Pro Wrestling (NES video game)
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| Pro Wrestling | |
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| Developer(s) | Nintendo R&D3 |
| Publisher(s) | Nintendo |
| Platform(s) | Nintendo Entertainment System, Famicom Disk System, Virtual Console |
| Release date | FDS version October 21, 1986 (Japan) NES version March, 1987 (USA) September 15, 1987 (Europe) |
| Genre(s) | Wrestling |
| Mode(s) | Single player, multiplayer |
| Rating(s) | ESRB: E (Everyone) (Wii)[1] |
| Media | Cartridge |
- There is also a game called Pro Wrestling for the Sega Master System. HAL Wrestling for Game Boy was titled Pro Wrestling in Japan.
Pro Wrestling is a Nintendo Entertainment System game, as well as a Famicom Disk System game for one or two players first released in 1986. The game was the first wrestling game on the Nintendo Entertainment System and was ranked 172 on Nintendo Power's Top 200 Nintendo Games Ever.
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[edit] Gameplay
The player chooses a wrestler with unique skills and presses various combinations of buttons to use different wrestling moves. It is possible to leave the ring; however, a player who does so must re-enter the ring before the referee's 20-count. Failure to do so results in a loss (via count-out) or a draw (double count-out), if both wrestlers fail to re-enter in time. (Note: The referee's count is broken only after both wrestlers have re-entered the ring. That is, as long as at least one wrestler is outside the ring, the referee's count continues. Moreover, it is possible for a wrestler to be counted out while executing a Plunger if he has crossed the ring ropes by the count of 20.)
The game was one of the first wrestling games to feature an in-ring referee. The referee in the game is fairly accurate. For example, whenever a pinfall is attempted, the referee must run to where the two wrestlers are, lay on his stomach, and begin the three count. In effect, if the referee is on the other side of the ring when an opponent initiates a pin, the player will have additional time to try and escape. The game was also the first wrestling title to feature a cameraman at ringside (though he does not interact with the wrestlers).
[edit] Single player
Single player mode consists of two parts. First, the player fights in matches against increasingly difficult CPU opponents. After winning five matches, the player fights King Slender, the Video Wrestling Association (VWA) Champion. If the player has selected King Slender for play, then he will face Giant Panther for the VWA Championship, though some versions of the game have a bug requiring King Slender to win more than the usual five matches before being granted the title shot.
After winning the VWA Title, the second stage of gameplay begins. As the VWA Champion, the player has to defend the title. Making ten successful title defenses (two against each of the five remaining characters) will result in a title match against the Great Puma, champion of the Video Wrestling Federation. Defeating Puma will make a player the interpromotional VWA/VWF Champion and end the game.
The names of the promotions, the Video Wrestling Alliance (VWA) and the Video Wrestling Federation (VWF), were most likely based on the National Wrestling Alliance (NWA) and the World Wrestling Federation (WWF), which were the two biggest U.S. wrestling promotions at the time.
[edit] Two players
The two player mode in Pro Wrestling features essentially the same gameplay as single player, though without the championship quest. Each player selects a wrestler and then proceed directly into the match. The game prevents the same character from being chosen for both players. Unlike the single player mode, each match is a best-of-three-falls match.
[edit] Moveset
Pro Wrestling features a larger selection of moves available to the wrestlers than some others of the era. Fighter Hayabusa and King Slender can use all of the basic moves in additional to their specialty moves, while Starman, Kin Corn Karn, The Amazon and Giant Panther use their specialties in place of certain basic moves. (For example, entering the keypresses for the Lariat move as Starman will perform the Flying Cross Chop instead.)
The Nintendo Player's Guide lists the following basic moves available to the player:
- Rolling Sole Butt (a jumping back kick)
- Punch
- Body slam
- Hammer Throw (also known as an Irish whip)
- Back Drop (also known as a back suplex)
- Lariat
- Jumping Knee Butt
- Piledriver
- Brainbuster
- Flying Body Attack (flying splash)
- Flying Knee Drop
- Plunger (plancha)
The Piledriver and Brainbuster are unique in that both require the player's opponent to be weakened before they can be executed. Attempting to execute a Piledriver too early in the match will result in simple failure (the player's wrestler will visibly strain and not execute the move), attempting a Brain Buster early on will result in a reversal (the opponent will execute the Brain Buster with full damage against the player).
When a player is downed, the standing wrestler has the option of pinning them, pulling them up from the mat, or waiting until they get up by themselves. The time it takes for a wrestler to get up from the mat under his own power is reflective of the damage taken. A wrestler being attacked by an opponent using a turnbuckle move (the Flying Body Attack or Flying Knee Drop) may be able to roll out of the way, causing the attacker to sustain damage from the miss. A Plunger can be avoided in a similar manner if the target wrestler gets up (and out of the way) in time.
When fighting outside the ring, the moveset becomes more limited - wrestlers can perform the Punch, Rolling Sole Butt, or Hammer Throw (throwing the opponent into the side of the ring or the outside barrier). Fighter Hayabusa, Kin Corn Karn and King Slender can perform the Piledriver outside the ring, while Starman, The Amazon and Giant Panther will perform a specialty move instead. While in the area immediately below the ring, wrestlers can also perform the Body Slam or Brainbuster.
The Lariat move can also be ducked by a running wrestler with varying success. A Lariat delivered to a non-running opponent may or may not connect.
When a wrestler climbs either turnbuckle at the top of the ring, the referee begins a 5-count. If the attacking wrestler does not come down from the turnbuckle by a count of 5 (by climbing down, or by attempting either a Flying Body Attack or Flying Knee Drop), he will lose the match (presumably by disqualification).
[edit] Wrestlers
| Name | Nickname |
|---|---|
| Fighter Hayabusa | The invincible warrior |
| Starman | Super space-traveller |
| Kin Corn Karn | A living karate tool |
| Giant Panther | The ultimate human weapon |
| The Amazon | Half-piranha, half-man |
| King Slender | Cold-blooded warrior, Jr. |
| Great Puma | The perfect warrior |
[edit] Controversy
The game drew attention from conservative Christian groups shortly after its release. The groups lobbied Nintendo to remove certain maneuvers from the game, but ultimately failed. One maneuver which drew significant attention occurs when a player attempts the pile-driver move on an opponent. If the opponent is not sufficiently weakened, the move is not successful. The resulting animation shows the player placing the opponent's head in the crotch region and heaving in exaggerated agony. The conservative groups viewed this as an immoral act.
[edit] Trivia
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Trivia sections are discouraged under Wikipedia guidelines. The article could be improved by integrating relevant items and removing inappropriate ones. |
- The action and moveset is very similar to the arcade game Mat Mania, although whether the designers of Pro Wrestling were influenced by this game is unknown.
- The Amazon makes a cameo appearance in WarioWare: Twisted! for the GBA.
- The title screen tune was previously used as the title screen jingle of the NES title, Baseball and other Nintendo-developed NES sports games. This tune is quite similar to the opening theme to the Japanese TV series "All Japan Pro Wrestling 30."
- Except for The Amazon (whose moveset parallels that of Abdullah the Butcher), all of the characters seem to be based on a real life wrestler, for example Fighter Hayabusa is based on the Japanese wrestling star Antonio Inoki. King Slender is based upon NWA legend Ric Flair, Starman seems to be based upon luchadore Mil Mascaras, Giant Panther is based upon David Von Erich, and Kin Corn Karn is either based upon Ramenman (who is a cartoon character and not a real life wrestler) or Killer Kahn. Great Puma seems to be based upon Tiger Mask.
- The game was featured in the Flashback section of the December 2007 issue of Nintendo Power.
- WWE has used a design similar to the cover of the game for a John Cena t-shirt. John Cena 8-Bit T-Shirt (ASP). WWE Shop.com. Retrieved on 2008-02-22.
[edit] References
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This article needs additional citations for verification. Please help improve this article by adding reliable references. Unsourced material may be challenged and removed. (May 2008) |
- Laundrie, Evan: Game of the Week, Classicgaming.
