Backyard Wrestling: Don't Try This at Home

"It's not Def Jam Vendetta but it'll do..."

Wow, my first review! Oh, well... Here it is...

Backyard Wrestling (BYW) has be a staple in our society for quite sometime now and stated, it was a matter of time before this came to be so on with the review...

Story/7

The story or season of this game is called ''Talk Show'' and it is more of a spoof of some of today's talk shows like Jerry Springer or Ricki Lake, only with cursing and whatnot. The entertainment value of it is really high the first time but after a while the jokes do become a little stale seeing that there is not any variations to whatsoever. It has it cut scenes done quite well and does flesh out some history (somewhat)of BYW.

Gameplay/8

The gameplay is very simple and it can be picked up within a few tries. It style is more of a hybrid of fighting and wresting, kind of like UFC, just with chaos, destruction, and weapons.

The way to win is either by PIN or KO. and majority of the time, it's KO. The way it is style is not to really do traditional wrestling move or be like the WWE, but more like the Golden Days of ECW. There is no ring so you won't be seeing any Asaii (Lion) Moonsault or any 619! There are no submissions, DQ's, count out, or anything you would look at in a WWE match but there is a Irish whip to be perform just to throw your comp to someplace painful like the wall or something. Speaking of no ring, where do you fight, you ask? Why try a strip club or a truck stop/gas station of whatever!

Speaking of moves also, it is somewhat limited though, like I said earlier, are entertaining for a while. There are four grapples to each ''untrained athlete''. These moves are universal and the names are quite funny (or annoying) and some are real variations of actual moves in WWE.

Graphics/7

The graphics in the XBOX version of BYW outshines the PS2 version by a little nick, but that is not saying much. The environments are above average but it leaves much to be desired. The fighting areas of this game are quite interactive and does bring out the quality of the graphics but due to the style of the fighting and chaos, you won't notice them that much.

The character models of BYW are more like they were done with clay than with actual people based upon. In short, the have an ''Outlaw Volleyball'' look with some claymation thrown in. Hmmm...

Sound FX & Music/9

That's right. A ''9''. The reason for that is that the game's saving grace is it supports custom soundtracks. The music on here is quite horrible mainly because there is no real variation to it and people have different taste in music so why should there be a 40+ songs on there that some people don't like? Whatever you like during your chaos should be a staple in all games but those that fits in style and whatnot.

The Sound FX are good and sometimes great. When a finisher is performed, the ''Matrix'' sound is dead on with it. The crackle of sparks, combustion of gas cans, and the mouthing of certain people are cool. On the other hand, some of it does annoy a bit.

Replay Value/8

With an average CAW option and a little creativity, it can last a really long time. If you should happen to play to beat it and not to relax through it, then it will become stale. It may not be the best game in the stack but it can hang for a while with others.

Overall/8

This is a great game to have fun with if you have someone to play with or have a good creative mind to have a good time. This is not a traditional wrestling game nor fighting so the simulation of pro wresting is gone along with other things to do with this kind of hybrid. It could have a sequel. Just look at WWE RAW & WWE RAW 2.

Buy or Rent?

If you want just plain out war, malice, destruction, etc... then buy. If you want to try something new or not too sure, I strongly recommend renting it.

Reviewer's Score: 8/10, Originally Posted: 10/28/03