Title: WWF Attitude
Release Date: July 1999
Platforms: Game Boy Color/ Playstation/ Nintendo 64/ Sega Dreamcast

Wrestlers Featured:
X-Pac
Val Venis
The Undertaker
Triple H
Steve Blackman
Stone Cold Steve Austin
The Rock
Road Dogg
Owen Hart
Mark Henry
Al Snow
Faarooq
Big Boss Man
Gangrel
Billy Gunn
The Godfather
Bradshaw
Goldust
Brian Christopher
The Headbangers
Christian
D’Lo Brown
Jeff Jarrett
Dr. Death
Kane
Droz
Ken Shamrock
Edge
Mankind
Chyna
Jacqueline
Jerry “The King” Lawler
Kurrgan
Marc Mero
Paul Bearer
Sable
Sgt. Slaughter
Shawn Michaels
Taka Michinoku

**There were two other unlockable characters. Head, Al Snow’s mannequin head with hands, feet and a cartoon voice provided by Al Snow. And The Trainer is back for this release.

Innovation & Gameplay: WWF increased their playable roster with the release. Initially players can choose from 30 superstars to play, and as the game progresses players will unlock another 12. WWF allowed quite a bit of freedom for players in creating their own characters which had been seen before, but also found on “Attitude” was the ability to customize the arena and ring. Players could change lighting, put designs on the canvas and turnbuckles, and could even change the ring aprons. Original entrance music was used taking advantage of the CD format, and motion capture enhanced the graphics for more realism. Original voiceovers were provided by the superstars and commentators for the game instead of being audio captured. Wrestlers could taunt their opponents, and several new moves were added that all characters could use in a match. For the first time special tag team moves were introduced in the game. One of the biggest innovations was the introduction of the “Career” mode, where players would choose a wrestler, working their way up from house shows to competing on television, and fighting for titles at various pay per views. One unintentionally fun aspect to the game for those of us particularly sadistic was that when you beat your opponent’s health into the “red”, you could perform your finishing move, and then not pin him. Meaning, you could basically just beat on a woozy opponent to your heart’s content without fear of them regaining the stamina to make a comeback. As a side note this was the last game published for WWF by Acclaim. WWF would begin publishing game titles with THQ; while Acclaim would go on to produce a couple titles for ECW using the same game engine created for the WWF titles.

Availability: Amazon offers the Playstation version starting at .95 cents, and the Nintendo 64 version starting at .50 cents. The Dreamcast version is also still available from Amazon starting at 1.75.

Title: WCW Mayhem
Release Date: August 1999
Platforms: Nintendo 64/ Playstation/ Game Boy Color

Wrestlers Featured:
Kenny Kaos
Kevin Nash
Alex Wright
Billy Kidman
Bobby Duncum, Jr.
Booker T
Bret Hart
Konnan
La Parka
Lex Luger
Buff Bagwell
Lizmark, Jr.
Chavo Guerrero
Macho Man Randy Savage
Chris Benoit
Norman Smiley
Kanyon
Perry Saturn
Curt Hennig
Prince Iaukea
Dean Malenko
Psychosis
Diamond Dallas Page
Raven
Disco Inferno
Rey Mysterio Jr.
Eddie Guerrero
Scott Norton
Ernest “The Cat” Miller
Scott Steiner
Goldberg
Steve “Mongo” McMichael
Hollywood Hulk Hogan
Stevie Ray
Horace Hogan
Sting
Juventud Guerrera
Wrath
Kaz Hayashi
Arn Anderson
Bam Bam Bigelow
Barry Windham
Bobby Blaze
Bobby Eaton
Chris Jericho
Doug Dillinger
Eric Bischoff
Jimmy Hart
Lash LeRoux
Mean Gene Okerlund
Ric Flair
Rick Steiner
Scott Hall
Sergeant Buddy Lee Parker
Sonny Onooo
Wolfpac Sting

Innovation & Gameplay: “Mayhem’s innovation came not so much with game play or playable rosters, but with where the action takes place. For the first time characters could fight backstage, away from the ring and crowd. “Mayhem” was also the first game to have not only all 3 television shows as arenas, but also all 12 pay per view arenas were available for you characters to fight in as well. Also for the first time, players could create their own pay per view. Running commentary was provided by Bobby Heenan & Tony Schiavone during matches as well. Where “Mayhem” was criticized was in the actual gameplay itself. Basically, the limited moveset had not changed since “Nitro” was released a year earlier. Collision Detection was still a problem where wrestler’s arms or legs would seem to pass through their opponent. As the penultimate WCW release, “Mayhem” and the genuine lack of anything “new” presented to the gamer may have been an indication of where WCW was headed.

Availability: Amazon has the Playstation version starting at .01 cent & the N64 version starting at $2.15.

Title: WWF Wrestlemania 2000
Release Date: November 1999
Platforms: Nintendo 64/ Game Boy Color

Wrestlers Featured:
Al Snow
Hardcore Holly
Scott Taylor
Big Boss Man
Ivory
Stone Cold Steve Austin
Steve Blackman
Jacqueline
The Big Show
The Blue Meanie
Jeff Hardy
Terri Runnels
Bradshaw
Jeff Jarrett
Test
Brian Christopher
Kane
Thrasher
Chaz
Ken Shamrock
Tori
Chris Jericho
Mankind
Triple H
Christian
Mark Henry
The Undertaker
Chyna
Matt Hardy
Val Venis
Debra
Meat
Vince McMahon
D’Lo Brown
Michael Hayes
Viscera
Droz
Mideon
X-Pac
Edge
Mr. Ass
Faarooq
Pat Patterson
Gangrel
Paul Bearer
Gerald Brisco
Prince Albert
The Godfather
Road Dogg
The Rock
Cactus Jack
Dude Love
Jerry “The King” Lawler
Jim Ross
Shawn Michaels
Stephanie McMahon

Gameplay & Innovation: You can’t talk about “Wrestlemania 2000” without first discussing the “create a wrestler” mode. WM2000 brought the “create” mode into the modern gaming age with extensive looks, attire and moves available. You could even modify the existing superstars with the exception of their moveset. Players could create and compete for a championship belt of their own design for the first time as well. Players could once again create their own pay per views, and WM2000 featured quite a large variety of matches for a player to choose from, including the Royal Rumble, King of the Ring, and cage matches. Career mode allowed players to choose an established wrestler on the roster and have them work their way up from house shows, to headlining pay per views. This was also the first title published by THQ for the WWF.

Availability: Amazon shows used copies of WM2000 starting at $1.65.

Title: WWF No Mercy
Release Date: November 2000
Platforms: Nintendo 64

Wrestlers Featured:
The Rock
Essa Rios
Albert
Al Snow
Scotty Too Hotty
Faarooq
Big Boss Man
The Godfather
Stephanie McMahon
Bradshaw
Grand Master Sexay
Stone Cold Steve Austin
The British Bulldog
Hardcore Holly
Steve Blackman
Bubba Ray Dudley
Ivory
Steven Richards
Bull Buchanan
Jeff Hardy
Funaki
Chris Benoit
Kane
Tazz
Chris Jericho
The Kat
Debra
Christian
Kurt Angle
Test
Chyna
Lita
Tori
Crash Holly
Mark Henry
Triple H
D’Lo Brown
Matt Hardy
Trish Stratus
Dean Malenko
Mr. Ass
The Undertaker
D-Von Dudley
Perry Saturn
Val Venis
Eddie Guerrero
Rikishi
Viscera
Edge
Road Dogg
X-Pac
Andre the Giant
Cactus Jack
Jim Ross
Jerry Lawler
Pat Patterson
Gerald Brisco
Ken Shamrock
Linda McMahon
Earl Hebner
Howard Finkel
Paul Bearer
Michael Cole
Mae Young
The Fabulous Moolah
Mick Foley
Shane McMahon
Shawn Michaels
Vince McMahon
*Players could also unlock three of The Godfathers Ho’s: Bobcat, Victoria & Mandy
**In the create a wrestler mode, players also had the ability to build the following wrestlers:
Mideon
Mosh
Thrasher
Gangrel
Joey Abs
The Big Show
Rodney
Pete Gas
Dude Love

Innovation & Gameplay: There were several new features on “No Mercy” that wrestling gamers enjoyed, on top of superior graphics and gameplay, “No Mercy” offered the most options to date when creating a wrestler, or when altering an existing wrestler. Players could actually “build” additional existing superstars on the WWF roster which were not initially part of the games roster, and for the first time players could create female wrestlers as well. For the first time you could compete in ladder matches and guest referee matches as well as the usual assortment of match styles found on previous games, and for the first time on a WWF title, players could have their wrestlers fight backstage. Players could also recreate some of the biggest feuds of the WWF Attitude era with any wrestler on the roster in the extensive and well detailed career mode. On the downside, “No Mercy” got rid of the design a belt feature so many fans enjoyed from the “WM2000” game. Also, during career mode, if you wrestler loses a match, you are immediately put into a rematch, the storyline did not alter to accept a loss, so you had to score a win for the storyline to progress.

Availability: Amazon has used copies available starting at $5.69.

Title: WWF Royal Rumble
Release Date: August 2000
Platforms: Sega Dreamcast

Wrestlers Featured:
Al Snow
Matt Hardy
Big Show
Rikishi
Chris Jericho
Road Dogg
Christian
The Rock
D’Lo Brown
Shane McMahon
Edge
Steve Austin
The Godfather
Tazz
Jeff Hardy
Triple H
Kane
The Undertaker
Kurt Angle
Vince McMahon
Mankind
X-Pac

Innovation & Gameplay: The only “new” feature that “Royal Rumble” brought to the gaming table was the ability to show 9 wrestlers in the ring during the Rumble match itself as opposed to only showing 6 which had been the norm. Also, for the first time players can store “finishing moves” by filling up an action meter. As far as basic gameplay, players could choose from two types of matches, Exhibition & Royal Rumble. In Exhibition, players would choose a wrestler and a partner and engage in a series of singles matches. In Royal Rumble, players would participate in the rumble match eliminating a set number of opponents in a set time limit. The game was not received well due to the limited match style and the small roster.

Availability: There are several used copies on Amazon starting at $3.32.

Title: WWF Smackdown!
Release Date: February 2000
Platforms: Playstation

Wrestlers Featured:
Al Snow
Billy Gun
The Big Show
Big Boss Man
Chyna
Christian
Chris Jericho
Bubba Ray Dudley
Bradshaw
Debra
D’Lo Brown
Edge
D-Von Dudley
Gangrel
Farooq
The Godfather
Hardcore Holly
Kane
The Blue Meanie
Gerald Brisco
Ivory
Jacqueline
Mideon
Pat Patterson
Prince Albert
Stephanie McMahon
Stevie Richards
Viscera
Jeff Hardy
Mankind
Ken Shamrock
Mark Henry
Matt Hardy
Paul Bearer
The Road Dogg
The Rock
Shane McMahon
Stone Cold Steve Austin
Steve Blackman
Test
Tori
Triple H
X-Pac
Vince McMahon
Val Venis
The Undertaker
Stone Cold Steve Austin (Alternate Attire)
The Rock (Alternate Attire)

Innovation & Gameplay: The first “Smackdown!” title did not add much to what had become a pretty established format in wrestling games. This was the first WWE game for the Playstation to feature backstage areas, and this was the first game for the Playstation published by THQ for WWE. Outside of easier control features and the speed of the game “Smackdown!” did little to improve upon what had come before it. That is not to say that it’s not a good game. The roster is fairly large, the video capture, and CD quality sound are fantastic. The in depth career mode allowed players to take an established wrestler already on the roster, or create a new wrestler, and have them go from jobber to headlining pay per views.

Availability: Amazon lists quite a few used copies available starting at $2.

Title: Smackdown! 2: Know Your Role
Release Date: November 2000
Platform: Playstation

Wrestlers Featured:
Albert
Edge
Lita
Stephanie McMahon
Al Snow
Eddie Guerrero
Mankind
The Big Boss Man
Essa Rios
Mark Henry
Stone Cold Steve Austin
Billy Gunn
Funaki
Farooq
Matt Hardy
Michael Cole
Steve Blackman
Bradshaw
Gangrel
Bubba Ray Dudley
Gerald Brisco
Mick Foley
Steven Richards
Bull Buchanan
The Godfather
Pat Patterson
Taka Michinoku
Cactus Jack
Grandmaster Sexay
Paul Bearer
Tazz
Chris Benoit
Hardcore Holly
Perry Saturn
Test
Tori
Triple H
Chris Jericho
Ivory
Pete Gas
Christian
Jacqueline
The Road Dogg
Chyna
Jeff Hardy
Trish Stratus
Crash Holly
Joey Abs
Rodney
The Undertaker
Dean Malenko
Kane
Rikishi
Val Venis
The Kat
The Rock
Vince McMahon
Debra
Kurt Angle
Scotty Too Hotty
D’Lo Brown
Shane McMahon
Viscera
X-Pac
D-Von Dudley
Shawn Michaels

Gameplay & Innovation: As with the first “Smackdown!” game, there really weren’t a lot of new features found in “Smackdown! 2”. This was the last game published by WWF for the Sony Playstation, and the engine the game was built around really hadn’t changed much from the earlier titles. Players did have a few more options in the create a wrestler mode than in previous games, but nothing that was outstanding. One innovation that “Smackdown 2” brought along was being able to play the career mode with multiple players. This would allow up to 4 players to participate in a “season”. The one major criticism about “Smackdown 2” was long “loading” times between scenes and matches. It would be understandable if “Smackdown 2” was an ambitious game, with improved graphics, but considering everything remained graphically the same between “Smackdown” and “Smackdown 2” it seemed the longer load times wore on player’s patience.

Availability: Amazon lists used copies starting at $2.89.

Title: WCW Backstage Assault
Release Date: December 2000
Platforms: Nintendo 64/ Playstation

Wrestlers Featured:
Kevin Nash
Bam Bam Bigelow
Asya
Konnan
Big Vito
Major Gunns
Mona
Booker T
Ric Flair
Corporal Cajun
Scott Steiner
Sgt. Buddy Lee Parker
David Flair
Sgt. A-Wall
Diamond Dallas Page
Disco Inferno
Sid Vicious
Doug Dillinger
Stevie Ray
Hulk Hogan
Sting
Torrie
Jeff Jarrett
Jimmy Hart
Kidman
Lex Luger
Brian Adams
Lt. Loco
Madusa
Bryan Clark
Bret Hart
Mike Awesome
Buff Bagwell
Miss Elizabeth
Chris Candido
Ms. Hancock
Kanyon
Norman Smiley
Daffney Unger
Rey Mysterio, Jr.
Crowbar
Ron Harris
Scott Hall
Don Harris
Eric Bischoff
Shane Douglas
Evan Karagias
Shane Helms
Hugh Morrus
Shannon Moore
Johnny the Bull
Tank Abbott
Kimberly
Vampiro
Lance Storm
Vince Russo
La Parka

Innovation & Gameplay: I guess the most notable thing about this title, is that it is the last WCW title published before the federation was purchased by WWF. “Backstage Assault” lived up to its title as well by moving all of the action to the backstage area. Unlike other games that came out featuring backstage areas that players could fight in, “Backstage Assault” took place backstage only, meaning there were no arena, no wrestling ring, and no crowd available for gameplay. Players could choose to fight in the restrooms, parking lots, loading docks, locker rooms, boiler room, basically anywhere except a wrestling ring, all while Tony Schiavone and Bobby Heenan provided commentary. “Backstage Assault” gameplay focused on the Hardcore Championship were a player would face multiple wrestlers in the backstage area, until challenged by the Hardcore Champion. One the championship is won, the game is over, meaning you do not go on to defend your title. There was also a US Championship mode and a World Championship mode, but both were fought and won in the same fashion as the Hardcore Championship, just with varying levels of difficulty. “Backstage Assault” was universally panned as a lousy wrestling game, that didn’t even feature traditional wrestling gameplay.

Availability: Amazon offers the N64 version starting at .89 cents and the Playstation version starting at $2.30.

As I wrap up this section of this ongoing series, I would like to note that with the failure of “Backstage Assault”, WCW was developing “Mayhem 2” as a more conventional wrestling game. “Mayhem 2” never got past the planning stages however as WCW was soon purchased by WWF. The basic gameplay and game engine that was to drive “Mayhem 2” was then turned into the Playstation game “Def Jam Vendetta”.

Hopefully you are enjoying this look back at the evolution of wrestling games, and again, if you would like me to forward a copy of the original word documents with each of the games pictured just shoot me an email.

Thanks for reading and look for part 5 of this series very soon.