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(More customer reviews)I have been very disappointed by the 2 or 3 WWE games on the DS. So when I found out recently that TNA had a game, I figured since I was not a TNA fan that it would be just my luck that the TNA game is a lot more fun then the WWE one, just like in the days when Warzone compared to WCW/NWO Revenge on the 64 was a hands down winner to the non WWF game. However, this time around, some parts of the TNA game are better, but then again, some things are are not.
First thing you see when you pop this game in is a nice video intro. It really is a video! So it got me thinking, "wow, this game is going to rock" but then once I started, I soon found out it's another one of those games that has not been programed very well. The graphics are not too bad, and each wrestlers intro is a video with his TNA music theme. But then, once the match starts, the first thing you notice is the ring seems way too big. In real life, a wrestling ring would take about 3 to 4 steps to get across to the other side, this game decided it should take 100 and make it a stage platform rather then a ring.
Then the game-play itself. The wrestlers may look good graphic wise, but the controls are horrible. Not so much that the move system is hard to get used to, no, that parts ok, it's the part where you go for a grapple and grab the air unless you are in the right spot in-front of your opponent. This is really what lets the game-play down massively. You get one button to punch, one kick, and one does a grabbing move (like a body slam or something) and you can use the direction pad to change grappling moves. You can also hold down the R shoulder button and do the same as said to perform stronger/alternate moves. But the annoying thing is you have to be facing your opponent 90% of the time on the right angle for anything to connect. You can not hit your opponent when they have their back to you as the are getting up, and a lot of things about the impact/collision programming in this game reminds me of Acclaims WWF Attitude, and that was not enjoyable years ago, and still is not by today's standards.
All the moves feel very generic and not very well designed. I was using Hulk Hogan, and as anyone who has seen Hulkster in action, his finisher is not just knocking his opponent to the mat face down, waiting for him to roll over then landing a leg drop on him as he turns over. No, Hulk does a big boot, then runs to the ropes and does the leg drop, yet the big boot is a separate move and the leg drop is a standing grappling special move, not something you can perform as a running attack. So, that gives the WWE games the advantage to see the moves done closer to the way you would see the real wrestler do it.
The AI is too easy too. You find yourself just using a few strong moves and punching your opponent on the ground until you have built up enough of the special bar to execute a finisher. You then grapple your opponent and tap the DS screen to perform it. Once you have done this, you press down + y or X or something to pin them, and then that's it. Repeat that about 15 times in TNA mode, or about 8 in going for the belt modes. It doesn't get harder as you go along, and is quite boring. It could take about 30 mins, maybe less to go through each mode. And once you have done it once, you probably will just want to shut the game off and toss it over your shoulder. There is not much replay value, and i think it unlocked two wrestlers without even acknowledging it, and instead of finding someone I might want to play as like Nash, Hall, RVD or the Dudleys, instead I get "Cheese Man"... at least I think it unlocked them, or it might just be that certain wrestlers are only available in Exhibition mode. I have no idea why someone would allow someone like Mick Foley to be in the game, yet you can not use him in career modes? Why? Why put him in there if you can not use him for the big game? Unless there is more characters to unlock that are not visible yet in the character selection hive, then I really would like to congratulate the makers of this game for being stupid enough to include Scott Hall, Ric Flair, Jeff Hardy, Dudley Boys, SyxX-Pac & I think I even saw RVD in the intro video, yet they have been left out of the game. I'll come back and update if I discover they are hidden characters you can unlock, but man, what where these morons thinking when they chose who should be in this game and who shouldn't?
The big joke of the game is in the profile sections, you can see all the wrestlers statistics, wins losses etc.. and each has a spot for the 3 belts and TNA event, which makes me think the game designers think someone might want to complete the 4 modes with every single wrestler in the game. I don't think so. If that unlocks something, that will be something I will never bother with to find out.
Graphically, it's pretty good, but play wise, it's pretty boring and glitchy. There is no feel of excitement, and pretty much no replay value after a day or two. What these wrestling game designers really need to do is go back in time, and look at the games on the SNES/GEN systems like Wrestlemania (gen) & the Royal Rumble & Raw games (snes/gen), and make a new version of those styles of game-play, because the desperate attempts to try and make a DS game involving the stylus has not been successful. This game here uses a couple of the ideas that the WWE games used to get out of moves or submissions, but really, its the same old you know what with a same old smell. It just doesn't go well together and wrestling games really need complete freedom away from the stylus to make them fun.
Something else I did not like was the pre-match speeches. It just shows a picture of the wrestler, followed by written dialog from your character, or opponent, or the commentators etc.. really boring, and I just kept pressing start to skip it all. Also you may be interested in what kind of matches you can have? You get single one on one, tag team, which you have no need to tag in your partner for, nor will your tag team partner or opponents partner come into the ring and stop a 3 count, even when you are right in-front of their side of the ring. Pinning your opponent with their feet right under the rope also means nothing. There is a 3 way match, which is not much better then tag team, an X match where you climb the turnbuckles, grab the poles above the ring, and make your way to the center of the ring to press the A button 5 times as a marker moves over a certain spot on a box on the stylus screen, and a steel cage match that no is not much fun to play in either.... oh, and all matches are in the octagon ring, there is no regular 4 sides ring. The X game is no fun at all, especially when you work out that once you are in the mini game thing to hit A 5 times at a certain point, your opponent has no way of pulling you down from there. Also, it was no fun to work out that all you need to do to get up there without your opponent pulling you down is just whip them into the ropes and they will just bounce off them and keep running back and forth giving you enough time to make your move to the middle.
Well, I think that covers most of it. I wouldn't recommend this wrestling game, it is slightly better then the WWE games in some areas, and yet vice verse can also be said in other areas. Overall, It's not a great game. None of the wrestling games for the DS have been so far. And all we can do is cross our fingers that someone manages to make one... however, with the 3DS on its way, I doubt the DS will ever see a decent wrestling game.
P.S: forgot to mention, there is no create a wrestler for this game. Which is a major con and there is no backstage areas. Weapons make as much contact as trying to use light punches and kicks, and cage matches are boring due to all you need to do is knock your opponent down, climb the side opposite of where you knocked them down, and they wont even have time to stop you from getting out of the cage... which also reminds, there is glitches all over this game. The first one is you can choose to allow weapons in a cage match, yet all weapons are outside the ring, your only options for a cage match are pin/submission, both, climb over the top, all 3... there is no way to get out of the cage if you do not select climb out, attempting to do so will just result in nothing, the character will not climb, nor will he climb the turnbuckle. So, therefore, if there is no way to get out of the cage, how are you supposed to obtain the weapons? It's just really slack game designing there. There is also a lot of glitching now and then. I noticed I went for a leg lock or something and my guy fell through the ring, my opponent sold a move to an invisible man and then once the move was broken/done my guy appeared outside the ring. Things like that have occurred quite a bit, and I really must say this game has not been thought out very well, and must have been a rush job just to get TNA a game out there for DS fans. Cheap skates.
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