RetroMania Wrestling Xbox Series X Review 7/10 “Going Old School” 🤼‍♂️ @RetrosoftStudio #IndieGame #GameDev

I grew up in the ‘90s with an older brother, and we were – and are - both wrestling fans, so I have spent many an hour playing wrestling games. 

The favourite in our youth was WWF Royal Rumble on the Sega Mega Drive, a game in which I currently think I’m on a 30 year losing streak, as then and now my brothers fingers move quicker than mine, and in a very button-bashy fighting game, it is quite the advantage. 

I bring this up because RetroMania Wrestling is made for someone like me, someone who grew up in the ‘90s with fond memories of these arcade style, 2D wrestling games, you don’t have to have that nostalgia - but it does help.

The grappling mechanics will feel familiar to anyone who has played any of the Fire Pro Wrestling games, you can do light, medium, and heavy attacks which are timing-based, just before grappling you have to press the corresponding attack button just as you lock up, it’s a fun system and feels rewarding when you get to grips with it. The campaign mode opens with a tutorial so you can pick it up pretty quickly. You also have your standard punches, kicks, and running attacks to fill out your attack options.

The roster is filled up with just under 20 wrestlers from various time periods and companies. You have submission expert and well-known Stewart Lee fan Zack Sabre Jr, the kings of the mega pop The Road Warriors and all three members of the BWO, the roster is big enough for a game like this, and whilst it would be nice to have more available it is a reasonable and diverse enough bunch of characters to be happy with. 

One of the things that really did impress me was the number of different arenas available, obviously it has to skirt around names for copyright purposes but it has recognisable places like The Ballroom - which is obviously the Hammerstein Ballroom, they have a beach arena which is a nod to the old Bash at the Beach PPV’s that took place on beach fronts, and they also have arenas inspired by wrestlers, of which The Warhorse one is really cool. Tommy Dreamer’s also has no mats around the ring, they are all well thought out and vibrant, a big thumbs up from me.

Matches have good variation between them, from the various tag matches on offer - from standard to eight man tag - as well as steel cage matches wherein you can have a chain link cage or the big blue cage of old, not to mention tournaments and battle royals, a nice variety all-round. 

Things such as ladder matches would be a nice option to have - but you do have a number of options available without it. I know some people will compare this with more modern wrestling games and look at the lack of wrestlers or see some match types missing and deride the game, but RetroMania Wrestling is obviously going for the retro experience, and so it seems unfair to compare it to more modern titles.

One thing that is definitely a plus for RetroMania Wrestling is the addition of a campaign, it is always fun when a campaign is included to add longevity, and RetroMania Wrestling’s story mode is really fun, it does a fantastic job of building a story and capturing the wrestlers’ personalities and infusing their style and character into the dialogue, it was a joy meeting the different wrestlers as the story progressed, the only slight knock is that the story mode could have been a little longer.

SUMMARY
If you are looking for a fun wrestling game that nods back to the past, then this is for you, it has a variety of wrestlers, arenas and match types, and you can tell that the game is made with love and that shines through in all facets of RetroMania Wrestling.

7/10

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