Given the number of reunion shows, anniversaries, and guest appearances on television, modern wrestling is steeped in nostalgia. But it’s not just limited to television — fans who play video games have experienced it, too. Pretty much every recent WWE game of the past decades has featured a roster of legends and throwback content, but fans may have forgotten there was a series of games entirely focused on the classic competitors of yesteryear.
From 2001 to 2004, there have been three games in the Legends of Wrestling series, featuring loads of content for fans of several different eras of the sport. Let’s take a look at what fans should know about these games.
10 Not Affiliated With WWE
The rosters of the Legends of Wrestling games feature myriad WWE legends including icons like Hulk Hogan, Rowdy Roddy Piper, and Andre The Giant among countless others. Given that fans may be surprised to find out that the series is not affiliated with WWE but rather created by Acclaim Entertainment, which put out WWE games in the 1990s. In fact, five years after the last installment of Legends of Wrestling, WWE came out with its own nostalgia based grappling game in 2009’s Legends of WrestleMania, which featured many of the same wrestlers but with a focus on the history of ‘Mania.
9 Features Rosters From Across The World & Various Eras
The Legends of Wrestling games certainly rely on WWE stars like The Ultimate Warrior and Bret Hart, but they’re not limited to just the Golden Era. In addition to the wrestlers fans of 1980s and 1990s WWE might hope for, the games also feature a number of old school wrestlers like Ivan Koloff, Dusty Rhodes, and Abdullah the Butcher as well as some later performers like Rob Van Dam, Sting, and Diamond Dallas Page. The roster isn’t limited to singles guys, however — there’s also a healthy number of tag teams including The Road Warriors, The Steiner Brothers, The Von Erichs, and The Rock ‘n’ Roll Express.
8 The UK Version of Legends Of Wrestling 2 Features Exclusive Characters
The Legends of Wrestling games were released in Europe as well as in the United States, and fans in the UK certainly have their own wrestlers they’re nostalgic for. After all, England’s World of Sport was an institution in many homes from 1965 to 1985, which Legends of Wrestling 2 acknowledged by featuring exclusive playable wrestlers for the European players.
Alongside British legends like Mick McManus and Kendo Nagasaki, European fans were also able to play as Giant Haystacks and Big Daddy, who had one of the definitive feuds in British wrestling.
7 Legends Of Wrestling 2 Introduced Promoters & Managers
Besides extra incentive for the European market, Legends of Wrestling 2 delivered a couple of important innovations for fans of old-school wrestling. First of all, this sequel introduced managers that accompany the wrestlers to the ring, including Jimmy Hart, Bobby Heenan, and forgotten 1970s and 1980s WWE manager The Grand Wizard. Additionally, Legends 2 introduced promoter characters that wrestlers interact with in the story mode — analogues of real promoters like Jim Crockett, New Japan’s Hiro Matsuda, and Vince McMcMahon — who are also unlockable as playable characters.
6 The Games Included Documentary Footage
As established, fans of the WWE games have for years been treated to special content in addition to the gameplay like archival footage and other features. Fans playing a nostalgic game like Legends of Wrestling 2 received the same treatment, but it went beyond simple footage of old matches. For the game, new interviews were shot, with some of the legends featured in the game talking about their careers in the wrestling business including their favorite opponents.
5 Showdown: Legends of Wrestling Featured Real Arenas
The Legends of Wrestling games generally strive for authenticity in service of maximum nostalgia, but one area where the initial releases ultimately faltered was in arenas. Both Legends of Wrestling and Legends of Wrestling 2 featured increasing numbers of varying arenas, but they were all fictionalized locations like “Iguana Hotel & Casino” or generic ones like “Tokyo.” The third game in the franchise, Showdown: Legends of Wrestling rectified this with actual notable arenas in pro wrestling history including the Madison Square Garden, the Tokyo Dome, and the Cow Palace.
4 Jimmy Hart Did The Music For The Last Two Games
One crucial aspect of any wrestling game is the music, especially in games that feature entrance sequences before the match. For the entrance music in the last two games, Legends of Wrestling 2 and Showdown: Legends of Wrestling, the entrance music was composed by classic manager Jimmy Hart, who composed much of the entrance music for WCW in the 1990s as well as Hulk Hogan’s album, Hulk Rules.
Outside of entrance music, Legends of Wrestling 2 also featured some contemporary rock music — not unlike the soundtracks of modern WWE games — featuring tracks from bands like Saliva and The Used.
3 Features “Create-A-Legend” Modes
For over two decades, pro wrestling fans have come to expect a robust character creation suite in their pro wrestling games, and modern games like WWE 2K22 have certainly delivered in that regard. While obviously the attraction of the Legends of Wrestling games is the ability to play with old school wrestlers, these games also feature Create-A-Wrestler modes, called “Create-A Legend.” Of course, like with pretty much every Create-A-Wrestler mode worth its salt, Legends of Wrestling also allowed players to customize their creations’ movesets.
2 Legends Of Wrestling 2 Introduced Jobbers
Another aspect of old school television wrestling is the squash match, where an important wrestler demolishes some practically nameless jobber within minutes. While a number of jobbers have ascended to legendary status, Legends of Wrestling 2 recreated the experience of watching a good old-fashioned jobber squash thanks to the presence of generic jobber characters. Specially created for the game, these NPCs — with names like “Bubba Jones” and “Slick Reed” — are strictly enhancement talent to the point where they aren’t actually playable.
1 Showdown: Legends Of Wrestling Featured Commentary
Since the days of WCW Mayhem for the Sony PlayStation, commentators in wrestling games have increasingly been a staple of pro wrestling games. While the first two Legends of Wrestling games didn’t have commentary, Showdown: Legends of Wrestling became the first installment of the series to feature commentary provided by Tony Schiavone, Bobby Heenan, and Larry Zbyszko, who famously called WCW shows in the 1990s. Despite the star power, however, the commentary in the game wasn’t well received, as players felt it was quite repetitive.