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Post by Staubhold on Apr 4, 2021 19:04:04 GMT
Toukon Inoki Michi Puzzle Da Da! (PS2) With Inoki, Liger, Nagata, Tenzan, and... I can't recognize the rest...  |
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Post by Shadow Master on Apr 17, 2021 4:14:09 GMT
Thank you for keeping this thread alive while I was off doing other projects, Staubhold!
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Post by Shadow Master on Apr 21, 2021 16:12:31 GMT
Okay, still have to go through the Gaki roster, but, here's an idea that came to mind while working on another project. Recently, I started sharing instruction booklet and strategy guide scans for the Super Famicom on one of Fire Pro's facebook pages. A friend there was kind enough to send me a link to a massive archive of SNES/SFC manuals; Which got me looking at a manual for
one of my favourite fighting games as a kid: the much-maligned Power Moves:  For decades, I simply shrugged Baraki off as a Blanka clone (they booth make "Ooooh" noises, live in exotic locations and have a rolling attack).  Though, looking at Baraki's last name "Kimera", I'm starting to wonder if Baraki was also based on "The Botswana Beast" Giant Kimala II (Ben Peacock).  Like Baraki, Kimala II was shorter in stature (in comparison to Kamala), Baraki's facepaint looks somewhat inspired by Kimala's, Baraki hails from Kenya, which is close to Kimala's location of Botswana and the inspiration could be probable as Kimala II was first featured in AJPW while teaming with Abdullah The Butcher as early as 1990 (2 years before Power Moves was released in Japan on November 20th, 1992). |
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Post by Shadow Master on Apr 29, 2021 1:36:43 GMT
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Post by Shadow Master on May 7, 2021 6:58:47 GMT
I'll throw a few more ideas out since Fire Pro has taught us to embrace many forms of hand to hand combat. Call it adding a bit of blood to the water, if you will.
Killer Instinct
T.J. Combo - Mike Tyson
Tusk - Connor Macleod from the movie "Highlander"
Eyedol - His first name is Billy. Put them both together and you get Billy Idol.
Cinder - Most likely inspired by The Flash.
Jago - Bruce or Brandon Lee? I'm seeing a bit of Liu Kang, too.
Orchid - This is a tough one. Could be a mix of Sonya Blade and Chun-LI. I've ruled out Shannon Lee.
Fulgore - A highly-advanced cyborg. Considered the world's first super soldier; which were created by a company called Ultratech.
Sounds familiar? I'm guessing Fulgore is based on the Terminator's T200 series; which were developed by Skytech.
Riptor - Could have been inspired by the overwhelming popularity of Jurassic Park from 1993.
Mortal Kombat
These are my personal theories. If I missed the mark, feel free to "FINISH THEM", if you'd like.
Liu-Kang: Bruce Lee
Johnny Cage: Jean Claude Van Damme
Jax: Steve James
Sonya Blade: Cynthia Rothrock (I'm starting to think Tekken's Nina Williams is also partially based on her)
Cassie Cage: Felice Herrig
Stryker: Bruce Willis
Baraka: his claws and demon appearance bring to mind Freddy Krueger.
Drahmin: a rotting corpse who's face is concealed with a primitive face guard that resembles a Hockey Mask - a la Jason Voorhees.
Shao Kahn: the skull mask and attire look like a toss up between Skeletor and He-Man
Sindel: looks loosely based on Vampira and Elvira.
Bo Rai Cho: The popular drunken kung-fu style could be a reference to Jackie Chan.
Li-Mei: Lucy Liu?
Goro and Sheeva: inspired by the stop motion film The Golden Voyage of Sinbad. In the film a six armed Kali comes to life.
Shang Tsung: could be partially inspired also by The Golden Voyage as Kali was brought to life by a dark wizard named Koura.
The resemblance is similar.
Raiden: The name Raiden is based on the Japanese God of Thunder "Raijin". Raiden's appearance is based on the Lightning
Elemental master from the movie Big Trouble In Little China.
Motaro: Ed Boon stated that Motaro's design was inspired by Baron Karza - a toy from the Micronauts line that had robotic
pieces and could be merged together with it's trusty steed.
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Post by Staubhold on Jun 2, 2021 0:14:55 GMT
Xavier Woods in Super Bomberman R   |
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Post by Shadow Master on Jun 16, 2021 17:26:19 GMT
New update: 80's Mania Wrestling Returns has added a few extra Wrestler look-alikes for everyone's consideration: Park Warden I believe Park Warden is actually The Mountie from the WWF. The French writing on his attire is a dead giveaway. Zeke Mullet  Zeke Mullet has a new attire that looks like The Big Bossman. Some say there's a Dog The Bounty Hunter influence, too.
The Fantastique French Berets The French Berets are based on recognizable WWF Tag Team: The Fabulous Rougeau Brothers. Johnny Cobra I believe this character is based on Johnny Lawrence from Cobra Kai. Johnny Lawrence was also a character from the Karate Kid movies. |
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Post by Shadow Master on Sept 5, 2021 5:33:02 GMT
Hey, everyone. It's been a while. I hope you all are doing well. I've been quietly working on a few Pro-Wrestling projects under the radar (scanning guides, helping a Pro-Wrestling database, running a Pro-Wrestling figure blog, trying to churn out new Parts Craft pieces every blue moon, etc, etc...). So, I thought I'd update this old thread with some new likenesses I spotted:
80's Mania Wrestling Returns
Announced back in August via Mania Wrestling's official Twitter account, this trio is known as "Ramblin Men". Obviously, this trio is based on The Fabulous Freebirds. The Wrestlers are: Sexy Rebel (Michael P.S. Hayes), Jordy Hoss (Terry Gordy) and Raunch Robbins (Jimmy Garvin).  July's update featured a new playable character called Major Malice (Sergeant Slaughter). I love the bold "WAR is RAW" slogan on Malice's helmet (a nod to Monday Night RAW's slogan).  You'll feel like Tony Khan having this next Wrestler added to your fed. Strongarm Thompson returns again as an older variant. Again, this character is based on Arn Anderson and his later, behind-the-scenes role in WCW.  Combatribes
Considered the unofficial true third instalment of the Double Dragon series, Combatribes once again featured the involvement of series creator Yoshihisa Kishimoto.  The first noticeable likeness you may spot is Salamander, who is based off of Karnov (who was based off of real-life Wrestler Abdullah The Butcher).  Boss character "Fats" reminds me of two other notable fat guy bosses. McGuire from Super Double Dragon/Return of Double Dragon and Burnov from Double Dragon II (who is based on Big Van Vader). For years, I always thought McGuire was supposed to be a clown (green hair, striped pants, acrobatic rolling attack)....just no makeup. Like Burnov, McGuire is probably also based on Big Van Vader. The irony is, McGuire was pulling off the acrobatics a few years before Vader started using the Vadersault. Sometimes life imitates art. On a related note, lead characters Berserker and Blitz are based on Double Dragon's Billy and Jimmy Lee. Final boss Martha Splatterhead is also based on Marian from the Double Dragon series. |
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Post by Shadow Master on Sept 9, 2021 2:19:29 GMT
There are still plenty of video games left to cover when it comes to Wrestler appearances. Today however, I'm going to share an ultra-obscure Puroresu reference from the 1980's with all of you. Robodachi Wrestlers Known in Japan as "ロボダッチ" (Robodachi), Robodachi started out as a character design created by Manga Artist Satoru Ozawa back in 1975. That same year, Japanese toymaker IMAI released the first-ever Robodachi figure; which became a hit overnight. The name Robodachi literally translates to "robot friend". Of course, Robodachi also had an arcade game or two. But this isn't about those games. Enter Robodachi Wrestlers.
The box art for the red ring playset. Notice any likenesses yet?
How about now?
Another playset that features all of the Wrestler figures. The Wrestlers included in the sets are: Texas Robo (Stan Hansen) Debutcher (Abdullah The Butcher) Riki Robo (Riki Choshu) Giant Robo (Giant Baba) Monster Robo (a nod to Andre The Giant's Monster Roussimoff gimmick in Japan) Antonio Inochi (Antonio Inoki) Ichiban Robo (Ichiban being the catchphrase and symbol Hulk Hogan would adopt during the early portion of his career in Japan).  About six different playsets were produced. Different playsets also had different painting instructions (which is why foreign Wrestlers like Andre and Abdullah are painted in darker/lighter skin tones depending on what playset you purchased). Robodachi never had a Pro-Wrestling-inspired video game. Maybe one day the Fire Pro community will change that. For those interested to learn more about the Robodachi series, you can check out my full review here: tigerdrivercollectibles.blogspot.com/2021/08/imai-robodachi-pro-wrestling-figure.html |
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Post by Shadow Master on Sept 19, 2021 18:26:38 GMT
Speaking of super-obscure Wrestler appearances, did you know three Wrestling legends appear in the background of Hudson Soft's 1995 2D fighter Saikyou Takada Nobuhiko - The Pro-Wrestling?  In Saikyou Takada, there are four stages to choose from. This specific stage is known as "UWF International Dojo" which also serves as the game's sparring mode stage. Next to a poster of Nobuhiko Takada and a trainee, there are three recognizable faces: Billy Robinson (far left), Lou Thesz (left) and Danny Hodge (far right).  Notice how Thesz and Hodge's suits have been switched around in-game?Thesz, Robinson and Hodge were respected legends with legitimate Wrestling backgrounds. Robinson and Hodge acted as head coaches while Thesz was instated as head commissioner. Thesz also provided his "Pro-Wrestling World Heavyweight Championship" (a belt Thesz used as NWA Champion in the 1950's) as UWFI's Championship belt.  This theory comes courtesy of Youtuber Top Hat Gaming Man. Apparently, the cover art for 1996's Street Fighter Alpha 2 was inspired by the cover of this 1995 WWF Magazine issue. Which wouldn't be the first time a book cover inspired the cover art of a video game....  Target Renegade (the sequel to Yoshihisa Kishimoto's Renegade/Kunio Kun beat 'em up) features art inspired by the cover of Joe Lewis' instructional book. As we mentioned before, Joe Lewis is believed to have been the inspiration behind Tekken's Paul Phoenix as well as Ken Masters and Joe from the Street Fighter series. |
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Post by Shadow Master on Sept 20, 2021 0:02:13 GMT
I'm honestly surprised we haven't talked about this next game yet:
Atsushi Onita's Political Quiz Yep. The founder of Japanese Deathmatch promotion FMW Atsushi Onita followed in the footsteps of fellow Wrestlers Antonio Inoki and Hiroshi Hase with a stint in politics back in the early 2000's.  Onita's political career came to an abrupt halt when a scandal was unearthed where Onita was accused of using a government building to stage a threesome. But, we still have this game for the memories. |
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Post by Shadow Master on Oct 16, 2021 10:19:14 GMT
Lately, I've been playing Dead Dance on the Super Famicom. A game we already mentioned before in this thread (and it's Western port known as "Tuff E Nuff" on the Super Nintendo). Tuff E Nuff was a game I remember renting one weekend from my local video store back in the late 1990's (the same store that had an arcade at the back with Tekken, Battle Arena Toshinden, and Darkstalkers cabinets). While I wasn't the best at the game, I remember enjoying the music very much (especially Vortz' and Gajet's stages). Like Street Fighter II, completing the game on the hardest difficulty setting presents the game's credits. It was only recently did I notice this Wrestler reference:  First we had Hitman Saber. Then we had Super Invader and Big Nova Geiger. Then Bullpower ...now, we have Bigrun Vader Lakuku! Obviously a play on Pro-Wrestler Big Van Vader.  The Super Famicom artwork is vastly superior, in my opinion. With Dead Dance/Tuff Enuff's story taking place in a post apocalyptic wasteland, the cover art for the Super Famicom version looks like it was inspired by the Mad Max movies.  Even the goons in the opening look like characters ripped from the Mad Max franchise.  In story mode, the player must defeat the three other protagonists in the arena before accessing the tower to the left. Each floor of the tower presents a new enemy for the player to face. Each opponent stronger than the last. Personally, I think the tower concept was inspired by Bruce Lee's final film Game of Death.  Before facing the final opponent at the top of the tower, the player must face K's. K's long reach and stature reminds me of Mantis from Game of Death (as played by 7 ft 2 / 218cm Basketball legend Kareem Abdul-Jabbar). While K's robotic appendages bring to mind Han from Bruce Lee's film Enter The Dragon.   Popular Japanese anime/manga Hokuto No Ken/Fist of The North Star was also inspired by Mad Max; which may have inspired the character design in Tuff E Nuff/Dead Dance.  Final boss "the fighting god" Jado looks to be based on Fist of The North Star's primary antagonist Raoh.  Jado's fighting style is listed as "fighting aura"; which is a signature technique Raoh used in a pivotal fight against Kenshiro.  On an unrelated note, the final boss in Soul Calibur IV (Algol) also brings to mind Raoh from Fist of The North Star appearance -wise and Jado from Tuff E Nuff/Dead Dance. Like Jado, Algol also sits atop a tower (called the "Tower of Remembrance") awaiting strong opponents.  Zeus awaiting strong opponents in his temple while Algol awaits the same in the Tower of Remembrance. Another boss inspired by Raoh is Zeus from the World Heroes series. |
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Post by Shadow Master on Oct 16, 2021 12:36:51 GMT
In the past, I mentioned King from the Tekken series was a tribute to Pro-Wrestling in general. Everyone's favourite jaguar-masked Wrestler contains a moveset that serves as greatest hits package of the most iconic moves in all of Pro-Wrestling. Though, before King hit the scene, we had another Pro-Wrestling knockoff in the form of Vortz from Tuff E Nuff (SNES) and Dead Dance (SFC).  At the beginning of this thread, I pointed out that Vortz is based off of Hulk Hogan while Vortz' palette swap Gajet is based on Super Strong Machine. A lot of thought went into crafting Vortz' moveset. If anything, Vortz is more than just a HulK Hogan clone, his moveset is filled with iconic Wrestling techniques, too:  The flying elbow strike techniques may have been inspired by Mitsuharu Misawa's meteoric rise to super stardom in 1990 and the incredible popularity All Japan Pro-Wrestling had during the era. Yes, even Hulk Hogan used an Enzuigiri (most notably against Genichiro Tenryu in 1991).  Hogan famously used a Neck Hanging Tree against Sylvester Stallone in the movie Rocky III as the character Thunderlips. Axe Bomber is the finisher Hogan used in Japan in exchange for his patented Leg Drop.  Zangief may have the Spinning Piledriver, but Vortz was one of the (if not THE first) characters to perform a Kinnikuman-style Muscle Buster. Likewise, Vortz's brother Gajet appears as an enemy in the game's story mode. Gajet is pretty much a palette swap with a few minor differences in attacks. Most noticeably, Gajet doesn't have Vortz' Shoulder Block or Muscle Buster Specials. In their place, Gajet contains a Frankensteiner, a brutal Brainbuster and a heel-ish fork attack. |
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Post by Shadow Master on Jan 18, 2022 0:02:31 GMT
Folks, it's been a while since we delved into the world of Pro-Wrestler appearances in other video games. Here's another one we haven't talked about. While not a video game (actually, it's a card game), I felt you guys would get a kick out of discussing the Wrestler's this next group of characters are based on with me:
Book It! The Pro-Wrestling Promoter Card Game: To start with, I'll be going over as many characters as I can find from Book It's facebook page: 
"He's one of the best wrestlers in the world today, and he's here to help you "Clean up" your competition."I think we can all agree that this is Kenny Omega. 
"One of the hardest hitting and most violent women in all of professional wrestling. Whether she's dropping you on your head or
tossing you into barbed wire, Kawasaki has an unforgettable presence in the ring. She's most well known for her battles with her
sometimes partner/sometimes blood rival, Valentine."
War Kawasaki is based off of Combat Toyoda.  "This hard hitting Strong-Style specialist is one of the best performers in all of pro wrestling, and for those
playing the Strong-Style promotion, one of the most affordable top-tier wrestlers around! Unfortunately,
his cult-hero status means he won't garner you much fan attention from the mainstream, so keep that in mind!"
Katsuo is based on NJPW Wrestler Katsuyori Shibata. This next batch is going to be harder, as there's no hints, just pictures.  Katsu = Katsuyori Shibata Sling Blade = Young Bucks? Honkey Tonk Man? Adam Barcelona = Zak Ryder? Andy Phenom = AJ Styles K.V. Carr = Sounds like "Credit Card". Sasha Banks? Sashimi Politics = A knock on Atsushi Onita's political career. Joshi Queen = Manami Toyota Caroline = Charlotte Flair Ray Enigma = Dominik Mysterio, or could be an unmasked Rey Mysterio Mox Ambrosia = Moxley  Two versions of Katana. The first is based off of Asuka's early "Kana" gimmick. The second is Asuka's WWE appearance.  How clever. Just place the "e" in front and you get NJPW's EVIL. |
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Post by Shadow Master on Jan 18, 2022 8:24:14 GMT
Even in my absence, I'm still amazed knowing there are talented edit makers out there that have made Fire Pro World versions of the 80's Mania Wrestling roster.
80's Mania Wrestling Returns:
Fans of the popular booking simulator will be pleased to know more Wrestling legends and pop culture icons have been added to the roster.  The Siberians are based on WWF Tag Team "The Bolsheviks". Molotov is based on Boris Zhukov while Smirnof (who looks more like The Iron Sheik, in my opinion) is supposedly based on Nikolai Volkoff.  Henchmen 4 Hire's Blitz and Slug are based on Al Snow and Ron Simmons of APA.  Jam Gordon is based on Michael Jordan. I'm sure "Jam" was probably lifted from Arcade classic "NBA Jam" (which, ironically, Jordan was absent from).  Poison Frog is based on Black Tiger.  Bravo Gallardo, Poison Frog's alter-ego is based on Eddie Guerrero. Eddie donned the Black Tiger persona in Japan in the 90's. In fact, starting with Super Fire Pro-Wrestling Special, players could play as Guerrero under the Black Tiger gimmick. |
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