WWF Royal Rumble (2000 video game)
A nine-wrestler arcade brawler based on the 2000 Royal Rumble.
WWF Royal Rumble is a professional wrestling video game released in 2000 for arcades and the Dreamcast. Published by THQ for the Dreamcast and by Sega for arcades, it is based on the World Wrestling Federation and its annual Royal Rumble event, taking influence from the 2000 edition. Developed by Yuke's, the game features support for up to nine wrestlers on screen simultaneously and marks the first WWF video game appearances of Kurt Angle and Tazz.
Quick Facts
- Developer
- Sega Software R&D Dept. 1; Yuke's (Dreamcast)
- Publisher
- Sega (Arcade); THQ (North America/Europe); Yuke's (Japan)
- Genre
- Fighting, sports
- Modes
- Single player, multiplayer
- Platforms
- Arcade, Dreamcast
- Arcade system
- Sega NAOMI
Facts from the source article.
Gameplay
The game offers two modes: Exhibition and Royal Rumble. In Exhibition mode, the player selects a wrestler and a partner, then competes in a series of singles matches. The partner can interfere on command, and these moves can be used repeatedly but require recharging. The goal is to reduce the opponent's life bar through attacks and grappling, then win by pinfall or knockout. Royal Rumble mode is a multi-wrestler match where the player must eliminate a set number of opponents by throwing them over the top rope within a time limit; eliminating opponents adds time, with larger wrestlers granting a higher bonus. Due to the small roster, wrestlers appear multiple times in the same match. Each wrestler has a super meter that fills during a match; when full, it provides an "S" icon that can instantly recover from pin attempts in Exhibition mode or allow re-entry into the ring during a Royal Rumble. This game was Big Show's only appearance with the 2000 roster, as he was removed from WWF SmackDown! 2: Know Your Role and WWF No Mercy following his demotion to Ohio Valley Wrestling; he returned at the following year's Royal Rumble. Kurt Angle and Tazz made their first WWF video game debuts here, before No Mercy and SmackDown! 2.
Reception
The Dreamcast version received average reviews according to Metacritic. Critics faulted the small number of playable characters, which IGN called "paper thin" and GameSpot's Jeff Gerstmann described as confining, as well as the lack of modes. IGN recommended other Japanese Dreamcast wrestling titles such as Toukon Retsuden and Giant Gram instead. PlanetDreamcast gave it a low score of four out of ten over a month before release. Daniel Erickson of NextGen stated the game is neither deep nor revolutionary but overall fun. Famitsu scored it 30 out of 40.
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