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Card Subject to Change

Modern WWE video game offerings seem to focus more on the simulation element, allowing players to construct their own ideal superstar universe and have a one-to-one, or close-to-it, approximation of Monday Night RAW or another preferred brand. And for a company that seemingly focuses on the ‘E’ in their name, I think they often forget that one of the most attractive elements of their craft, what they are arguably better at than anyone else, is the pageantry, spectacle, that child-like wonderment that comes with fantasizing about these athletes as superheroes performing ridiculous feats in the squared circle; that’s where WWE All Stars shined.

Released in 2011, All Stars isn’t just a snapshot of what the company was at that time, but a collection of current superstars and old-school wrestlers, allowing gladiators who rarely had a chance to share the ring to clash. This time, though, everything is a little more cartoonish, fantasy booking at its finest, with all the dials turned up to 11. This game is a sugar injection straight into the eye holes, embracing that old arcade feeling, and it’s hard to look away.

Let’s talk roster. There are around 30 playable characters in the game, 10 of which must be unlocked through gameplay or a sneaky little cheat code that also gives players their extra costumes. There would also be a couple of free characters released later on (one to apologize for content delays), along with several DLC grapplers. This is a list of very recognizable faces, featuring (at the time) current talent like CM Punk, Randy Orton, Edge, The Miz, Seamus, and Kofi Kingston pairing off against legends such as Andre the Giant, “Macho Man” Randy Savage, Sgt. Slaughter, Mr. Perfect, “Stone Cold” Steve Austin, Bret Hart, and so many more.

Readers may notice there are no female wrestlers on this list, and that’s correct, which feels odd looking back, but I’m not sure how well this art style would have worked with them. These athletes are completely over exaggerated, even traditional muscle men like John Cena and The Ultimate Warrior look ridiculous with these gains, not to mention how it plumps up smaller performers like Ricky “The Dragon” Steamboat and Rey Mysterio. Most of the character designs look good, with a few lacking detail or having chins that could cut diamonds, but some profile pictures do make stars like Eddie Guerrero come off as reject Disney parents whose midlife crisis involved getting their dad bod back in order. These models bring a whole new meaning to larger than life, with so much beef stacked on these dudes, it’s like the company forgot they ever faced steroid allegations. This fantastical presentation wasn’t limited to just the wrestlers, as their moves were completely over the top as well.

Physics Be Damned

I’ve seen some amazing acrobatic skills between the ropes, witnessed performers pull off maneuvers that looked impossible, even a few death-defying stunts, but what happens in the All Stars arena is the stuff of action figure-feds and playground Wrestlemanias. Basic punches, kicks, and grapples have some crunch to them, building excitement as we struggle to build those meters, but signatures and finishing moves have become extremely dramatic, where the lights dim, time slows, and ribbons of color follow a wrestler’s limbs as they leap into the air. When our opponent is slammed from the heavens, the entire arena shakes with ripples and a large middle finger to gravity. This is part of that spectacle I was talking about—pure drama, excitement, theater!

All Stars would like us to feel that it is incredibly ‘pick-up-and-play,’ which it kind of is, because it’s easy to take action. Figuring out the basics is simple, especially attacking, but defense is something else. Blocking can be tough, and countering moves even more so, because at times it feels like the player’s reactions must be perfect, or do what I did and just become psychic, start predicting what the computer will do next. There’s a lot more here under the hood, as the characters have their own classes, and each is different in tiny ways, with little stylish quirks, granting small advantages when learned. There is also a combo system. It’s easy to fall victim here, thinking the system is simplistic, but even though it isn’t the best, there is more to learn, and no tutorial or practice mode, so everything must be learned while on fire (no flaming tables on offer, sadly).

The movement isn’t terrible, but sometimes putting distance between our character and an opponent can be frustrating, with awkward running and the need to press a button to re-enter the ring, breaking any momentum when trying to be slick. The AI competitors aren’t bad, but sometimes they get hyper-focused and stuck on trying something over and over again. This can result in some hilarious moments, but it’s hard to laugh in these multi-man matches, as the look feature that allows us to switch our focus is often jerky, and no one here is selling a damn thing. We rarely have time to set up moves or just a moment to breathe and plan; however, I guess that adds to the action. Here, there are pins, but we often don’t get the chance to kick out, as most matches end in cold, hard knockouts. New players will think they are safe, not realizing how much reach these guys have, and some characters have moves that seldom connect. The game can be tough, especially if, like me, someone needs to knock off the ring rust. I got my ass beat the first night I jumped back into this game and had to learn how to channel my aggression and be cheap. I’m not the dirtiest player in the game, but I can certainly learn.

I Hear Voices in My Head, They Counsel Me

The rest of the presentation is enjoyable, but not to the level we’ve come to expect. Entrances are shorter, and honestly, a little lackluster, giving us just a taste and missing some of that extra flair. I did appreciate hearing Drew McIntyre’s original theme again, even if it would end just as I was getting into the groove. I could also do with some shorter loading screens, or at least fewer, but they aren’t the worst. In the audio department, the songs come through solid, and most of the effects are crisp, while a few voices and noises sound compressed. There are promos in one mode, where we challenge either Orton, Undertaker, or Degeneration X, and for people who speak on a mic constantly for their job, the video game versions often sound phoned in. Jim Ross and Jerry “The King” Lawler provide some quick-fire commentary that isn’t very in-depth. I honestly tuned it out most of the time and didn’t think the repetitiveness of it hurt the experience too much.

There are some wonderful video packages in the Fantasy Warfare mode, which lets us do generational dream matches to finally settle arguments like who the best giant is, or which superstar had more charisma, by punching each other in the face. These are quite fun, but the videos with comparative live footage are what sells them. There are a couple of other modes and match types, like Extreme Rules and fighting in a Steel Cage, but don’t expect much more. Not even certain match stipulations, like being able to turn off KOs or pick which weapons are under the ring. There also aren’t a ton of arenas for us to fight in, which is disappointing, especially since there was one (Wrestlemania 23) shown off in an E3 demo that never made it into the actual game.

There is a Create-a-Wrestler feature as well, where players can assemble their own superstar from some limited options, with a move set copied from an existing combatant, and only the finisher can be swapped out (apparently, this is not in all versions of the game). Like several of the other modes, it feels a bit lackluster and perhaps even rushed or simply tacked on to make the game feel less like a budget title.

On This Day, I See Clearly Everything Has Come to Life

Published by THQ, All Stars was released for the PlayStation 3, Wii, PlayStation 2, Nintendo 3DS, PlayStation Portable, and, where I played it (Still have my original copy), on the Xbox 360. There doesn’t seem to be many major differences, other than a couple of options missing, as the choice of platform here is mostly due to availability and performance. What was then the current gen console version was developed by THQ San Diego, by many people who had previously been with Midway and worked on the TNA Impact game. Creative Director, Sal Divita (of Mortal Kombat fame), was also the lead on that title, as well as WWF WrestleMania: The Arcade Game, which is similar in style. So, All Stars has some good DNA in its veins and shares an engine, animations, sounds, and other bits of foundation with the TNA outing.

This game is far from perfect, but it’s honestly hard not to have SOME fun with it. I don’t see it as something players will have trouble putting down as matches start to feel repetitive, coming back to it for a short time, however, has been an absolute blast. I hope it doesn’t take me another fifteen years to give this overactive gem another try.

All Stars was different, something to break up the normal WWE games, where they embraced the flights of fancy and didn’t take themselves quite so seriously for a moment, making it fun in a way wrestling hadn’t been for some time. I think the main takeaway from revisiting this game is that even though it certainly needed a little more substance and some thorough tweaking, there is no reason we shouldn’t get something like All Stars every few years to shake things up a bit. 

Did you play WWE All Stars? If so, then share your thoughts in the comment section.

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