People can complain all they want about M.U.S.C.L.E., but at least it's mildly playable. Tag Team Wrestling has some of the worst controls known to man.
I remember playing Tag Team on the Apple II and remember being frustrated how bad in general the wrestling games of that era were and not understanding why they couldn't be made better This game, however, would be the case example. It likely tainted my interest in wrestling video games, and I've always leaned more towards sports games, particularly soccer and basketball starting back then.
No, not really. There were one or two WCW titles I played a few times that were ok I thought but I didn’t get into them and play on the frequency anywhere near what I did with the sports and fighting games. Do you have any recommendations?
I just remember playing them with a friend of mine who was really into wrestling. Can't remember any specific titles, unfortunately. They seemed fine to me at the time, but hard to say how they've aged these days.
Most wrestling games from that era don't hold up, but there are a few that are enjoyable to play. Check out Sega's Mat Mania if you can; it was pretty good.
I didn't just play Tag Team Wrestling; I beat it and thoroughly reviewed it. I may be the only person on Substack to be an official SUPER CHAMPION at Tag Team Wrestling. My triumph over the Strong Bads is proof of my indefatigable will and utter stupidity. The game is as bad as you say it is, and the Strong Bads' invincibility activates so frequently that later matches can only be won by ringout. Still, there's a goofy charm to the title, and I never get tired of hitting the Strong Bads with the TENCHU outside the ring.
That’s so wild. So many early Japanese-developed NES games are difficult to the point of irresponsible. I’m convinced they didn’t want kids beating their games.
I guess you weren’t a Homestar Runner fan, because you didn’t mention that the Strong Bads are the namesake of Strong Bad, the villain (I guess?) from that. Which is definitely the most noteworthy thing about that game.
I really don’t know much about the creation of HSR though. I imagine there’s a backstory we can all relate to of its creator being stuck with a copy of Tag Team Wrestling as part of a very limited NES collection.
Mascross is Strong Bad, Worley is Strong Mad, and the Cheat hangs out with them because the Strong Bads team cheats very frequently in Tag Team Wrestling.
People can complain all they want about M.U.S.C.L.E., but at least it's mildly playable. Tag Team Wrestling has some of the worst controls known to man.
Preach it, brother!
It basically becomes a turn-based RPG after a while, because there's nothing you can do to stop the Strong Bads when they turn red.
I remember playing Tag Team on the Apple II and remember being frustrated how bad in general the wrestling games of that era were and not understanding why they couldn't be made better This game, however, would be the case example. It likely tainted my interest in wrestling video games, and I've always leaned more towards sports games, particularly soccer and basketball starting back then.
I don't blame you for eschewing the 8-bit wrestling titles after Tag Team, but did you ever get into the N64 wrestling games?
No, not really. There were one or two WCW titles I played a few times that were ok I thought but I didn’t get into them and play on the frequency anywhere near what I did with the sports and fighting games. Do you have any recommendations?
I just remember playing them with a friend of mine who was really into wrestling. Can't remember any specific titles, unfortunately. They seemed fine to me at the time, but hard to say how they've aged these days.
Most wrestling games from that era don't hold up, but there are a few that are enjoyable to play. Check out Sega's Mat Mania if you can; it was pretty good.
I didn't just play Tag Team Wrestling; I beat it and thoroughly reviewed it. I may be the only person on Substack to be an official SUPER CHAMPION at Tag Team Wrestling. My triumph over the Strong Bads is proof of my indefatigable will and utter stupidity. The game is as bad as you say it is, and the Strong Bads' invincibility activates so frequently that later matches can only be won by ringout. Still, there's a goofy charm to the title, and I never get tired of hitting the Strong Bads with the TENCHU outside the ring.
https://daysoffictionpast.substack.com/p/the-first-pro-wrestling-game-tag
That’s so wild. So many early Japanese-developed NES games are difficult to the point of irresponsible. I’m convinced they didn’t want kids beating their games.
I guess you weren’t a Homestar Runner fan, because you didn’t mention that the Strong Bads are the namesake of Strong Bad, the villain (I guess?) from that. Which is definitely the most noteworthy thing about that game.
I caught the Strong Bad reference but failed to mention it. Agreed that it's the most noteworthy thing about the game.
I really don’t know much about the creation of HSR though. I imagine there’s a backstory we can all relate to of its creator being stuck with a copy of Tag Team Wrestling as part of a very limited NES collection.
Mascross is Strong Bad, Worley is Strong Mad, and the Cheat hangs out with them because the Strong Bads team cheats very frequently in Tag Team Wrestling.
Like John Hammond, Data East spared no expense
Looks like Nintendo was already transitioning from the requisite screenshot on the front cover format…
Yeah that was short lived for sure