WWE Legends of WrestleMania

Review from Cav - Thursday, 07 May 2009 @ 8:31am

Hopefully, by now, a majority of you have read my Legends of WrestleMania preview. I have never done both a preview and review before, so I will admit that I am finding this difficult, but I am sure you will endure this write up to find out why Legends is a must have for WWE Fans, both old, like yours truly, and new. So is there really any more I can tell you about the latest from Yukes Media Creations and THQ? I think there is.

Did you steal my body wax?

Firstly, those who are unfamiliar with the WWE Titles may be asking yourselves: “What’s this got that the Smackdown! series doesn’t?” Well it has exactly what the title says it does: It has Legends of the wrestling industry…. although I don’t agree with a few choices. Hulk Hogan? Yes, most definitely. Wrestling wouldn’t be what it is today if it wasn’t for him. Andre the Giant? What’s a good guy without a bad guy? Ric Flair? Still takes a bump for the business every now and then even at the age of 60. Koko B Ware? He carried a macaw named Frankie with him to the ring and danced like a turkey on crack … so, maybe not! Hunter Hurst Helmsley? Hold out, mate, you’re a shoe-in for the sequel, but I suppose you can get in anywhere you want when you are part of ‘the family’. It’s also kinda scary when you realise how many of the Superstars available for use are no longer with us, I count at least five. Even though I’m not all together happy with the roster, some of the characters look good and others… well they ‘wish’ the looked that good. I can’t remember Greg ‘The Hammer’ Valentine ever having a ‘six pack’. Matter of fact he always looked like he had ‘consumed a few six packs’ if anything! So it’s fair to say that quite a few of these guys have been ‘cleaned up’ a little and look better than they should or ever did. But if models can get airbrushed for magazines, why can’t these old boys get a bit of a touch up? Along side the Legends, are an element that I believe is truly lacking in today’s wrestling, the Manager. These guys were an integral part of the story that kept us glued week in and week out. Not only did they actually compete in the squared circle every now and then, but they sealed the result of a match for their stable members on numerous occasions through the odd, devious action, away from the watchful eye of the referee. Enough of me playing favourites, let’s just say, as I stated in my preview, there are other more deserving souls out there. The characters look good as well do the arenas.

One thing that has always been a down point of the arenas are the fans, with the same guy appearing, holding the same sign, five times in one screen shot. It must be damn hard to get it looking good and in this one, Yukes is proving that this is an element that they are working on. Another thing that seems to be on the improve is the flow of the game. Years ago in wrestling games, motions and moves used to be extremely jerky, but now hits are smoother, making the game look so much better. Camera changes strategically cover places where jerkiness could appear. The addition of a camera angle change in to the ringside action is also a bonus.

Choking on turnbuckle, Jake? Let me help you!

People have said to me that they feel the game itself is kinda shallow, but I disagree. There is so much to do in the game I found myself getting back to my old ways of looking at the clock saying “Holy crap! Is it 3 in the morning already?” But it does sometimes get a bit tedious, if you are a perfectionist. It is great to just use the exhibition mode and just have a crack at wrestling with your favourites from the past, but if that is all you purchased this title for, you’re really missing the whole point of the game. This game has been made to do exactly what the tagline says: Relive, Rewrite, and Redefine. I love the footage shown that you must recreate, such an awesome bonus for the nostalgic few, like myself. I initially thought it would be the full matches…. But I am guessing that may have been a little to much to ask to be loaded on to the disc, as well as fitting a decent game on there too. The medal achievements for the ‘three R’s’ works well as a majority of moves are used to complete the task, instead of just winning a match. I probably haven’t put enough time into it, but I have unlocked a few extra ring attires, which associate themselves with different time periods in WrestleMania history.

Get Ted here to face off against his son, Ted Jnr! When families collide!

I’m still trying to work out which is the bigger bonus in this game: Having footage from years gone by or being able to upload your created character and other superstars of today from SDvR09. Created stars are used for the Legend Killer mode. Where you run the Gauntlet and try to defeat Superstars one after the other. The satisfaction of success is there, but it’s dampened by the fact that even if you lose a match, you don’t have to start from the bottom of the list again and work your way back up. I suppose it’s a good thing though… I am down to one 360 controller and don’t need, nor can afford to go beyond that. When you get old it’s your God-given right to be get grumpy – just ask that old bastard on the train who gives you dirty looks every day on your way to work, just because you have more hair than him and don’t wear knee high socks with shorts or a singlet under your near transparent shirt, that everyone can see.

Pros

Footage, footage, footage! I can't tell you how much I love it! Managers - the unsung heroes of 80's wrestling! Easier controls than SDvR. Importing created characters and Superstars from SDvR09 is very cool

Cons

Missing vital Superstars from the era. Can get a bit repetitive for those who want to go 100%. Some Superstars are a little overpolished in appearance

Summary

So between this and my preview, I hope you have gained a bit of understanding on what WWE Legends of WrestleMania has to offer. As you all know, I like it for the nostalgic value. I also like it for the ease in controls and crossover functions. I recommend it. But when was the last time I didn't recommend a wrestling game? Oh yeah.......