Mr. PSVR-2
Wrestling is a sport that is held dear to many hearts. We each have our favorites. From the high fliers that seem to fight gravity to the technical styles to even the bigger-than-life monsters. Depending on where you live or what you see on T.V., Wrestling can be more of a lifestyle full of blood, sweat, and tears. There are many who have dreams of making it to the big time and others who are determined to become bigger than the moment. But does developer Yuke’s show us what it’s like to truly fight forever? Let’s find out with AEW: Fight Forever for the PlayStation 5.
AEW: Fight Forever is the first-ever AEW licensed game and combines nostalgic arcade wrestling with All Elite Wrestling finishers and moves, as well as bringing the best of the best from that talent roster together in one game that features sequences of team maneuvers performed with simple commands. Featuring a big roster of AEW talent, multiple match types, robust career mode, tons of customization options, more than 40 weapons, and online co-op wrestling is going completely next level in Fight Forever with Tag Team matches and so much more. So, before going out to become a world champion, there are a few things that you should be aware of. First, make sure that the DualSense controller is charged. You don’t want to pull off the high-flying move only to become motionless and have Chris Jericho give you the Judas Effect, all because you forgot to charge it, now do you? Second, there is no need to rush through anything. Take your time and learn your craft. And finally, have some fun. With all that said, let’s continue.
Now, when you first start, you are going to get to enjoy the nice video package that is put in place here. Basically, you are getting a crash course on AEW and how you can create your own unforgettable moments, where your legend is born, and where your memories will live on forever. Then on the main page, you get to see just some of the wrestlers from AEW that you can select from, such as Orange Cassidy, The Young Bucks, Adam Page, and even Stink. Yes, the game already has this presence about it and gives off the Monday Night Wars vibes in a way.
One thing you will notice throughout the game is that you will see different pics of the wrestlers with their quotes. On the main menu, you have some choices. You can go into the Exhibition, where you can play 1-on-1, 2-on-2, 3-Way Match, 4-Way Match, Casino Battle Royale, Exploding Barbed Wire Death Match, Ladder Match, Mini games, and Training. You also have the choice to take your wrestling skills online, customize your own wrestler, try different challenges, or use what you earn in the shop. The choice is really up to you.
There will be players who will want to spend some time in the beginning to customize their own wrestler, and some who will want to get their hands dirty and jump right in. I decided to get used to everything, so I jumped right in. But before any wrestler gets into the squared circle, they have to go through some sort of training. So you will need to pick your wrestler and pick someone you want to train against. Since it’s all about the boom, I went with Adam Cole and decided to go against Jeff Hardy. Plus, it never hurts to receive advice from Taz, does it?
Now, with training done, here are just a few of the basics you will want to keep in mind. To enter the ring, tag, or climb the turnbuckle, you need to press L2. To evade a move (or attempt to), tap L twice in the same direction, L1 to pin, R2 to pull out a weapon, and to perform an Irish Whip, just use the left thumb stick and press R2 during a grapple.
I decided that the Road to Elite mode (career), which showcases AEW over year 1 and leads to different PPVs you will compete in, was what I was interested in doing. As I started and remembered when AEW first started and how Chris Jericho was at the press conference, and that he said he was part of the company, and that video starts to play. Picking Kenny Omega, I decided to start my journey of becoming light, even though technically, Kenny is part of the Elite, it was still a fitting choice. Again, this is all bout choices here. I went through the Casino Battle Royale just to prove myself at Double or Nothing. Needless to say, there were many tough competitors, but there can be only one winner.
When you do wrestle other wrestlers, there will be a fun sense of just mashing buttons and seeing some of your favorite moves that you perform as well as being performed on you. Nothing like being hit with a ladder while trying to climb a ladder, only to be hit with something from underneath the ring. You will see an indicator when you can pin, and when you have done enough damage, or what appears to be enough, you will have an indicator to execute your finishing move. I will say it is fun to see, but there are times when it didn’t execute, even though the times before it would. But when you have been laid out flat, flown out of the ring, or diving off the turnbuckle onto the floor, and then have the opponent move just in time, my personal favorite, you are going to try to recover and get back to your feet. There is no indication of what buttons or how fast you need to mash them in order to do so. So good luck with this part. I had fun for the most part until there was a tag match, and I couldn’t go in to break the three-count because there was no indication.
In between matches, you will fly city to city, and you will want to make sure your levels are up, which can be done in a variety of ways. You can go out to eat as you need to replenish your energy, go see the sights, do press, go to the hospital if needed (in case you got injured from the exploding barbed wire death match or hit with a barbed wire baseball bat), work out, and mini-games. The mini-games are crazy and fun, from things such as quizzes to collecting chips to even following the leader.
Part of the fun is also customizing your own wrestler and starting your own journey of becoming elite. You can customize everything from your face to what type of boots you have. One interesting thing I want to point out is that you can actually put your social media handle or have whatever you want to have it read after the @ symbol. So when customizing my character, I decided to go in different directions. I wanted something where it was a combination of Braveheart, mixed in some old wrestling faction, and had that classic wrestling look.
Keep in mind, that some outfits will not work with what you pick, so the Christmas sweater could not be selected nor could my Hockey helmet. Some items, like wrestlers, have to be unlocked or purchased, such as theme songs or even moves. So pressing on, I was able to pick the type of wrestler I was going to be, my entrance, my song, my finishing moves, and even how my name was announced. So even though I do a majority of PlayStation VR/2 reviews, V and R were on the pre-selected list of names, so when I get announced, it says VR. But my wrestler looks as if Scott Steiner, Macho Man Randy Savage, Goldberg, Benie, and NWO & NWO Wolfpac were all mashed into one.
So what does one do when they create their own wrestler, and they have everything like they want it? They challenge an icon like Sting to an exploding barbed wire deathmatch, and all I can say is, Sting, I am coming back for you.
Let’s talk about the graphics and sound. With the graphics, there is a great representation here of the different arenas, merchandise, and wrestlers. Now, do some wrestlers look better than others? Yes. Are some so unrecognizable that you will never want to not select them? No. But there were times when I noticed that in between matches, some wrestlers looked better there than when wrestling against a few of them. That’s not taking away from anything. It has to be a challenge to try to get every wrestler’s likeness at every angle of every possible movement. Some are just going to work better than others. With the sound, it did sound good for the most part. Hearing the cheers and boos from the crowd, the music, and those chops sounded great. But when it came from parts where we were talking, there were times when it sounded like it was being read off a page and not nearly as heartfelt as the heart that you hear on the commentary.
There are some things that I would love to see. First, more wrestlers. Yes, it can unlock certain characters such as Cody Rhodes, Brodie Lee, Paul Wright, and Owen Heart. For example, to unlock Owen Heart, you have to win 100 exhibition matches against the computer or unlock Brodie Lee by triggering to join the Dark Order, and more are coming via DLC, but what about those that enter the “Forbidden Door”? There are so many great wrestlers out there, just keep them coming. Second, more choices. You do have choices, such as joining the Inner Circle, but having more choices to see even more ways for stories to be played out would be a nice touch. Third, multiplayer. I know I didn’t really mention online multiplayer. It’s in the game, and I even tried it on multiple occasions, but I never had the opportunity to test it out. So I am not sure if there was something going on, just no one was playing at the time I was, or a server issue. But it would be nice to see how many players were online. Or maybe have a different way set up for how players would like to take the fight online. And finally, even more items are to be added for customization.
AEW: Fight Forever gives us that old-school arcade action while allowing us to fight forever. It takes away the what-ifs, and brings the chair shots, ladders, and explosions, all with letting some crazy fun. We all have dreams, no matter how big or small they may be. Some of us have limitations to be able to achieve them fully, but for those with dedication and heart, anything is possible on our road to becoming elite.
AEW: Fight Forever is out now for PlayStation 5 on the PlayStation Store or at a retailer near you. A review code was provided. To learn more about Yuke’s, please visit their site and follow them on Twitter. To learn more about AEW Games, please visit the site, like them on Facebook, and follow them on Twitter. To learn more about AEW, please visit their site, like them on Facebook, and follow them on Twitter.
In case you missed the trailers, please enjoy. Until next time, I have more matches to wrestle in.
