WWF Royal Rumble

"Great, addictive game, and it still holds up today!"

In the beginning, there was Pro Wrestling on the NES...

And after that, not much else. To say that most attempts at recreating wrestling on consoles in the 8 and 16 bit days was an understatement. Of course, the Fire Pro series was around, but we never saw those games in America. Pro Wrestling really stood out among the other failed attempts as the best any game developer had managed, and heck, the wrestlers weren't even real! That all changed when LJN released WWF Royal Rumble for the Super Nintendo, still one of the most playable and fun wrestling games around.

Graphics:
For the time, the graphics are actually pretty impressive. All the wrestlers, with the exception of Shawn Michaels, resemble their real-life counterparts. For some odd reason, all the wrestlers, including Yokozuna, are the same size, which you would think would have been dealt with by the developers. The crowd is nothing to write home about, just the typical 2D wrestling crowd with recycled character models. Still, this 2D game is very impressive. The animations are fairly smooth, and overall, the game is pleasant to look at.

Score: 7/10

Sound:
I was impressed with how the developers managed to create a version of each wrestler's theme song which sounds close to the real thing. It's nice to win a match and hear your wrestler's theme playing. Sound effects are pretty much what you would expect here. No music during the matches, just assorted grunts and groans. No announcing either, but this IS the SNES we're talking about. Overall, the sound is very nice.

Score: 8/10

Gameplay:
Simply, this game is very simple and addictive and will keep you playing for hours! With simplicity comes a price: with the exception of their finishers, the wrestlers share a common move set. This may be a turn-off to some, but I actually like it in this type of game. The name of the game here is simplicity, and it helps not to have to memorize a different set of moves for each character. The finishers are also very cool. You're not going to get the depth of Fire Pro here, but if that's what you're looking for, this game is not for you anyway. The list of wrestlers is a oldies wrestling fan's dream: Bret Hart, Lex Luger, Tatanka, The Undertaker (pre-American Bad Ass), Ric Flair, ''Mr. Perfect'' Curt Hennig, Ted DiBiase, Yokozuna, ''Macho Man'' Randy Savage, Crush, Shawn Michaels, and Razor Ramon. More characters are always nice, but this roster is very impressive and includes wrestlers you just won't see in other games. Most two all-time favorite wrestlers, Flair and Hennig, are included, which makes it that much better for me. This game has the usual gameplay modes you would expect: singles, tournament, tag team, etc. The real draw here is the Royal Rumble mode. This is the first time this mode was attempted in a video game. Of course, you don't have thirty wrestlers competing this time, but it is very fun and, like the rest of the game, addictive. WWF Royal Rumble may not stack up to the current crop of games, like Smackdown, as far as modes go, but it is still more fun than most of them. I still play this more than SD:SYM.

Score: 10/10

Replayability:
Once you figure out how to wrestle (which usually takes about one match), you'll be bodyslamming and suplexing with the best of them. You'll also probably be hopelessly addicted to the game. This game has a ton of replayability, not because there are unlockables (there aren't) but simply because it is a great gameplay experience. You'll come back over and over.

Score: 10/10

Overall impressions:
WWF Royal Rumble is not as deep as the Fire Pro series or as flashy as the Smackdown series, but I honestly feel it still stacks up with them today. Great gameplay is what all gamers should be after in their games. Considering you can probably pick this up very cheap now, I would highly suggest you buy it. You'll get a ton of play out of this cartridge at a great price. You'll also be the owner of a little piece of wrestling game history.

Overall score (not an average): 9/10

Reviewer's Score: 9/10, Originally Posted: 12/24/02, Updated 12/24/02