WCW Super Brawl Wrestling

"I've Played Better..."

WCW Superbrawl Wrestling is one of those games where only hardcore wrestling fans should play it and the rest should stay away. It's not a horrible game at all, but then again, it's no Super Metroid.

Let's start with the graphics. The graphical style of this game is so-so. The ring is pulled directly from Super Fire Pro Wrestling, but not as bright or vibrant. The colors are drab and boring. The character models are pretty well done. The hit detection, however, is not always perfect, so don't freak out when you see Sting's foot go through Rick Rude's stomach during the Scorpion Deathlock.

The sound is definitely the games strong point. The sound effects are great, and the voices are spot-on. It is rather entertaining to hear Vader screaming "YOU WANT VADER?!?" Tony Schiavone's commentary does get repetitive and annoying, but since it's only every so often, it's not that big of a deal. Good job here.

Control. Definitely not the games strong point. It might just be me, but I found the controls hard at first to understand. After a while you pick them up, but the game quickly becomes a button-masher. You'll find yourself tapping Y (dropkick) over and over, then occasionally tapping A (grapple), which usually results in a Tombstone-like piledriver (at least for me).

After mediocre graphics, above-average sound, and dismal control, you would think that hopefully there would be some sort of good gameplay to save it. Nope. The gameplay is repetitive, and there is really no variety to pull you along. Tag team matches suck, as your opponents will cheat a lot, while you struggle to tag in your opponent. There is a Tournament and an Ultimate Challenge mode, but it's just a bunch of single matches over and over. You could just go into Single Match ten times and call it a Tournament. Also, why the heck can't you choose your own opponent? For example, you want to have Sting vs. Scott Steiner? Good luck, as it may take a while for the "opponent generator" to pick the opponent you want.

In conclusion, this game (which took two years to develop; yeah, that's why the roster's out of date) could have been a fairly good game, had the controls been better and the gameplay not so repetitve. If you need a SNES wrestling fix, go with WWF Royal Rumble or RAW, or the Super Fire Pro series. But if you're desperate for some classic Dubya C Dubya superbrawlin', then this is the only game for you (by the way, what would possess you to this point, anyway??).

Reviewer's Score: 5/10, Originally Posted: 06/13/04