Thursday, September 8, 2011

NES RATING #7 - WWF King of the Ring

....WWF King of the Ring....
Produced by:  Eastridge Technology
Distributed by: LJN
Released:  October 1993

WWF King of the Ring was released in the final months of Nintendo and is unfortunately one of the laziest and worst "pro wrestling" games ever made.  It's likely that the game was rushed into production as the console's lifespan ended, as it's a noticeable step down from previous WWF releases.  In general, the poor graphics, lack of gameplay music, missing signature moves, and no real genuine "hook" to draw wrestling fans in make this a dismal cartridge, even for LJN!

The premise of the game is to compete in the "King of the Ring" wrestling tournament with 1 of 11 WWF superstars, battling through three opponents in tournament action to win.  This is nothing new, and basically just a gimmicky way of having opponents #1-3 set up for you, something the other WWF games of year's past already had.  And those games, specifically WWF WrestleMania Challenge, delivered far better results.

The music, or lack thereof, found in this game is another major flaw.  You're given poor renditions of each WWF superstar's entrance theme during the selection screen and absolutely NO music during the actual matches.  This is really reflective of the game in general, rushed and half-assed.  WWF fans deserved a lot better for their money.
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The play control is awkward, mostly punches and kicks and some occasional awkward looking wrestling moves that were much smoother in previous releases.  Mash your buttons and see what happens, basically.  There are no "signature moves" (ex. The Undertaker's Tombstone Piledriver) to be found, just 11 wrestlers all doing the same basic 5-7 moves (punch, kick, run, elbow drop, body slam).  Again, given what came before and was distributed by LJN, the same company involved with this game, it's really unacceptable.  

If you can stand playing the game for longer than 2-3 minutes, you'll find awkward pinfall sequences, with strange movements in between the characters and the "pin" counted with small numbers by the wrestler's name.  More cheap and lazy game-making and just a dull overall experience.

Next, all the wrestlers are the same exact size, so you'll have no problem using the 220 pound Shawn Michaels to throw around the near-600 pound Yokozuna.  Finally, you're given the option to create your own wrestler and customize their Stamina, Strength, and Speed.  Given that all the wrestlers are the same size and do the same moves, don't get too excited about this
 
A major bomb, don't even bother with this one unless you'd like a glimpse at what a 200 pound, jacked Yokozuna looks like.
Grade:  F

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