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Preview  Wrestlemania X8
- By Mike Ryan


E3 Impressions:

Wrestling games are a mixed bag. Luckily, Nintendo systems have been graced with arguably the best out there in recent years. With THQ's decision to trade AKI for Yukes, that tradition might be set to change.

Wrestlemania X8 features a large number of wrestlers from both WWE "brands," but some of them already seem outdated. Hulk Hogan isn't the red and yellow champion he has reverted back to, but instead an nWo, black and white thug. Although the game allows players to edit the moves of existing wrestlers, changing a costume or theme music is a no go. From what THQ showed us at E3, players can only choose one outfit for each wrestler, a huge step backward from previous games.

Other gripes include the absence of backstage brawling. We didn't see how far up the ramp players could go, but we did confirm that there were indeed no areas behind the curtain. Again, another let down for wrestling game fans.

The controls are like a sped up version of AKI's previous system. Instead of grappling and then doing a move, players grapple while already holding a direction to select a move. Although this speeds up gameplay, it essentially limits the player to four standard moves from the front and back.

Other moves can be created by attacking with B, running, climbing the ropes, throwing an opponent, or using a special move by pressing A+B. A player can earn up to three specials at a time and use them at any moment once they have been earned. This is a new setup that lends itself to dramatic finishes that a skilled player could use to put away any opponent. As Rob Van Dam, for example, players could attack a weakened wrestler with RVD's front special, a Van Daminator (sans chair) and follow it up with an off-the-top-rope Five Star Frog Splash.

The graphics in the game are done nicely with characters representing their counterparts much more than other games like Legends of Wrestling. Subtle touches such as an animated crowd holding signs specific to the wrestlers in the ring add atmosphere. The arenas, of which there are several, are crafted to represent the real thing. The Smackdown set features two video screens for FMV intro sequences and the giant looming fist in the entrance way.

Other items of note are the players can taunt, attack a ref, or head to the announce tables to do some damage. Go on the table there and the ringside announcers get up and retreat to safety.

And when it comes to carnage, the match modes deliver. Beyond the standard there are modes like Ladder match, Tables Ladders and Chairs match, cage, Hell in the Cell, Hardcore, Table match, a 4-man Battle Royal, and the Royal Rumble. Playing the nearly complete version, we were able to escape the Hell in a Cell, climb to the cieling, break down through to the inside, and take out an announcers table before scoring the win in the ring with Kurt Angle's Olympic Slam.

Finally, the game is missing a select few theme songs due to licensing issues, but otherwise the entrances are lengthy and authentic.

WWE Wrestlemania X8 is due out in June, but it might be worth waiting for X9 to see if some of the missing features are added.

Dan Doll
-05.24.02