WWF WrestleFest

"Was perfect back when it was made and is still fun today."

I myself am not as much of a wrestling fan as I used to be because I think the WWF (or should I say WWE) of today is not as cool as it was back in the late 80s/early 90s. For people who feel the way I do, this game is a godsent. What the WWF used to be has been captured flawlessly in an extremely fun game.

Story: 10
Playing this game is almost like watching an old rerun. There are interviews with wrestlers done in the same fashion as on the old shows (complete with Mean Gene Okerlund)! You also get to see wrestlers walk down the walkway to the ring. If you play the Royal Rumble game, before a new wrestler enters, you see them on a small screen talking about how they're gonna win and all that jazz. The people who made this game sure went all out to make this game authentic!

Gameplay: 10
There are two ways you can play. One way is to make a tag team and work your way up to being the number one contender for the Tag Team Championship, held by the Legion of Doom. There are many cool WWF characters to choose from, like Jake the Snake, Mr. Perfect, obviously Hulk Hogan, etc. The only other actual tag team in this game is Demolition. The controls in this game aren't different from other WWF wrestling games. You punch, kick, grapple, run, whip someone to the ropes, tag, etc. All the moves you can think of are in this game, including trademark moves. If you are dying, you can insert more coins to heal yourself. If you beat LOD, Mean Gene Okerlund talks about your victory on a WWF news segment. Not a very satisfying ending, but neat nonetheless.

The other way you can play is by fighting in the Royal Rumble. You can eliminate people by throwing them over the top rope or by pinning them. The reason they let you pin is so some cheesehead doesn't just keep walking to the center of the ring to stay alive, but it's still better to throw them over if you can because there is only one ref and if he's got to count two pins over on the right side of the ring, it will take him a long time to get to you and by then the pinned person will have kicked out. If you win the Royal Rumble, you get a more satisfying ending, which I will not talk about so as not to spoil it for you.

Graphics: 10
Great for it's day and not bad even today! Yes, all the wrestlers look like they have the same basic build, but they are all detailed and discernable from oneanother. They must have scanned in pictures of the real wrestlers because they look extremely realistic. The only thing missing is more color.

Sound/Music: 10
Yeah, there's music, but it's not authentic WWF music. Besides, noone really cares about it because they're too busy listening to the AWESOME voices!! Not only can you hear the LOD interview with the actual voices of Mene Gene and LOD, you have an intelligent ringside announcer calling the moves as you play. It was simply stunning to hear back then and it's still good today. For instance, you will hear things like ''Jack the Snake climbs to the top rope!'' I think the best voices are when you try pinning someone. If you only get a 1 count, the announcer will say ''Way too early.'' If it's a 2 count close to 3, he'll say, ''...and a 2 count!!'' Oh, the sound effects are pretty good, too. Slams sound very nice.

Control: 10
The controls are the same on almost every WWF game and this game is no exception. If you know how to play one of them, you'll pick this one up very quickly. Nothing difficult about them at all.

Replay Value: 8
Aside from using all the characters and beating both game modes, which are both already fun to do, you will play this game simply because it's so authentic and fun!

Bottom Line?
Whether you think the modern day WWF(E) sucks or not, you will love this game regardless. It was so perfectly done it will deserve to be in arcades until the computer chips inside the cabinet start to corrode! People who want a fun wrestling game and people who want a peek back at the golden years of the WWF will both be completely satisfied, which is why I give it a 10.

Reviewer's Score: 10/10, Originally Posted: 08/09/01, Updated 04/24/04