25. The Simpsons Wrestling [PS1] -
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THIS GAME GETS WAY TOO MUCH FLACKI remembered this game being hated by all kinds of influencers but I was unaware that IGN literally gave this game a 1 out of 10. Which is not surprising considering that the integrity of that company just is abysmal. But it's unfair a tad. I'd like to play lawyer or devil's advocate to the game today lol. Is The Simpsons Wrestling a technical tribute of puzzle solving interconnected within a flushed out picture perfect fighting game like Punchout is? No. It's not Tekken 3. But sometimes it seems the sheer amount of hatred this game gets is perhaps overblown and I dare say hive minded from the opinions of YouTubers who are not only critical of this game but all Simpson's IP games or just go in ready to hate games based on other media. I get the criticisms but not the amount or direction of some of them. I played it unbiasedly. I am not even that huge on the fighting game genre. I don't know what people are seeing with this one. Maybe it's me and that's fine. But I will lay out the reasons why the game is not a 1. And why I feel it's a worthy addition to a backlog.
Perhaps a show as idealogically stimulating and revolutionary as The Simpsons was, maybe the expectations are set higher. But if i'm being honest. The game is labeled as this unintriguing dumpster fire of shovelware slop that has no depth and broke controls. Considering each character has it's own individual powers and specialities, considering each character is voiced and includes catch phrases, and factoring that there are multiple changing challenges within the matches themselves already makes the game worth a play. And imo it's totally servicable. To say a game can have all that yet be a 1 is just lazy reviewing imo. And it annoys me a bit. Disliking a game heavily and calling it a 1/10 are two different things. Parappa the rapper is just as broken if not more mechanically (I say much more) and just as limited in depth yet is revered. But I will give the game it's fair just dues from my own subjective POV. Keep in mind. I may be the only human who likes the game. Maybe it's like the movie Shalllow Hal where I am seeing beauty in the ugly.
THE MEAT AND POTATOES You have 3 championship tournaments to enter. One unlocks the next. The first is the new comers challenge which then evolves into more major titles and the defenders cups ect. You pick your favorite Simpson... for me that was the loveable Lisa. And you just go match to match kicking wholesale Springfield ass. Now what is striking is that the game has unique character abilities that are pretty cute and novel. Barney the local bar fly wields an encompassing noxious belch that essentially provides a toxic film over the ring that continuously hurts the opponet like a poison status effect in pokemon. During matches special items enter the ring. Collect all 5 letters of the word TAUNT and you can then taunt your opponet which creates invincibility cloak. Then some food items have aggrandizing health effects that boost your life to handle more blows. Which is cool. I found myself leaving combat to seek the letters to try to gain upper hand. That's literally rpg elements.
Most of the fights can be won by trampolining off an opponets head over and over which is an actual strat that opponets also try so it's canon to what the devs intended. I would call this a broken part of the game but some characters intentionally defend against it by jumping when you jump or have outside forces to stop you. Pogo pouncing, it feels a lot like a wacky mall arcade. The physics are essentric. But there. The game functions.
Then you also get a special attack which is powered by your special meter. In Lisa's case this was biting the opponets arm and you can keep chewing until the enemy fully depeltes their counter meter by mashing shoulder buttons which is the same way you kick out of a pin. Thumb tapping serenity becomes adreanline when you play in the tougher levels.
Characters like Mr. Burns has a sort of outsider effect where he will throws nukes into the ring to hurt you. Makes for a challenging match againt his butler Smitthers.
So 1/10 equates a unplayable game with not a single good thing to it's credit.
1. Actual Voice Acting
2. RPG Elements
3. Unique Character Abilities
4. Unlockables and strategy based fighting
5. Challenging difficulty and Accurate levels
The consThe pin mechanics seem ugly or forced which they can be. The hit boxes arent perfect sure. And the graphics are a little blocky and ugly even for the time. So with all that said. A 4 or 5 minimum would be fair. But the game just isnt as bad as the consensus. Most haven't played it objectively and I will die on that hill lol. I found a lot to enjoy here. It's even worth a laugh or two like Lisa quoting the philosopher "Homer" which is a bit profound retrospectively.
The thing is fairly rad tbh. The Alvin to my Theodore, a damn buddening sand pit pal from yesteryear that was abused by it's peers but ended up giving you his milk at lunch time. But I don't feel nostalgia goggles are causing my skew in opinion. It's far more quality than I was told. I have played much worse simpsons games and definitely much worse IP shovelware. Much worse beloved PS1 software. Simpson's Wrestling has it's dull repetitions and mundane difficulty curve that can definitely frustrate. It is clunky at times. But it's also a cute arcade style fan fare packed Jelly donut where the jelly is the fun lol. The game actually surprised me.
Rating - 67/100
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I know it's not much, but I am really sorry this has happened. Seeing you around these forums for as long as I have. Feels pretty devastating to know this happened to you. Or anyone. I swear the world just keeps bleeding the good decent people for the benefit of monsters or Greed or AI. It feels like every time I wake up Its like majoras mask or something.. where it feels like you are running against the clock or preparing for an impending doom which can come in like 20 different forms. 
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