Preview:
Fire Pro Wrestling
GBA Launch Title
I’m generally not much of a wrestling fan – I catch the occasional bizarre play on Raw is War or Smackdown!, but since Andre left the biz I’ve just been kind of blaise about the whole thing. Sure, I watched Beyond the Mat and Wrestling With Shadows. I find the industry fascinating, especially in its current incarnation. I’ve played some decent wrestling games, and I understand that it is a huge genre, and that’s why I’m telling you about this. Fire Pro Wrestling on the Game Boy Advance is going to be a big title, at least until a really good WWF or WCW title comes out, and maybe even afterward.
Here are the basics: 150 different wrestlers to choose from, over 1,200 different techniques, and customizable costumes and federations. Wow. Those stats alone sound better than most wrestling games on the market, and it’s important to have lots of moves and wrestlers in order to compete with games that usually have somewhere between 20 and 50 wrestlers playable. Sure, the wrestlers of Fire Pro Wrestling aren’t the same folks you see every Sunday night on MTV, but they are appealing. Character designs and costumes vary widely enough to accommodate almost any interest or to imitate almost any real world wrestler you happen to be infatuated with. You can also create your own wrestlers and store them for battle against your buddies.
In addition to the customization of individual wrestlers, you can create and establish your own federation, which ought to provide a good sense of unity between you and your three closest friends while you’re competing in four player tournaments and championships. Lest you worry too much about settings, Fire Pro Wrestling offers multiple rings, including the standard squared-circle, the steel cage, and the ubiquitous caged hexagon a la UFC. And if that’s not enough, just take it out of the ring.
So this summer give mom a break and can that backyard wrestling league you were thinking about starting. Fire Pro Wrestling is much safer and much more fun. It’s the most popular wrestling game on the GBA in Japan right now, and we all know how much the Japanese love their wrestling. Take a page from their book, and start saving that lawn-mowing money now. Fire Pro Wrestling is scheduled to hit with the GBA launch.