Hi everyone! Got a fun one for you today as we delve in to the rich history of pro wrestling video gaming. So it makes me feel a little old .. but to keep this “classic”, I will not include any games released in 2004 or later.
We’ll be looking at the impact each game made, as well as their rosters & features. You can find many lists like this strewn across the internet .. but I’m going one further. For each entry (when applicable) I may give some instructions on how to pick up and play them. I cannot in good conscience make this a top 10, as we all have our favourites and we’ll only end up arguing til we’re blue in the face.
1. WWF Wrestlefest (Arcade)
A bit before my time, but one that is a firm favourite among those who were lucky enough to play in the Arcade era. It was a sequel to WWF Superstars and featured a bigger roster. It supported up to four players, so you could imagine kids jockeying around the arcade to have a go. But while the gameplay was decent, some criticized the way you had to keep pumping in coins mid-match if you were knocked down. This of course, weeded out the good players from the bad. The good players knew how to avoid it, while the bad grew frustrated over how many coins they’d lost. That’s what arcades were like though .. you had to play well or face having to go home begging for change. Addictive arcades were the bane of parents.
I’d never played this before today so I had a go in a Royal Rumble match. As Hulk Hogan, I struggled to figure how to do anything but punch and get up. I was almost pinned too! In a Rumble! But what I did notice was how good it looked, and how well it played considering it was released in 1991. I’m sure if I took the time to figure it out I’d have a better experience, but then again .. I’d rather play it as an arcade. That’s the point .. you play it in public with your friends and they offer tips. I’ll never get the full experience, so I cannot adequately describe how good it was in its day.
Roster: Hulk Hogan, Ultimate Warrior, Ted DiBiase, Big Bossman, Jake Roberts, Earthquake, Mr. Perfect, Sgt. Slaughter, Demolition Smash, and Demolition Crush. You could also wrestle against Hawk & Animal, but could not select them.
WWE released a sequel in 2012 called WWE WrestleFest for iOS. Very similar, except it includes current/former wrestlers like The Undertaker, John Cena, Randy Orton, Steve Austin, The Rock, Randy Savage, CM Punk, Triple H, Shawn Michaels, Sheamus, and many more. Can find the full list here:>> https://www.thesmackdownhotel.com/wrestlefest/roster/
Luckily I managed to find a cool site which has this game ready to play with no downloads or sign ups necessary. Not sure why, but I was getting a few drops in frame rate. Playable though. If you know any better way to play this, let me know and I’ll add it: WWF Wrestlefest Game
2. Virtual Pro Wrestling 2: Ōdō Keishō (N64)
No lie .. this is AJ Styles’ favourite wrestling game of all time. If you’re a Japanese fan (or knew someone who could port them) you likely grew up playing this or the first. Released in 2000 for the N64, it followed in the footsteps of other games featured later in the list. It handled exactly like they did (with the AKI Engine), except features like Create A Wrestler was expanded upon.
In typical Japanese style, it added things like crowning Triple Champions and competing in cup trophy tournaments. One of the coolest things about VPW2 was it featured a huge roster of wrestlers working for ten(!) promotions AND a bunch of legends (98 overall). Also, it allowed dangerous moves like the Burning Hammer which were banned in WWE.
Not going to list every wrestler, but the biggest names I can pick out include: Giant Baba, Mitsuharu Misawa, Kenta Kobashi, Big Van Vader, Stan Hanson, Johnny Ace (Laurinaitis), Masahiro Chono, Keiji Mutoh (Great Muta), Scott Norton, Jushin Liger, Hayabusa, The Gladiator (aka Mike Awesome), The Great Sasuke, Taka Michinoku, Funaki, Mil Mascaras, Terry Funk, Dory Funk, Jr, Terry Gordy, “Dr. Death” Steve Williams, Bruiser Brody, Abdullah the Butcher, André the Giant, Último Dragón & Antonio Inoki.
That’s one stacked game! No wonder why AJ thinks it’s phenomenal. But because the game was only released in Japanese, there is no English version of it. If you can read Japanese .. or just so happen to remember where all the menus were on WM2000, you’ll be able to play it well with this ROM: Virtual Pro Wrestling 2 – Otherwise, you’ll get a similar experience with other AKI Engine games.
3. WWF Attitude (PlayStation/N64)
Probably the worst game here in terms of gameplay & atmosphere, but is remembered because it was one of the better wrestling games on the Playstation in 1999. I know this as it was one of the first PS games I ever played, as my friend crushed me countless times before I could get to grips. The poster boy of the game? “Stone Cold”. Steve-a-mania was running wild .. and everyone wanted to play his character so they could do the Stunner. We looked at the faces on the characters with an “ooo” and an “aahh” .. look how realistic it is! Those graphics, wow. Doesn’t look great now like .. but back then it was amazing.
As a sequel to WWF War Zone, Attitude expanded on its features considerably. Being able to “Create A Wrestler”? Holy Bleep! Much time was had creating ridiculous characters with even more ridiculous movesets. You could create a stable .. a PPV, and even an arena! Yes, you could customize the lights, the ring ropes, all kinds of stuff way ahead of what anyone had experienced before.
While the gameplay wasn’t the greatest, the other features and match types made up for its shortcomings. While The Hardys were not playable in the game, they provided motion captures for the moves. Also, as Owen Hart died just before release, the game was postponed and the opening video included a tribute to him. He was originally meant to be The Blue Blazer in the game, but his outfit was scrapped and his character reverted to being a “face” to honour his memory. There were a bunch of other features removed from the game last minute without explanation: like being able to fight backstage, the Hell in a Cell match, “jobbers”, and certain wrestlers.
If you can get around the dead crowd and combination presses for finishers, WWF Attitude is a solid game including many of our favourites from the Attitude Era (not including “secret” characters): Al Snow, Billy Gunn, Bradshaw, Brian Christopher, Christian, D’Lo Brown, “Dr. Death” Steve Williams, Droz, Edge, Faarooq, Gangrel, Goldust, Mosh, Thrasher, Jeff Jarrett, Kane, Ken Shamrock, Mankind (Cactus Jack/Dude Love alternate costumes), Mark Henry, Owen Hart, Road Dogg, Steve Blackman, “Stone Cold” Steve Austin, The Big Boss Man, The Godfather, The Rock, The Undertaker, Triple H, Val Venis & X-Pac.
How do you play Playstation Games on a desktop for free? Easy, download the latest version of ePSXe. If the setup sounds overly complicated, you may be able to get away with downloading a bundle which already has ePSXe set up for you at this link: https://www.emuparadise.me/Sony_Playstation_Emulators/Windows/ePSXe/8
After ePSXe is ready to go, you can find the ROM at the same place as VPW2.
4. WWF Royal Rumble (SNES/Genesis)
I believe this was my first exposure to wrestling. Had never seen a show before, but somehow (can’t remember where) I was able to play this ’93 classic .. and it was so good I couldn’t get enough. Released in different forms for the SNES and Genesis/Mega Drive, it served as a sequel to the less popular WWF Super Wrestlemania. Expanding greatly on other games of the era, WWF Royal Rumble was one of the first to have a different finishing move for every character. It was also one of the first to allow you to enter and exit the ring from all four sides. These tiny details were big steps forward.
The gameplay has a “tug of war” concept to grappling, and whoever wins the war gets to perform the next move. You can hit opponents with steel chairs outside the ring, and even knock the referee down. While they are, you can play dirty with eye rakes and chokes. It arguably remained the best gameplay for a title til the AKI Engine releases. However, the downside was that you got a different roster depending on the version you had. Both SNES and Genesis versions had the following wrestlers: Bret Hart, The Undertaker, Shawn Michaels, Razor Ramon, Randy Savage, Crush, and Lex Luger. The SNES version had Ric Flair, Mr. Perfect, Tatanka, Ted DiBiase & Yokozuna, while the Genesis version replaced them with Hulk Hogan, IRS, Papa Shango, Jim Duggan and Rick Martel. Looking at the rosters .. I was playing the Genesis version; and I had a thing for Papa Shango. Don’t ask me why.
You could emulate either version, but for my sake I’ll set us up for the Genesis/Mega Drive version. You can’t go wrong setting up an emulator for this, as either Kega Fusion or GENS will work straight away after you google and download (only need one). Fusion is probably the better of the two though. After that, it’s as simple as downloading the ROM and opening it with the emulator: WWF Royal Rumble
PS: I had a go for old time’s sake and chose The Undertaker. The computer decided my opponent would be a .. blond Shawn Michaels. Destroyed him but couldn’t figure out how to pin. Always remember to know the controls before you play! lol.
5. WWF Smackdown! (PlayStation)
An often overlooked entry which sparked a franchise. All games preceding it took a similar approach to gameplay. Unlike AKI Engine titles, it was faster and didn’t require lockups to perform moves. You didn’t need to remember button combos as moves could easily be performed with one button.
What made it special was how it made use of finishers and camera angles. Instead of an unsatisfying elbow with a fixed camera, The Rock would take off his elbow pad (and it stayed off), swing his arms, and run the ropes as the cameras captured the magic. I’m unsure if it was this or “Know Your Role”, but THQ made it possible for The Rock to take them both off if you repeated the move.
Looking back on it, you can see why it doesn’t get many mentions. The engine was in its infancy so THQ were limited in what they could do. The roster was similar to Attitude’s, but luckily included The Dudleys and The Hardys. “Hardcore” mode was a favourite, as was Steel Cage, I Quit, and the Royal Rumble. Trying your luck at a 1 vs. 3 on the highest difficulty was another challenge. I don’t believe backstage areas, Hell in a Cell, tables or ladders were included yet. All you see during entrances is the titantron video with the blocky character walking on thin air in front of it.
As later games expanded on its flaws so well, there’s no need to share a way to play this. What’s important about the original Smackdown is we wouldn’t have the memories from the other games in the series without it. WWF Smackdown is the founder, the innovator, and the forgotten son.
6. WWF Smackdown! 2: Know Your Role (Playstation)
Smackdown 2 was a monster. It somehow managed to take everything great from the original, stamped out the flaws, and added a boatload of other stuff on top for good measure. There wasn’t any point playing the original anymore .. as Know Your Role trumped it in every way.
“Best Smackdown game ever?”, I wouldn’t disagree. It was the most sold combat sports game on the PlayStation. It expanded on the Create-A-Wrestler concept to another level. You could do other crazy things like Create-A-Manager, Taunt, Moveset and Stable. They added movesets for wrestlers not with the promotion to help players create them. The roster grew as well, but didn’t include Big Show & Ken Shamrock unless they entered during a Royal Rumble:
Albert, Al Snow, Big Boss Man, Billy Gunn, Bradshaw, Bubba Ray Dudley, Bull Buchanan, Cactus Jack, Crash Holly, Chris Benoit, Chris Jericho, Christian, Dean Malenko, D’Lo Brown, D-Von Dudley, Eddie Guerrero, Edge, Essa Rios, Faarooq, Funaki, Gangrel, Gerald Brisco, The Goodfather, Grandmaster Sexay, Hardcore Holly, Jeff Hardy, Joey Abbs, Kane, Kurt Angle
Mankind, Mark Henry, Matt Hardy, Mick Foley, Michael Cole, Pat Patterson, Paul Bearer, Perry Saturn, Pete Gas, Road Dogg, Rodney, Rikishi, The Rock, Scotty Too Hotty, Shane McMahon, Steve Blackman, Shawn Michaels, Steve Richards, Stone Cold Steve Austin, TAKA Michinoku, Tazz, Test, Triple H, Undertaker, Val Venis, Vince McMahon, Viscera, X-Pac
The season mode was a lot better than the original, but suffered with loading times. The biggest additions were the new match types: Casket, Hell in a Cell, Ironman, Ladder, Table, TLC & Slobberknocker. Climbing ladders? Cells? Breaking tables? Incredible. Finding out you could jump off the cell to the floor below? Doing a Swanton off a ladder and putting your opponent through a table? Epic. And just when you thought it couldn’t get better .. you find out how to go backstage! Then you’re outside brawling in the streets! What a massive leap it was: Smackdown 2: Know Your Role
7. WCW/NWO Revenge (N64)
Personally I didn’t play it much, but I had a friend (diehard WCW fan) who swore it was the best wrestling game. And in 1998 it was regarded the best wrestling game in the market, as it became a top seller for the N64 console. As a sequel to World Tour, it expanded on it’s predecessors flaws and added more. The size of the roster was impressive, as almost every contracted WCW wrestler featured with the exception of Ric Flair (who was fired early ’98):
Hollywood Hogan, The Giant, Brian Adams, Scott Hall, Scott Norton, Buff Bagwell, Eric Bischoff, Scott Steiner, Curt Hennig, Kevin Nash, Sting, Lex Luger, Macho Man Randy Savage, Konnan, Raven, Lodi, Riggs, Sick Boy, Reese, Billy Kidman, Diamond Dallas Page, Goldberg, Bret Hart, Chris Benoit, Rick Steiner, Fit Finley
Booker T, Perry Saturn, Disco Inferno, Jim Neidhart, British Bulldog, Glacier, Van Hammer, Kanyon, Yugi Nagata, Larry Zbysko, Barbarian, La Parka, Stevie Ray, Chris Jericho, Eddy Guerrero, Psychosis, Rey Mysterio Jr, Dean Malenko, Juventud Guererra, Ultimo Dragon, Chavo Guerrero Jr, Alex Wright
The gameplay was praised, although a combination move was criticized for being so powerful it negated other frontal attacks. This combo move did not remain for other AKI titles after it. Some interesting features which we didn’t see in early Smackdown games include: Instant Replays, Performance Scoring, Stealing Taunts, Changing Costumes.
In the end, we could consider WCW/NWO Revenge to be the best, non-WWE game featuring another promotion. Sadly, it’s not so easy to find it and get it running, but if you really want to try it you’ll need a Project 64 emulator and some patience. Or borrow someone’s N64 with the cartridge. Either way, it will be a fun ride battling Hogan as nWo Wolfpac Sting.
8. Wrestlemania 2000 (N64)
Out of all the AKI Engine games, this is only one I played considerably in my youth. But not til after playing Smackdown games .. as I got my N64 cheap off a friend with a bunch of games. Was I ever thankful this came in the bundle! And you’d think I’d be scarred for life right? Playing Smackdown before this? Actually, it was the opposite.
While Smackdown games were awesome for multiplayer, playing against the AIs was often a crazy mess. WM2000 changed that for me, as it was a slower game where you could think ahead. I had fun figuring it out, and once I did matches were enjoyable. The graphics sucked but I didn’t care about that; it was all about the gameplay. And I liked little things such as .. being able to customize “rivals” so said person would interfere during their matches. Little details which I figured .. huh!? How is that not in the Smackdown games?
The roster is very similar to the first Smackdown and Attitude, so not much point listing it. WM2000 is essentially the sequel to WCW/NWO Revenge, so I’m not surprised it did well. AKI made a formula and stuck with it, finding success in several titles in a short time frame. They even went on to make the Def Jam series, which I’m not covering here (thought about it) .. but Def Jam Vendetta and Fight For NY use the same engine and are both excellent.
There’s always someone who swears WM2000 is not as good as the next entry. And the argument could go on all day but .. c’mon guys, they use the same engine, they were released over a year apart. It makes sense the one released a year later would have improvements. Want to play WM2000? Use Project 64 with this: WWF Wrestlemania 2000
9. No Mercy (N64)
Regarded by many as the greatest wrestling video game of all time. And it makes sense, considering they perfected the AKI Engine. It had many match types, including: Royal Rumble (with tag team/hardcore variants), Ladder, Iron Man, Steel Cage, First Blood, Last Man Standing, Submission. It also sported many venues and backstage areas like a bar, boiler room, locker room and parking lot. To put it bluntly, if you was an N64 player and a wrestling fan you desperately needed this.
However, there was one huge problem with No Mercy. Upon release it became widely known the game had a major glitch would could reset your progress back to factory setting with no warning. This issue was eventually fixed, and anyone who had the cartridge could go and get it swapped for a new one. If you want to play this classic again, you can find it in the same place as WM2000. Which is better between the two? I don’t care because they’re both great!
10. WWE Smackdown! HCP (& Just Bring It/Shut Your Mouth)
The granddaddy of them all, in my opinion. There cannot be any definite #1 game as everyone likes and hates what they want. But what I can tell you is Here Comes The Pain was the product of Smackdown 1, Know Your Role, Just Bring It, and Shut Your Mouth rolled in to one. I cannot describe how crazy this game was .. it really was like the No Mercy to its predecessors. Here’s the star-studded roster:
A-Train, Batista, Big Show, Booker T, Brock Lesnar, Bubba Ray Dudley, Charlie Haas, Chavo Guerrero, Chris Benoit, Chris Jericho, Christian, D-Von Dudley, Eddie Guerrero, Edge, Eric Bischoff, Goldberg, Goldust, The Hurricane, John Cena, Kane, Kevin Nash, Kurt Angle, Lance Storm, Matt Hardy, Randy Orton, Rey Mysterio, Rhyno, Ric Flair, Rico, Rikishi, Rob Van Dam, The Rock, Rodney Mack, Scott Steiner, Sean O’Haire, Shawn Michaels, Shelton Benjamin, Stone Cold Steve Austin, Tajiri, Test, Triple H, Ultimo Dragon, The Undertaker, Val Venis, Vince McMahon
Jazz, Lita, Sable, Stacy Keibler, Stephanie McMahon, Torrie Wilson, Trish Stratus, Victoria, Road Warrior Animal (Unlockable), George “The Animal” Steele, Road Warrior Hawk (Unlockable), Hillbilly Jim, The Iron Sheik, Jimmy Snuka (Unlockable), “Million Dollar Man” Ted DiBiase (Unlockable), Nikolai Volkoff, “Rowdy” Roddy Piper, Sgt. Slaughter (Unlockable), The Undertaker (Old School) (Unlockable)
It was so good .. I got Smackdown vs. Raw and felt HCTP had more to offer. It was tough because the new SD vs. Raw game offered some new things while taking a lot away from what made former games special. So it was downhill from here .. at least for me. Don’t know about you guys, but I seen many praise SD vs. Raw 2006 and 2007. If you want a way to play this, you’ll need PCSX2 and to browse the links found here: PS2 ISOs
How far did the Smackdown games come since the first two?
- Expanded on the grapple system to give the four stances: Power, Technical, Speed & Submission.
- Introduced “Legends”, which became a permanent feature for future games.
- Introduced a bigger roster and more match types: Elimination Chamber, Bra & Panties, Lumberjack
With lots to do with so many characters, and a Create-A-Wrestler mode which let you use the assets immediately, HCTP was likely WWE’s most successful game ever. I cannot begin to describe the carnage my friends and I caused playing HCTP. Good times. Sadly it doesn’t seem like any game has come close to recreating the magic, as more attention is taken to how things look over how they play. HCTP got the balance right, and if you was a fan of the Smackdown series .. you were happy to have had it in your life. We cannot forget the contributions of Just Bring It & Shut Your Mouth, which were amazing games in their own right.
In conclusion, it’s hard for me to say anything can beat these games since as I moved on to other things. What I do know is there’s little gems out there, so if you’re a young adult who never got the chance because it was before your time, I feel safe in saying ya won’t regret picking some of them up. Get a controller or two and play, because that’s when wrestling fans have the most fun together. It’s no good playing online against randoms .. you want to physically see their face scrunch up as you hit the Stone Cold Stunner for the win! Followed by a middle finger salute.
It was a simpler time, but not one which is lost forever. Bring The Pain, much like all these games did upon their release. You can’t go wrong with any of ’em. Would love to hear your thoughts on these. Did I miss any out? Feel free to share your memories of good times. With that said, I thank you for taking the time to read this. Cheers.
