So, here’s a weird bit of history about this site. It was my husband who convinced me to start it, and initially the idea was that he’d be writing for the site, as well. However, it’s not easy to write for the internet, and he never got over that confidence road bump, so it was just me until recently.

Our first project together was going to be playing through all the wrestling games on the N64 and doing tag-team reviews on them. The hook was that I knew nothing about wrestling. Well, mostly nothing. I knew it was scripted, but I didn’t know the supposed rules or how the business worked. I especially didn’t know who any of the wrestlers were outside of, like, Undertaker and Hulk Hogan. It would have been an outsider’s look at the genre. We played through a number of the games, but only my half of the writing ever got done, so the idea was abandoned.

That was 2016, and since then, I’ve learned a lot about wrestling. I don’t keep up with current events outside playing the WWE 2K games, but right now I’ve been watching WCW, starting at the beginning of Monday Nitro and adding in the PPVs. I don’t watch Saturday Night. I’m not that dedicated. Doubt I’ll add Thunder. I don’t have all the time in the world. However, the experience has made it easier to appreciate WCW vs. nWo: World Tour.

4 LIFE

AKI Corporation’s N64 wrestling games are legendary. Technically, their work began with 1996’s WCW vs. The World on PlayStation, but it didn’t have the control system that would make the games that followed so effective. Their run peaked (arguably) and ended (sort of) in 2001 with WWF: No Mercy, which is still sometimes considered the best pro wrestling game ever made. That’s some real longevity.

So, some history for all you jabronis out there. In 1997, when WCW vs. nWo: World Tour was released, World Championship Wrestling was riding high. The promotion had become strong competition against the World Wrestling Federation, especially after the 1995 launch of WCW Monday Nitro, which went head-to-head against WWF Raw in what is known as the Monday Night Wars. They were beginning to gain a lead in the Neilson TV Ratings thanks to their strong talent, a lot of which was pilfered directly from the WWF.

In 1996, they got a rocket up their ass. Scott Hall defecting from WWF along with Kevin Nash began the New World Order storyline. It exploded with Hulk Hogan turning heel (becoming a bad guy), and the company spent nearly two years at the top of the ratings.

The nWo was framed as a renegade group that was bent on taking over the WCW. How that would work within the context of sports isn’t exactly clear, but wrestling often doesn’t make a lot of sense. You should have seen the storylines they were doing leading up to Hogan’s heel turn, they were… something. I was glad to see the end of that Dungeon of Doom and Alliance to End Hulkamania nonsense. 

The nWo angle basically did take over WCW, so for all of ‘97, most storylines became absorbed into this idea of the WCW defending itself from the nWo. Hence the name, WCW vs. nWo.

HE DOES THIS, HE DOES THAT

While this wasn’t the first WCW title from AKI Corporation (though, they were called Man Breeze at the time of vs. World), there’s still a distinct lack of confidence here. I’m not sure if that’s on the part of the developers or the people in charge of the budget, but it’s pretty bare bones. Not only bare bones, but it seems to be based more on Japanese-style pro wrestling (Puroresu) than WCW’s American stylings.

None of WCW’s TV show or PPV sets are accounted for (I don’t even recognize that mat), they’re just kind of rings in a dark room surrounded by bleachers. There are no ring entrances. The championship titles aren’t represented by belts, but rather trophies. There are no special match types beyond singles and tag. There are also only, like, 23 actual WCW wrestlers, so very few mid-carders are included. Also, there’s no Harlem Heat?

The WCW vs nWo angle shows up for the title mode where five WCW-aligned wrestlers are pitted against five nWo dudes. It’s not really the main mode, but it’s kind of enjoyable for what it is. I started with it because I think it’s a fun concept. I can’t even remember who I chose for team WCW aside from Sting as the first guy in the lineup (with his “surfer” gimmick), and that’s because I never lost as Sting. He took on all five nWo members by himself because I’m amazing. Although, I had Eric Bischoff and Fake Sting on the nWo side, which is kind of a handicap for them. I’m still amazing.

The main game is in League mode. Unless you have friends. You choose one of the four available promotions and then go through a series of wrestlers until you win the, er, trophy. Each one unlocks one of the hidden wrestlers.

BLOOD RUNS COLD

I thought WCW vs NWO: World Tour would be difficult to review, simply because it’s the first in the N64 run. I have the foresight of where AKI takes their wrestling later, so World Tour is pretty quaint compared to what I’m used to. I felt that the only thing to say would be that it’s deficient, even in comparison to the follow-up, WCW/NWO Revenge.

And it is deficient, so I was sort of correct. As I mentioned, there are no special matches and only 23 WCW wrestlers (though there are other, thinly disguised folks from other promotions). There aren’t as many move and abilities. Some of the wrestlers are barely recognizable, both because of how off their faces can be and because they don’t come equipped with their actual finishers.

Yet, it’s still fun. While it’s missing some notable wrestlers, the central ones are there. Ric Flair, Hollywood Hogan, the Steiner brothers, Lex Luger, Sting, Rey Mysterio Jr., and others. Diamond Dallas Page and Macho Man Randy Savage have to be unlocked, which is lame, but at least they’re in there.

SNAP INTO IT

Out of the gate, AKI’s grapple system makes a strong showing. It’s simple; there are some specialized actions on the C-buttons and shoulders, but mostly, it’s the grapple and strike buttons that get the most loving. Essentially, you tie up with the A button, but there is a strong and weak tie-up. If you tap the button, it’s a weak grapple, but if you hold it, you get a good grip. Once tied up, you can then press either the grapple or strike button to perform a move. Combine that with a direction on the d-pad (not the stick), and you have control over your wrestler’s repertoire. If your special meter is full, you can flick the joystick and perform a finisher.

Pretty easy. You just have to remember what direction on the d-pad does what move.

There are also buttons assigned to running, pinning, getting in and out of the ring, tagging your partner, and so on. You’re in good shape with the fundamentals, and from there you can learn to climb the turnbuckles or leap out to ringside.

Compared to later games, it’s rather stiff. There are no running grabs, which sucks if you want to play as an agile wrestler. It’s also held up by what was possible with 15-or-so devs working on the N64. So there are annoyances, such as doing aerial moves, which will only count as a hit as long as your opponent hasn’t started their animation to get up. Also, I found that actually going ringside was rare.

However, it still plays pretty well, and while it’s not as fast as most actual wrestling matches, it’s still closer to a genuine performance than the current formula of the WWE 2K series. It’s also miles better than most other wrestling games that had come out up to that point. AKI just struck gold with their grapple system.

WHERE THE BIG BOYS USED TO PLAY

Going back to the lack of confidence, a lot of the wrestlers aren’t really good reflections of the genuine article. The important ones have their finishers, but some of the taunts are pretty interchangeable. The worst I found was Rey Mysterio Jr. A lot of his move lists are variations of leverage pins, which doesn’t feel effective. He’s a high-flyer and there isn’t much high-flying in World Tour, but having his move list being so ineffective is… unfortunate. I had to concentrate to make sure I hit one of the few directions that were straightforward attacks, so I didn’t just keep pinning my opponent.

I also don’t like tag matches, but that might be a personal thing. They just take longer, and they feel more exhausting. They’re not bad if you have a second player, but by yourself, it feels like walking through mud while trying to juggle.

But I digress. WCW vs. nWo: World Tour is still a fun game, but nowadays it’s really only worthwhile if you want to see how AKI’s run of wrestling titles began. The follow-up, WCW/nWo Revenge, is a big improvement in terms of… everything. And then it only goes up from there, with WWF WrestleMania 2000, WWF No Mercy, and the Japan-only Virtual Pro Wrestling 2 all being top of the heap in games about people expertly trained to not hurt each other in the ring. 

Even if you just want a game that captures WCW during its height, WCW/nWo Revenge does it. It does it better than World Tour. So, as good as World Tour is, and as great as it was in its day, it’s now simply skippable.

5/10

This review was conducted on an N64 using a cartridge copy of the game. It was paid for by the author.