I have been waiting for this game forever, and it finally is here! First off, I would like to say that this was worth the wait. The game was developed by Iguana West and distributed by Acclaim Entertainment, Inc. This game shows that they really worked hard on it.
Graphics: WWF Warzone is shown in a 640x480 High Resolution screen mode (ala NFL QBC '98, NHL Breakaway '98, and All-Star Baseball '99) The faces were video-grabbed and they look great. Each wrestlers body is very smooth and realistic. Also, which is really cool is that each wrestler has 2 outfits you can choose from, and Steve Austin and Goldust have 2 hidden outfits for a total of 4.
Sound: The sound in WWF Warzone is pretty good, but not the best. The entrance music doesn't sound very good (it is MIDI). But wrestlers voices and taunts are great. Also, Jim Ross and Vince McMahon bring you the action ringside. They recorded 90 minutes of commentary! Every wrestler has 2 taunts, the crowd will boo or cheer, and chant your name if you do a good combination of moves throughout the game. Crowd support will help you score extra damage against your opponent.
Modes of play:
WWF Challenge (1 Player) - Fight through a single elimination pyramid to work your way up to gaining the Intercontinental and WWF World titles. Along the way, different wrestlers will come back to challenge you to a gimmick match against him, and you must accept it before continuing. Once you have gained a title, you can defend it against opponents, your progress in this mode can also be saved.
-Singles Match (Up to 2 Players) - Standard 1-on-1 wrestling match. Win by pinfall, submission, count-out, or disqualification. Normal World Wrestling Federation rules apply.
-Tag Team Match (Up to 2 Players; cooperative or teamed with CPU partner) - Standard 2-on-2 Tag Team matchup. Two teams of two members each are paired up against each other, one team member in the ring at a time. Win by pinball, submission, count-out, or disqualification on any one member of the opposing team. Normal World Wrestling Federation rules apply.
-Tornado Match (2 Players; 1P vs. CPU, cooperative or teamed with CPU partner) - 2-on-2 matchup in which two teams of two members each are paired up against each other, with all participants allowed in the ring at the same time. Win by pinfall, submission, count-out, or disqualification on any one member of the opposing team. Normal World Wrestling Federation rules apply.
-War Mode (Up to 4 Players) - 3 or 4-man, every man for himself battle. All participants are allowed in the ring at once. Eliminate by pinfall, submission, count-out, or disqualification. The last participant remaining is the winner. Normal World Wrestling Federation rules apply.
-Steel Cage Match (Up to 4 players) - With up to 4 participants, the first wrestler to climb out of the 16-foot high steel cage wins. You can't climb out until your opponent is severely damaged. The cage itself can even be used as a weapon. You can do moves off the top of the cage, as well as knock an opponent back inside when he's trying to climb out to inflict severe damage. Using the cage can cause bleeding. No holds barred.
-Weapons Mode (Up to 4 Players) - Weapons are laid out around the ring area for all participants to use in the match. They can be brought into the ring and can cause bleeding. There are no disqualification’s or contest. ECW rules applied.
-Training Mode (1 Player) - Learn and practice your moves or touch up on your mat skills on a dummy in the training room. You can command the dummy to perform certain actions for you to practice moves that are used in particular situations, or even get it to try specific moves on you for you to practice your countering skills.
-Royal Rumble (N64 Only; it's actually a modified Royal Rumble match since the N64 can't possibly allow more than four of these detailed 3D models on-screen at once) - With a total of 16 participants, four wrestlers are in the ring at once to battle it out, and a new one enters whenever one has been eliminated by being thrown over the top rope and onto the arena floor. The last man remaining in the ring after all 16 participants have entered is the winner of the Royal Rumble. No holds barred.
-Gauntlet (N64 Only; 1 Player) - Similar to "Raw Endurance" in WWF Raw on SuperNES/Genesis/32X. Survive in a series of matches against six different wrestlers (one at a time) without recovering any strength.
Also, there is a " Create-a-wrestler" which I think is REALLY cool! There is tons of different options to make your perfect wrestler (30 wrestlers can be saved in the controller pack).
Other: The game keeps track of Win/Loss records (even for custom wrestlers). The PSX version has Full-Motion Video sequences (movies) of wrestlers challenging someone to a grudge match in Challenge mode, each wrestler has 5 different ones. There is blood in the game, wrestlers juice in the cage match and the weapons mode but the blood just flies out, it doesn't stay.
Final Word: If you are a wrestling fan this is a must have. And even if your not, you will still have fun with this game. It keeps you busy for hours.
Score: 9 1/2