Zen-Nippon Pro Wrestling 2: 3-4 Budoukan

"Possibly the best SNES wrestling title"

For a large part of the 90's a wrestling war took place in America. It was between the WCW and WWF. The WCW would ultimately fall to the WWF (now WWE) and WWE would take its place as the #1 undisputed wrestling organization in the world. However, across the pond in Japan another wrestling war was taking place. One between All Japan Pro Wrestling (Zen-Nippon) and New Japan Pro Wrestling (Shin-Nippon) took place throughout the 90's as well. Shoei “Giant” Baba was at the helm of All Japan, while Antonio Inoki was at the helm of New Japan. Both organizations put on excellent matches, and the work ethic and match style so popular in All Japan are very evident in this title.

Graphics 8/10
The graphics of All Japan Pro Wrestling 2 (AJPW 2) are excellent. The colors are a bit drab at times, however there is no mistake on which wrestler is which. The sprites represent their real life counterparts in excellent detail, and moves are executed with smooth transition. At times the game displays some clipping problems, like when you attempt to save your partner from being suplexed. You'll bat the opponent out of the way, but your partner will still continue to be hoisted up as if he was still being suplexed. This could have been prevented, but is just a small glitch that is easily forgiven.

Sound 9/10
Possibly some of the best sound I've heard from a wrestling title on the SNES. All the grunts are crisp and clear, and some characters even have trademark yells, such as Stan Hansen's “BOOO” taunt. Also, when you are being slammed to the mat, the mat actually has sound that mimics that of a real life ring when someone gets slammed. All of the wrestlers themes are right on too, minus any lyrics there might have been. I was easily able to identify Kiss' “I Love it Loud” as Steve Williams and Terry Gordy ran down to the ring. Nice work. Also, throughout a match, instead of some generic background music, you get one of the in ring wrestlers' themes. This has been somewhat random as I've played, but it is still better than some generic theme that would get old, especially since you can't turn off background music.

Control 9/10
AJPW 2 has a nice control scheme. The only set back is the learning curve that novice players will find difficult to grasp. The control isn't much different from the Fire Pro series, in that moves must be preformed with precise timing. The game makes great use of the buttons, and only leaves one, the left trigger, out. I found no problem in being able to have a seriously fun time with the controls in this game. It's just the learning curve that might throw players for a loop.

Fun Factor 10/10
Possibly the best wrestling title I've played on the SNES. Once a player gets the learning curve down, the game become second nature and then becomes extremely addictive to play. There are several ways to play; from the start menu you can select match and option. In match play, you become the booker and can create dream matches in singles or tag matches. Under options, you can find the Triple Crown championship series, the Triple Crown Tag Championship series, single match play, a training tutorial, and the Big Four. With all of these opportunities, you can't go wrong.

Overall 9/10
AJPW 2 has its ups and downs. If you like wrestling, and are not bothered by MINOR problems, then this game is a nice trip down memory lane. This title was very well made, and special attention to detail was made. Each wrestler has moves specific to them, such as Dr. Death's Oklahoma Stampeded, and Dan Spivey's Jumping DDT. If you're a fan, rush out to your local import dealer and ask to test play this game. If you've played Japanese games before, the menus are surprisingly easy to figure out. If you're not a wrestling or puroresu fan then you need not apply.

Reviewer's Score: 9/10, Originally Posted: 09/06/04