It’s no wonder they announced this a week before its release.
I have fond memories of beating the crap out of the WWF Wrestlefest cabinet at the old skating rink around the block. Funny thing is, nostalgia aside, I’m not sure if those feelings stem from a great game or my love of wrestling at the time. After some hands-on time with THQ’s iOS reboot of Wrestlefest, I’m going to assume the latter. THQ should be power-bombed for this shameful effort and tossed into a steel cage with wrestling fans who were really hoping for some quality squared-circle action.
I’m pretty sure I can’t find a Wrestlefest arcade cabinet anywhere in a hundred mile radius of my house, so testing theories on the classic game isn’t going to happen. With that being said, Wrestlefest has proved to be nothing more than a senseless button-masher made for WWE monkeys. Matches consist of smashing the red button for three minutes, watching your superstar perform his signature-move a few times, and then pinning. I’d rather smash my head into a turnbuckle to be completely honest.
Granted, the number of modes is sufficient and, aesthetically, I like its art direction; it’s a stylish modernization of the classic’s look. The sad part is that there isn’t enough to look at considering THQ is locking off content for in-app purchases. All the little complaints that would extend the length of this review another three hundred words are not important. The really reason I don’t like this game is that it’s simply not fun to play. Its control-scheme is too shallow- borderline brainless-and each wrestler is a re-skinned carbon copy of the next. If you were hoping for WWE All-Stars… we’re sorry to disappoint you.