TNA iMPACT! Hands-On

ATLANTA--Samoa Joe, A.J. Styles, Christian Cage, Christopher Daniels. Pay attention to these names, wrestling video game fans, because these stars and a host of others will be coming your way with Midway's upcoming TNA iMPACT!, the debut game based on the five-year old wrestling promotion. Tonight, on the eve of TNA's Bound for Glory pay-per-view event, we got to try out iMPACT! for the first time to see what Midway is bringing to the genre that, at least here in the States, has been dominated by the WWE for so long.

We'll admit to skepticism before playing iMPACT! After all, practically any game can look good in trailer format, and Midway's trailer for iMPACT! looks good indeed, full of fast-moving action, and spot-on character models. After having seen actual gameplay--and tried the game for ourselves--we're happy to report that, yes, the game's pace is nice and quick, and, yes, those character models look just as good as the trailer indicates. Models for Samoa Joe and Chris Daniels are dead-ringers for the real thing, and small details, such as skin textures (all of which are based on the wrestler's real skin texture--scars, scratches, and all) and gleaming sweat beads make iMPACT's wrestler models look good straightaway.

Getting the wrestlers to look like their real selves is only half of the battle. The real proof in the pudding is in how the wrestlers move. After all, for a wrestling game being built from the ground up, one of the biggest challenges for the developers of iMPACT! is creating a set of moves to work from. All of it is new--every punch, every kick, every arm bar, every reaction shot--and all of it has been motion-captured over the past several months to build the ever-growing library of animations that will help bring the great-looking character models to life.

Talking to the wrestlers involved in the game--A.J. Styles told us he, Samoa Joe, and Daniels have been involved with the project from the get-go--you can tell how passionate they are about creating a great wrestling game. The motion-captured moves you see happening in the game weren't captured by scrubs from the local gym--those are the actual moves from the actual TNA talent, as evidenced by the long hours they spent in the mo-cap studios. Ask TNA wrestler Sonjay Dutt, who got banged up during one session performing one of his dangerous high-flying moves.

The build of iMPACT! we played was a work-in-progress (developers said the game was a bit over halfway complete). As a result, the only playable matches in the game were of the one-on-one variety with just a small representative sample of the TNA wrestlers that will be part of the final game. For those who are keeping score, here's the roster that was on hand: A.J. Styles, Samoa Joe, Kurt Angle, Scott Steiner, Eric Young, Abyss, Sting, Chris Sabin, Christian Cage, Hernandez, Homicide, Jeff Jarrett, and Rhino. Because the developers are still in the process of collecting and assigning move sets, all of the characters in the game were using the same moves (resulting in some hilarious moments when the monster Abyss perfectly executed backflips off the top rope). In the months leading up to the game's release in spring 2008, the developers will be working to ensure that all the wrestlers in the game have their own individual styles that match up with how they actually work in the ring. In addition, the game will add additional features and game modes that are currently missing, including Ultimate X matches, tag-team bouts, online play, the create-a-wrestler feature, and the game's story mode.

As for what is currently in the game, well, it's a good start to say that iMPACT! is going to play quicker than long-time wrestling game fans might expect. Players zip across the mat (you can run simply by holding down the right trigger), and all the moves performed by the wrestlers are snappy and have a nice sense of impact to them.

Controls are straightforward and easy to pick up. You move with the left stick, and the basic moves--kick, punch, and grapple--are performed with the A, X, and Y buttons, respectively. The left button acts as a modifier, and can turn your standard kick to the gut into a flying kick to your opponent's thighs that will send him face-first into the mat. When running, you can perform moves such as flying head-butts and drop kicks, the former of which was extremely overpowered in the build we played; you could pretty much nail your opponent with the move any time you wanted. Needless to say, developers are still in the process of balancing the various moves in the game.

Other controls include the B button for action moves, the right and left button pressed together to do a variety of taunts with your wrestler, and the right button by itself to counter strikes and grapples. The timing window for counters seemed a little generous for our tastes, despite there being an onscreen indicator to clue you in on when you could attempt a counter. Multiple counters will be possible to string together until one player is able to pull off the move. In addition, the game will also include combo strike moves, such as a succession of kicks you can pull off with just a few presses of the button.

The game didn't seem to have much in the way of submission moves, and instead it focused on the high-impact moves. We do understand that all the wrestlers will have their own finishers that can be accessed by building up an iMPACT! meter located in the corners of the screen. In addition, a color-coded damage indicator will give you a good idea of how your wrestler is faring as the match progresses: Green is good, orange is bad, and red--well, if you're red, you'd best not get pinned. However, getting pinned will result in a minigame where you have to shake the right or left stick back and forth as fast as you can before the 1-2-3 count. The faster you move the stick, the quicker you'll fill up an onscreen meter; fill it completely and you'll kick out of the pin, often at the last second. The developers are adding more of these little minigames (such as one where you have to escape from a backbreaker hold by timing your button press with a green icon that moves back and forth quickly across a horizontal meter).

iMPACT!'s presentation will appear much like the weekly television program, with lively fans at ringside (and hotspots outside the ring that you can bash your opponent into), colorful lighting, and of course, TNA announcers Mike Tenay and Don West at ringside calling all of the action. We personally can't wait to see how loud Don West screams. We don't even care what he's talking about.

Our first impressions of TNA iMPACT! were very positive. Certainly, Midway has plenty to do, not only to finish this game, but to catch up to the depth and breadth of its grappling-game competition. Still, as a first effort, iMPACT! seems well on its way to capturing the exciting, upstart spirit of the promotion it's based on. Stay tuned for more on iMPACT! in the coming months as we lead up to its release in spring of next year.