I play games every single day. While that doesn’t mean we necessarily open the TwitchGym daily, there’s a fair chance I’m playing Apex Legends offline with the crew. Even if it’s too much of a hassle to fire up the PC and/or console for a game, I can guarantee at the very least I hopped up a mobile device and played games for a few minutes. One of my favorites I’ve been playing for the last few months is Rowdy City Wrestling. Whether you’re a lifelong fan of wrestling who recalls the halcyon days of arcade style wrestling games such as WWF: In Your House or just someone who is looking for a simplistic action game to jump into, I implore you to read on and see all this little gem has to offer!
There are two gameplay modes in Rowdy City Wrestling; endless and career mode. While the endless mode allows you to battle wave after wave of men Futurama killbot style, career mode is where I spend all of my time. You begin by choosing who you’ll play as from a pool of available characters; some can be unlocked by accomplishing specific feats in game such as landing X number of dropkicks or winning a specific championship, while others are unlocked by spending the credits you accrue after each in-game victory, There are a large number of characters to choose from, many of which have some “slight” resemblances to well known entities. They each have different stat levels and aesthetics although the core action is the same for each.
Once you choose your wrestler and fire up career mode you begin in the gym at the bottom of the echelon. Money is necessary to upgrade your character’s stats and while you primarily earn this through winning matches, there are some other things you can for cash. Occasionally the gym manager will offer side jobs (maybe every 3-4 in-game days) such as moving boxes or taking out trash. These only take a minute or two to complete and can typically earn you anywhere from $50 – $100. You can also compete in “street” matches which net you more cash than side jobs, but there’s always the possibility your injury level will increase which creates a nice risk/reward system. Ooccasionally a character will pop up with an “advertising opportunity” which means you can watch a short ad and earn some in-game currency. While we’re discussing the concept of side jobs and earning money, this seems like the most logical place to bring up my biggest “complaint” with Rowdy City Wrestling.
Maybe it’s because I’m just crazy casual with my mobile games (If I’m never going to “get good” on Apex, no way I’m ever going to up my skill on a mobile game 😂), but earning cash for upgrades in Rowdy City Wrestling is hard. It’s kind of a slow process so even after completing 3-5 matches, I’m barely able to manage my injuries and upgrade a single skill. Part of that is undoubtedly my need to lower my injury level because I take so many hits, but I feel like by the time I win the first of the four available championships it’s hard to upgrade skills. A minor quibble (and I’m absolutely that person who only plays most games on easy/normal) but it’s annoying to have to exert too much effort on any game, much less one on mobile. Still, if that’s your only gripe obviously that’s pretty dang good in my opinion, plus if you are looking for a challenge you can certainly find one here.
As far as the in-ring action goes you’ve a handful of moves at your disposal. You can throw punches and land dropkicks after jumping and once you’ve landed enough strikes, your opponent will hit the ground like a bag of bricks. Once they do you’ve the option you grapple them and land either a forward toss, a suplex or a piledriver before they recover. Once you land all three moves you earn a “break” point which allows you to break an opponent’s grapple. While it sounds as if there are many moves in your arsenal they are very easy to execute. Occasionally your opponents will grab a chair to throw at you and if you’re quick, you can knock it out of their hands and then land a chair shot of your own. Once your (or your opponent’s) HP is depleted the match is over. I’d say depending upon your play style matches only last around 30 seconds to a minute, making it very easy to jump in to a quick match or two whenever you’ve some time to kill.
The core “story” of wrestling your way to the top is one common to all sports games and I appreciate the atmosphere created by having NPCs pop up after some matches. Being able to view the current rankings in the manager’s office is a neat way to view your journey towards the championship. The dialog is typically short and skippable if you so choose, although I’m a fan of seeing the story components, light as they may be. My biggest “wish” for Rowdy City Wrestling is I wish you had the ability to customize the ring gear your character wears as customization is always my favorite aspects of sports games. That being said that would merely be a cherry on top of the entire experience which is already extremely solid for an arcade style wrestling game.
Rowdy City Wrestling is a game I discovered by chance when I was bored and perusing the App Store and it’s quickly become one of my favorite titles. I typically do at least a match or two every day and while I’m constantly retiring my character whenever the competition gets too stiff (what can I say, I’m willing to admit I’m a noob), it’s awesome being able to unlock the different characters using the credits earned by winning matches. If you’re a fan of arcade-style wrestling or are ever waxing nostalgic for wrestling’s bygone days, Rowdy City Wrestling is a mobile game you should absolutely pick up. Once I unlock Mysterio you can BET I’m going to be taking out all of the competition 💪
TruBros 