Rumble Roses
Hot girl-on-girl wrasslin’!
The Game
When a friend of mine told me that Konami were working on an all girl wrestling game, I thought, “Cool! Someone’s finally making a joshi puroresu game!” Then he told me it would be a completely original game with a roster of created wrestlers specifically for the game and I immediately thought “Uh-oh…”
Rumble Rose is an all girl-wrestling promotion, but there’s a dark secret to the open tournament being held. You have ten girls to choose from at the start. Each have their own background story to follow, and you can unlock additional wrestlers (alter egos of the originals and the boss) when you beat the Story Mode game.
In addition to that, this game introduces a new first (or low depending on your views) in next generation wrestling games: MUD MATCHES! That’s right, now you can play as a hot chick in a tight bikini against another, or watch the CPU go at it, in a beachside open arena as they wallow in the mud and try to get the pin on each other!
Gameplay
Since YUKES had a hand in creating the game, it pretty much plays like the WWE PS2 games, with some of the animations for moves ported directly off of it too. But it’s not a 100% gameplay clone though. Other than the standard and dizzy grapples, you also have high and low grapples for submissions.
Each character also has three finishers: A Lethal Move (main finisher), a Killer Move (Trademark move) and a Humiliation Move. You fill a power meter as the match goes on by pulling off moves and taunting your opponent, and when it’s full you can pull off your finishers.
But Humiliation Moves can only be pulled off when your opponent is in an embarrassed state. To get them embarrassed, you have to fill a heart-type meter next to the finisher meter by pulling off moves that embarrassed your opponents, and those moves usually cover anything that concerns leg splits. But some moves will even fill up your own humiliation bar, so be careful.
Unlike other wrestling games also, some of the rules are different. There are no disqualifications, no count-outs, and no rope-breaks for pins and submissions. So your left to mash buttons when trying to escape submission locks and running to escape when your opponent comes at you with a weapon.
One gripe I do have with the controls is the counter ability. Nobody is really sure what the timing is for counters, and sometimes it seems to happen either at random, or by dumb luck. It also takes just ONE Lethal Move, if it’s not a submission, to win the match.
Another problem I have is, despite the hundreds of moves they managed to fit into the WWE games, the moves the girls have here are pretty limited and you’ll quickly find the wrestlers have a lot of moves in common. Making each one a true individual with her own move set would have been welcomed.
Graphics & Sound
There is DEFINITELY no argument that all the girls in this game look hot as hell! They basically covered every fetish a red-blooded man could want: school girls, nurses, teachers, dominatrix, ninjas etc. and all of them are rendered at a lean 10,000fps! And you get some nice little details too, if you can take your eyes off their curvaceous bodies, you’ll notice some nice touches, like the characters’ blushing when they get embarrassed / humiliated and the way the mud sticks and comes off in mud matches. And of course, everything is really shiny, even the mud!
Despite the fact that the characters do look great and all, being the wrestling fan that I am, I really do wish that they would have made the girls look more like actual wrestlers. Reiko is the only girl in the game that looks like an actual wrestler where her attire is concerned. Everyone else looks more like they should be swinging around a pole in the middle of a dance floor. I know it’s a game targeting a male audience, but I do prefer a little authenticity, like wearing proper wrestling boots and tights instead of stiletto high heels and miniskirts. Heck, Black Belt Demon and Killer Khan look like they forgot their pants or something, and some of the other outfits look like they came straight out of the J-Lo School of Ta-Ta Taping!
There are only four venues, five if you count the beach. But each one is nicely done, though the indoor arenas almost seem to mimic each other. You only battle in the ring and the ringside area, as the entrance ramp folds up to reveal a mini-Titantron and blocks you from running to the back.
The in game music is pretty good. Each girl has an intro theme that matches their character, but the voice acting could use some work! The voicing isn’t really that bad, but probably could have been a lot better. At least some of them have accents to match their character, i.e. Texas cowgirl, street hip-hopper, etc.
I also thought they could have done a better job with the crowd noise. I would like to state for the record now that the standard I base crowd noise for wrestling and fighting games in general is that of Def Jam: Fight For New York. This is a game where you have hot chicks in the ring, so it really would have been nice to have some individual crowd noises, like wolf-whistling, or chants of “Show Your T*ts!” when your opponent is embarrassed to help match the mood.
Miscellaneous
The replay value in this game is that it will take a while to unlock everything. You need to beat the Story Mode once to unlock your character’s alter ego, beat it again with the alter-ego to unlock them for use in Exhibition Mode, and then play through exhibition matches to up their Face or Heel stats to 100% so they can get a title match, and after you win the title, you can get to oogle the girls as they do stretches in the Gallery Mode.
Playing the Story Mode alone can take a good half-hour to complete if you don’t skip any of the cut scenes, so it’s definitely gonna take a while to get through with everyone!
The downside of course is the limited play modes. Due to the sheer size of the characters and their animations, you can’t have tag matches. Though adding more sleazy themed matches like the bra-and-panties matches found in the WWE matches would have fit right in here. But hey, there’s always room for improvement in the sequel, right?
Overall
Everyone else will balk at the fact that this game is very limited due to the number of play modes available and purely as T&A, but I see it as the stepping stone for what could be an awesome game franchise! Trust me, when they release the sequel, it will be much better. But right now, I’ll take this game for what it’s worth: an alternative to the WWE games, which like in real life, players desperately need an alternative wrestling game to.
Game Ratings:
Graphics – 9
Sound – 7
Gameplay – 7
Lifespan – 7
Overall – 7
Note to Konami/Yukes: This game has the perfect engine for a Dragon Gate game! Make it happen!
And for a really good Rumble Roses fan site, visit: Rumble Roses Tenkokutenshi
The Game
When a friend of mine told me that Konami were working on an all girl wrestling game, I thought, “Cool! Someone’s finally making a joshi puroresu game!” Then he told me it would be a completely original game with a roster of created wrestlers specifically for the game and I immediately thought “Uh-oh…”
Rumble Rose is an all girl-wrestling promotion, but there’s a dark secret to the open tournament being held. You have ten girls to choose from at the start. Each have their own background story to follow, and you can unlock additional wrestlers (alter egos of the originals and the boss) when you beat the Story Mode game.
In addition to that, this game introduces a new first (or low depending on your views) in next generation wrestling games: MUD MATCHES! That’s right, now you can play as a hot chick in a tight bikini against another, or watch the CPU go at it, in a beachside open arena as they wallow in the mud and try to get the pin on each other!
Gameplay
Since YUKES had a hand in creating the game, it pretty much plays like the WWE PS2 games, with some of the animations for moves ported directly off of it too. But it’s not a 100% gameplay clone though. Other than the standard and dizzy grapples, you also have high and low grapples for submissions.
Each character also has three finishers: A Lethal Move (main finisher), a Killer Move (Trademark move) and a Humiliation Move. You fill a power meter as the match goes on by pulling off moves and taunting your opponent, and when it’s full you can pull off your finishers.
But Humiliation Moves can only be pulled off when your opponent is in an embarrassed state. To get them embarrassed, you have to fill a heart-type meter next to the finisher meter by pulling off moves that embarrassed your opponents, and those moves usually cover anything that concerns leg splits. But some moves will even fill up your own humiliation bar, so be careful.
Unlike other wrestling games also, some of the rules are different. There are no disqualifications, no count-outs, and no rope-breaks for pins and submissions. So your left to mash buttons when trying to escape submission locks and running to escape when your opponent comes at you with a weapon.
One gripe I do have with the controls is the counter ability. Nobody is really sure what the timing is for counters, and sometimes it seems to happen either at random, or by dumb luck. It also takes just ONE Lethal Move, if it’s not a submission, to win the match.
Another problem I have is, despite the hundreds of moves they managed to fit into the WWE games, the moves the girls have here are pretty limited and you’ll quickly find the wrestlers have a lot of moves in common. Making each one a true individual with her own move set would have been welcomed.
Graphics & Sound
There is DEFINITELY no argument that all the girls in this game look hot as hell! They basically covered every fetish a red-blooded man could want: school girls, nurses, teachers, dominatrix, ninjas etc. and all of them are rendered at a lean 10,000fps! And you get some nice little details too, if you can take your eyes off their curvaceous bodies, you’ll notice some nice touches, like the characters’ blushing when they get embarrassed / humiliated and the way the mud sticks and comes off in mud matches. And of course, everything is really shiny, even the mud!
Despite the fact that the characters do look great and all, being the wrestling fan that I am, I really do wish that they would have made the girls look more like actual wrestlers. Reiko is the only girl in the game that looks like an actual wrestler where her attire is concerned. Everyone else looks more like they should be swinging around a pole in the middle of a dance floor. I know it’s a game targeting a male audience, but I do prefer a little authenticity, like wearing proper wrestling boots and tights instead of stiletto high heels and miniskirts. Heck, Black Belt Demon and Killer Khan look like they forgot their pants or something, and some of the other outfits look like they came straight out of the J-Lo School of Ta-Ta Taping!
There are only four venues, five if you count the beach. But each one is nicely done, though the indoor arenas almost seem to mimic each other. You only battle in the ring and the ringside area, as the entrance ramp folds up to reveal a mini-Titantron and blocks you from running to the back.
The in game music is pretty good. Each girl has an intro theme that matches their character, but the voice acting could use some work! The voicing isn’t really that bad, but probably could have been a lot better. At least some of them have accents to match their character, i.e. Texas cowgirl, street hip-hopper, etc.
I also thought they could have done a better job with the crowd noise. I would like to state for the record now that the standard I base crowd noise for wrestling and fighting games in general is that of Def Jam: Fight For New York. This is a game where you have hot chicks in the ring, so it really would have been nice to have some individual crowd noises, like wolf-whistling, or chants of “Show Your T*ts!” when your opponent is embarrassed to help match the mood.
Miscellaneous
The replay value in this game is that it will take a while to unlock everything. You need to beat the Story Mode once to unlock your character’s alter ego, beat it again with the alter-ego to unlock them for use in Exhibition Mode, and then play through exhibition matches to up their Face or Heel stats to 100% so they can get a title match, and after you win the title, you can get to oogle the girls as they do stretches in the Gallery Mode.
Playing the Story Mode alone can take a good half-hour to complete if you don’t skip any of the cut scenes, so it’s definitely gonna take a while to get through with everyone!
The downside of course is the limited play modes. Due to the sheer size of the characters and their animations, you can’t have tag matches. Though adding more sleazy themed matches like the bra-and-panties matches found in the WWE matches would have fit right in here. But hey, there’s always room for improvement in the sequel, right?
Overall
Everyone else will balk at the fact that this game is very limited due to the number of play modes available and purely as T&A, but I see it as the stepping stone for what could be an awesome game franchise! Trust me, when they release the sequel, it will be much better. But right now, I’ll take this game for what it’s worth: an alternative to the WWE games, which like in real life, players desperately need an alternative wrestling game to.
Game Ratings:
Graphics – 9
Sound – 7
Gameplay – 7
Lifespan – 7
Overall – 7
Note to Konami/Yukes: This game has the perfect engine for a Dragon Gate game! Make it happen!
And for a really good Rumble Roses fan site, visit: Rumble Roses Tenkokutenshi
posted by Eric Extreme at 11/25/2004 10:40:00 PM
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