Well...seeing as any of the new screens were posted on EWBIII, and there's no thread yet...decided to start one. The screens actually look great, and vids pretty decent. Info at Bottom.
Face here looks BAD ASS.
"May 07, 2004 - Publisher THQ was gracious enough to this week give IGNcube an early sneak-peek at the E3 2004 build of WWE Day of Reckoning. The Yuke's developed wrestler, which is exclusive to GameCube, is still far from finished -- roughly halfway through -- but it's already showing massive promise and could very well be the best wrestling title on one of Nintendo's platforms since the Aki-developed N64 games of old.
IGNcube in March wrote an initial preview and a hands-on update of the title, both of which can be found here and here respectively. The version THQ showed off this week is considerably improved, with more playable wrestlers, new modes, polished controls and a far better understanding of what the company hopes the Day of Reckoning brand will mean to GameCube owners.
This is not a WrestleMania branded title. It's not a sequel to WrestleMania XIX. It is, rather, an entirely new beast that THQ hopes will appease the wrestling hardcore and draw in those simply in search of a solid multiplayer experience. Day of Reckoning has all of the bells and whistles. That means a full cast of superstars -- some 40-plus. It means an enhanced grapple fight system with different strengths of grapples and strikes. It means a wide selection of venues to fight in and a number of different match types to choose from so that the brawls never grow stale. But the features don't stop there. Yuke's has also included a full-blown story mode in which players will use the game's detailed create-a-superstar to feature to build their aspiring pro and then take him or her from the small time to the big show. On top of that, Day of Reckoning features a Bra & Panties mode in which the female wrestlers attempt to steal the clothes off each other as they fight. And naturally the title's graphics have seen dramatic improvements, especially where player models are concerned.
Day of Reckoning's main menu features six possibilities including the Exhibition (standard matches which are fully configurable and can be played alone or with up to three friends); Story Mode (which starts players off as an amateur and challenges them to beat down opponents until they can advance to the WWE); Shop Zone (for purchases); a Tutorial; a Create-a-Superstar mode and, of course, Options. The only mode available in the E3 build is Exhibition. In Exhibition, players can choose to fight in Single matches, or Tag Team, Triple Threat, Fatal Four Way, Handicap or Royal Rumble. On top of that, gamers can then set the sub-match type from a list that includes Normal, Hardcore, TLC, Cage, Hell in a Cell, Bra & Panties, and Ironman. The selection is commendable.
The E3 build features 11 playable venues, but only two of them are unlocked: Raw and Summerslam. The rest of the list includes Smackdown, Unforgiven, No Mercy, Survivor Series, Armageddon, Royal Rumble, No Way Out, WrestleMania and Heat. THQ tells IGNcube that there may be a couple more entries added before the game is finished later this year.
In Exhibition, players will be able to configure everything from match length to whether or not they want to turn pins, submits, DQs, first blood, knock-outs, rope breaks, interference, entrances, or tornadoes on or off. It'll even be possible to set the ring out count limit.
The E3 version of Day of Reckoning features 10 of the 40 superstars in the game. The current lineup includes everyone from Chris Benoit to John Cena, Batista, Booker T, Randy Orton, Christian, Triple H, Stacy Keibler, Trish Stratus, and the mighty Kane himself. Each wrestler boasts different percentages for variables such as strength, speed, stamina, counter, charisma, submission, and over all ability and these do actually weigh in on the matches. For instance, it wouldn't be wise to pit Keibler against Kane in a battle of pure power, but the female superstar, whose speed is far greater than Kane's, would be able to run away from the giant if the situation called for it.
One of the upgrades players will not be able to ignore is the overhauled graphic presentation the game has been given. Yuke's took a look at the rounded, bubbly character models in WWE WrestleMania XIX and decided to start fresh. The result is high-polygon models complete with crisp texture skinning, facial animation systems, cloth physics, and even specular lighting. When the camera pans up close on Kane's face, gamers will be able to see the shadow of hair on his scalp, the crinkles in his forehead, the purple bags under his eyes and even some of the blemishes in his skin -- the texture application is that good. And due to specular highlights, every wrestler's skin looks as if it's glistening with sweat, which helps to capture the look of the real entertainment. (Yes, we realize that last sentence is a little disturbing and somehow not quite right, but it's true nonetheless.) Animation has seen some improvements over last year's game, too. Character move more smoothly, but there are still a few kinks to be worked out in the admittedly unfinished E3 build.
Day of Reckoning is far more cinematic than its predecessor. From the pyrotechnic-filled wrestler entrances which feature the true-to-life music of the superstars to the cinematic special moves that can be executed in the ring, the game is flat out more polished. The camera is zoomed slightly closer to the wrestlers as they brawl, which shows off the detail of the models, and whenever there's a noteworthy development the angle pans forward and around to shoot the action from dramatic angles. Some moves activate replay cameras that spotlight the motion in slow motion and with television-styled filters. It looks good.
Meanwhile the wrestlers move quickly and with some agility around the ring. A pint-sized silhouette of a body positioned in the corner of each wrestler's name represents the inflicted damage upon that superstar. If the silhouette remains black, he or she is in perfect health. If, on the other hand, the silhouette is shaded red on the head area, that means that the wrestler has taken a serious pounding to the old noggin' by an opponent and that the particular area has been weakened. It's up to players to wear down specific areas of their foe, thus decreasing their stamina in that area and opening them to attack. Meanwhile a lifeline meter glows red, yellow or blue to indicate whether a wrestler's spirit is high, regular or in danger respectively. The more damage a character takes, the bigger chance his or her lifeline will drop from red to yellow and then blue, opening them for submission.
Control is straightforward and intuitive. The analog stick moves the superstars around the arena. A button is used for grapples, B strikes, Y for running, X to lift, and the D-pad for taunts. In addition, L button is utilized to counter grapples and R button to counter strikes. Special moves are trigged by pressing A+B simultaneously. Finally, A button and down on the analog stick will cause a wrestler to try and pin his or her opponent. Seems simple enough and it is, but the action moves quickly and there are varying degrees of grapples to exercise. The brawls can be taken outside of the ring and a wide assortments of weapons used depending on the match type. One of the enhancements Yuke's has made to the weapons matches arrives in the form of attempting to be more realistic. Weapons will shatter and break upon impact and they may be unusable after that, but there will also be times when chair and tables will simply snap into another piece that can itself be utilized as a powerful weapon.
WWE Day of Reckoning is set for release this September on GameCube and IGNcube will have much more on the game post-E3. But in the meantime we've uploaded 15 new movies in 320x240 and 640x480 QuickTime, as well as in streaming Windows Media formats, along with 10 high-resolution new images, and all of the above show off new wrestlers and brawl situations. Click over to our media section and prepare to be dazzled. "
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I actually think this game looks great. Of what I've played of WMXIX it's not really bad at all..and looking at the videos this looks somewhat reminiscent in ring. The entrances are ACE of what I have seen at least. And the big thing that everyone complained abotu at first was story...and in this it's supposed to be completely revamped. This is actually looking as if it might be the best console game around this time. But..of course we'll have to see what they try to do with Smackdown Vs RAW once more info...and those screens/vids are released.
