Leaves a "High" "Mark" for "High Spots"
Most everyone who has played WWF No Mercy will say it is among the very best wrestling games in an era where even people who played wrestling games were not necessarily wrestling fans. N64 wrestling games like this, WCW/NWO: World Tour, and Revenge are what catalyzed my interest of what was to be a socially devastating craze of pro wrestling. No Mercy shares the momentum, frenzy, and brutality of games like Mortal Kombat and Blitz, albeit not in such comic hyperbole, but still feeling like a game that may have been available for arcades. Strikes have weight and impact, grappling maneuvers are myriad and complex, camera angles are dynamic and engaging -- these are crucial aspects to understand why these games are beloved today, because, quite honestly, much of the experience in wrestling matches seems to be based on twitch timing and invisible arbitrary idiosyncrasies which dictate if your wrestler is able to summon the adrenaline necessary to continue. Thus, losing a match is perpetually frustrating. Although there are different match types, there is little deviation in the core objective of the game -- that is to sneakily and non-cogently attempt a pinfall or submission over your opponent. Very often matches will end abruptly or ungracefully, which removes the element of storytelling that has been a principle appeal to wrestling as long as its been around. This was a problem throughout the AKI generation, and had not been changed for this last title on the N64. Well, then what is the real secret for the acclaim of No Mercy? The massive attraction that swarms this game, even today, has never been for its innovation inside squared circle, it lies instead in the the bevy of customizable features appended to the creation modes.
Discussions of Create-A-Wrestler typically start and end when with No Mercy (that is unless your conversing other is a true aficionado of the Fire Pro series). In this mode, one can create vastly different character appearances due to color swaps and attires that are not necessarily shared by the other licensed wrestlers, change the personality of his or her entrance with implausibly numerous gesticulations, lose nights of sleep by assigning front grapples, back grapples, primary strikes, secondary strikes, tertiary strikes, running strikes, running grapples, evasions while running, evasions while ducking, strikes while ducking, taunts while ducking, taunts while standing up, taunts while on the apron, taunts on the turnbuckle, grapples toward the turnbuckle, dives from the turnbuckle, counters from the turnbuckle, strikes toward the turnbuckle, strikes to one prone in the tree of woe, running strikes to one prone in the tree of woe, and woe-is-me there are a perhaps more than ten ways to perform any of your selected finishers. This of course is not without a comprehensive selection of wrestling moves to choose from to outfit your character. I cannot accurately entertain how many possible ways to there are to hurt people, perhaps over 1,000 different top-dollar big action moves -- the gist being that there is incredible variety, and it makes a properly attended Create-A-Wrestler feel blissfully unique, granting them a powerful form of personality through their actions.
With such distinct possibilities during creation, one could elect to create entire fictional federations of created wrestlers, therefore potentially ignoring what some say is one of the most appealing and well-known rosters in a wrestling game without reproach. I know many people that have had their imagination carried by the robustness of the Create-A-Wrestler feature and I have personally witness a Super Sentai team simulacrum, comprising different colors of AKI Men and AKI Women, wage war against the despotic thrall of long-time political ringers, Geraldo Brisco and Pat Patterson. Not only did the creation mode service the imagination of would-be bookers, but it elucidates a global dimension of what pro wrestling is outside the spectrum of the former WWF. Elements of the European style, Lucha Libre, and Puroresu are very prominent during moveset creation, and perusing through them is a true revelation. Striking up feuds between characters can be accomplished via brawls contested in the ring, in the locker room, atop a 10-foot ladder, sepulchered by a steel cage, and multiple other ways.
If exhibitions and creation features are not enough to suffice, there is also an interesting story mode that has scenarios set for your wrestler of choice to make a name for his or her self. I would not expect much from this mode, it can be rather kitschy, but in the way where valid entertainment can still exist. Playing through the story or participating in a survival mode -- an endless royal rumble -- will earn you credits to spend in a shop, where you can purchase characters, arenas, moves, and outfits. This is a pleasant cycle that adds depth to the simplicity of the of the exhibition modes.
Most answers to what the greatest pro wrestling game ever is often involve mentioning No Mercy, but I don’t think there is a game among this time that is considerably advanced above all others (although this hypothetical game would most certainly belong to the one of the AKI developed wrestling games or of the Fire Pro series). No Mercy was the most time I have spent with a wrestling game, mostly submerging myself with fictional storylines when the real product no longer held my attention, but I would easily recommend either World Tour or Revenge as the more suitable entry point for curious players, due their to fantastic presentation which does not necessitate any prior knowledge of wrestling. The WCW games have a marge larger emphasis on color, due to their product, and its music is triumphant and electric, which is to be praised when compared to this game's oft-cried music selection. However, for those who enjoy a large set of customizable tools and take fancy in playing the armchair booker, WWF No Mercy is still the benchmark.
Four stunning-Vince-McMahon’s-ass out of five.
