutant Football League.

As for the roster yeah it's a bit odd. I know originally they roster was going to be composed of Youtubers but at some point in development they were able to get wrestlers instead. Of course thought the devs have said that due to rights they won't have any wrestlers in the game current signed to WWE, AEW, Impact or Ring of Honor. However there are some exceptions. Colt Cabana is in the game even though he is current signed to AEW and John Morrison, who is called Johnny Retro is in the game although he's current signed to WWE. And you have Matt Cardona and Brian Meyers both who are currently signed to Impact Wrestling. I know with Matt and Brian they signed the deal with Retromania not long after WWE released them last year and Colt Cabana had a deal with them early on in development (originally he was going to be an announcer back when it was going to be Youtubers) and I am guessing with Johnny Retro he signed a deal with them before WWE resigned him.

Also it appears that at some point of development the devs made a deal with NWA as there are NWA licensed arenas a.few NWA contracted wrestlers appear and of course the storyline championships is the NWA belt. Also it appears that NJPW doesn't have the same restrictions as WWE, AEW or the other promotions have since Zack Sabre Jr. and Jeff Cobb are in the game as well.

As for game play it's not a button masher it uses a sort of timing as well as a moment system. You have a light attack, medium and heavy attack, though you can't use the heavy attack until you build up some moment represented by three bars under a wrestlers life bar. Grapples are done by pressing one of the direction pads along with an attack button while pushing the run button while in a grapple with cause you to irish whip opponents towards the ropes. If you happen to lock up with an opponent you have use a timing system to over power them. While you are grappling them you character will flash and if you time it right you will win the lock up and toss them or lock them in a submission. As for finishers once your opponent is at a certain health level and you are at a moment of 3 doing a grapple move on them will cause your character to perform their finishing move.

Over all it's a fun game and really harkins back to the old WWF Arcade games. Gameplay is smooth but you can't go in button mashing there is a strategy. The characters are alot of fun and so are the modes but still in its current state it's very bare bones. Right now it is more fun playing it with someone else but there is no online mode at all (something the dev is looking into) so unless you have friends over. The story mode you will beat in an hour or so and there is an endurance mode to and you can do single player vs mode.

I hope that gives you some insight and I apologize for the lengthy post.

@Tasuki - Dude, thank you, you pretty much answered all the questions I have at the moment. I’m hoping NL will pull Shiryu out of moth balls to review it at some point. I first learned of it while watching an episode of NWA Powerrr (RIP) well over a year ago, and the ad on that episode showed a lot more NWA wrestlers than just Nick Aldis, complete and in the ring; so I’m sure there will be at least one roster update if not more. I think Cabana was wrestling in NWA at that time. Thanks again. I’ll probably give it some more time before I pick it up.

I’m also curious about that THQ wrestling clone on the eshop, can’t remember the name of it. It looks like it’s either great or trash with almost no in between. Definitely seems to require some level of N64 era wrestling game nostalgia to appreciate it.

@bimmy-lee Yeah I am not that familiar with the NWA roster as I am with AEW, WWE and Impact so I couldn't tell you who's in the game from NWA. As for Cabana you're probably right I just remember seeing early builds for the game when he was an announcer. For being bare bones and a small dev team it's not bad but I would wait for sale.

As for the THQ game I have no idea this is the first time I heard of it.

@Tasuki - Again, I appreciate it. It’s just a tad steep at the moment, but I’ll definitely get it. The THQ clone is called Wrestling Empire. I just did a tiny bit of research, and it’s actually a long running series on PC. If you look it up in the eshop, the trailer makes it look like a fully customizable federation where you make the wrestlers and storylines, then book and play the matches. It was on sale last month.

@bimmy-lee Ok so it's more of a GM mode from the sounds of it. I will have to look into it when I get home. Thanks for the heads up.

@Tasuki - I don’t care for video reviews, but I watched a couple on Wrestling Empire last night, and it does look pretty good. The visuals are a bit jarring from the 64 era, but the game seems to be made for those who loved the CAW and career mode in the THQ rassle games on N64. That’s definitely me. Looks like a couple worthy wrestling games on Switch then. I’ll grab Retromania and Empire at some point.

I'll probably grab wrestling empire down the road bc I loved the 64 games that much. But I do have my eyes on retromania first.

@bimmy-lee Yeah I did notice that Wrestling Empire is a loveletter to the N64 wrestling games much like Retromania is to Arcade style wrestling games. I will probably look into it here soon but yeah I agree we have two great looking wrestling games on the Switch now. There's also AEW's game on the way now too but I don't know when the release date is of that one or if there even is one.

@Tasuki - Thanks to a head’s up from NBN, I just grabbed Wrestling Empire on sale in the NA eshop at 20% off. There’s also a demo, which I hadn’t noticed before, so you can try it out for free as well.

@bimmy-lee Someone told me that Retromania is also on sale not sure what region or if the sale is even still on. Thanks for the heads up on the demo I will be sure to check that out.

I will be elbow dropping everyone and anyone who stands in my way tonight

I have a bad feeling about the main event tonight on Dynamite... I feel a major heel turn coming

@Tasuki I called the main event tonight, I called it...