WrestleMania X8 on the GameCube is a Disappointing Game

I’ve played three wrestling games on the GameCube at this point. They’ve all been good, which says something about how far video game development has advanced since the NES days. This time, I’m going to be checking out WrestleMania X8 (Eighteen).

This game was released after I had stopped watching wrestling. It was released in 2002, and I was getting ready to leave for the Navy and wasn’t all that interested in the GameCube anymore. It was a weird time for me since I had graduated from high school and had quit my job at Little Caesars.

Like many games released in the 2000s, this one is totally new to me. I haven’t been disappointed by a GameCube game so far, so hopefully this will be good. Let’s check it out and see what it has to offer.

TLDR: A good but disappointing wrestling game.

Narrative

I didn’t see a storyline mode when I started playing this game. There is a “Path of Champions” mode, and I thought that might’ve been a story or career mode. I might’ve missed something, but it doesn’t look like I could find one.

The game also features a “Battle of the Belts,” which lets you go after one of 51 different belts. This would’ve been a good opportunity to have a story, but there isn’t one. This is all a little disappointing.

By not having a career or a story mode, I think this is a step in the wrong direction. Something like this can take away from a great game. It is a bizarre decision not to have something that was becoming a standard for wrestling games.

Gameplay

The game doesn’t have a career mode. While there is quite a bit to do, none of it means much when there is no story. This is something that would’ve been fine for a game in the early or mid-1990s, but in 2002, people were expecting more from their games.

There is a lot to do in the game, and there are a decent number of things you can unlock. I’m not sure it is really worth it, but I like that it is there.

The two main game modes are fine for what they are, but they make me wish I were playing one of the SmackDown games or No Mercy on the N64. There are a lot of match types you can play, but they don’t lead to anything.

The roster is very good! There are a lot of WWF, ECW, and WCW wrestlers on this roster because this was around the time that the WWF bought up its competition. This made for one of the better rosters in a wrestling game at the time.

WrestleMania X8 has very good controls. It is very easy to do all the moves, and while it feels like a simple game, it is still a lot of fun. I had a few issues trying to do top rope moves.

It felt like I was supposed to be playing this with three other people. Without a career mode, you’re left with random matches that would make for a good party game. I don’t know if that was the intention behind it, but that was the impression I got from playing the game.

The gameplay is good overall. My biggest problem is that there isn’t much of it, and things get boring quickly. It was an odd decision by Yuke’s to not have a career mode in the game. It is a feature that feels like it should’ve been standard by 2002.

Visuals

WrestleMania X8 is a good looking wrestling game, but I don’t think it looks as good as Legends of Wrestling II. This looks like an improvement on SmackDown 2, and in a few areas, it looks considerably better. The ring entrances are great, animations on the moves are excellent, and the ring looks very good.

I’ll get this out of the way quickly. The character models don’t look much better than SmackDown 2. I might be wrong, but it seemed the wrestlers received a minor upgrade, while more of the developers’ time was spent on other parts of the game.

Each wrestler has a ring entrance that is similar to what their TV entrances were. They look excellent, and I liked seeing some of my favorite wrestlers coming to the ring. The moves also look very good.

The visuals don’t get in the way of the gameplay. It is great, and I think this is one of the better looking wrestling games that I’ve played. There are things in the game that look better than the Legends of Wrestling games, and a few things that look worse.

Reviews at the Time

This game received good reviews when it was released. Most of the game’s scores were between 7 and 8, which was considered above average back in 2002. I looked at four publications for this game.

GamePro gave the game a 3/5, and the user reviews gave it a 3.2/5. Their biggest issue was with the sound and cage matches. I completely agree that the cage matches in early Yuke’s games were annoying. They also mention that they would rather be playing the Smackdown games.

Game Informer gave the game a 6.5/10, and their “second look” gave it a 5.75/10. This second review would be the lowest score the game received. Neither of the reviewers liked this game that much, with the biggest complaint being a lack of a career mode. The second look reviewer called the game a “gigantic waste of time.”

GameSpot gave the game a 7.6/10. They also criticized the sound, but the reviewer liked the gameplay. In a review that was nearly as long-winded as one of mine, the reviewer said that this was a fun game for wrestling fans who own a GameCube.

IGN gave the game a 7/10. The reviewer seemed to like the gameplay, but had issues with other parts of the game that were mentioned in the previous reviews. In the verdict for the game, they say that the game “does not continue the greatness that (They) experienced with No Mercy and WrestleMania 2000,” on the N64.

Going over these reviews, it seems clear that they were expecting something closer to what was offered on the N64. The lack of a career mode hurt this game. While it looked good and was easy to play, it wasn’t as good as what was previously on Nintendo’s home consoles.

7/10. I was expecting more from a game like this. Not having a career mode was a bad decision, and the game has problems with the AI of opposing wrestlers. It is a game that could’ve been, and should’ve been better than it was.

Pros

• Great Graphics
• Good Controls
• Fun Gameplay

Cons

• No Career Mode
• Bad AI
• Not as good as the games that came before it

Conclusion

There is one small thing that I thought was funny. On the back of the game case is a picture of Hulk Hogan, and the caption reads “All-New Superstars.” It’s amusing to see a 2002 game advertising Hulk Hogan as a new character. The guy has been in two dozen video games by this point.

I was expecting more from this. The gameplay and graphics are good enough, but there are some things missing from the game that I’ve come to expect from other wrestling games. It is a fairly disappointing game.

I felt the same way about this game as I did about Royal Rumble on the Dreamcast. What is here is great, but there isn’t enough of it. It really is a shame.

This was a game that I wanted to like more than I did. There is nothing technically wrong with it, and it is a fun game to play. After appreciating some of its good aspects, I found myself wanting more from it.

If you liked this post, please check out my other wrestling content, such as Legends of Wrestling and Legends of Wrestling II.