Reviewed: October 17, 2002
Reviewed by: Loki

Publisher
BAM! Entertainment

Developer
Spike

Released: September 17, 2002
Genre: Sports
Players: 4
ESRB: Teen

9
5
1
9
8.2

Supported Features:

As the “2” at the end of the name indicates, this is a sequel to last year’s original Fire Pro Wrestling that launched with the Game Boy Advance. As a relatively new GBA owner, I haven’t played too many of last year’s games, including Fire Pro, so I cannot comment firsthand on how this game compares in gameplay, although the sequel does offer more wrestlers and custom edit options.

Fire Pro Wrestling 2 features:

• Choose from 200 wrestlers and 18 organizations.
• Players can make 77 different wrestlers and 5 original organizations
• Customize every detail of a wrestler's appearance.
• Use more than 1,200 different fighting techniques
• Choose from several modes including Normal, Deathmatch, Gruesome, and Battle Royal in Exhibition Match.
• Manage the career of your wrestler and work your way up to unlock hidden wrestlers in Ironman Road.
• Practice Dojo--practice your standing move, grab move, running move, your move against a downed opponent and much more. Here the player not only learns how to play, but also learns the more technical moves of Fire Pro Wrestling 2.
• Choose from more than 10 fighting styles from around the globe.
• Choose the wrestlers' fighting style in the "create a wrestler mode".
• It's multiplayer! Battle against the computer or up to three of your friends.

Control is flawless with excellent use of the A and B buttons performing a majority of the moves while the triggers do cool things like headlocks and various throws. Don’t expect to furiously tap the buttons and triggers and get through this game. The designers have anticipated your treachery and implemented a devilishly clever combat system that requires precise timing and perfect execution. You can master all of your fighting moves and learn the exact timing in the Training Dojo.

There is much more than wrestling moves present in Fire Pro 2. I was reminded of the scene in the Matrix where Neo is getting his ROM flashed with all of the fighting techniques. Fire Pro 2 features just about every popular fighting style currently in use, although I didn’t see Drunken Boxing.

All of these unique fighting styles combined with the impressive moves-list for each fighter creates an in-depth combat system that rivals some of the mainstream fighters like Tekken, Soul Calibur or Dead or Alive. There is an intricate countermove system in place that requires precise timing of the button press at just the right moment to be effective. There are also various levels of attacks that can only be implemented when each of the wrestlers are at various stages of physical wear and tear, also called stamina.

Fire Pro 2 takes stamina to the next level by implementing a hit-specific damage model, meaning that if you beat on specific body parts you are liable to do more or less damage depending on the area being beaten. You can go for the risky headshot and attempt to draw blood that will increase the rate of their stamina depletion, or you can soften your opponent up like a minute steak with repeated blows to the body, arms, and legs.

Naturally, you will take a beating yourself from time to time and you can regain some of you lost stamina by simply standing still (or laying still during the count) and breathing using the left trigger.

Assuming you master all the moves for all the players (not bloody likely) you can then begin the arduous task of tackling each of the gameplay modes this game has to offer. You have the primary mode called Ironman Road which is basically a ladder tournament where you fight a series of matches with your stamina carrying over from match to match. The opponents get harder and the challenge increases with each new match, but as you defeat each wrestler they are unlocked for use in future games.

The exhibition mode lets you setup your own custom matches with up to four players in an arena of your choosing and your own referee. There are over a dozen settings you can manipulate in setting up these matches and you can even choose to have the computer play itself if you feel like watching rather than playing.

The edit mode is similar to the “create-a-fighter” mode found in other wrestling or fighting games; only this one is incredibly complex. With hundreds of variables, a library of body parts, ten fighting styles, and over 1,200 moves, creating your own fighter is a daunting task for all but the most diehard of wrestling fans. You can even go as far as dictating how the computer will play your creation when you allow the AI to take over.

I played around with this editing mode, more out of obligation to writing about it here than any personal interest in creating a custom fighter. I spent nearly an hour of tweaking and adjusting before I saved my fighter into one of the 77 available slots. It doesn’t necessarily take that long, but it’s just that easy to get lost in the interface and complexity of it all.

What the game lacks in static graphics, it more than makes up for it with some of the best animation I’ve seen in a GBA fighting game. There are over 1,200 moves available in this game and I swear each one has been individually animated. My only complaint is the characters are just a bit too small to really appreciate the animation as much as I wanted to.

For those of you with GBA-owning friends, you will certainly love the fact that you can connect up to four GBA’s together for some tag team matches or battle royal free-for-alls. There is just so much to do with this title that you may never finish it all.

If you love wrestling or just enjoy complicated and involved fighting games then Fire Pro Wrestling 2 is the game for you. If you can only afford to buy one game for your GBA this year and need to make it last for a long, long time then this is the game for you. Whether you rent or buy, wrestling and/or fighting fans need to check this game out.