WCW Mayhem

WCW Mayhem features a variety of modes, a four player option, a create a player option, a sort of carrier mode and even secret characters. Mayhem does a better job in most of the categories than Attitude, but only fails by a bit in the graphics section. If you like WCW you should definitely pick this game up. If you like WWF, you should still pick it up or at least rent it.

The game seems to get me through the days when there isn’t any wrestling on TV. Tony and Gene make me feel as if I was actually watching the match. I loved the idea of including the backstage rooms and arsenal of weapons available in them. I don’t even play in the ring that much anymore because it’s too much fun to throw my opponent around in the various backstage settings. The gameplay controls are just as bad as any other wrestling game, but it would have helped if all the companies making the wrestling games would set the buttons the same so learning the buttons would be a lot easier. You’ll get used to it, eventually. WCW Mayhem has great multiplayer replay value, but the single player mode gets pretty boring after awhile because of the less than average create-a-player section. It pretty much makes you play the same characters over and over again. Nevertheless, WCW Mayhem is a great game to play with your buddies and will keep you going all through the night.

I'm not going out on a limb when I say that it's evident that EA was tired of standing by while Acclaim and THQ rolled in the dough and correctly believed that there was enough wrestling fan dollars to go around. Their mistake was believing that Mayhem would be the right way to get at it. Aside from the above average gameplay, Mayhem overall only succeeded at underwhelming me. It comes into the ring with the minimum (create-a-player, lots of wrestlers) and does little else to bring it over the top. If this release is any sign, then Acclaim and THQ have little to worry about even from a big player like EA.

Despite its flaws, WCW Mayhem still manages to be a really fun game, and it is definitely worth picking up. But after playing it at length, I can't help but wish there was more to the game. It's got all the prerequisite modes that you'd expect from a modern wrestling game, but the flawed AI makes single-player too easy, and the multiplayer has its own set of problems that you may or may not be able to look past. Hopefully, EA will make good on its promise to include more of the storyline aspect of professional wrestling in next year's sequel.

Un bon jeu mais qui n'apporte pas grand chose de neuf dans le domaine assez surchargé des jeux de catch. Une réalisation tout de même très correcte pour le premier pas d'Electronic Arts dans ce nouveau milieu sportif.

La réalisation, en revanche, laisse plutôt à désirer. Si le son est de bonne facture, notamment les commentaires, le graphisme est médiocre, et on peut déceler pas mal de problèmes de clipping, à savoir que les textures des catcheurs ont tendance à s'entrechoquer et se mélanger, ce qui gâche sensiblement le rendu général. Tous comptes faits, WCW Mayhem ne va pas chambouler les forces en présence sur Playstation, mais s'avère être un jeu sympa, surtout grâce à sa très bonne jouabilité.

This game has all the depth of Rock 'em Sock 'em Robots - a back and forth volley of simple taps disguised as gameplay. Considering the glitches, the polygon leakage, and overall rushed execution, this is one wrestling game better left ringside. Or maybe it deserves to be taken backstage for a whupping...

The Playstation version has the advantage of good sound - longer musical tracks and both WCW Announcers (Tony Shiavonne and Bobby Heenan). Once, while fighting, the two announcers started having an argument about illegal weapons that had nothing to do with the fight; a nice touch, but most of the time they spew out the same old lines.