Review: WWE: Legends of Wrestlemania

Overview

WWE Legends of Wrestlemania is yet another wrestling installment brought to you by Yukes and THQ. This title features a heavy roster of over 40 WWE Wrestlemania Legends (who would have guessed) and allows you to relive some of the all time famous matches and even build your own “Legend Killer” to decimate your favourite legends with, while having some connectivity with Smackdown vs Raw 2009 by allowing you to fight Legends with current superstars.

I played this game on an Acer 20? LCD monitor using the official Microsoft VGA HD AV cable. Character models looked really good, and I mean really good. The game runs on the same engine as used in the Smackdown vs Raw games so that should give you a general idea of what to expect in the graphics department. The first time you see Hulk Hogan enter the ring you will swear at some point its the real thing. The biggest issue with this games graphics comes from the animations between moves. You’ll know what I mean once you’ve seen it. One minute you are trying to grapple them then rather unfluidly you are suddenly in a chokeslam maneuver. This detracts a fair bit from the wrestling experience as animation fluidity between moves is key to immersion in the wrestling experience. One other thing that detracts from the experience is the lack of referees in the ring. The games overall presentation is impressive and draws you into the legendary era feel of the game.

Graphics:

Sound:Played through my Hercules 5.1 surround sound setup, the crowd and thuds as wrestlers hit the mat sounded good. The commentary was decent, and the banter between JR and King is as comical as always, however the lack of older commentators from back in the day kind of makes them feel as if they don’t belong in the game. Having the original entrance themes play in the background as you go through the menus is like marmite, you’ll either love them or hate them, fortunately, should you not like them, you can skip them with a click of the thumbstick.

Gameplay: Probably the most important part of this game is the gameplay. Sadly this is not the strongest gameplay, or most in-depth, in a wrestling game when compared to the Smackdown vs Raw games that have preceded it. Getting up into a turnbuckle is hit and miss with the rotating camera and at least 50% of the time I found myself outside the ring instead because of this! Pulling off running strike moves felt clunky aswell, and more often than not I would end up just standing in front of my opponent instead causing me to rely more on running grapples. One other thing I noticed was that I could drop a character with a heavy move and then they would just get up! Seriously I just chokeslammed your ass and you just got up? The style of the fighting mechanics may or not appeal to all. The fighting system is more that of timed button presses similar to that seen in some of Resident Evil 5’s cutscenes, press a button at a specific time to pull of specific moves and combos. It has a very arcadey feel to it but in all honesty Yukes should have just used the Smackdown vs Raw control mechanics over the controls they used in this game, they feel just so much more fluid. It feels like this game has the arcade style controls it has just to be different rather than genre defining. They’re not bad by any means but when you play it you will feel the noticable difference and agree that Smackdown vs Raw’s controls and gameplay style are far stronger by a long shot.

There are two main game modes to choose from. One will have you fighting tiers of legends to become a “Legend Killer” while the other will put you in various Wrestlemania re-enactments to complete objectives like reliving the match how it was originally finished back in the day, rewrite the match as the loser, or to totally redefine the match altogether. These matches are preceded by a flashback video that shows you highlights of the original match buildups etc which is a nice touch. You can create your own legend, and earn experience from bouts to build up his attributes, which is a nice touch in pretty much the same way as you can in Smackdown vs Raw. As a matter of fact, it’s pretty much the exact same CAW system. It’s a welcome feature but to anyone who has played the previous Smackdown vs Raw games they will know what to expect, there isn’t really that much that is new here. With that said it’s definitely a nice touch and one that adds a little more life to the game. There is no career mode here like the Smackdown vs Raw games. The multiplayer is fun is a great laugh with mates and there is plenty of match types to choose from. I haven’t had the chance to test the online play out yet, but offline it’s a blast and will no doubt have its fanbase.

Overall:While this game does have it flaws it is far from a bad game. It can be quite fun to relive some of the older matches from WWE history and no doubt WWE fans will get quite a kick out of it. You’ll either love it or hate it’s arcade style gameplay, you’ll immerse yourself in creating your own legend killer to beat the hell out of your favourite superstars of the past, but essentially it just feels more like a dumbed down version of Smackdown vs Raw 2009. For all its shortcomings it is hard to not be drawn into WWE: Legends of Wrestlemania if you’re a fan of wrestling and is worth picking up if you want to relive those moments that you watched as a kid.

Review: WWE: Legends of Wrestlemania Results

7/10