wrestling

I love the gimmick... but I don't love the execution.

Showdown is not as bad as the previous Legends of Wrestling games, but it still rates way below the standards set for graphics and gameplay by the WWE Smackdown series. Big negative first impression when I immediately entered the Create-A-Wrestler mode and could barely pull off a halfway decent looking Ric Flair. Bad news for a game called "Legends" of wrestling. The running commentary is pretty annoying too in this game. Great to hear Bobby the Brain and Tony Shiavone trading quips about Hacksaw Jim Duggan... but WHY ARE THEY DOING IT IN A MATCH BETWEEN RANDY SAVAGE AND STING? Annoying. The controls are frustrating as well... but I think after some time (and some more viewings of the Brett Hart Tutorials) that problem will go away.

Buy this if, like me, you just need to kill time before Raw vs. Smackdown" is released.

Every game should have this roster of wrestlers. These guys are the ones I respect and cheer for. When my son and I play this game, we get engaged in being these guys and living their fights. We love their stories and playing as them. The graphics relay to us the real action and the stadiums for once come to earth in perfect visual flair. Other games don't cater to the type of wrestling fan we are; we want the legends brought to life. This game is fun; its graphics are great; the gameplay makes us yearn for the days of watching fights which kept us glued to our seats week after week.

I've been playing wrestling games since 1988's WWF Wrestlemania for NES and I've played damn near every game since then for all consoles. I know my wrestling games and this one sucks. Although this game has some improvments over the former legends of wrestling games, it's still way short on moves. Only three Strikes per player! Thats right only three strikes per player...1 2 3!!! Forget about doing an irish whip into the ropes because the person being whipped can get out of it everytime by press square and I mean everytime, attacking from outside the ring, forget that too because it never works. Last time I checked the year was 2004 going on 2005 ..and Akklaim is releasing crap like this? Sad but true. The roster is the only reason I bought this game and its the only reason I gave it two stars. The rosters is awesome!