game player

WWF Attitude

Nintendo 64 review by Orlando C. Fernando

September 27, 1999

Control: 8 (0=worst, 10=best)
Originality: 6
Graphics: 8
Sound: PERFECT 10
Overall: B+/A- (F=worst, A=best)

WWF wrestling, standing for the World Wrestling Federation, has been enjoying a major ratings frenzy on American TV for quite some time now. Even with the likes of Hulk Hogan and Andre the Giant long gone from the scene of the 1980's, tougher edged characters such as Stone Cold Steve Austin and "The Rock" Rocky Maivia have taken over the audiences attention in the 90's. Such hardcore fighting styles and drama has to translate from the WWF TV shows to the video game console - and it has with much success.

W WF Attitude is the sequel of WWF Warzone which seems to more successfully adopt the pomp and showiness of the WWF characters as well as fix minor bugs in the fighting engine. This time around, over 40 wrestlers are available with over hundreds and hundreds of fighting moves. The roster seems dated to about early January this year, so HHH still has Degeneration-X outfits and current superstars such as "The Big Show" Paul Wight and the British Bulldog are absent. To further capture the wrestling fever, you can engage in a Career Mode, in which you compete with various wrestlers on different calendar days of the year to earn your way to better TV programs (such as Monday Night Raw and Sunday Night Heat), better secret game codes, and better title belts. The final goal is to beat Steve Austin for the Heavyweight Title belt. As you start each wrestling bout, each wrestler now has their own entrances which closely resembles their actual TV entrances, complete with trademark gestures, music, and catchphrases.

W hat about the fighting engine? I honestly did not see that much difference since WWF Warzone. In the true spirit (or should we say fake?) of wrestling, you still have to beat the crap out of your opponent and pin for a count of 3 or make submit for a count of 10. You still have your basic punch, kick, and tie-in moves (when you get into a grab with the opponent to attempt a spectacular hold, throw, or toss into the ropes). The actual controls to do sophisticated tie-ups, trademark moves, and finishers is still rather complex to get used to. You usually have to press the control in 2 or 3 directions then hit the A, B, or C buttons. However, I got used to the system after about 2 full gameplay sittings. You do not have to reverse your control directions if you face a wrestler on the right rather than the left. It is always consistent. There is much variety in what you can do to your opponent whether you are in front or behind him, while he's standing, lying down, on a turnbuckle, running, or outside the ring. The health meters are easier in interpret in this sequel with one meter dwindling from green, to yellow, to red when you are in critical condition. With your opponent at red, you can perform your finishing move such as the famed Stone Cold Stunner, Rock Bottom, or the Tombstone Piledriver. If you are stuck knowing what the heck to do, which will happen often when first playing the game, you can always hit start to pause the game and check out the current situation moves you have at your disposal. Controls seem very responsive. You have reasonable time to put in your move for a tie-up as well as doing your big move when you throw someone against the ropes.

G raphics seem on par as the previous version. Not much difference in the excellent frame fluidity of the wrestlers motions. The wrestlers faces themselves seem a hit or miss with each one. Several faces still look boxy while others, especially the Undertaker and D-Lo Brown, look dead on accurate. Muscle features and body tones are still well defined, particularly when examining the different types in Create-A-Wrestler mode.

Sounds win over the game as usual. The music this time are reproductions of the original music, complete with the Rock's rap, Road Dogg's chants, and all. No more cheap MIDI computerized substitutions, such as the less than stellar Stone Cold music of WWF Warzone. Shane McMahon and Jerry Lawler serve well as this game's announcers, though you will get tired of them after a long while. The audience chants are what make this game #1 in the sound department. Every and I mean EVERY wrestler gets catchphrases yelled at them by the fans as well as bleacher stamping chants of "3:16! 3:16! 3:16!" and many more depending on what wrestler you are. Jerry Lawler even gets a familiar "Jerry! Jerry! Jerry!" chant frighteningly similar to the controversial "Jerry Springer" show. Sometimes the fans sound a bit too enthusiastic to the point of being pure wrestling addicts, but that adds to the humor. In addition, the audience will boo if you're a heel (bad guy) as well as if you do the same boring moves over and over to your opponent. Your own wrestler can taunt the other or trash talk after doing a major move. All this atmosphere adds to the realism of the wrestling arena...at least as far as, uh, professional wrestling is concerned. :).

Create-a-Wrestler mode is back and better than ever. Next to ring entrances and music, I'd say this feature was the most improved in this wrestling sequel. Eyes, noses, and mouths can now be customized on the faces. Women can be selected from the get-go, which have their own set of accessories (don't worry, men and women can mix and match clothing to your heart's content). Shirt and pant lengths can be cut to your liking. Text can be placed on your front, back, pants, and buttocks of your wrestler! Personality traits are much more customizable as well. For your ring entrance, you can pick what walk-in to use as well as what music. So if you fancy, you could have Kurrgan's zany disco walk-in being played to the Rock's music and have him talk and chant like the Godfather. Custom music and chants exist if you opt to. The move sets are now highly customizable, allowing you to pick, mix and match moves from various wrestlers. Within each move, you can control how much damage each move will make, what you want as a finisher, and even what joystick motions you want to use to execute the move (thank goodness for such complex controls like this).

Multiplayer mayhem rivals with Goldeneye for pure unadulterated fun. There are plenty of match variations to keep every event fresh. The hardcore weapons match is back along with cage matches and gauntlets (see how many wrestlers you can finish before passing out). Battle Royale and Royal Rumble are also back, although, due to limitations of the Nintendo 64, you can only have 4 wrestlers on screen at any time. Tag team matches, however, can be confusing when you try to face the right wrestler. The control responds when you want to change focus, but sometimes the wrestler will take a while to turn full circle if the focused wrestler is behind you. Frustrating. You also need to get accustomed to how to tag your partner and realize that once you do, both of you can still fight in the ring for a count of five. Playing tag matches vs. the computer are VERY long since if you pin one computer opponent, his/her partner will step in to break the count EVERY TIME. You have to knock out the computer partner or keep him occupied with your partner in some way to not have him/her interfere.

The game is great for most any wrestling or fighting game fan. However, it definitely suits its mature game rating. Even with a language option to tone down some of the theme music and strong (though not profane) wrestler, announcer, and audience yells, it's not suited for young children (get Super Smash Bros. instead). Owners of WWF Warzone should rent Attitude first to decide if the extra event, entrance, and Create-a-Wrestler features are worth it. Wrestlemania 2000 may be its only competition, although that release is in December. Rumble Pack and memory pack supported. Check it out and see if you find it the "biggest name in sports entertainment today"!