Showdown: Legends of Wrestling
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| Showdown Legends of Wrestling 3 | |
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| Developer(s) | Acclaim Studios Austin |
| Publisher(s) | Acclaim Entertainment |
| Release date(s) | June 22, 2004 (PS2),(Xbox) (NA) |
| Genre(s) | Fighting, Wrestling, Sports |
| Mode(s) | Single player, multiplayer, online |
| Rating(s) | ESRB: Teen (T) |
| Platform(s) | PlayStation 2, Xbox |
| Media | DVD |
Showdown: Legends of Wrestling is the third installment of the Legends of Wrestling video game series developed by Acclaim Entertainment for the Xbox and PlayStation 2. A version of the game for the Nintendo Gamecube was also planned but was canceled.
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[edit] Roster
A significant coup for Showdown: LoW was the inclusion of much requested fan-favourite wrester Ultimate Warrior who, due to ongoing hostilities and financial disagreements with the WWE, had not been featured in video games since the mid 1990s. The full roster in Showdown: Legends of Wrestling is:
- Abdullah The Butcher
- André the Giant
- Andy Kaufman
- Road Warrior Animal
- Bam Bam Bigelow
- Baron Von Raschke
- Big John Studd
- "Superstar" Billy Graham
- Bob Backlund
- Bobby "The Brain" Heenan
- Bret "The Hitman" Hart
- British Bulldog
- Bruno Sammartino
- "Cowboy" Bob Orton
- Brian Knobbs
- "The Loose Cannon" Brian Pillman
- Captain Lou Albano
- "Mr. Perfect" Curt Hennig
- "Diamond" Dallas Page
- "The Rock" Don Muraco
- Dory Funk, Jr.
- "The American Dream" Dusty Rhodes
- Dynamite Kid
- "Hot Stuff" Eddie Gilbert
- Eddie Guerrero
- Fritz Von Erich
- George "The Animal" Steele
- Grand Wizard
- Greg "The Hammer" Valentine
- "Hacksaw" Jim Duggan
- "The King" Harley Race
- Hulk Hogan
- Iron Sheik
- Ivan Koloff
- Ivan Putski
- Jake "The Snake" Roberts
- Jerry "The King" Lawler
- Jerry Sags
- "The Mouth Of The South" Jimmy Hart
- Jimmy "Superfly" Snuka
- Kerry Von Erich
- Kevin Von Erich
- Killer Kowalski
- King Kong Bundy
- Koko B. Ware
- Mil Máscaras
- Mr. Fuji
- Nikita Koloff
- Nikolai Volkoff
- One Man Gang
- "The Rocket" Owen Hart
- "Mr. Wonderful" Paul Orndorff
- "The Macho Man" Randy Savage
- "The Model" Rick Martel
- "Ravishing" Rick Rude
- Rick Steiner
- Ricky Morton
- Ricky "The Dragon" Steamboat
- Road Warrior Hawk
- Robert Gibson
- Rocky Johnson
- "Rowdy" Roddy Piper
- Sabu
- "Big Poppa Pump" Scott Steiner
- The Sheik
- Sid Vicious
- "Dr. Death" Steve Williams
- Sting
- "The Million Dollar Man" Ted DiBiase
- Terry Funk
- Tito Santana
- "Mr. USA" Tony Atlas
- Ultimate Warrior
[edit] Trivia
- The theme music in the last two games was composed by "The Mouth of The South" Jimmy Hart. Hart appears as a manager in all three games. He also composed some of the theme music for WCW and World Wrestling Entertainment (WWE).
[edit] Reaction
Showdown: Legends of Wrestling was greeted with much derision from critics upon its release. Consumer reaction was negative too, though not excessively so, primarily tempered by the stellar roster available in the game. The inclusion of former WCW commentary team of Bobby "The Brain" Heenan, Tony Schiavone, and "The Living Legend" Larry Zbyszko was welcomed, though the commentary system turned out to be unsophisticated and repetitive. It has undoubtedly the best roster of popular 70s, 80s, and 90s pro-wrestlers, including many 'legends' who didn't appear in the first two games.
The game was riddled with many serious bugs, glitches, crashes, and lock-ups. This suggested that Showdown:LoW was a rushed product with little attention to quality assurance (game testing) on Acclaim's part. Other major negative aspects of the game are terribly stupid opponent AI, sluggish character movement, and frustratingly clumsy game controls. Errors and omissions in the accompanying instruction booklet compounded this.
The character models and ring/arenas were of quite a good standard. Some minor new features included a tribute to deceased legendary wrestlers as well as a Tutorial fully narrated by the "Hitman" himself, Bret Hart. Another major point in the game's favour was the inclusion of many famous arenas used for pro wrestling and many other sports. They included: Madison Square Garden, the Pontiac Silverdome, The Omni, and the Cow Palace.
