WWE Legends is a fun trip to the past but not the grand slam most had hoped for.
Legends is a fun game but it does have its flaws. Yuke's tried to keep the old school wrestling fans in mind when they were designing this game. It is a fast paced, arcade style wrestling title that does seem to resemble Acclaim's Legends of Wrestling series in some ways. The control scheme was attempted to be made easier to use then the Smackdown vs. Raw series but according to most fans it didn't really work. I personally, didn't mind the controls though they are not perfect. At times the controls did feel stiff and sometimes not accurately responsive. The new chain wrestling feature was a neat idea and adds fun to matches. It involves you having to press the correct button that pops up on the screen before the other player during a chain grapple. Pulling off moves is simple and you have 3 levels of grapple moves you can achieve in matches which gives you different moves in each of the 3 sets. They tried to make this game a little different then Smackdown vs. Raw games which I applaud. It isn't a game that was recycled from Smackdown vs. Raw content with Legends models added in at the last minute. The game features over 40 legends and chronicles Wrestlemania's 1 to XV. You can compete at Wrestlemania's 1 to XV or even have a match at the classic Royal Rumble venue.
The big feature in the game is the Wrestlemania Tour mode. The game places you in a classic Wrestlemania match that you choose from the list. The game shows you a video that shows what happened in the events leading up to the match as well as footage from the match. You have to earn achievements during the match which are shown on a list with details on how to get each achievement. You need to reach a certain score to get the gold medal and unlock the next match on the list. You can either relive, rewrite, or redefine classic Wrestlemania matches in this game mode and it is a real treat. The next big game mode is the Legend Killer mode. You get to take a created superstar and you must take on a list of 10 legends in a gauntlet style match. The more matches you win the more points you earn to use to improve your created superstar. You can also earn medals that you can view in the Hall of Fame. There is also online gameplay featuring a variety of matches so you can battle against people across the world. The Create-A-Legend mode is pretty awesome and allows you to add great detail to your creations as well as make legends that didn't make it to the game. There is a variety of game modes featuring Hell in a Cell, Cage, Ladder, Submission, Royal Rumble and more. Some are disappointing and I will get into that soon. I love the improved Cage match and Tag Team matches. You can even import the roster from Smackdown vs. Raw 2009 to create Legends vs. current superstars for classic battles! Andre the Giant vs. Big show anyone? One of the greatest features in the game by the way. Finding the game too easy or matches too quick? In the options you can adjust the game mechanics to your liking which is a blessing to have. Increase the occurance of CPU's reversal attempts, the amount of damage moves can do and the difficulty of winning chain grapples.
Graphics are fantastic and make the game feel very realistic. Top notch audio and lighting just sweeten that package as well. Hearing the fans chant "HOOOOO!" when Hacksaw Jim Duggan is in action or hearing "WARRIOR, WARRIOR!" when tossing people around as the Ultimate Warrior makes you feel like your actually in attendance. This game also has the best looking audience models I have seen to date and bests recent sports games. You get commentary from Good ol' J.R. and Jerry "The King" Lawlor. The game is very colorful and recreates the classic WWE years.
Now for some negatives. Like I said earlier, the controls are sometimes stiff and not totally responsive. Some of the character models are way too big compared to what they look like in real life. Just look at Hulk Hogan's arms for an example. He had 24 inch pythons but I don't remember his arms being this huge! The ladder match totally sucks and was a big disappointment for me! Just try it out and you'll see what I mean. One thing that is totally weird is that in Royal Rumble matches you can't perform grapple moves. Yes, you can do your finisher and top rope attacks but when you go to do a grapple it usually ends up as a punch, headbutt, eye gouge or an elbow to the head. Legend Killer mode is repetitive and gets old fast. Once you complete the main game modes there really isn't much to do except re-creating classic matches. The removal of Create-a-Finisher is a bummer and will make things odd when you go to import a created superstar from SVR 09 and can't use your created finisher. And now for the biggest let down of this game, the missing legends who should have been in this game. I was very disappointed when I realized there is no Macho Man, Ricky Steamboat, Razor Ramon and so many others I could list. The only way your going to re-create Macho Man vs. Steamboat from WM III is if you create them.
Overall though, Legends is still a fun game and will give you about 10-20 hours of enjoyment playing through the main game modes. I really hope there is a sequel that improves on the flaws of this game. Legends is definitely on the right track though and with refinements could possibly be the Wrestlemania of wrestling video games. If you're a hardcore wrestling fan who grew up in the golden age of wrestling, I highly recommend you pick up this title. For others, you may want to give this title a rental. It is not going to please all wrestling fans but as a fan of 20 plus years, I think WWE Legends of Wrestlemania is a worthy game of the WWE license. Now, it's time to go create some classic Wrestlemania moments!