Kick of the Week: AKI Wrestling Games
It seems that every week, I have a different thing that just captures my imagination and addicts me. It's either a band, a movie, a TV show, or a game. I like to call it "the kick of the week".
If you know me, then you know that I am a pro wrestling nerd, for 9 years now. Over 9 years, I've been a fan in evolving characteristics. From "mark" to "smark" to "uninterested" to "full-on geek", I've been everywhere with it.
There was always one thing that went in hand with my love for pro wrestling: the video games. More specifically, the games produced by AKI, a Japanese game developer. From 1997 to 2000 (and a brief stretch in 2003-2004), they had one of the best engines in wrestling game history, a play control system that put you in control all of the time, and tried to evoke realism in a pre-determined sport.
Let's start with a brief walk through Memory Lane:
"I've had it up to my lip... with the nWo!"
1997. The year where gamers found themselves in amazement over 007 multiplayer sessions, Diddy Kong's aviation/driving/hovercraft piloting skills, and a young guy with a giant sword getting some friends together and taking down another guy with a giant sword. Among all of this, there was WCW vs nWo: World Tour, the N64's 1st wrestling game in the USA. Having the WCW and nWo rosters represented, along with a ton of "uncanny resembles" of famous Japanese wrestlers created a fun, intoxicating game that exploded with multiplayer action in the 4 person battle royal.
Highlights of game: unmasking wrestlers with the eye gouge submission, getting eliminated from a battle royal and dragging your eliminator under the ropes by his feet, the 1st time you won via TKO, the "groin smash" attack...
"Revenge is just too sweet!"
1998 was the year of Legend of Zelda and Metal Gear Solid, and Pokemon, but in the greatness of 1998, there was the sequel to World Tour, that changed everything. WCW/nWo Revenge.
The basic rule for this game was bigger, badder, better. A bigger roster this time around, badder animations, better graphics and controls, and the new Costume Change option. And I'd be remiss to not mention the awesome Combo feature, which allowed you to string 10 consecutive strikes on your opponent. Ouch.
Highlights of game: Seeing interference for the first time... and screaming foul when you get double-teamed, Sting descending from the rafters, the Golden Hammer, AKI Man, playing as Eric Bischoff (and winning), hearing the Nitro theme play during instant replays....
A Changing of the Guard
"Austin 3:16 says...."
Just like in real-life, alliances come and go. And in video games, it's no exception. WCW and THQ's agreement came to an end in 1999, same as Acclaim and the WWF. What happened next was a rodeo of sorts... WCW teamed with EA (who will figure into this later on) and WWF teamed with THQ.
The WCW domination days on N64 died with WCW Mayhem. The WWF domination days began with WWF Wrestlemania 2000. You could say it was a picture perfect clone of Revenge with WWF branding, but there were some modifications.
First off, Create-A-Superstar. This was huge, N64 owners were used to Create-a-Freak back in the Acclaim days, but now, a simple to use creation feature put control in the fan's hands. Create-a-belt as well... and Create-a-PPV ($34.95 to play in your own event)... the game was stacked. Despite losing Combos, it gained a great season mode and a cage match (that is fun in small doses).
Oh, did I mention all the pre-existing superstars can be edited? Now that is awesome it itself!
"HE KICKED OUT! HE KICKED OUT!"
The following may sound like a love-letter of sorts...ah, screw it. I LOVE THIS GAME!
OK, now that's out of the way... the game that to many WWF gaming fans, is the ultimate wrestling game to make it Stateside (but what about Fire Pr-IT DOESN'T MATTER WHAT YOUR GAME IS!). Create-a-Wrestler, Create-A-Stable, insane customization of in-game characters, most everything from the last game, and a Championship mode where Steven Richards, a perpetual mid-carder... is in the WWF title picture. I'm not making this up.
And there was the addition of the Ladder match (fun to the 10th power), Ironman match (Tag Team Ironman matches = the bomb), Guest Referee (let's relive the end of Survivor Series 1997 all over again!) and Survival mode, pitting you against 100 (!) superstars, the task to beat them all. I did it...once. Took 1 night. It's timeless fun.
And the soundtrack...the SOUNDTRACK... just listen to it.
End of an Era
2001. The end of the Monday Night Wars, the death of WCW and ECW... and AKI had made it's last WWF game for THQ, as Yuke's took over for all systems. Yuke's sure missed a lot of the features, such as blood, weight detection, good AI, and various other things.
2 years later, EA, after disgracing themselves with WCW, announce they want back in. Only thing is, they side with Def Jam Records. To make a fighting game. Featuring rappers. Developed by AKI.
This sounds like a grade A disaster in game design. So....
how did this work so well?
"We too gangsta for the Garden"
I point to this game totally immersing me into hip-hop, and being more fun than I would ever expect. It was WWF No Mercy in a blinged-out shell, that didn't feel like a joke, it felt like a honest effort from the developers to make a solid wrestling game, on the outrageous side. While lacking in customization features and stipulation matches, it had a fun story, awesome voice-overs and (at the time) sweet graphics.
The game did well enough to merit a sequel, Fight for NY. And boy, were there radical changes. Gone were the wrestling style moves, in it's place were street-fighting attacks. AKI had evolved... from wrestling to full-out fighting.
And it was all right.
Sadly, EA switched developers to a studio in-house, and sunk the franchise with Def Jam Icon. The lesson learned... don't take out AKI, unless you believe your franchise can live without them...
Oh...I almost forgot. There was one game in-between Wrestlemania 2000 and No Mercy. Virtual Pro Wrestling 2. It played like Wrestlemania 2000... only with all Japanese guys, the Combo system (!), and MMA fighters.
Seriously. Youtube it.
If ya smellllll... what L is cookin'! *entrance music plays*
The game did well enough to merit a sequel, Fight for NY. And boy, were there radical changes. Gone were the wrestling style moves, in it's place were street-fighting attacks. AKI had evolved... from wrestling to full-out fighting.
And it was all right.
Sadly, EA switched developers to a studio in-house, and sunk the franchise with Def Jam Icon. The lesson learned... don't take out AKI, unless you believe your franchise can live without them...
Oh...I almost forgot. There was one game in-between Wrestlemania 2000 and No Mercy. Virtual Pro Wrestling 2. It played like Wrestlemania 2000... only with all Japanese guys, the Combo system (!), and MMA fighters.
Seriously. Youtube it.
If ya smellllll... what L is cookin'! *entrance music plays*
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