WWF War Zone

"The first good WWF game for the psx..."

WWF Warzone is the first good wrestling game for the Playstation. This one had a lot of hype surrounding it. WWF Warzone promised more authentic wrestling moves that were motion-captured to make it look real. It would also feature a create-a-wrestler mode that was pretty cool. More matches, more wrestlers (Kane!), and interactive environments that would make the player actually feel like he was really the British Bulldog slamming a guy through a table. What could go wrong? Read on and I’ll tell you.

Gameplay: 8/10
I think that the thing in this game that took me in was the amount of wrestlers that were at your disposal! You got Kane, Stone Cold Steve Austin, Owen Hart, and Shawn Michaels just to name a few. Also the create-a-wrestler mode in the game was pretty good, but did not have enough features to create a wrestler that may be to your liking. But, on the bright side, the wrestlers do feature tons of cool moves from headlocks to power bombs. A thing that wasn’t that great is the lack of different matches that you were able to do. The tag-team matches were not very good, but the cage matches really cool.

Graphics: 7/10
The graphics were good, but not great. All of the characters had faces that have the same expression on them. Plus, all the characters walked like robots and there were some problems with the frame-rate. On the plus side, the wrestling moves were authentic and motion-captured, which I thought was really cool. I would just like to say as a wrestling fan, that I was happy that they did many of the characters’ signature moves right!

Sound: 7/10
The sound was pretty good with the full versions of the wrestler’s theme music because it is on a compact disc instead of a cartridge. It has commentators, which is cool, but they only say about ten phrases. Also, the wrestlers talk, but they only say about five phrases each.

Game Time: 7/10
This has a short season mode, unlike the holy Wrestlemania 2000. Why? I don’t know why, but it is very short. In the season mode, you will go through cage matches, hardcore matches, and raging feuds. Also, you can only compete for the World Championship belt, no European, no tag team, and no Intercontinental Title belt. This is inexcusable.

Control: 6/10
Some of the moves are easy to pull off, but your character sometimes does not respond immediately to your actions. Also, the tag team matches are death! It is so very hard to tag in your partner and niether the strategy guide or the manual tells you how to tag! Also, climbing out of the cage during cage matches can be a little hard sometimes.

Challenge: 7/10
This game is not that hard, even when you get farther in the game, your opponent can only get a few shots on you. Some guys are just harder than others, but you usually end up the victor 98% of the time.

Replay Value: 8/10
WWF Warzone gives you the opportunity to unlock more characters, which is a nice attribute. But that may be the only thing that is appealing about the replay value besides the fact that it is a great time-killer with no shortage of wrestlers to beat the game with.

Next to WWF Smackdown!, Warzone is a great game for any wrestling fan. It is an immediate buy for any hardcore wrestling fan, and it is a great rental for any casual gamer. Despite all the flaws that plague it, WWF Warzone is a game that deserves a long look.

Reviewer's Score: 7/10, Originally Posted: 01/16/03, Updated 01/16/03