Showdown: Legends of Wrestling

"Letdown: Continuations by Acclaim"

Ok now. Let me start off by saying that when it comes to watching a lot of wrestling I'm not even close to being high on the list. I started watching when Taker became the ABA so that should say something. But still. I recognize almost every star featured in this game. And the fact that it includes so many old school wrestlers should make it almost a guaranteed winner in the wrestling game department. But damn. Acclaim has managed to screw up yet again on something that should be one of the largest cash cows of teenagers and adults alike. Oh well, on to the review.

Graphics: 6/10
I have to say this is probably the best part of the game. This is sad because the models are really mediocre. I understand that they should be disfigured to look like the old toys and such, but come on. Anymore I figured they would have taken a cue from the other big hitting wrestling games and gone for a more realistic approach. But anyhow that's their decision. The arenas are relatively well detailed. MSG really does look like MSG…. Just seemingly shrunk. Maybe it seems that way because of the camera. But I'll explain that later.

Sound: 3/10
I have to say this was also really disappointing. There is commentating in game. Only it's not very good. Sort of brings back the days of Smackdown 3 with the “Oh my GOD!...Kain has pulled off A!...backbreaker.” Only more dull. The guys don't even really get excited. The last time I heard such bad script reading was Star Wars: The Phantom Menace. The wrestler intro music is sub par. I'm not sure if they are the real intro songs but if they are, it seems they were ripped from an old NES game. The sound is so hollow that you could shoot it through 5.1 surround and still have it sound like Mono.

Gameplay: 1/10
This game has to have the worst play mechanics in any game…..ever. I've played games with hard controls before but this is freaking ridiculous. But first a question. Why in the hell does Eddie Guerrero move around the ring at the same speed as Andre the Giant?! He's pretty much a freaking lucha yet it takes him 3 minutes to cross the ring! Next I really don't understand the reverse system whatsoever. I go to punch and get reversed. I go to grapple and I get reversed. I go to run away and I get grappled. I press reverse and my opponent does a move. My opponent goes to punch and I get smacked upside the head. Notice a pattern? I think I reversed 3 times in an entire match. The problem? I never touched the reverse button! Next problem is the serious warping. One minute I'm on the ground and the next I'm up on the other side of the ring having a dropkick reversed. And I never even walked to that side of the ring.

Variety: 2/10
Ok. I suppose there is one other slightly redeeming quality…. And that is it has more than one match. Single, tag, table, cage, and ironman. Since I couldn't stand to play anymore than two single matches I suggest reading another review to see what those are like.

Camera: 1/10
Yeah that's right. An entire category devoted to the camera. Plain and simple. THIS CAMERA BLOWS! I have never played a game where the camera sways, moves, zooms, and slowmos more than this. During the second match I actually got dizzy and had to look away because the camera is seemingly hooked onto the ropes. I also don't get why they decided to have the camera 2 feet from the wrestlers. Its as if they had to find some way to cover up the bad looking crowd. Guess someone got a raise for saying “Hey lets just zoom the camera in super close so no one can see our mistakes on the rest of the game!” And I still don't understand the need for slowmo action when I go for a pin. Guess it's to be overly dramatic or something.

Replayability: 1/10
Granted this game has a lot of stuff to unlock. Oh wait… No it doesn't. Apparently they forgot to add lots of cool stuff to the game as extra incentive to beat the game.

Fun Factor: 0/10
Kinda sad really. I seriously tried to enjoy this game. I saw that the first two were somewhat enjoyed by the masses so I figured why not? All I can say is I wish I would have spent the $5.00 dollars on a gallon of gas and a magazine. At least the gas could have gotten me somewhere and the magazine would have kept me interested for more than 7 minutes unlike this game.

Buy or Rent?
Take a guess.

In closing:
I would like to make a short statement. If a very fun and enjoyable game were compared to a 100 meter dash it would be the first off the line and would break every speed record. Showdown would be like tripping at the start line, cracking your head open on the ground and then having every person watching laugh their freaking asses off.

Reviewer's Score: 2/10, Originally Posted: 06/25/04