Se anuncia la temporada 5 de Call of Duty y ya sabemos algunas de las jugosas novedades que llegarán a Modern Warfare 3 y Warzone.
If there’s one thing that never stops, it’s the new seasons of Call of Duty. There’s always something new for Modern Warfare 3 and Warzone, and it’s no wonder. It’s probably Activision’s most popular franchise, now on Xbox, and it would be absurd to let it die when it’s working so well for them. Even when the latest Call of Duty games haven’t resonated as well with the public as they expected. That’s why, on the eve of the next season, we already have new details.
Season 5 of Modern Warfare 3 and Warzone will be released in less than a week: on July 24th. This has been announced with a brief trailer of just over a minute where all the available content has been revealed. It’s worth noting that this time it will be a free content update.
Perhaps the biggest news, or at least the one that will be most appealing to the general public, is that there will be a new operator in Call of Duty. Andthis will be a WWE superstar, the wrestler Rhea Ripley. Former women’s world champion, leader of The Judgment Day group, and considered one of the best WWE wrestlers. It is quite an honor for her to make her way into Call of Duty as one of the new operators.
Another new feature is that they will include a cel-shaded version of some multiplayer maps, along with a matching skin. If you don’t know what cel shading is, it is a rendering technique in which flat colors are used to make computer-generated graphics appear hand-drawn. In this case, in a particularly exaggerated way, they look like they come from an explosively colorful comic book. Something that suits Call of Duty well.
In addition to announcing a series of maps, which we can briefly see in the trailer, it is expected that all of this will come with a battle pass, as usual. We don’t have details yet, but it is expected to include more content related to WWE and its wrestlers. As well as the cel-shaded aesthetic. With less than a week until its release, the details will be released at any moment, but until then, we can start preparing to shoot with the WWE Mommy.
WrestleMania XL is a demonstration that WWE has understood the future of entertainment better than anyone else, even at the expense of traditional wrestling.
The world of entertainment is changing. There is increasing emphasis on aspects that were not previously taken into account, taking on a new form. It is not only the arrival of new technologies or the growing predominance of streaming. It is something more. It is the feeling that it is possible to do things differently, in a way that they were not done until now. Perhaps because, not tied to traditional television, many programs are considering if it is not possible to do more.
This is something evident in WWE. The change they have undergone in recent months is noticeable to anyone who follows it regularly. Part of it is due to their new owners, Endeavor, who have merged it with UFC to create a new company, TKO. But it is also something else, as we could see this weekend at their biggest event: Wrestlemania.
Celebrating its fortieth edition, Wrestlemania is the biggest annual event of WWE. A moment where champions are crowned, legends are created, and stories are concluded. With 72,755 spectators, it is not the biggest event in wrestling history or Wrestlemania history, but it demonstrates its dimensions. And also the reason why the current head of the company, Paul Levesque, better known by his name HHH, has declared it as a new era for the company. One in which they will leave behind the label of sports entertainment to embrace that of wrestling.
Wrestlemania XL has been an event where the great moments have weighed more than the wrestling. Although there have been some good matches, what has stood out the most has been its stories. In its use of technology. In how, now, WWE presents itself as a different audiovisual product, bolder, seeking to be a pioneer of a new form.
While there has always been a great emphasis on WWE as a product, it feels like that has been emphasized even more. There are many more recaps of the story so far. Most segments are sponsored. The entrances are much more grandiose and exaggerated. There is not a single moment where the viewer can be lost or confused. Much less watching something they don’t immediately recognize. Placing more emphasis on what happens outside of wrestling.
All of this is something we have seen to some extent over the past year in WWE. With a greater emphasis, but it was already there. But perhaps the most surprising thing of all is the emphasis on the use of AR. Or augmented reality.
According to Marty Miller, as explained to Chris Welch, this has been completely intentional. Using six cameras that can deploy AR graphics, they wanted to emphasize the possibilities of showing things in 3D. The clearest example is the presentation of Becky Lynch’s story, who was fighting against the women’s champion Rhea Ripley, which was shown with a version of her autobiography, The Man, replicated in 3D.
The majority of uses of this technology have been to create this kind of spectacle. Tacky, sometimes downright laughable, on more than a few occasions, but it goes with the product. Not because there is something laughable about WWE, but because it feels integrated into the whole. Maybe it doesn’t work as it should, but it fits with the overall package.
In addition to this, since the beginning of the year, the production head of WWE is Lee Fitting, a veteran from ESPN. The previous production head, Kevin Dunn, had shaped the company’s image for four decades. Having tremendous decision-making power within it. And the change is seen in the more modern style, with a less chaotic production, allowing the product to breathe more.
The problem is that it works better in terms of spectacle than sport. The entrances, the commentary, the presentation videos, and the interventions are always perfectly measured. Well presented and exposed. But wrestling doesn’t come out well in comparison. The constant change of formats, along with a predominant use of SteadyCam, makes the fights feel static and confusing. Which is an improvement compared to the chaos of Dunn’s last years, but it doesn’t favor the idea that the company’s perspective has changed towards wrestling.
Because if something is WrestleMania XL, it is a miracle of entertainment. A great show. The advertising, the presentations, the comments, the entrances. Everything looks spectacular, cohesive, even when it goes to commercials. It is a constant flow of uninterrupted consciousness, where there is no room for a single thought to infiltrate — just pure pleasure.
Of course, this goes against wrestling. Great wrestling is filmed as if it were a well-shot action scene. A fixed camera clearly shows good choreography, but a camera that knows where to position itself at every moment makes it extraordinary. And that’s what doesn’t fit with the sense of spectacle of the current WWE. Because a great action scene is a succession of moments that require attention to detail and changes in rhythm; something that goes against the spectacle and the idea that everything must happen smoothly and without pause.
That’s why it’s strange that Lavesque claims that WWE is entering a new era. The era of wrestling. Because WrestleMania XL proves that, if anything, they understand better than ever what makes them popular. They have created a form of pure, fluid entertainment, where the matches are the least important thing.
Hence it is evident that in WWE they have known how to touch the keys of how to create a show that feels bigger than any festival or sporting event. Now they just need to find a way for wrestling to matter. Or for it not to matter that there is no wrestling.
Randy Orton wants it all. And with a wad of cash, he has achieved it.
You can’t have a successful career, spend several hours away from home, and also be the best ‘Elden Ring‘ player in the world, unless you’re a professional gamer, of course. But Randy Orton, who has been dedicating himself to the noble sport of professional wrestling in WWE for almost two decades (which some of us older folks still remember as ‘Pressing Catch’), wants it all. And with a stack of cash, he has achieved it.
It is known that during his demonstration tours, Orton spends his time before and after matches playing ‘Elden Ring‘. Of course, battling enemies in the game is a lot of fun, but leveling up seemed, quite logically, boring to him. So much so that he decided to cheat and stick only to the most enjoyable experience possible from FromSoftware’s game.
As we’ve learned recently, the wrestler, tired of having to collect runes here and there, decided to open his wallet and pay $1000 to a “guy” to get infinite runes. The result? He reached level 100 immediately. According to the wrestling duo Brennan Williams and Mansoor Al-Shehail, Orton approached them after a match to talk about their mutual love for ‘Elden Ring’. And that’s when he dropped the bombshell.
“I love this game. It’s amazing. But I can’t deal with that shit, so I just paid a guy to give me a bunch of runes,” he told them. And you know, there are worse things to spend $1000 on. Yes, he cheated, but he hasn’t harmed anyone (well, in his life he has hurt a lot of people, of course). It’s not like he’s the first ‘pay to win’ we’ve seen in our lives!
The Rock appears on Smackdown, igniting speculation of a confrontation with Roman Reigns, and reuniting with John Cena.
Part of the charm of wrestling is that you never know what’s going to happen. Enemies become allies. Friends become foes. And people who have been absent for years suddenly appear to do more than just a cameo. It’s part of what makes this discipline special, in part because most of the people involved in wrestling have an infinite love for it. And among them, few workers have been more consistent and capable of moving the audience with more passion than The Rock and John Cena in WWE.
Last Friday, on Friday Night SmackDown, The Rock made a reappearance on the show to cut a promo alongside Pat McAfee and Austin Theory. Ending with a resounding People’s Elbow on the latter, the audience went wild with Dwayne Johnson’s presence on the program after years away from the ring, even if it was just for a single move.
What WWE’s plans are for The Rock? We don’t know. There’s a lot of talk that he could be the one to face Roman Reigns in the main event of Wrestlemania 41 for the Universal Championship now that Reigns has held the title for three years. But this is still a subject of speculation.
What is not a matter of speculation is that The Rock also had a backstage segment with someone who was, in the past, one of his great rivals: John Cena. After two clashes at WrestleMania, the last one at WrestleMania 29 for the WWE Championship where Cena took the belt from Johnson, the tension between them was palpable. But in the end, they both shared a warm hug, acknowledging each other as what they are: two wrestling legends. An emotional and beautiful moment, only possible in WWE.
Money in the Bank takes place this weekend and there are several rumors that this could be one of the most interesting ppvs of the season.
The wrestling world is having a busy few weeks because, no matter which federation you follow, all of them are offering great shows and putting good fights on the table. This weekend it’s WWE’s turn to be the protagonist, because on Saturday July 1st at 21:00, from London, we will be able to see one of the biggest ppv of the year of Vince McMahon’s company. The one known as Money in the Bank.
Money In The Bank is a ppv where, in addition to regular bouts, there are two bouts with special stipulations: the Money in the Bank. Ladder matches, without disqualification, for five to seven people, where the winner is the one who manages to reach and unhook a briefcase hanging from the ceiling. With its origin in 2010, where the wrestler The Miz managed to overcome names of the stature of Chris Jericho, Edge or Randy Orton, it would not be until 2017 where they would make the first female Money in the Bank, where Carmela would win. If it is a highly anticipated match, it is because the owner of the briefcase can exchange it for a title match for any belt in the company at any time, practically ensuring that the winner of Money in the Bank will be the next world or heavyweight champion. For only twice in twelve years has a wrestler failed in the exchange.
This year, moreover, the stakes are particularly high because of what is happening behind the scenes. While there is a clear favorite in the women’s Money in the Bank, with Iyo Sky aiming to challenge current WWE Women’s Champion Asuka, there are two favorites in the men’s event. Both of them quite controversial.
The top favorite is a man known even to those unfamiliar with wrestling, since he is the Youtuber Logan Paul. With a brief career, but full of successes in WWE, he is the favorite to win the briefcase according to the bookmakers, as well as being the one who has been systematically pushing himself in all directions to win it. The favorite of the public, and it seems that the current head of WWE, Triple H, is LA Knight, a man of great charisma who has known how to connect with the public in a unique way. As the distant third probable winner in Shinsuke Nakamura, it all seems to be between Logan Paul and LA Knight; the favorite of the management and the marketing department and the favorite of the public.
But also, Money in the Bank promises a surprise return. Because everything indicates that, after a few weeks without appearing on television, Brock Lesnar will appear on the ppv. With no bout scheduled, it is clear that he will appear to confront Cody Rhodes and end their rivalry at Summerslam, ppv scheduled for August 5, with a third and final bout with a special stipulation. Will he attack you during or after combat? And what will that special stipulation be? Fortunately, there is a little more than twenty-four hours left for us to know. Because this summer, if you’re a fan of wrestling, you’re going to eat well.
The world of wrestling can seem intimidating from the outside, but don’t worry: we explain everything you need to know to get started.
Wrestling is more alive than ever. Thanks to the internet, smaller federations, and consistent growth over the years, this blend of sport and theater has established itself as a legitimate form of entertainment in popular culture. However, like many forms of popular culture, it can be challenging to know where to start when it comes to watching wrestling. That’s what we’re going to clarify here. We’ll explore the main federations, what sets them apart, where you can watch their content, and who their top stars are. The rest is diving headfirst and catching up because it’s all about diving headfirst and filling in the gaps gradually.
If we have to talk about wrestling, it is essential to start with WWE. The company led by Vince McMahon is one of the oldest and most well-known in the world, having established in the minds of many what wrestling is. Not for nothing, legends like Hulk Hogan, The Rock, and John Cena emerged from here. Based in the USA, with strong ties to Saudi Arabia, it has an international roster but a distinct style: prioritizing spectacle over sport and catering to a family-friendly audience.
Currently, their top star is Roman Reigns, who holds the company’s highest title: the Undisputed Universal Champion. He is also part of The Bloodline storyline, still unfolding, and considered one of the greatest stories ever told in WWE.
Apart from Roman Reigns, other prominent current names in WWE include Gunther, the current Intercontinental Champion, and Asuka, the Raw Women’s Champion. While there are other big names in WWE like AJ Styles and Seth Rollins, it is these three, along with some of their female wrestlers such as Bianca Belair or Iyo Sky, and the Raw Tag Team Champions Kevin Owens & Sami Zayn, who continue to showcase the best of WWE: a perfect blend of well-developed personal conflicts and excellent wrestling.
AEW
Being a young federation doesn’t mean it can’t compete in wrestling, as demonstrated by AEW. Founded and led by Tony Khan, AEW was established on January 1, 2019, and aims to be the opposite of WWE. While McMahon’s company prioritizes entertainment over wrestling, Tony Khan’s company puts wrestling above entertainment. This doesn’t mean there are no stories and promos; they do exist and are very good, but they are developed less through conversations and more through what happens in the ring.
It’s difficult to define who is currently at the top in AEW, but it’s not unreasonable to say that it’s MJF. Real name Maxwell Jacob Friedman, he is a technical prodigy with astonishing acting skills. At just 27 years old, he has become the AEW World Champion in a federation known for having some of the best wrestlers in the world. It’s no wonder his iconic phrase is “I’m better than you, and you know it.”
In any case, AEW is the federation where wrestling is the most important aspect. Here, you can find a mix of professional wrestling, classic wrestling, indie wrestling, and puroresu, with some of the best wrestlers in the world calling AEW their home. Jon Moxley, Bryan Danielson, Kenny Omega, The Young Bucks, and Chris Jericho are among the names regularly competing here. Additionally, with talent-sharing agreements with AAA and NJPW, and a constant focus on providing opportunities for young talent, AEW showcases numerous other great wrestlers on their shows, such as Adam Page, Jay White, El Hijo del Vikingo, and Katsuyori Shibata. This solidifies AEW as the current home of wrestling.
We can call it wrestling, we can call it lucha libre, and it may seem like we’re talking about the same thing, but not exactly: lucha libre has its own identity, and that is well known in AAA. Lucha Libre AAA Worldwide, also known as Caravana Tres Veces Estelar, is led by Marisela Peña Herrada and is characterized as, if not the most important, certainly the most well-known wrestling federation in Mexico. With a history dating back to 1992 and business relationships with numerous international companies, AAA is the home in Mexico for most wrestlers with international aspirations.
If someone stands out in AAA, it’s El Hijo del Vikingo. Trained by King Vikingo, he won the AAA Mega Championship on December 4, 2021, and has successfully defended it since then on seven occasions against some of the best wrestlers in Mexico. Furthermore, his recent appearances in the United States, particularly in AEW, where he competed against Kenny Omega, the former AAA Mega Champion, and other wrestlers, have only elevated his status as a superstar.
AAA indeed has multiple stars of importance beyond El Hijo del Vikingo, and one who has shined the most in the past year is Fénix. By unifying the AAA World Heavyweight Championship and the Latin American Championship, he became the first Triple Crown Champion in the company’s history. Other wrestlers such as El Cuatrero, Dralístico, and Bandido are also prominent names who have excelled in the federation, showcasing the immense talent and deep-rooted love for a purely Mexican wrestling style within AAA.
NJPW
In Japan, where they have puroresu (professional wrestling), the largest promotion is called NJPW (New Japan Pro-Wrestling). With a style they define as Strong Style, characterized by open-handed strikes, elbows, and more realistic-looking moves influenced by MMA, NJPW offers a much more technical and realistic approach compared to the more fantastical and acrobatic world of lucha libre. It’s no coincidence that the company was founded by Antonio Inoki, a man who popularized wrestling and MMA in Japan. Currently, NJPW is led by Takami Ohbari, who has expanded the company’s international relations, particularly with AEW and AAA, albeit to a lesser extent with WWE.
Choosing a single name as the main face of NJPW is literally impossible. At the very least, we would have to highlight Sanada, Will Ospreay, and Kazuchika Okada, also known as The Rainmaker, as the three pillars on which the company stands. These three men belong to three different factions, each with a distinct style, but they share one thing in common: all three could be considered the best professional wrestler in the world, and it would be difficult to argue against it.
Indeed, NJPW thrives on the battles between factions, which sets it apart from other promotions. CHAOS, Bullet Club, United Kingdom, Los Ingobernables de Japon, Just 5 Guys, House of Torture, and now even the Blackpool Combat Club, previously only present in AEW, are constantly in conflict. There are constant betrayals, wars between groups, and internal power struggles within the factions. Unlike other promotions where the focus is often on individual members, in NJPW, the destiny of the group and the subgroups within them are of utmost importance. This unique emphasis on faction dynamics gives NJPW a distinct identity within the world of professional wrestling.
Stardom has undoubtedly proven that wrestling is not just for men. While AEW and WWE have a solid roster of female wrestlers, only Stardom has provided them with a platform where they can shine just as brightly as their male counterparts. World Wonder Ring Stardom, founded and directed by Rossy Ogawa, is a women’s-only puroresu promotion. As a sister promotion to NJPW, it embraces a similarly hard-hitting style of wrestling and incorporates group-based storytelling. However, unlike NJPW, the spotlight here is solely on the women.
Currently, the reigning queen of Stardom is undoubtedly Tam Nakano. Holding both the World of Stardom Championship and the Wonder of Stardom Championship, the leader of the Cosmic Angels exhibits a visually stunning and surprisingly hard-hitting style. She seamlessly combines classic wrestling techniques with her own technical prowess, making her a particularly skilled wrestler whose matches are enjoyed for the grace and subtlety of her movements.
Apart from Tam Nakano, Stardom can proudly boast of having some of the best female wrestlers in its roster. Names like Giulia, Mina Shirakawa, Natsupoi, Kairi, and Mayu Iwatani easily stand among the top wrestlers today, regardless of gender. This makes Stardom a promotion that is truly worth following. Not only does it provide excellent women’s wrestling, which unfortunately remains relatively rare even in 2023, but it also delivers outstanding wrestling overall. Stardom sets a high standard for the quality of its matches and showcases the incredible talent and skill of its wrestlers.
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Things are heating up in the WWE as many main events are being announced on the wrestling network. This past Monday, it finally told us that the rumored Fatal 4-Way Tag Team match will happen at WWE Goes Hollywood within the next few weeks. The competitors are Braun Strowman and Richochet, Street Profits, Alpha Academy, and The Viking Raiders.
Let’s take a look at when the WWE Men’s Showcase match will take place at WrestleMania 39, and how you can use a VPN to watch the event from anywhere in the world.
When is the WWE Men’s Showcase Tag Team Match Official For WrestleMania 39?
The WWE Men’s Showcase Fatal Four-way match will take place at Wrestlemania 39. The massive wrestling showdown is in Hollywood this year, and it’s scheduled for the weekend of April 1 & 2, 2023.
Get ready for the #WrestleMania Showcase Fatal 4-Way Tag Team Match!
If you’re in the United States, you’ll be able to watch all the weekend’s matches exclusively on Peacock. In South Africa, just jump to DSTV Channel 128 for the WWE Network coverage. For everyone else, you can tune in on the WWE Network if you have a subscription.
How can you live stream the WWE Men’s Showcase Tag Team Match from anywhere in the world for free?
The only catch with many of these networks is that you’ll need a paid subscription to view any WWE content that’s shown live. Also, some countries block the WWE network, or vice versa, for privacy reasons.
There’s still a way you’ll be about to watch WWE’s Wrestlemania 39 for free. There are some online streaming services that will provide the viewing content without costs, but only in specific countries.
To access this content in a different country, all you do is choose one that works the best for you and download the app. You’ll need to select the country that the streaming service is available in before connecting. From there, you’ll be able to watch WWE, live streaming on your device.
What is the best VPN for WWE?
NordVPN is one of the top streaming services for WWE and other sports, thanks to its fast connection speeds, reliable quality, and robust protection methods. You can also log in from different devices with your account. At the moment, you can save 63% with an annual membership, but you’ll need to act fast.
Another VPN that’s excellent for streaming Wrestlemania is ExpressVPN. At the moment, an annual membership will score you an extra three months so you can see the follow-up WWE matches, such as Backlash.
You won’t want to miss out on the WWE action next weekend, so sign up and live stream Wrestlemania with NordVPN or ExpressVPN!
Fire Promoter brings an immersive new aspect to this top-notch wrestling game.
For the last several years, wrestling fans have been baffled by Vince McMahon’s booking decisions for the WWE. From dropping storylines for no discernible reason, to burying fan favorites, and giving mega pushes to unpopular superstars, many fans wonder just what goes on inside the eccentric billionaire’s head.
Those who truly think they could run a promotion better will be pleased to know that Fire Pro Wrestling World’s Fire Promoter DLC has finally been released. Fire Promoter has been hyped up by fans to be the natural successor to the acclaimed GM Mode from the old Smackdown vs Raw games. After numerous delays, Fire Promoter is here at last. Fortunately, it lives up to the hype. But how does it work?
What is Fire Promoter?
Fire Promoter has players taking control of a brand new wrestling promotion with the goal of becoming the most popular brand in the world. The mode is not a sandbox storytelling device like WWE2K’s Universe mode, but rather a game where the player competes against rival AI promotions to build the most successful wrestling business.
Fire Promoter includes a few dozen fictional promotions and hundreds of fictional wrestlers to play with, though these can be substituted with real wrestlers and promotions through Fire Pro’s built-in community creations system. For example, in my playthrough, I chose to play as AEW going up against WWE, NJPW, TNA, CMLL, AAA, Progress, and Ring of Honor. For each promotion, you set the number of wrestlers and free agents, as well as their style. WWE’s flashy and aggressive style fits the “Showman” style for example, while NJPW’s focus on technical in-ring action suits the “Strong” style. Choosing a style for your promotion is important as it determines which wrestlers want to work with you and which promotions will seek you out for partnerships.
Initially, you start with only six wrestlers, though you can enter a cheat code to start with as many as you’d like (hold L1 + L2 while choosing your difficulty and the number of wrestlers). The amount of money you start with depends on the difficulty you choose as well. Rival promotions, especially top ones, start with significantly more money than you do to show that they’re already established. Once you’ve set up your difficulty options and starting roster, you’re ready to go!
Building your roster
The roster-building aspect of Fire Promoter is one of the most dynamic and fun parts of the mode. You can view which wrestler is in which promotion, as well as which free agents exist in each territory (America, Japan, Latin America, and Europe).
To build up your army of talent, you have two main options. First, you can pay scouts to search for undiscovered talent in each territory. You have multiple scouts at your disposal, each one specializing in a certain territory and style of wrestling. If your scout successfully discovers a wrestler they will appear as a free agent in their respective territory. These discovered free agents are eager to be signed, so be sure to pick them up quickly before another promotion snatches them up.
The second option you have is offering contracts to wrestlers directly, whether they be free agents or talent at competing promotions. Whether or not the wrestler actually accepts is dependent on a number of factors. Obviously, the amount of money involved is a big factor, and lowballing their signing bonus hardly ever works for anyone bigger than a mid-card talent. Additionally, the talent is more likely to sign with you if their wrestling style matches your promotion.
Why every wrestling fan needs to play Fire Pro Wrestling World
Lastly, wrestlers who are already signed to competing promotions have trust levels. If their trust level is high, then they are less likely to leave and sign with you (no matter how much money I offered, the Undertaker refused to leave Vince’s side). Signing wrestlers from other promotions will anger them, causing them to be less likely to want to work with you for crossover events.
Once you actually have your wrestlers, it’s up to you to keep them happy. Wrestlers have different popularity levels in different territories, and they can win over the crowd by winning often, gaining titles, and putting on high-quality matches. As wrestlers get more popular, they will often demand more money or bigger pushes, and it’s your decision as to whether they’re worth the hassle (Bray Wyatt is a huge money-guzzling primadonna in my game, but he’s so popular that I’m forced to oblige).
On the flipside, wrestlers who are fed up with low wages or lower-card matches will sometimes storm into your office demanding change. If they get pissed enough they’ll leave for the free agency. Additionally, there are random events that can affect a wrestler’s reputation. For example, in my game Kurt Angle was involved in a hit and run, causing him to be fired by WWE and allowing me to scoop him up.
Keeping talent happy and booking them right will make sure they stay with you. Be sure to put on good matches to keep them popular, in addition to enhancing your roster with hot free agents.
Here comes the money!
Much like in life, in Fire Promoter you need to spend money to make money. For the first few months, your promotion will almost certainly lose money until you build some momentum. Fortunately, you have many other sources of revenue besides ticket sales. You can produce various kinds of merchandise to sell, which provides a nice supplementary income. Be careful about when you produce merchandise and how much of it you make, however. Merchandise sales really pick up after huge events, so if an event goes poorly or you accidentally manufacture too much merch, it’ll sit on the shelves, costing you a ton of money. At the beginning of my game, I manufactured small amounts of T-shirts and towels for my events, the profits of which definitely saved me from going under before I gained momentum.
As your promotion becomes bigger, you’ll have the opportunity to sign deals with sponsors and broadcasters, both of which rake in tons of cash. Sponsors will give you money to plaster their logo all over your ring. More lucrative sponsors often come with stipulations that you must follow. For example, one of my biggest sponsors was a pharmaceutical company. They doled out the cash on the condition that I never set up hardcore matches or deathmatches. Sponsors can also offer small benefits, such as a clothing company reducing the cost of producing T-shirts or an energy drink company making your wrestlers heal from injuries faster.
Getting broadcast deals can make or break your promotion. Starting from local television all the way to international broadcasts, these deals will bring in a ton of money and exposure to your promotion. The flipside is that you must cater to their often picky demands, such as having every single event of yours get above an 80% rating.
Putting on a show
The most important part of any wrestling promotion, obviously, is putting on a show. Successful events in Fire Promoter are determined by the amount of money they bring in and how well they go over with fans (displayed with a percentage).
To pull off an event you must carefully arrange the card, from the main event all the way to the lower card. Put your most popular wrestlers in the main event, switching them up every month or so for some variety. By taking a rising mid-card wrestler and putting in the main event, you can make him go over by putting on a good match. It also helps to put title matches in the main event, as they bring in more spectators. There are a variety of match types to choose from, including tag matches, 6 and 8 man tag matches, cage matches, various deathmatches, and MMA fights.
When running through the event, you can choose to play a match (either by taking control over a wrestler or watching the AI fight it out) or sim a match altogether. Note that you cannot outright choose who wins the match, so if you’re really banking on a specific wrestler to win a match, be sure to play as them and whoop the AI’s butt. To ensure highly rated matches, try to keep the fight as even as possible to keep things exciting. Longer matches tend to do better, so pace out the match and have things gradually escalate. Take down your opponent with a finisher for extra style points.
You can approach other promotions for crossover tournaments (they can also approach you). In these tournaments, each promotion is forced to put at least one of their title belts on the line. For these events, you want your wrestlers to look good, not theirs. Instead of focusing on good matches, feel free to lay the smackdown on the AI’s candy ass and steal their titles away. Having more titles increases the prestige and popularity of your promotion, so these crossover tournaments are very important. If an AI takes one of your titles away, loan wrestlers to their promotion or attempt to put on more crossover tournaments with them to get it back.
Outside of the ring, you must keep track of other factors in setting up your event. To make your promotion look popular and successful, you must fill out the venue whenever possible, so it’s better to get a full house in a small arena than an emptier crowd in a larger arena. The amount of people who attend your event depends on the match card, the ticket price, and the advertising. Lower ticket prices mean more people, but obviously lower profits. By taking advantage of popular talent and well-built match cards you can get away with higher ticket prices. Additionally, advertising makes a huge difference in attendance. Filming TV commercials or starting social media campaigns bring in huge crowds but also burn a hole in your wallet, so balancing venue, advertising, and ticket pricing is key.
Fire Promoter is an extensive mode that rounds out the already excellent gameplay of Fire Pro Wrestling World. It could use some polish; crashes happen, so save frequently. Also, the mode explains itself poorly, so hopefully this article clears things up. Other than that, it is certainly worth the $20, and with additional features and tweaking, may end up being the best wrestling sim mode ever.
Discover why this could be the greatest wrestling game ever made.
With the rising popularity of New Japan Pro-Wrestling in the West, it’s a great time to be a wrestling fan. While fans have grumbled about the WWE for years, NJPW’s increasing western fanbase has breathed new life into the pro-wrestling industry. When it comes to wrestling video games, the only real choice fans have is the WWE2K series, which, while fun games in their own right, are relatively safe and homogenized yearly entries, leaving many fans yearning for some variety. If you’re a NJPW fan, a WWE fan, or even someone with just a passing interest in wrestling, you need to give Fire Pro Wrestling a try.
Why wrestling fans need to play Fire Pro Wrestling World
Don’t be put off by the game’s 2-D presentation, Fire Pro Wrestling World is a complete package full of limitless customization and exciting, technical gameplay.
Endless customization
The insane amount of customization offered by Fire Pro is the series’ most celebrated feature. The wrestler creator feature has the most depth out of any character creation mode we’ve ever seen (including Soul Calibur, WWE2K, and Saints Row). You can mix and match hundreds of parts, body types, and clothing options to make kind of wrestler you can dream up. You can layer and color parts as you please, allowing you to create an insane amount of detail for your wrestler.
Beyond their appearance, you can fully customize a wrestler’s moveset, from their basic strikes and grapples to their explosive finishers. You can also put the finishing touch on your wrestler by tweaking their AI. By messing with a wrestler’s AI, you can give them personality and flair. For example, you can make a heel wrestler use illegal strikes when the ref isn’t looking and taunt after every big hit. The AI system is surprisingly simple to use, given the amount of depth that it offers.
In addition to customizing your wrestler, Fire Pro also lets you customize pretty much every other aspect of the wrestling experience. You can create your own rings, and upload any image you want to be used as the mat. You can upload custom music to be played during matches, entrances, and victories. You can design title belts to be used in your dream promotions.
You can even create your own referees (our favorite is Fair Bear, a literal bear in a referee uniform). People who enjoy customizing their games will get a huge kick out of Fire Pro, and Steam Workshop compatibility adds thousands of player-created wrestlers, rings, and promotions to download.
Build Your Dream Roster
Here we see Mario fighting Bob Ross, Deadpool, and Bane, among others
Given the thousands of wrestlers available to download on the Steam Workshop, the roster possibilities are endless. There are hundreds of recreations of famous pro wrestlers, including today’s top talent like John Cena and Kenny Omega, in addition to the superstars of yesterday like Ric Flair and the Ultimate Warrior. Most of these wrestlers were created by super dedicated fans, so they each have painstakingly accurate movesets and AI traits.
Fans of both the WWE and NJPW can mix downloaded/created WWE stars with the official NJPW stars included in the DLC to create impossible dream matchups. Ever wanted to see Okada take on Cena, or Tanahashi fight the Undertaker? The possibilities are all there. Fire Pro also lets you create custom promotions with factions within them, allowing you to simulate real promotions or create your own story.
In addition to real wrestlers, the Steam Workshop features thousands of wrestlers based on fictional characters and real people, allowing you to create some truly hilarious and bizarre matchups. Seeing things like Homer Simpson get RKO’d by Thanos and Bob Ross hurling Mike Tyson out of the ring never gets old. One of the best tag matches we’ve had so far was pitting the cast of “It’s Always Sunny in Philadelphia” against “Seinfeld” (Team Seinfeld won, with Kramer hitting Charlie with an unbreakable submission). If you like games with player-created characters like Soul Calibur or MUGEN then you’ll have a blast with Fire Pro even if you don’t care about real pro wrestling.
Simple graphics, fantastic gameplay
Fire Pro’s gameplay perfectly simulates the drama and pace of a real match
Most wrestling games don’t understand the basic appeal of a pro wrestling match. The reason well-done pro wrestling matches are so appealing is that they are scripted affairs that combine theatrics and pacing, which, combined with colorful personalities and storylines, creates an exciting and dramatic match. Most wrestling games just set out to be fighting games, where the player’s objective is simply to beat up and pin the other, without any regard for match pacing or drama. Fire Pro’s gameplay alleviates this by focusing on putting on a good show that resembles a well put together wrestling match.
Strikes and grapples are divided into small, medium, and big attacks. At the beginning of the match, only small attacks are effective against an opponent; attempts at bigger moves like finishers are met with automatic reversals. As the match progresses and each wrestler takes more damage, they become more susceptible to medium and big attacks, simulating the rising stakes and bombastic finishers of an actual pro wrestling match.
The game offers a wide variety of options for each wrestler beyond their moveset of strikes, grapples, and submissions. Players can run into the ropes to use devastating lariats, dropkicks, and more. They can also climb the turnbuckles to unleash high-flying moonsaults and brutal elbow drops. Wrestlers can also fight outside of the ring, where they can sometimes use weapons and other underhanded tactics to gain the edge.
At the end of every match, you’re shown a score based on how much the audience enjoyed it, encouraging players to create dramatic and varied fights. There are plenty of match types for you to play around with, including cage matches, battle royales, and even deathmatches.
For players interested in a story mode, the NJPW DLC allows you to take control of a custom Young Lion in training working their way up to the IWGP Heavyweight Championship. Along the way, the player can allocate points into various stats and attributes, as well as choose their stable and the path their character goes down. This mode has a surprising amount of depth, and is a great merge of Fire Pro’s gameplay and a story-driven wrestling RPG.
