This is fine. It isn’t all that special, and it isn’t something I would want to revisit. It is a good-looking port of the arcade game, but there are better wrestling games on the Play Station 1.
This version of WWF WrestleMania: The Arcade Game is closer to the Sega Genesis version. It has the same roster, and that was the only thing separating it from the game’s SNES version. There isn’t much more to say about it.
Given how the PS1 wrestling games would incorporate more features, this game stands out as a bare-bones experience. I ranked this game reasonably high on the SNES and Genesis lists, but it will be near the bottom when I rank it for the PS1.
TLDR: A Solid Port of an Arcade Game, Disappointing when Compared to other PS1 Wrestling Games.
Narrative
Still, no story mode or a create a-wrestler mode. It is another thing that hurts this game as we move through the other wrestling games.
Gameplay
The gameplay is okay. There is a decent roster, and the controls are good, but there isn’t much to the game. You have limited game modes, and things get annoying quickly.
Like the other ports of the game, there are only two game modes. You can play with two players, but there isn’t much beyond these two modes:
- Intercontinental Championship
- WWF Championship
Both of these are gauntlet matches. They play out like fighting games but with WWF wrestlers. Both modes are structured the same way, but the Intercontinental championship gives you a chance to get into the game.
In that mode, you have four one-on-one matches before you face multiple opponents. In the WWF Championship mode, you start fighting two opponents simultaneously. The matches are two out of three falls, similar to how fighting games work.
The roster is fine. It is as good as the Genesis version of the game but a little disappointing compared to the other PS1 wrestling games. The system could do more, and it would’ve been nice if the arcade game had been expanded. Here is the roster in this port of the game:
- Doink
- Razor Ramon
- Yokozuna
- The Undertaker
- Shawn Michaels
- Bam Bam Bigalow
- Bret Hart
- Lex Luger
That is part of the problem here. It is a port of an arcade game, and when it came to the PlayStation, the source material hamstrung the game.
Visuals
This is the best-looking version of the game. It is closer to how the arcade game looks, which is to be expected from the Play Station. I’ve never had an issue with this game’s appearance, and I think this is the best-looking of the console ports.
The game uses digitized graphics, similar to Mortal Kombat. This makes the moves fluid, and the animations look very good. The presentation of the matches also looks very good.
The characters are well-detailed, and the ring looks very good. The crowd also looks excellent. This is a wonderful-looking game.
Because there is a small roster of wrestlers, you’ll end up with a few pallet swaps of characters. While this shows how weak the roster is, seeing some of the different colors is fun. It would’ve been nice if Midway had been able to fit two or four more characters into the game.
Overall, the graphics are great! Everything looks excellent! The digitized characters are fantastic, the ring looks good, and the move animations are awesome.
7.5/10.
Pros
- Great Graphics
- Good Controls
- Decent Gameplay
Cons
- Small Roster
- Few Game Modes
Conclusion
This is an okay game. It is also a product of its time. In the mid-90s, companies were still trying to bring the arcade experience to home consoles. The PlayStation 1 port of WWF WrestleMania: The Arcade did that.
However, the PS1/PSX was capable of much more. The other wrestling games on the console had way more to them than this port. Even the games made for the home console had more features, but the control schemes were pretty bad.
This is an excellent port of an average game. It looks great, but nothing was done to add value to the game. More features would be added when other arcade games were brought to the console, especially in the 90s. Unfortunately, that didn’t happen with this game.