Players: 1 or 2 On the: Ps2 (reviewed) and Xbox Rated: Mature (Intense Violence, blood, mature sexual themes, and strong language)

Opening Thoughts

I went into this game expecting it to be a bad game. The reviews were either lukewarm or bad, so this set my expectations low. Those expectations were shattered, I like this game more then I should like anything about wrestling in it, or has the members of grudge group Insane Clown Possie featured in it. Though mindless and flawed at times, it comes through as a fun rental or cheap buy.

Graphics

Average and more average. Characters tend to have a blank expression on their face while they are being beaten. The graphics aren\'t what drew me in, but they are serviceable. I give it a B.

Sound

Moans, groans, and metal music. Yippee. I wasn\'t really interested in this area either. The sound is as forgettable as the movie \'Taking Lives\'. I give it a C.

Game Play and Controls

The best part of the game. The controls work well enough, but the game play is what drew me in. The idea is your an underpaid and underappreciated backyard wrestler who goes around a inflicts pain for fun. The game play is really hardcore, violent bashings not only with fists but with every thing else. The level of interaction is simply amazing. I tossed a foe from a tree house. He plunged about 10 feet and landed on a table, breaking it and damaging him severely. My jaw dropped as I grated an enemy\'s face with a lunch box and then elbow dropped him. Unfortunately, this category has a flaw that made me laugh hard. You can toss things like cans around the arena and damage any opponent, which isn\'t a bad thing, but some of the throws are homing and hit you no matter how far you run. That flaw I over look and give an A- to this department.

Offensive Content

Yep, the hardcore trailer park lifestyle of this game means offensive content. With \'artists\' like the Isane Clown possie\' and \'Rancid\' supplying a \'hardcore\' sound track, you know their are going to be F bombs everywhere and their are tons of F bombs in the game. Some characters come off as racial offensive, such as Gupta, an Indian character who speaks like Apu from the Simpson?s. Violence is also a given, and its really bloody, but not gory. Characters also dance suggestively and the menu has a FMV loop of scantily clad women posing and touching them selves. This game gets an F.

Closing thoughts

As offensive as it is, I do not recommend it to the young ones in the house. If you have patience for the obscene, this is a fun game. Overall, I score backyard wrestling a C-.