Kurt Kalata’s website Hardcore Gaming 101 is a weird space on the internet. It’s like if the Smithsonian, a flea market, and a miniature golf course arcade from 1985 all existed in the exact same space. It is an indispensable resource and is one of the most entertaining and important archival magazines on the net. The most recent update features a number of articles focused on wrestling games. Now, I have fairly eclectic taste in games. I’ll play anything if it seems interesting. But I do not understand the phenomenon of wrestling games. Broadly speaking, wrestling games – I’m talking Hulk Hogan style wrestling, not the Olympic sport – are the most complex games in existence, featuring a level of depth in control and strategy that I have trouble even verbalizing. The Japanese developer Spike’s Fire Pro Wrestling series is cited by many developers as one of the finest game franchises ever designed. I played the Playstation 2 sequel Fire Pro Wrestling Returns for about twenty minutes back in April and I had no damn clue what was going on. There are like thirty selectable referees!
WHAT THE HELL IS UP WITH WRESLTING GAMES?! WHO ARE YOU PEOPLE?!
Seriously, we want to know.
Read More...