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Post by ringsyde on Aug 30, 2005 22:55:23 GMT -5
. . . . that after spending a whole day playing WWE Day of Reckoning 2 for the Gamecube that this belongs in the list of all-time great wrestling titles.
The countering system and height / weight meters all make sense. Big men move and wrestle like big men, and cruiserweights float around the ring. I thought it was so cool that I had to have HBK do a running, diving elbow smash to Big Show's face to get him to fall to one knee. It was also cool to see HBK slither over Show's shoulder to escape an atomic drop.
The action goes back and forth, and there's even a momentum shift that sneaks in when you least expect it. I held a RAW tournament and a Smackdown tournament. Batista beat the tar out of JBL, but he lost when JBL cheapshot him (and you all know where) and used his finisher.
If you don't pace yourself, you'll run out of gas at the very wrong time, and you'll be trying to catch your breath as your opponent unleashes his finisher. Or worse, you'll blow up just as you are about to do yours.
This game sports some of the most realistic graphics I've ever seen.
The only thing I've identified as a problem thus far is that I want to use someone other than my created wrestler in story mode. That, and I hate the Gamecube controller.
If you have a Gamecube, GET THIS GAME!!! If you don't have a Gamecube, it's worth the $150.00 to play it!!
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Post by More Palpatine on Aug 31, 2005 0:34:35 GMT -5
Thanks for the review! Time to dust off the GC.
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Post by Chris Ingersoll on Aug 31, 2005 9:54:41 GMT -5
I saw a preview of this on X-play last night and it kinda turned me off. Just looking at it, the game seemed... off somehow. But that may have just been the visuals; I'm much more concerned with gameplay, so we'll see. Might pick it up this weekend (still busy freeing Omega Land and just adopted a second puppy... man, my DS's battery is getting the crap kicked out of it).
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Post by ringsyde on Aug 31, 2005 16:19:32 GMT -5
I was intent on not buying the game when I first saw the graphics, but seeing them in real time impresses the heck out of me.
Give the game a try. If the graphics don't win you over (and I really think you'll be impressed once you see the wrestlers, the updated rope physics and the lighting) the gameplay will.
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Post by thefamoustommyz on Sept 1, 2005 3:38:39 GMT -5
Hm.
Damn.
Might have to get the 'Cube back from a friend...
...HAHAHAHAHA, yeah, right...like I have the money to spend on video games right now...=)
Thanks for the heads up, though, Ringsyde.
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Post by ringsyde on Sept 2, 2005 9:51:27 GMT -5
Just got my new EGM magazine. In it, they give WWE DOR2 a 5.0, 5.0 & 7.5. Their biggest complaint is the lack of voice work in the game and the "same old" feel that all WWE games have.
Anyone who's read my game posts has probably encountered one of my EGM rants, so I feel I've made enough disclaimers to say that EGM tends to miss the boat on anything not directly related to Sony, Activision or Nvidia.
As far as wrestling games are concerned, the EGM review crew also hailed WWE ATTITUDE as one of the great wrestling games of all time, declared the Smackdown series to be a "faliure in the making" if THQ didn't incorporate an Ultimate Fighting or Street Fighter-style engine (they made this grand proposal just before Shut Your Mouth and Here Comes the Pain, two of the best in the entire series and two of the best wrestling games to be released in America), and they declared any wrestling game without voice work to be undeserving of anything above a "7" rating (which is insane; FirePro and Aki games have NEVER had voice work, yet they remain the standard in the entire genre, here and abroad . . . . GAMEPLAY, MORONS!!).
Take the EGM review however you will, but know that at least one regular contributor here (me!!!) has played 'em all, and I believe IGN.com and Gamespot.com to be more accurate in their review than EGM.
Of course, a smart fan would tell you to screw the reviews and play it for yourself . . . . .
Screw the reviews!! Go play it for yourself!!
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Post by Chris Ingersoll on Sept 2, 2005 10:19:38 GMT -5
The EGM reviews look accurate to me. As they contantly have to remind people, a 5.0/10.0 is not a bad score. It merely means that the game was average. As in "nothing terribly impressive, but not junk either." The game averaged nearly a 6.0, which is right where a title that doesn't have broad mainstream appeal and isn't a major improvement over previous releases in the franchise/series belongs.
The "lack of voice acting" is something I dismiss. The "same old feel" is one that I do not. I don't think I've ever really enjoyed playing a current-gen WWE game to the point where it's something I pop in just to kill some time. I used to do this constantly with my N64 titles.
Now I'm not going to defend EGM, because they drive me up the wall more often than not, too. But I have a strong feeling that when I get this title, I'll beat the story mode, make a couple of extra characters, and then file it away on my shelf with its equally-uninspiring bretheren, forgetting about it completely within a month. That's not a game that's going to break a 7/10 from me, and would be lucky to garner a 6. We'll see what the reality is, but track records and reputations exist for a reason, and thus far the ones that Yuke's have developed with me are just that.
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Post by gamemaster on Sept 2, 2005 20:20:50 GMT -5
Thaanks for the heads up Ringsyde.I too agree that EGM doesnt know what they are talking about. Graphics never have done it for me alone because I love Fire Pro and Aki titles. Still I have boycotted american yukes games for long enough and I may just pick this title up. One question though. Is every move in the game oversold? I never really got into the Smackdowns because I always felt they where a little too arcade like for me.
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Post by ringsyde on Sept 2, 2005 21:58:39 GMT -5
I like the fact that you have to do a little work to either hurt or seriously slow down most opponents on this game. Most moves are not oversold unless they come in a string (a kick followed by two punches and a clothesline will do damage that a mere punch wont). I also like how size completely changes strategy. I pounded my finger to the bone to get the slam on Show (using Michaels, Angle and even Masters), but never got him off the ground, and I had to do running clotheslines, dropkicks and flying punches early to do the type of damage needed to soften him up.
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Post by canadianpittbull on Sept 3, 2005 1:08:21 GMT -5
My only complaint about this game is the story mode. Not a fan of creating my own guy to go through the season with. I want to use Snitsky dammit! Also I am stuck on that stupid Summerslam 4-way cage match and cannot for the life of me keep these 3 on the ground long enough to get out of the cage. Even after beating the crap out of them for the whole match and excuting a riducously amount of finishers I still cannot get by this match.
Also you HAVE to win it. It is a linear storyline with no change if you loose the match. You HAVe to win. I gave up on story mode after 8 tries and cannot get by this level. So I decided to play a wrestling game more submersive and did a few of my matches in LOW. Can always depend on Filsinger Games to come through in the end.
If anyone has any tips for that match let me know. ;D
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Post by Thad Killian on Sept 3, 2005 9:40:27 GMT -5
My only complaint about this game is the story mode. Not a fan of creating my own guy to go through the season with. I want to use Snitsky dammit! Also I am stuck on that stupid Summerslam 4-way cage match and cannot for the life of me keep these 3 on the ground long enough to get out of the cage. Even after beating the crap out of them for the whole match and excuting a riducously amount of finishers I still cannot get by this match. Also you HAVE to win it. It is a linear storyline with no change if you loose the match. You HAVe to win. I gave up on story mode after 8 tries and cannot get by this level. So I decided to play a wrestling game more submersive and did a few of my matches in LOW. Can always depend on Filsinger Games to come through in the end. If anyone has any tips for that match let me know. ;D I'm stuck at the same exact point that you are at...I bet I have applied twenty finishers...any suggestions (anyone) on how to get past this stage? |
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Post by gamemaster on Sept 3, 2005 10:12:34 GMT -5
Oh yeah one mo thing...hehe.. Are there a ton of moves in the CAW mode outside of the WWE stuff like could I make a japanese wrestler or a ROH guy other than cosmetics? Thanks well going to the suburbs for the holiday and gonna play lots of my brand new Virtual Pro Wrestling 2. Hehehe
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Post by Chris Ingersoll on Sept 3, 2005 10:40:34 GMT -5
My only complaint about this game is the story mode. Not a fan of creating my own guy to go through the season with. I want to use Snitsky dammit! Also I am stuck on that stupid Summerslam 4-way cage match and cannot for the life of me keep these 3 on the ground long enough to get out of the cage. Even after beating the crap out of them for the whole match and excuting a riducously amount of finishers I still cannot get by this match. Also you HAVE to win it. It is a linear storyline with no change if you loose the match. You HAVe to win. I gave up on story mode after 8 tries and cannot get by this level. So I decided to play a wrestling game more submersive and did a few of my matches in LOW. Can always depend on Filsinger Games to come through in the end. If anyone has any tips for that match let me know. ;D I'm stuck at the same exact point that you are at...I bet I have applied twenty finishers...any suggestions (anyone) on how to get past this stage? Man, that sounds like the point at which I gave up on WWE Attitude: 3-on-1 hardcore handicap match.  Not looking forward to it, especially since I tend to design submission guys. |
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Post by Tongsoon of Cygnus on Sept 3, 2005 16:30:01 GMT -5
When you get to this point, press Up, Up, Down, Up, Left, Left, Right, Down, Up, Down, Down, Down, and Up...Bishop Hell will teleport to the ring and set all your guys on fire.
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Post by Thad Killian on Sept 4, 2005 9:55:58 GMT -5
When you get to this point, press Up, Up, Down, Up, Left, Left, Right, Down, Up, Down, Down, Down, and Up...Bishop Hell will teleport to the ring and set all your guys on fire. Played Contra B? |
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Post by Chris Ingersoll on Sept 4, 2005 10:17:23 GMT -5
Not necessarily. That code worked for lots of Konami games (like Gradius).
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Post by ringsyde on Sept 4, 2005 12:02:02 GMT -5
Chris, I disagree with your assesment of EGM's review of WWE DOR2.
I feel that this game approaches both the story moed (whether you like it or not) and the overall gameplay engine in a way that connotes something far beyond "Average". Innovations in offense, defense and the fatigue factor make this a deeper game than DOR and virtually every other Yukes release to-date. Add to that the fact that physics, controls and graphics concerns were all addressed favorably, and you have an improved game that deserves more than "great for fans, okay for everyone else" review.
I don't know if my infatuation with No Mercy and VPW2 and my quick boredom have as much to do with game quality as it does with the realization that new wrestling games come out so often that the whole genre has become stale. Before I get royally flamed, let me again state that my favorite wrestling games of all time are AKI games (NO Mecy, VPW I&II, WCW/nWO World Tour, etc.) . That said, part of what made those games special was that you had a whole year to play only that game, and they were highly innovative due to the deeper rosters (those of us who didn't get the chance to import games only had 12-20 man rosters in pre AKI wrestling games), licensing and stellar create modes.
Now, if a good wrestling game comes out, we tear it apart to find out what worked and what didn't, and we then begin the waiting and hoping process for the next wrestling release - which nowadays is just around the corner (who here isn't counting down for Smackdown's November PS2 release or December PSP release?).
DOR2 takes some risks. Some don't necessarily pay off for the masses. I still hate the story mode because of the need to create a character and because (as has been posted here) a loss means either a retry or a "thanks for playing, see ya". I do like the attention to wrestling, I am pleased with the phyisics and I see where this game stands apart from the last Smackdown (which started out on my list of stellar wrestling games but immediately hit my all-time worst list after a week of play). Most message boards and fan reviews suggest I'm not alone. So, EGM doesn't quite get it, in my opinion. That I know some of the review crew and their ideas of "good games" further hurts their credibility with me. Shoe, for example, harkens back to the days of "WWF In Your House", and thinks the re-introduction of that whimsical arcade engine would spice up current wrestling titles. PUH-LEASE!!
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Post by ringsyde on Sept 4, 2005 12:05:26 GMT -5
By the way, I noticed that Triple H and Muhammed Hassan have the two most potent finishers in the game, in terms of leaving a guy dead on the mat. SO, I created a wrestler with a pedigree and a front face drop as finishers.
Would you believe I got through the cage match in three attempts?
It's little annoyances like this that make me dislike story mode. I doubt I'll finish it, even if Hogan is the prize for winning out. Oh well, guess I'll have to wait until November to recreate Summerslam.
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Post by CaseyJones1 on Sept 4, 2005 12:31:16 GMT -5
Thanks for the review, sounds pretty cool, and infuriating at the same time.
I'll let you guys know how Firepro stacks up when I get it. Supposed to actually come out the 15th now, but I got regular UPS ground shipping(since shipping is very expensive period) so I'll probably have it around the 20th or so.
This game got pretty positive reviews over on the firepro boards on gamefaqs, but I can only afford one game right now and made a different choice.
I don't think I posted that Firepro has the Canadian Destroyer in it and shows Petey hitting AJ with it on their official website, did I?
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Post by Chris Ingersoll on Sept 4, 2005 16:53:46 GMT -5
Chris, I disagree with your assesment of EGM's review of WWE DOR2. Well, keep in mind that I have neither read the review (here on the East Cost, my EGM just arried yesterday) nor played the game (which I literally just picked up 3 hours ago and haven't fired up yet). I'll probably have my imporessions of both tomrrow.  |
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