Whileprofessional wrestlingis noted for its on-screen theatrics and melodrama, it’s also equally fascinating in the way that backstage exploits shape the outcomes of the show. in the world of simulation games, the prospect of running a pro wrestling company and helping it thrive has quietly become one of the industry’s most interesting genres.
Thesewrestling sim gameshave leaned into the less exposed parts of wrestling, such as the backstage politics and booking of matches that take center stage. Coming into prominence with theTotal Extreme Wrestlinggames, which began withExtreme Warfare Revenge, the genre is full of great contenders, likePromotion Wars, and it has even found its way into the officially licensedWWEgames in the form of GM Mode. This addictive and satisfying concept has made for some truly outstanding games, as the best ones put players right inthe middle of professional wrestling’smost volatile and dramatic environments.
5Pro Wrestling Sim
This Impressive Wrestling Sim Is An Early Access Highlight
Pro Wrestling Simentered Early Access onSteam in 2021 and has become one of the genre’s most overlooked entries, as it combines the slick menu design and depth of hockey and football management sims with the world of Sports Entertainment. With the wrestling sim genre having been codified for the most part,Pro Wrestling Simhas been able to forge its own identity by taking advantage of what the bigger name games miss out on.
Worker contracts feel more flexible, as players can allow wrestlers to take indie dates and expand their abilities outside the scope of the promotion.Pro Wrestling Simfeels somewhat more restrained in the backstage drama and conflicts, playing with a bit more of a measured look at the world of wrestling. Even so, it’s a fantastic game that will hopefully be even better when it leaves Early Access.
4Journey Of Wrestling
This Browser-Based Text Wrestling Sim Is Worth Diving Into
Journey of Wrestlingisa text-based web gamethat features a clean, simple UI and an easy-to-learn system. That’s all surface-level, however, asJourney of Wrestlingis a deceptively deep game that features numerous ways for players to put their mark on the game’s original universe of workers and promotions.
The game also offers scenarios, ones with engaging set-ups like saving a floundering promotion and turning it into a WWE-style juggernaut. It features a brisk tutorial that makes getting into its in-depth world much easier.Journey of Wrestlingoffers local multiplayer to compete against friends, and is a great entry point into the world of pro wrestling simulation games.
3Promotion Wars
A Legendary Pro Wrestling Sim That Is Still Going Strong Over Twenty Years Later
Promotion Warsdates allthe way back to 1999, during the height of the ratings battle between WWF and WCW known as the Money Night Wars. It was calledWrestling Federation Managerback then, but has since evolved into one of the genre’s most celebrated sims. Due toPromotion Warsbeing free-to-play from the beginning, it features real-life promotions and wrestlers, and is constantly being updated and improved.
The different data packs offer wonderfully unique experiences, as players can either start in the modern day with all the glitz and glamor of the current professional wrestling scene, or go back in time to align themselves with either the WWF or WCW. The consistent updates, outstanding UI design, and bevy of options, as well as the fact that it’s been free for over twenty years, is a testament to the passion that creator Adam Jennings has for the project.
2Extreme Warfare Revenge
The Beginning Of Modern Wrestling Sims
Beginning its developmentas a card gamebased on pro wrestling, then evolving into a simple, text-based game,Extreme Warfare Revengetook it to the next level with its 2002 release by introducing new features and a now iconic UI. Where previous versions ofExtreme Warfarerelied on random generation of match results and angles,Revengewas built on allowing a deeper, far more customizable experience based around the player doing it the way they want.
Workers, and the events surrounding player interaction with them, are much improved, as they feel more like real people, each of them with their own personality. Asking someone like The Undertaker or The Rock to take a sick bump will be met with resistance, while players can easily use those same methods to build up lower level workers.EWRalso includes in-game websites that keep up with the history and events that the player produces. It’s an altogether excellent game that birthed the modern wrestling sim as it exists today.
Over the years,Total Extreme Wrestlinghas emerged as a dominant force in the sim genre, and is easily the best way for players to experience owning their own wrestling promotion. With the 2020 iteration, developers Grey Dog Software curated all the best features from previous games and introduced a whole host of new ones. The menus are snappy and responsive, a crucial point in a game about navigating between pages quickly, and the relationship that players can forge with workers is truly outstanding.
Asking a worker to promise to put a young talent over adds some real personality to the whole affair, and the booking screen is as sharp as ever. It is easily the best wrestling sim of all time, and the modding scene is a key highlight. Community made mods offer chances to steer contemporarywrestling history with WWEand AEW, as well as offering historical scenarios like controlling ECW through the 1990s boom period and trying to take on the corporate entities of WCW and WWF. It’s a fantastic package, and one that can become truly addictive in its breadth and customization.
