For those of you that like playing wrestling games and have xbox theres been nothing to brag about for us. IMO wwe raw and raw 2 sucks graphics gameplay no commentary. Theres a new wrestlling game that looks to be just as good even better than the ones on n64 (no mercy/wrestlemania 2000) http://xbox.ign.com/objects/681/681471.html?ui=gamefinder . Ive watched alot of the preview movies here; http://media.xbox.ign.com/media/681/681471/vids_1.html
ive even read that it will be online, which is amazing. Any of you guys hear about it or see it in action and as hyped as I am?
Can't wait for this. Disappointed it got pushed back to late April, but if it was to fine tune it, all the better.
nodeerforamonth
03-27-05, 04:31 PM
All the hype on RAW 2 made me buy it, but it had way too many critical bugs in it (for example: a wrestler you were feuding with would do a run-in and attack your opponent, not you!)
I'm skeptical, but we'll see!
the narrator
03-28-05, 10:57 AM
I'll for sure rent this before I buy it...I too was very disappointed by RAW 2 when I bought it without playing it first.
nickdawgy
04-17-05, 10:46 PM
This comes out Tuesday. Anyone else besides me going to get it?
Cedrock
04-17-05, 10:52 PM
is it tuesday? I remember when i reserved it a few weeks ago its supposed to be the 19th which is tuesday but ive seen the 20th for ship date at gamestop.com and ebgames. Hopefully its tuesday cuz i planned on cutting school to play this all day :)
nickdawgy
04-17-05, 11:32 PM
Well 90% chance it's at all Gamestops and EB's on Wednesday. But it releases on Tuesday.
rvd1083
04-18-05, 04:28 AM
Well 90% chance it's at all Gamestops and EB's on Wednesday. But it releases on Tuesday.
It actually comes out on Thursday and should be in-stores on Friday.
nickdawgy
04-18-05, 11:02 AM
It actually comes out on Thursday and should be in-stores on Friday.
Actually it comes out Wednesday now, and should be in stores on Thursday.
It was originally supposed to be April 19th, but now the ship date is the 20th.
K&AJones
04-19-05, 12:05 AM
I'm really hoping this game works out. Before I got my XBox I was a....PS2 user. I know, I know. But that was then and this is now. Anyhow I picked up the "Feel The Pain" WWF game and it had me rolling. I haven't laughed that hard and that long for awhile. I only got to play it for about two months till I sold the ...PS2.
You would think with some of the latest games out (Doom 3, Unreal, Jade Empire, Brothers In Arms, Splinter Cell, Time Splitters) bringing out the best of the XBox that it wouldn't be that difficult to bring a simple wrestling game along. Those games you really can't laugh at that much so I need this game to make it.
Kenny J. - Buzz Starhopper
nickdawgy
04-19-05, 12:44 AM
I'm really hoping this game works out. Before I got my XBox I was a....PS2 user. I know, I know. But that was then and this is now. Anyhow I picked up the "Feel The Pain" WWF game and it had me rolling. I haven't laughed that hard and that long for awhile. I only got to play it for about two months till I sold the ...PS2.
You would think with some of the latest games out (Doom 3, Unreal, Jade Empire, Brothers In Arms, Splinter Cell, Time Splitters) bringing out the best of the XBox that it wouldn't be that difficult to bring a simple wrestling game along. Those games you really can't laugh at that much so I need this game to make it.
Kenny J. - Buzz Starhopper
Do you mean Here Comes the Pain? Why were you laughing? It's a great game. I like it even more then Smackdown vs Raw.
Mark Carpenter
04-19-05, 01:02 AM
Do you mean Here Comes the Pain? Why were you laughing? It's a great game. I like it even more then Smackdown vs Raw.
Can I ask you why you prefer Here Comes The Pain over Smackdown vs Raw? Smackdown vs Raw was one of the games I bought with my PS2 and i'm still playing it, it's great. I thought it was generally considered an improvement over Here Comes The Pain? If not then i'll have to check it out.
nickdawgy
04-19-05, 03:06 AM
It's longer then Smackdown vs Raw, and there's more wrestlers, and more belts, and more backstage areas. Just more to do in general.
Brent L
04-19-05, 10:13 PM
IGN - 6.0/10
http://xbox.ign.com/articles/606/606033p1.html
I can't help but laugh my ass off over this, and I was looking forward to this game! I'm just glad I never pre-ordered it like I wanted to.
I look forward to reviews from you guys though.
nickdawgy
04-20-05, 12:07 AM
Wow, that's not good at all. I expected it to be at least an 8.
fujishig
04-20-05, 12:26 PM
Ugh. when Cedrock mentioned that it would be just as good as the N64 games, I had high hopes. Why can't they just update those games, anyway? Or license Firepro or something (I know, I know, graphics are everything...)?
I've come to accept the Smackdown series on PS2 as the best this generation has to offer (even if the running clothesline is the best move in the game). I still don't understand why they just don't port that over to the other systems instead of making crappy games for Gamecube and Xbox. I mean, usually people complain about ports because they have to design it around the limitations of the PS2: this time, the series itself is on the PS2 anyway, so that shouldn't be an issue. I'm sure even with inferior graphics, Xbox fans would embrace the game...
nickdawgy
04-20-05, 12:43 PM
I'm still getting it. The guy that did the IGN review is a big time PS2 fanboy, and he mentioned several times in the review about how Smackdown vs Raw was better.
IGN also gave Raw and Raw 2 ratings in the 9's, and wrestling fans generally consider those pretty crappy and buggy titles. I played Raw 2, and I would have rated it a 7.
I don't think I'll be getting my copy until tomorrow, but since I pre-ordered, I might get it today, but I doubt it.
Daryl
04-20-05, 12:44 PM
Even more harsh than the overall score of 6 is the fact that actual gameplay only got a 5. Sigh.
[dead horse]Back to my N64 to play No Mercy, I guess![/dead horse]
nickdawgy
04-20-05, 01:06 PM
I just called the 3 Gamestop's and the EB by my house and all 4 of them said tomorrow. One Gamestop even said "if you didn't pre-order it, we won't have it until next week"
Yeah right :lol:
fujishig
04-20-05, 02:02 PM
I just called the 3 Gamestop's and the EB by my house and all 4 of them said tomorrow. One Gamestop even said "if you didn't pre-order it, we won't have it until next week"
Yeah right :lol:
I know this is off-topic and been beaten to death already: buy why in the world would they give you that response, especially over the phone? Not only does that guarantee a lost sale, because you'll go someplace else, but when you find the game at every other store you visit, you'll never preorder from them or believe them again...
Unless this game is somehow high in demand or limited or something...
PixyJunket
04-20-05, 02:16 PM
Gamestop does not care about their customers. They do not care about repeat business. They do not even care about profit. Gamestop cares about selling "pre-orders" and strategy guides. This is their purpose, this is why they have bought out all other video game chains, this is the mission they were given by Electronic Arts, God of all video games.
wlj
04-20-05, 03:45 PM
sorry fellas if you had high hopes for this game....
ign gave it a 6.0
http://xbox.ign.com/articles/606/606033p1.html
wlj
nickdawgy
04-20-05, 04:05 PM
sorry fellas if you had high hopes for this game....
ign gave it a 6.0
http://xbox.ign.com/articles/606/606033p1.html
wlj
The review was posted already, see earlier in the thread.
wlj
04-20-05, 04:59 PM
The review was posted already, see earlier in the thread.
my bad man...don't know how i missed that. Sorry.
wlj
nickdawgy
04-20-05, 05:02 PM
No problem, it just serves to remind us WWE fans that the game might not be as good as everyone hoped ;)
I am hoping it is good, despite the review
kaze0
04-20-05, 09:11 PM
Hey guys. My first impressions are that it's awful, awful, awful, worse than a 6/10.
I'll keep editing this as I play it.
First the game isn't in widescreen, ughh. And it looks downright ugly in game. For kicks I popped in Bleem with a smackdown 2 cd, and pumped the quality up. The wrestlers pretty much look the same. The animation marginally better than the old warzone games, I don't know why they insist on mocapping wrestling games.
My first match was big show vs shawn michaels as HBK. I lost badly. During the match, the controls were incredibly unresponsive. The computer resorted to irish whips way to often and usually at the edge of the ring thus tossing me out every five seconds. I didn't really get a feel for the game yet.
There were numerous loading problems that may just be due to an aging first gen xbox although I've never seen anything this bad in other games so I'll describe. From selection to entrances was over a minute loading, then another 30 seconds from entrances to load the match. After the match the replay "skipped" like a scratched cd for about 30 seconds. I went to create a superstar and saving him took a good 45 seconds and the game accessed the dvd drive a lot during that time.
The menu system is atrocious, incredibly bland and unintuitive. Options are grayed out with no explanation of how to enable them. Example, when you create a new belt the only option lit up is the name. Everything is grayed out. I selected the name decided 'Championship' was fine and backed out with B. Everything was sitll grayed out, did that a few more times. Then finally went to change the name and just selected end and viola everything else lit up. Creating a superstar is just as unintuitive. For some reason you must select a name before your body type.. etc...
More to come...
Edit 1
Apparently you can't hit someone out of a submission move. Ughhh, we went back to the stone ages.
You apparently can't change the body type or face features after making a wrestler. And for some reason my guy has blue eyebrows.
The game is definately choppy, I'm not even sure if it's managing 30fps. It looks bad here. :/
The voice acting in the season is great though!
Edit 2
Submissions just seem to end, no breaking out at any time. They just seem to run their course.
The irish whip is ridiculous. Expect it to be abused online. The computer already does this by basically irishing whipping you out of every move.
This has basically ruined the gameplay, not that it was stellar to begin with.
Now I've played a few matches. Location damage seems to be halfway decent. You seem to favor limbs and get up slower.
You need to pay, with game dollars, for all the arenas and legends and weapons and stats and create a wrestler gear and create a belt and movies and extra load screens and logos and images. Hopefully these unlock with season mode progress since they seem to cost a lot.
No alternate costumes, no editing current superstars looks or movesets or music or anything.
I don't like this game, there does not seem to be any redeeming quality to it. It was possible to pull fun from Raw 2 even though I seemed to hate that in my last review. At least you could mostly edit wrestlers and running around was fun.
Mok
04-20-05, 11:37 PM
This stinks I pre-ordered at Gamestop and they have yet to ship my copy. On the site it says ships in 24hours and they charged my card whats the deal. Guess I will give them a call tomorrow.
nickdawgy
04-21-05, 02:08 AM
I got a call from Gamestop saying it'll be there tomorrow. I think you can customize entrance music, it was said before you can. I also know there is alternate attire for some wrestlers.
nickdawgy
04-21-05, 02:38 AM
I just heard Team Xbox gave it a 6.8, and Gamespy a 4.5.
Alot of people at the IGN and Gamefaqs boards hate it, too. For every person that likes it, there's 10 that don't.
I am really starting to consider just renting this now.
wlj
04-21-05, 08:07 AM
man this sucks....I was hoping it would be great...I am not as big of a WWE fan as I used to be, but I do enjoy a "good" wrestling game. I HATED Raw 2....this game sounds like it is worse than it was...if that is at all possible. Don't know why it is so damn impossible to make a good wrestling game for the Xbox.
wlj
nickdawgy
04-21-05, 02:37 PM
Now people are saying Live support is broken. I wonder what Stuido Gigante (the devloper) did in that extra month they delayed the game? Fix the graphics and entrances? I heard those look awesome.
Why they didn't fix the gameplay which everyone seems to hate is beyond me.
Alot of people are calling this the worst wrestling game in a long time. That's just too bad.
PixyJunket
04-21-05, 02:50 PM
<b>:(</b>
nickdawgy
04-21-05, 04:39 PM
I think I might take a chance on it. It's either go the Gamefly route or buy it and if it sucks, eBay it. Either way, I'd be out about $15, but at least I could see for myself if it sucks.
nodeerforamonth
04-21-05, 05:18 PM
I think I might take a chance on it. It's either go the Gamefly route or buy it and if it sucks, eBay it. Either way, I'd be out about $15, but at least I could see for myself if it sucks.
I did the same thing for Raw2 and ended up eBaying it. Wanted to like it, but couldn't.
I'm not even going to try WM21.
Mok
04-21-05, 05:41 PM
I finally got my copy today and but it is sad to say that Raw 2 was a better game. Some of the stuff that just makes me go nuts is not being able to take a already created superstar through season mode. Now who thought of that crap, and create a wrestler is really limited. They had all the time in the world to make this the best wrestling game they could and the screwed it up big time.
kaze0
04-21-05, 06:19 PM
It's frozen on me twice, both times after move animations started happening but the guys were no longer connected to eachother.
Xbox live still doesnt work
On a hdtv set, these graphics look bad. Way worse than Raw 2, they look worse than the last smackdown to me as well. It has no redeeming value whatsoever.
nickdawgy
04-21-05, 09:56 PM
Ok just got it, and played for about an hour. Here are my thoughts:
First of all, it skips a whole bunch. Especially during replays after you win. I mean a whole lot, as if the CD was scratched. It makes me wish I could turn them off.
The story mode is great so far. The voice overs sound very well, and the "plot" seems to be good so far.
I don't like how your created character has an attitude, though. It's funny the first few times he says stuff like "Well you're gonna think I'm a rookie when I'm pinning you 1-2-3"...ok, actually it's not funny at all.
The entrances seem pretty well done. I haven't seen them all, but the big problem is you can't hear the entrance music. The crowd is just too loud. I am not sure if you can turn the crowd down or not.
The controls seem ok. It's slow but that doesn't bother me. I seem to keep doing the same moves, though. The counting is slow, too, it seems.
Apparently, I was wrong about custom soundtracks in intros. Everyone and their mother thought you could change John Cena's music to his new music, but no can do. You can only change your charcters music.
As it stands right now, my rating is 7 out of 10. I am going to keep this game long enough to finish the story, then I'm getting rid of it.
Definitely worth a rental, though, and definitely worth it at say $20 maybe $25, but $50? Hell no.
nickdawgy
04-21-05, 09:58 PM
I finally got my copy today and but it is sad to say that Raw 2 was a better game. Some of the stuff that just makes me go nuts is not being able to take a already created superstar through season mode. Now who thought of that crap, and create a wrestler is really limited. They had all the time in the world to make this the best wrestling game they could and the screwed it up big time.
Day of Reckoning did that too, you could only have a created wrestler in season mode.
nickdawgy
04-21-05, 10:07 PM
It got a 4.5 on Gamespot as well.
Wrestlemania XXI is about as half-baked a wrestling game as you're going to find on any platform. Despite the fact that it boasts a nice-looking graphics engine, a career mode featuring voice work from all the WWE superstars, and online play for every major match type, none of these things can salvage what is ultimately a shallow, clunky, near-broken mess of a game. Not to mention that one of these features (namely, the online play) doesn't even work.
In fact, whenever the game has to try to load an end-of-match replay, it practically looks like it's going to have a heart attack, as the screen gets crazy choppy and the audio breaks up horribly.
If there is one bright, shining light to be found in Wrestlemania XXI, it's the graphics engine, which can be quite stunning at times. The wrestler models are extremely impressive and highly detailed, and they look especially nice because of the game's lighting system (though they can look a little too shiny at times, as well). The wrestling arenas are similarly well made, and the crowd graphics are easily the best in any wrestling game.
As far as wrestling games are concerned, Wrestlemania is the kind of bad that hasn't existed since THQ was releasing games like WCW/NWO Thunder. This game clearly wasn't ready for prime time for a whole slew of different reasons, not the least of which is the promised online play that doesn't even function. Xbox wrestling fans haven't had it easy this console generation, but even so, there's no reason they should settle for a sloppy mess like Wrestlemania XXI.
Cedrock
04-22-05, 12:19 AM
YESSS GOT MY GAME AND IT ...SUCKS!
Im embarassed i started this thread, im gonna try returning it to gamestop soon i was impressed with graphics and nothing else. The most frustrating thing is when they knock you to the ground takes forever to get up, and most of the time they get a hit on you uncontested. I thought it was just my xbox that made it seem choppy with the skipping of replays and long load times, and the create a character...wow i thought they upgraded it ?
Very dissapointed i was looking foward to this too, i dont even have the desire to play it on the first night i got it so frustrating how bad gameplay is. If anyone is interested id recommend renting it first because i doubt you'll liek it, but then again you might be the 1 out of 10 that like it. (tear streaks down cheek for $50 i lost buying this)
Bottom line - The free calender I got with the game was better than the game, i rather pay $50 for the calender and get the game free.
Bottom line
nickdawgy
04-22-05, 04:10 AM
Why take it back to Gamestop? They'll be laughing after you walk out of the store having paid them $50 for a game, then returning it for half that, and then probably spending an extra $25 to get a new game.
PixyJunket
04-22-05, 08:13 AM
i was impressed with graphics and nothing else.But isn't that all that matters?
Why take it back to Gamestop? They'll be laughing after you walk out of the store having paid them $50 for a game, then returning it for half that, and then probably spending an extra $25 to get a new game.
Your best bet is to ebay it....you will end up with probably most of your money back -- since the game was just released this week. Yes I know it sucks...but not everyone reads reviews or cares about them -- they will buy anything. I mean earlier this week I got 15 dollars on ebay for my WWE Raw 2...I was very pleased with that since that game has been out for a long time and it sucks @$$.
wlj
fujishig
04-22-05, 12:08 PM
Wait a second... kaze0 says the game looks ugly, and nickdawgy says the graphics engine is stunning... I'm confused. Unless kaze0 is just talking about stretching it out to widescreen or something...
nickdawgy
04-22-05, 02:37 PM
Yeah he's talking on widescreen. I have a 27 inch TV :lol:
Cedrock
04-22-05, 03:46 PM
Why take it back to Gamestop? They'll be laughing after you walk out of the store having paid them $50 for a game, then returning it for half that, and then probably spending an extra $25 to get a new game.
lol they were laughing before i even reached the door, i tried putting up an argument for like 10 minutes and, the guy gave me a few nuumbers to call, the only one i called was thq which is 1-818-880-0456 and all they said is that theyre working on an update to fix the online. Guy at gamestop was like whats wrong i was like "the game sux" hes like thats not a reason for return is it defective? i said" yea the online doesnt work, the replays are choppy, the game is choppy and loads forever" hes like all we can do is exchange it for another copy, where i said "every single copy is the same thing" then hes like try taking it out with thq and gave me their number...score thq and gamestop 1,Cedrock 0
guess i have no choice but to ebay it now.
edit- Wow ebays not looking good, just saw a few with buy it now at $30 and just about every used game for sale, has "played once" it title
hail2dking
04-22-05, 04:04 PM
TAke it to gamerush.... it should net you $25-$30 trade-in. Throw in a second crap game and take advantage of their "trade in 2 get a new or preorder for $30" deal. Luckily I will be able to trade my preorder of Wrestlemania XXI straight across for something else as I haven't picked it up yet.
(Your best deal is to trade in 4 games, you will get an additional $5 per game and can get 2 new releases/preorders for $30 ea)
kaze0
04-22-05, 04:22 PM
It might be my TV, i'm running it in 4:3 mode on a samsung hlp5063w. I rarely use the mode so it might drop some resolution or use some weird scaling but the guys look like ass. I also thought resident evil 4 looked pretty bleh using this mode as well so it could be my tv.
nickdawgy
04-22-05, 05:43 PM
I already put mine on eBay. I figure I'll have the story mode done by Monday.
If they could only take the story, graphics, and voice acting and combine them with say Here comes the Pain, they'd have a great game.
Day of Reckoning 2 is supposed to be awesome, but after all the hype for WM21, I won't hold my breath.
Cedrock
04-22-05, 06:17 PM
i dont know what takes longer undertakers entrance, or the load time....
nickdawgy
04-22-05, 07:15 PM
The load time isn't that bad. It's like 20 seconds max.
nickdawgy
04-24-05, 03:38 AM
Oh, in case anyone didn't know, they fixed the Xbox Live glitch. A patch downloads to your Xbox when you try and connect. It's a big one, 39 megs, but takes like 2-3 minutes to download.
The patch helps out tremendously. I feel like I am playing a new game. The skipping on replays is gone. The animations are smoother. The computer AI isn't as dumb as before.
I think the game would have gotten an 8 from IGN had it shipped patched like this.
kaze0
04-24-05, 01:00 PM
The gameplay is starting to grow on me.
I love how you can control a match and keep dominating. The pain animations and groggy standups are great. But being destroyed over and over isnt fun. There needs to be some penalty to not taking risks, or doing moves that have little chance of being countered over and over. Ditto with doing submissions over and over. Perhaps allow them, but dont do any damage until you do some other moves.
Like most other wrestling games, the computer is trash in triple threat, rumble, or four corners matches. They will not change focus to someone else unless they get hit. This makes it a futile effort to mount a comeback in those kinds of matches.
Transition animations seem to be ugly and hurt the enjoyment of the game. As does the dreadful menu system that is sooo counterintuitive it's not even funny.
Sloppy handling of the xbox live patch has killed season mode for me as my create a wrestler and season were deleted when I installed the patch. No notification was given.
Profiles do not automatically load and must be unloaded and reloaded when you hop on xbox live. This is stupid and just makes it so you lose money and your win stats are inaccurate.
I can't find a ranking or even title listing in xbox live. The wrestling engine is halfway decent, but I get the impression that the development team was a bunch of programmers coding all day without an actual game designer on the team. The presentation and organization is that bad.
PixyJunket
04-26-05, 12:49 PM
So what happens if you don't have Live?
We have to pay for a service to fix a broken game?
Fucking disgusting.
nickdawgy
04-26-05, 08:33 PM
So what happens if you don't have Live?
We have to pay for a service to fix a broken game?
Fucking disgusting.
There are rumors it might appear on a future OXM disc.
I finished the story mode. It started off great, but ended kind of slow. I'll still pick the game up again when it's $20, though.
kenage
04-26-05, 08:43 PM
So does the Xbox Live update fix the offline game or just the online portion of the game?
nickdawgy
04-26-05, 09:46 PM
It fixes both.
kenage
04-27-05, 08:15 PM
Thanks nickdawgy. Is it worth getting after the patch fixes?
edytwinky
04-28-05, 02:05 AM
How the hell do I throw somebody over the top rope in the Royal Rumble?
nickdawgy
04-28-05, 02:20 AM
Thanks nickdawgy. Is it worth getting after the patch fixes?
Definitely
nickdawgy
04-28-05, 02:20 AM
How the hell do I throw somebody over the top rope in the Royal Rumble?
Stand close to the ropes, and irish whip them.
nodeerforamonth
04-28-05, 06:03 PM
from www.wrestlingobserver.com:
--There is a manufacturer error in the disc for THQ's WrestleMania 21 game for Xbox. For those who have purchased it, or may purchase it, if there are problems during the replay mode, call 866-635-2345 and tell them you purchased the game with a faulty disc, Verify our disc code and you'll get a replacement disc at no charge.
Guess this solves the problem for those of us without Xbox live.
DavePack
04-29-05, 11:46 AM
I tell ya, since the patch, this game has been a lot of fun. I'm really starting to appreciate Studio Gigante's approach to this; yeah, there are some glitches here and there, but personally I've not encountered them nearly as much as some message board postings lead you to believe. I'm also starting to appreciate the importance of reversals, and the career mode is well done. I had a ladder match with JBL and John Cena, and that sucker lasted a good half hour with many tense moments. In the end, all three of us were bloodied and battered from ladder beatings.
This game is light years beyond Raw 2, IMO. It's a shame many people dumped the game after the manufacturing problems.
fujishig
04-29-05, 11:46 AM
from www.wrestlingobserver.com:
--There is a manufacturer error in the disc for THQ's WrestleMania 21 game for Xbox. For those who have purchased it, or may purchase it, if there are problems during the replay mode, call 866-635-2345 and tell them you purchased the game with a faulty disc, Verify our disc code and you'll get a replacement disc at no charge.
Guess this solves the problem for those of us without Xbox live.
? Does the patch just affect the replay mode? I thought there were a lot of other problems besides that...
JBR52
04-29-05, 12:42 PM
Well I just called THQ and should get the replacement disk next week. I have to send them the faulty disk first, but they are overnighting a ups paid envelope to my house and they will overnight the disk to me when they get it. They are making it pretty easy. I do hope that the patch fixes more than just the replay mode, but honestly I have been enjoying this game even with all the problems, so it should be all good.
fujishig
05-02-05, 03:24 PM
Picked the game up for 40 at the latest Fry's sale. Wasn't going to, but I was in the store for the cheap LOTR deluxe sets, and remembered the after-patch praise this was getting, so decided, what the heck. Haven't bought a wrestling game since the Lesnar one for PS2, so I had skipped a whole generation. Loved the N64 games, loved Firepro, came to like the Smackdown series, and I avoided both Gamecube and Xbox franchises because of awful reviews.
I kinda wish I played a little before installing the patch, so I'd have a point of reference. Anyway, it is pretty fun, definitely above a 6 or whatever most reviews gave it, though far from a great game. The inability to go through a season with an established superstar seemed like a huge drawback to me at first, but the fact that you can change your moves between matches helps make the career mode not seem so stale. I remember by the time I finished most career modes, I'd be sick of doing the same moves over and over.
Speaking of voice overs: is that Cena doing the created characters voice over? Or just some guy that sounds like him?
One gripe I have about the career mode: it seems entirely scripted. Which means there are no random events that I've seen (though I've only been through a few steps). So no matter who you are, you always start with a fued with Renee Dupree and Chavo, then onto the Dudleys, team with Booker, etc. Maybe they needed to do it this way because of the voices (and what, the couldn't get the Dudleys to do some voice over?), but man it makes season mode repetitive. At least randomize the fueds a little bit. As it is, it's almost like the WWE in real life: why choose a cruiserweight when he's going to be going up against the same heavy guys anyway, and will get destroyed because he can only do aerial moves (all throws being automatically blocked)? I wonder if it's different if you make a female... I would at least hope so.
That profile thing is really, really annoying... I was wondering why, after the matches, they were no longer showing how many dollars I was accumulating... it's because the profile was reset. argh.
Did a triple threat yesterday to fulfill the requirement... the third guy would just do his taunt while I beat the second guy, so when I got up from my move, I'd switch to him in the middle of his taunt and beat him up a little. Rinse, repeat.
The labels in the manual are wrong, I think. They say that weak grapple 1 is up and X, but when I map a move in create a wrestler to that, it seems like it's right and x.
What's the secret to getting up from the ground quickly? tapping the punch button? I end up rolling all over the place.
The bad thing about having the created wrestlers use the meters instead of actual numbers: I can't see an easy way to post created wrestlers online, and duplicate them. That's one thing I used to love about the old game, since I was never good at creating real wrestlers that weren't in the game.
Puzznic
05-02-05, 06:10 PM
Me and some friend tried this out the other night. It was ok but it just made us want to play No Mercy so we ended up hooking up the N64.
fujishig
05-02-05, 07:07 PM
Me and some friend tried this out the other night. It was ok but it just made us want to play No Mercy so we ended up hooking up the N64.
You know, one thing I loved about those games were the sheer number of wrestlers available. Maybe it was because I wasn't following wrestling all that closely then, but I remember buying the WCW vs. NWO N64 game, and being amazed at how many wrestlers there were, a lot of which I had never heard of before. Even Smackdown had these "hidden" pieces to make missing superstars, sometimes because they were newer wrestlers they didn't have time to fully implement. The year that Mysterio came into the WWE, they had all the pieces and moves to make him...
Xploited
05-02-05, 08:46 PM
I rented the game on my free trial to GameFly. I'm only in the first few hours of playing but I'm not enjoying it and this comes from someone's who played almost every single wrestling game in over a decade and used to be associated with the internet's coverage of them (see GamingRing.com's right column for an Xploited banner).
The problem I am having is the strange control placement. There was absolutely nothing wrong with the systems in place with the past wrestling games. Essentially, Studio Gigante tried something new and created a nightmare (at least for those just getting into the game). I'm sure with some more play time I won't have this issue, but it's really killing the wee hours of gaming.
One of the other issues is with the menu system. BLECH! In Create a Superstar, you have to select an item to view it and then if you do not like it; you must reload that particular menu once again. It's annoying. The same goes for the lack of numbers with the colors in CAS.
nickdawgy
05-02-05, 10:08 PM
I rented the game on my free trial to GameFly. I'm only in the first few hours of playing but I'm not enjoying it and this comes from someone's who played almost every single wrestling game in over a decade and used to be associated with the internet's coverage of them (see GamingRing.com's right column for an Xploited banner).
The problem I am having is the strange control placement. There was absolutely nothing wrong with the systems in place with the past wrestling games. Essentially, Studio Gigante tried something new and created a nightmare (at least for those just getting into the game). I'm sure with some more play time I won't have this issue, but it's really killing the wee hours of gaming.
One of the other issues is with the menu system. BLECH! In Create a Superstar, you have to select an item to view it and then if you do not like it; you must reload that particular menu once again. It's annoying. The same goes for the lack of numbers with the colors in CAS.
Make sure you patch it or the game won't get any better. It's twice the game fixed.
JBR52
05-10-05, 11:41 AM
I got the replacement disk last week, and I think it is actually worse. It freezes quite often now and the lag on the replays is still there, just not as bad. I don't have xbox live, so i guess i'll just have to deal with it.
Xploited
05-10-05, 02:51 PM
I patched the game the same day it came in from GameFly, played for a week, and sent it back. I got pretty good with the reversal system and started having fun; but in the end my enjoyment was hampered by the game's lousy AI, bugs (missing hits that should connect) and limitations (can't edit CAW names after already done, etc).
PixyJunket
05-10-05, 02:55 PM
The CAW was really crippled. :(
They should combine the Smackdown (SYM/HCTM) body/face editing with the Xbox Raw 1 clothes/accessories editing for the ultimate CAW. That would rock.
Thunderball
05-10-05, 04:14 PM
I played this a few times before my friend sold his copy to get Forza.
The CAW was horribly lame. The story mode, while decent, wasn't near as good as it should have been.
The bullshit amount of time it took to get back up off the mat was what did it for me though. THere is no way I should be forced to take 100 elbow drops in a row.
PixyJunket
05-10-05, 04:18 PM
After 20 games you think they'd get it right one of these days.
edytwinky
05-12-05, 07:00 PM
After my long wait for a great wrestling game and huge disappointment, I'm holding off buying a WWE game until the next-gen systems.
fujishig
05-13-05, 12:00 PM
Considering how the jump from last gen to this gen actually made wrestling games WORSE, are you sure you want to do that? We've already seen that as the focus becomes graphics, the load times and gameplay suffers. I can't imagine how bad the first year wrestling games are going to be in the next gen...
nodeerforamonth
05-13-05, 12:38 PM
Exactly. Some STILL say that Fire Pro Wrestling, with it's 2D graphics (PS1 & GB Advance), is the best wrestling game.
JBR52
05-14-05, 03:32 AM
I still can't get over how terrible the AI is in this game. Chavo kept hitting me with the belt over and over and over again in this crappy story mode. And the only way I can win the stupid triple threat ladder match is to bait cena and JBL to all the way up the ramp and get them to fight up there, so i can run back to the ring and climb up the ladder. And the new disk freezes everytime i play it. I really hate this game.
nickdawgy
05-16-05, 09:43 PM
Hopefully Day of Reckoning 2 will make up for WM21's faults.
fujishig
05-17-05, 01:19 PM
Exactly. Some STILL say that Fire Pro Wrestling, with it's 2D graphics (PS1 & GB Advance), is the best wrestling game.
Because it is... :)
When the focus isn't on the biggest and best graphics engine, you can usually start to focus on gameplay. This is most likely why the Smackdown games on PS2 are currently the best of this generation, because the PS2 has the least graphics capability, and the game really has nominal graphical improvements from year to year. The N64 games went through multiple iterations where the gameplay changed much more than the graphics.
Of course, Firepro wouldn't do well out here because it's not licensed by the WWE, and we're so graphics-oriented that it wouldn't sell well anyway. Luckily, the GBA was built for 2-d goodness.
American wrestling has been more about flashy entrances than actual wrestling for a while now, so I guess the games reflect that (I mean, they must've spent a ton of time getting all the entrances correct).
I still have fun with the (Live-updated) game, and don't regret my purchase. The only thing I wish they'd fix, besides stupid AI, is getting up off the mat, as I still roll around like an idiot while they stomp me, and I have to start again. ugh. Also, I can't for the life of me figure out how to win a table match... how do you get someone on the table to do a move on them?
edytwinky
05-17-05, 02:57 PM
Extremely disappointed after that long wait. I have finally sold my copy. Hopefully XBox 360 will do wrestling the way its supposed to be.
JBR52
05-18-05, 02:34 PM
Also, I can't for the life of me figure out how to win a table match... how do you get someone on the table to do a move on them?
Set the table up, get close to it with your opponent, and then tap A. He should throw him on there. Tap A again and he should piledrive him through.
nickdawgy
05-18-05, 02:43 PM
Set the table up, get close to it with your opponent, and then tap A. He should throw him on there. Tap A again and he should piledrive him through.
You don't tap A, you use the irish whip button which is white or black, I forget.
JBR52
05-19-05, 01:55 AM
You sure? I could be wrong, but I remember trying to irish whip him, and he just ends up running through the table and toward the turnbuckle.
Sonic
05-19-05, 04:44 PM
dayummmm that sux man. I played Smackdown on PS2 and I fell in love with it. Looking at the trailer for this game...it looks disappointing just by looking at it. Very very upsetting cause im a huge WWE fan.
nickdawgy
05-19-05, 06:05 PM
You sure? I could be wrong, but I remember trying to irish whip him, and he just ends up running through the table and toward the turnbuckle.
Buy: