Customer Reviews

Legends of Wrestling II

5 star:		(5)
4 star:		(5)
3 star:		(6)
2 star:		(2)
1 star:		(3)

 

 

I've been a wrestling fan since the mid 80's. So my interest was piqued when this game came out. I like the new generation of wrestling stars, but things have changed. Wrestling has changed from decade to decade, generation to generation. But anyway, this game is for old school fanatics only.

This game has some of the best legends of wrestling (hence the title). Andre, the Von Erichs, the Funks, JYD, King Kong Bundy and Big John Studd, Million $ Man, they're all in there. If you can recognize all those names, this game is for you. If not, you probably won't get into this as much as Smackdown!, even if this game boasts some pretty good original ideas for matches.

The graphics are pretty nice, in a cartoonish super muscular sort of way. Who was passing out the steroids? Oh, wait...anyway, the sound is ok as well. The control scheme? I liked it because it's different from Smackdown! It's based on a hold/reversal system, and you can combo moves into other moves for devastating results. Or you can counter moves, which makes it good for some strategy and less button mashing. Timing is very important in this system.

I like the cage and ladder matches, as they are new ideas. The ladder match, whatever belt you're fighting for gets lowered down after a little while, which makes things more interesting than the "beat your opponent in 30 seconds" strategy. The one thing I don't like is the difficulty to place the ladder where you want it to be. Maybe I just need more practice. The cage is escape rules; but the cage itself has a meter that you beat down and then you escape.

Over 65 wrestlers are represented in this game, and you can create your own. Myself, I was a bit disappointed that Randy Savage, Sting, and Dusty Rhodes weren't represented in this game (or at least weren't immediately playable). They all seem to have more modern moves, and I never thought I'd see Robert Gibson do the Stone Cold Stunner, complete with finger pointing. It's weird seeing some characters do a Rock Bottom, but considering a simple piledriver was the finisher to end all finishers back in the day, there needed to be an, ahem, update on all wrestlers' moves and such. Regardless, finishers are much easier to pull off, as a simple flick of the analog stick makes it happen.

All in all, this is one of those games where you either like it or don't like it. I didn't play the original Legends of Wrestling, but I do like this sequel. If you're more of a fan of the modern era, then Smackdown! is the way to do. If you have appreciation for what wrestling was before the Austin years, at least rent this game. For me, it was a pleasant surprise.

This game is great, especially the ladder and cage matches which are my personal favorites. There are many legends here such as the obvious ones like Hulk Hogan, Roddy Piper and Andre The Giant. Some other ones are Rocky Johnson(The Rocks dad), LOD, the Nasty Boys, Tony Atlas, Bruno Samartino, the Von Erich family and Sid Viscous plus many more that I cant even remember. Although most of the legends are included, many are missing and some that are on the game shouldnt be here. Take Eddie Guerrero for example, yea hes a great wrestler but hes not a legend YET and could have easily been replaced with Shawn Michaels, Scott Hall, Kevin Nash, Ultimate Warrior, Mr Perfect, or Dusty Rodes. Also, for the life of me I cant figure out why they didnt include Ric Flair in this game, i mean come on, hes just as good as Hogan and has won more world titles than anyone..but besides the lack of some of the all time greats, the gameplay is awesome, theres great moves, and all sorts of matches that add to the excitement. Overall, this is one of the best wrestling games ever made and will provide many hours of entertainment. WOOOOOH!!!!!

I read a lot of the reviews on this board and first off let me say that I'm not a new wrestling fan. I didn't jump on the bandwagon when the soap opera of the WWF/E started. Saying that, I was going into this with high hopes.

The controls are pretty good. Not great, not horrible. However, MUCH better than Acclaim's previous control system.

Graphics...wow. I read the reviews that said they were 'cartoony' and I actually usually like that look. But cartoony is an understatement. These guys look like comic book characters. Sid Vicious is 3 times bigger than the Incredible Hulk would be. A little TOO cartoonish.

Music. Not bad, definitely not what you'd expect for an "old-school" wrestling game though.

The cage and ladder matches are pretty good. Nice idea, and good system for that. Best features in the game.

Well, I'm tired of writing this review. All in all I'm glad I rented it first. DEFINITELY rent it before buying and if you weren't a wrestling fan before the emergence of Stone Cold I wouldn't suggest this.

This is alot better then shut ur mouth game because the graphics,
the grappling looks like the person is realy touching the person, in shut ur mouth the wrestler fingers go right through the person. It is also better because this game has alot more wrestlers. It is pretty cool because the legends look sort of look like super man, and the hulk. (Muscle whys)Anyone who dosen't like wwe shut ur mouth should get this game.

This games wrestlers don't even look real, they look like there all on steroids. They remind of some earlire wrestling games such as WCW vs. NWO World Tour, Wich graphics were good for there time. But if you can't change Graphic quality in 7 years your in the wrong field. Pluss it doesn't have Sting, Ric Flair, or Lex Luger. It seems as if this was made for a WWF fan. But i'm both a Wcw and WWF Fan. But feel cheated because its lack of true legends.

This is a horribly slow and boring game. The characters don't move like humans and more like stiff clay figures. Success in story mode is based on pops from the crowd. Nice concept, but must I follow the same pattern just to get my popularity quotient up? And the game is quite prone to random button-mashing strategies.

I'm especially disappointed in the modeling of Bret Hart: the "Bret Hart" in the SD4 Create-A-Wrestler looks more like the Hitman than the "El Generico" character in LoW II. (To be fair, the rest don't fair so badly: Andre the Giant was well done, as well as Andy Kaufman. Yes, ANDY KAUFMAN.)

There is one shining star: the fifteen 3-5 minute shoot interviews (under game extras). It's fun to see the "Million Dollar Man" DiBiasi talk about how poor he was as a wrestler, and Jerry "the King" Lawler reminisce about his match with Andy Kaufman. Other interviewees (fifteen in all) are Rocky ("Father of the Rock") Johnson, Hacksaw Jim Duggan, Hulk Hogan, Bob Backlund, George "The Animal" Steele, and Jimmy Hart. This is the ONLY reason to rent out game. Otherwise, don't bother.

This is ok. It does have Hulk Hogan,Bret Hart,Bob Backland and Bruno Sammartino in the same game. Try to top that Legends of WrestleMania! The graphics is poor and kind of cartoony but the gamplay is simple. The Career mode is you simple "beat alot of wrestlers to get the belt" Each Region has 8 to 12 storylines chosen at random with a push of a button. Each Promoter while fun,are still 1D Stereotypes. The biggest downside are the bugs,glitches,crashes and lock-ups that stop the game dead. The C.A.W mode is pretty good. The songs in the game are pretty good to dance and listin to. The A.I. is also bad. It also has many types of matches like 8 man tag,6 man tag,steel cage,1 on 1,2 on 2 tag,battle royal and many more. Overall,it's not great but pretty good. I give this game a 5 out of 10.

I was not happy with the first installment of the game and probably should have had more patience with it. Coming from Smackdown! and the other WWE PS2 games, this one had a lot lacking.

However, revisiting this game years later to play as Abdullah the Butcher, I am quite pleased with the gameplay and the choice of classic pro wrestling characters.

The roster is a who's who of classic wrestling. I have enjoyed playing as David von Erich and unleashing the power of The Claw by a late legend of wrestling. There are many, many more legends to play with.

The moveset becomes a bit repetative, and I've experienced a bug or two. But its still a lot of fun.

The title says it all. "Legends of Wrestling"

There are just some game companies you know are good, like EA Sports. Acclaim is one of them. Like EA Sports being the king of sports games, Acclaim does it for wrestling games. So what if it's only arcade style? It's still good. As long as I remember getting or wanting a wrestling game, I can never remember not getting or wanting a game made by Acclaim. Their rasslin' games are the best. The Arcade style gameplay makes it fun. So what if you have to press 3 or 4 buttons to do a finisher? It makes you work harder to finish off your opponent. Anyway, Legends 2, by MOST reveiws say that it's a good game. Those people are right. All you other [people] know that the only reason you don't like it is b/c it doesn't have current wrestlers in it. Read the title. It clearly says LEGENDS OF WRESTLING. Not current legends. Anyway, w/ the Steel Cage, 6 and 8 Men Tag, Battle Royal, and more REAL Legends, this game will become another wrestling classic.

WARNING: If you have any desire to play this game, rent it first.

The game is good when it's good, but it's BAD when it's bad.

GRAPHICS: 5/5
This is where the game shines. Models look very nice (albeit cartoonish and misproportioned) and the CAW mode, while undetailed, can make lifelike CAWs that look nothing different from in-game characters.

SOUND: 4/5
Depending on your tastes, you may or may not disagree with my pick for sound. There are some cool songs on here, such as "Headstrong" by Trapt and "Get Away" by Earshot, but if you're not a big fan of these types of bands, you may prefer to get the X-box version (if you have one) and do a custom soundtrack. As far as entrances go, they're OK... a bit repetitive the hundredth time, however. Why a 4/5 then? The simple coolest feature ever in CAW mode: you can choose from a large, pre-voiced list of first names, last names, and nicknames, and the ring announcer will announce your height, weight, hometown (also a pre-voiced list), and your name! It's amusing.

GAMEPLAY: 1/5
This is where the game could be better. Moves are done with the basic concept: Push a button for a basic set-up, push another button to modify it. When it tells you to push a button at a certain time, do it. It's a button-masher's fantasy, as the only skill really involved is the timing of extra-powerful moves, reversals, and to make sure you're not being repetitive with your moves.

OVERALL: 3/5
A good effort by Acclaim, but not worth the price tag. Spend your money on WWE SmackDown!: Shut Your Mouth! instead.