WCW/NWO Revenge

"All these years later, it's still the dominant WCW title."

This game is the follow-up to the wildly popular WCW vs. nWo: World Tour. World Tour was hailed by wrestling fans as the best wrestling game to date, and were delighted to hear that a sequel would be coming out. The popularity of World Tour created a market flooded with great wrestling titles, as well as some mediocre ones. But don't worry, this is definitely the best WCW title to date, even though it's horribly outdated.

Graphics
The first thing you'll notice once you start playing is the better skin colors. World Tour had hideous skin colors. They were all white. I mean, literally, white. This problem has been solved in Revenge, so it is already better than World Tour.

The faces in World Tour were also horrid. They looked absolutely nothing like their real-life counterparts. This problem was also solved in Revenge. Some of the faces are just amazingly realistic, such as Bret Hart and Hollywood Hogan. Some look less detailed, such as Chris Benoit's and Booker T's. But they are still a vast improvement.

The areans look great. It's fun to pop in this game just to look at the old Nitro set of 1998. The moves are also more realistic than ever, although the atomic drop is animated too fast. There are still some graphical glitches that occur when doing suplexes and moves like that, but those really don't interfere with the gameplay too much. Graphics: 8/10

Sound
The in-game music is nothing to be amazed at. It's not bad, per se. But it just doesn't fit in with the game. I don't want to hear guitars in midi format while doing the Jackhammer on Scott Hall, do I? So like I said, it isn't bad... just out of place.

The punches and the sounds of bodies slamming on the mat are great. Nothing to complain about.

No entrance music. This annoys me. The ad for this game clearly states authentic WCW entrance music. But do I hear Wolfpac music? NO! Do I hear nWo music? NO! Do I hear DDP's theme? NO! You get the idea. Definitely disappointing. Sound: 8/10

Controls
If you've played any of the THQ wrestling games before, you know what to expect. If not, let me attempt to break it down. The moves are pulled off thanks to a grapple system. Basically, you engage in a grapple via the A button, then press a direction the control pad and A or B, and a move is executed. Trust me, this is a lot easier than it sounds. And of course, you also have punches and such, which are executed with the B button. Very good, responsive controls. Controls: 10/10

Roster
Yes, the roster for this game is horribly outdated. Please keep in mind that this game was released in 1998. The roster is still great though. You've got all of your favorites, including Hogan, Hall, Nash, Goldberg, Bret Hart, DDP, The British Bulldog, Sting, and more! Roster: 10/10

Modes
Modes are pretty lacking. You have exhibition, which includes singles and tag, career, and battle royal (which is essentially a Royal Rumble.) The career is pretty lacking. You fight 8 wrestlers, and the 8th wrestler has the belt. But the modes are still fun, regardless. Modes: 8/10

Challenge: Moderate

Rent or Buy
Buy, brother, before my 24-inch pythons run you over in style and profile, because I am the excellence of execution. Or something like that. Anyway, this is a great game for vintage WCW fans, and is cheap at Funcoland. A definite must-buy.

Reviewer's Score: 10/10, Originally Posted: 08/11/00, Updated 01/19/02