Rumble Roses XX

Written by Joe Comunale  on March 08, 2006

Final Glimpse: Conservative ring attire not included...

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Coming off the recent success of WWE Smackdown! vs. RAW 2006, Yuke's is at it again with Rumble Roses XX, the first wrestling game for Microsoft's latest console. The selling points are a tad different from the conventional WWE's, ECW's, or what have you. While many wrestling games portray real-life TV series, this game takes on a more fictional approach. And as opposed to the predominantly male rosters, Rumble Roses is comprised of a fictional female cast-Цscantily clad and ready to rumble.

Yuke's is somewhat like the Steve Austin of developers-Цa time-tested team that continuously stuns the competition. The people at Yuke's did wonders for a bevy of grapplers during the PlayStation and Nintendo 64 era and then throughout the PlayStation 2 and Xbox war. Needless to say, they have plenty of experience, and solid play coupled with through-the-roof (or should we say ropes) action have been trademarks of the team. Rumble Roses XX may not be the most conventional wrestling title aesthetically, but its fundamentals of play are fairly recognizable, albeit with provocatively dressed women.

Control-wise, Rumble Roses XX plays similar to its previous incarnation. The face buttons initiate a variety of attacks, grapples, submissions, and numerous other acts-Цall appropriate to the position of the wrestlers. The shoulder buttons consist of blocks, counters, and special attacks. There are a few different special attacks, each being available after a criteria is met. A Уhot moveФ is one, which lets players dish out a devastating combo on their opponent. There are variances among the characters too, so playing with one wrestler feels differently from playing with another one. And let's not forget the stages come complete with chairs and weapons galore. When it comes down to it though, a winner is usually decided by calculated movements and sharp reflexes, since executing both offensive and defensive attacks rely on keen timing.

Past Yuke's entries have attempted a story mode to little avail. Rumble Roses doesn't have one. Fortunately, there are gobs of other areas players can engage in. Some of the more basic matches include one on one, handicap, triple threat, four man, and tag team. In tag team events, relationships will develop throughout its duration. If relations stay on amicable terms, then one partner will bail the other out when she's in trouble. Contrariwise, if one partner accidentally (or intentionally) hits the other, then bad blood will ferment between the team. Thankfully, players won't be restricted to simple one-on-one matches when going online, as triple threat, four man, and tag team are all accessible as well. Online tag matches should be interesting, as we assume not all partners will have such altruistic intentions.

There are some other matches that are a bit more gimmicky: street fight, pure humiliation, and queen's matches. The first type pits the wrestling babes in street affraysЦ-best of three wins. Appropriately named, pure humiliation is a match where the winner is crowned once a humiliation move is executed, which can be performed after filling a meter. Finally, there's a queen's match. The rules are simple: the loser has to comply with one of the numerous embarrassing acts chosen by the winner.

When the action dies down, players can create their own wrestling vixens. They can be birthed from scratch, or players can edit any of the 40 available grapplers. Size does matter, as height and weight reflect a wrestler's in-ring performance. A sumo-like character sacrifices speed and agility for strength, while a slimmer creation is more agile and swift. The available attire consists of dental floss-like underwear and hordes of similarly provocative pieces.

Just as the cast is fictional, most of the environs take a fictional route. Of course, there are still conventional settings with a ring and a basic surrounding, but some of the other areas are a bit more outlandish. One area pits players atop a building after nightfall, and another takes place amidst a barren desert.

The graphics look extravagant. Luminous intros start things off, which were individually crafted for each participant. The animations were done well, and are bolstered by a consistent frame-rate. Pretty faces and seductive curves sum up the wrestlers looks. Oh and just in case it hasn't already been properly construed, the wrestling gear (or lack thereof) leaves little to the imagination.