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Post by Shadow Master on Jan 10, 2024 3:52:58 GMT
On top of all of the exciting entries I just added on the previous page of this thread, here's more recognizable likenesses in board game form:
Lucha Wars! Lucha Mexican Wrestling Dice Year: 2021 Platform: Board game Developer: Backspindle games Ltd.  The masked baseball character was clearly-inspired by The Baseball Furies from the classic movie The Warriors.  Have you ever seen Ric Flair wearing The Road Warrior's spiked shoulder pads? Well, in Lucha Wars! ...now you have!  There's also a clown similar to Doink, and a masked female Wrestler that brings to mind Bam Bam Bigelow with
Mil Mascaras thrown in.
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Post by Shadow Master on Jan 10, 2024 12:31:47 GMT
We're going back to Korea again for another obscure 2D-fighter with some Wrestler likenesses: Fight Fever Platform: Arcade
Year: 1994
Developer: Viccom Co. Ltd.
 German Karateka R. Heimer bears a striking resemblance to Hulk Hogan. The stars and stripes that appear on Heimer's gi lead me to believe that the character was originally intended to hail from America, much like old red and yellow.
Final boss Master Taekuk is based on real-life Koppo master Seishi Horibe.
Master Taekuk wouldn't be the first fighting game character to pay homage to Horibe. Jubei Yamada from the Art of Fighting series of fighting games also pays respect to the Koppo great.
Body Blows
Platform: PC/DOS Year: 1993 Developer: Team 17
In 1993 2D fighter Body Blows, the token Wrestler character Dug looks a lot like famed British Wrestler Big Daddy.
 As Team 17 (the folks behind Body Blows) were based in Wakefield, England, I think this seems like a fair guess.  Additionally, the character Kossak looks quite similar to Karnov.
 Lastly, boxer character 'Junior' is most-likely inspired by Mike Tyson. One of Junior's special moves is even called 'Iron Uppercut'.
Team 17 would release a sequel to Body Blows the following yearly aptly titled 'Ultimate Body Blows':
Arm Wrestling Clicker
Developer: Newry
Year: 2023
Platform: Mobile
  Hulk Hogan appears as one of the pop culture-inspired opponents in Arm Wrestling Clicker. Bruce Lee, Rocksteady, One Punch Man, Goku, Superman, and Guile from Street Fighter all make appearances. How many more likenesses can you spot? |
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Post by Shadow Master on Jan 11, 2024 22:08:27 GMT
This thread can never have enough card game references, too:
Glorious Wrestling Alliance UltralbrawlYear: 2023 Platform: Card game Publisher: Tinkerbot Games Ultrabrawl is based on the Glorious Wrestling Alliance comics created by Josh Hicks.  While I'm not familiar with the comics themselves, I instantly noticed that the central character looks similar to Tiger Mask.  One could also argue that the character's attire looks similar to Ric Flair's colours in WCW Wrestling for the NES (also known as Superstar Pro-Wrestling in Japan).  Great Carp is clearly-inspired by Tiger Mask; even down to the cape and entrance pose. The character Gravy Train (pictured on the right) is based on several Japanese Wrestlers. Appearance-wise, Gravy resembles Yokozuna. Having the ability to blow Green mist (renamed 'Brown Mist' here), Gravy also takes inspiration from another Japanese Wrestling trope that was popularized by Wrestlers such as The Great Kabuki and The Great Muta.
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Post by Shadow Master on Jan 12, 2024 8:22:32 GMT
Here's two pages from a Fire Pro guidebook that I am currently scanning:  The year was 1996 and Iron Slam '96 was released just three months before Hulk Hogan had turned heel. Axe Duggan's appearance in Iron Slam just seemed odd. I think a large part of that awkwardness came from Duggan not sporting Hogan's iconic handlebar moustache.  Duggan's real-life counterpart also ditched his 'stache a year earlier. A moment in Wrestling history many of us would rather forget. |
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Post by Shadow Master on Jan 14, 2024 15:11:45 GMT
The first Wrestler likenesses of 2024! LOCO LUCHAS Year: 2024 Platform: Card game Released by: 888 Design Like many independent Wrestling games, Loco Luchas was originally launched as a Kickstarter campaign back in 2023. While the project didn't meet it's required threshold of $8,000.00, Loco Luchas' official website ( locoluchas.com) states that the game will be released on January 24th of this year. ![]()  
Could Cheetara be based on the female character of the same name from the Thundercats cartoon? Among the unique Wrestler designs, I also noticed the following:  Hype Man is based on 'The Mouth of the South' Jimmy Hart, while Vanguard could be based on Helga from 90's 2D Fighter ClayFighter. To check out more Wrestlers and Loco Luchas in action, here's Loco's official trailer: |
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Post by Shadow Master on Jan 14, 2024 21:07:29 GMT
Over the past 4 years, the game Street Fighter has come up several times in our discussions. But, did you know there was another Wrestler-inspired character originally slated for Street Fighter II?  Clemence Kleiber is the first boss character encountered in the 1998 arcade game Fighting Layer. The game was developed by Arika, and subsequently published by NAMCO. Interestingly, two of the fighters from Fighting Layer previously appeared in Capcom's Street Fighter EX. According to the StreetWriter Podcast, Clemence was one of the boss characters originally intended for Street Fighter II. Clemence's design looks similar to Hulk Hogan. Clemence has a similar physique and Hogan's handlebar moustache. I can also see traces of Stan Hansen and Harley Race, too. |
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Post by Just A Survivor on Jan 15, 2024 2:51:52 GMT
Over the past 4 years, the game Street Fighter has come up several times in our discussions. But, did you know there was another Wrestler-inspired character originally slated for Street Fighter II? Clemence Kleiber is the first boss character encountered in the 1998 arcade game Fighting Layer. The game was developed by Arika, and subsequently published by NAMCO. Interestingly, two of the fighters from Fighting Layer previously appeared in Capcom's Street Fighter EX. According to the StreetWriter Podcast, Clemence was one of the boss characters originally intended for Street Fighter II. Clemence's design looks similar to Hulk Hogan. Clemence has a similar physique and Hogan's handlebar moustache. I can also see traces of Stan Hansen and Harley Race, too. I also detect some traces of Karl Gotch... |
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Post by Shadow Master on Jan 16, 2024 6:15:03 GMT
I also detect some traces of Karl Gotch... I wouldn't be surprised if Gotch served as an inspiration for Clemence. After all, one of Gotch's nicknames in Japan was the 'God of Fighting'. Despite Gotch's inspiration with Japanese Wrestling (training the likes of Inoki, Baba, Fujiwara, Fujinami, Suzuki, Kido, Sayama, etc...), it's sad that Gotch wasn't represented in more Wrestling/shoot fighting games over the years. |
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Post by Shadow Master on Jan 20, 2024 20:32:17 GMT
Fans of Big Van Vader may wonder what time it is with this next bit of research:
Rage of the Dragons
Year: 2002
Platform: NEO GEO AES, Arcade
Rage of the Dragons was originally intended to be a sequel to the 1995 Neo Geo fighter Double Dragon. As the developers of Rage couldn't secure the rights to producing an official sequel, Rage of the Dragons became a homage to the Double Dragon franchise.
 In Rage of the Dragons, resident big man Jae-Mo Kang is a dead ringer for Double Dragon's Burnov; who himself was based on real-life Wrestler Big Van Vader.  Despite Rage of the Dragons being released 22 years ago, ports for current gen consoles are currently in the works. Most hardcore Double Dragon fans know that the Double Dragon franchise was also inspired by the films of Bruce Lee. Common baddies such as Roper and Bolo's names were lifted from characters found in Enter The Dragon. The Lee brothers themselves take their surname from Bruce Lee, whereas common thug Williams was also the name of an opponent in Game of Death. Speaking of Williams...  In Rage of the Dragons, the character Mr. Jones continues Double Dragon's ties to the films of Bruce Lee. Not only does Jones wear the iconic tracksuit that Bruce Lee worn in Game of Death, but Jones' character design is also a reference to Williams, who was a character in Game of Death, played by martial artist Jim Kelly.
 It wouldn't surprise me if Jim Kelly's portrayal in Game of Death inspired the character Tiger Jackson (who debuted in Tekken 3 back in '97), and Tony Umeda from Bushido Blade 2 (1998). |
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Post by Staubhold on Jan 20, 2024 22:23:08 GMT
Ultrabrawl is based on the Glorious Wrestling Alliance comics created by Josh Hicks. While I'm not familiar with the comics themselves, I instantly noticed that the central character looks similar to Tiger Mask. BTW... The Great Carp is in FPWW.  Great Carp on SteamTHE CHAMP IS HERE. John Cena is a playable pro in PGA TOUR 2K23. Wearing Peacemaker colors... even with a silver cap.  |
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Post by Shadow Master on Jan 20, 2024 22:59:16 GMT
With Cena's baseball cap and WWE's ties to 2K Games, I can see the pairing. A little-known fact in real life is that Mil Mascaras is an avid golfer, often competing in charity golf tournaments in the U.S.. Additionally, before his passing, Dick 'The Destroyer' Beyer established Destroyer Park Golf. Beyer was introduced to the game while Wrestling in Japan. As a longtime researcher of Japanese merchandise, I remember coming across an original autograph of Rikidozan. It wasn't your standard
autographed shikishi. In fact, it was an autographed golf sheet, which documented Rikidozan's golf score for that particular game. The
piece sold in the thousands.
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Post by Shadow Master on Jan 27, 2024 17:08:57 GMT
In the world of Wrestling games, there are many titles that are feasibly impossible to play nowadays. Whether the games were featured on outdated mobile devices, made playable on discontinued servers, or just removed entirely from the Google Play/Apple store, nothing truly lasts forever as far as mobile gaming is concerned.
One such example that we already covered has sadly become Senken's Pro-Wrestling Gong, a mobile Wrestler that was released back in 2016. As of 2024, Gong has been removed entirely from the Google Play store. Speaking of discontinued Wrestling games, have any of you played Wrestling Storm?  Wrestling Storm was a digital card game released in 2013 for mobile devices.   Storm's roster is comprised of Wrestlers that seem to be inspired by real-life Wrestlers and pop culture icons.
 B.I.G. Rodney seems to be based on a mix between John Cena and Eminem.  Eddie Lothario's reference is Tupac Shakur.  Guerrero Azteca could be Sin Cara, as the popular luchador made his WWE debut the same year as Wrestling Storm's release.
 Considered the poster girl of Wrestling Storm is the sumptuous Shina. My first guess was Sasha Banks, but the WWE Superstar had only just debuted a year or so prior in the WWE, and was still a few years away from becoming the 'Legit Boss' she is known as today. Another outdated guess would be Jersey Shore's Snooki (remember her?).
Kryne - a lumberjack from the west of Canada relegated to hardcore matches, as told in Kryne's online bio. Based on his appearance and place of origin, I think Kryne is a tribute to one of Canada's most popular Wrestling legends: Mad Dog Vachon. Though, Kryne could also be based on another Canadian Wrestler (one with a hardcore background) Hannibal.  Then we have 'The King', who could be based on Triple H.  
I'm probably off on this guess, but the first Wrestler that comes to mind when I think of The Magician is Phantasio from WCW mixed with Slenderman.
Jessie Alba is probably based off of Jessica Alba.
 The stocky Germaine Simmons looks like he was inspired by Mr. Hughes, the first Wrestler to steal The Undertaker's urn.
Other than a handful of posts provided from Wrestling Storm's official facebook page, there isn't much information online in regards to the game.
Just as quickly as the game was released, Wrestling Storm was taken off of mobile app stores.
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Post by Staubhold on Jan 27, 2024 22:21:26 GMT
Guerrero Azteca could be Sin Cara, as the popular luchador made his WWE debut the same year as Wrestling Storm's release. It's Rey Mysterio... just take a look at his Wrestlemania 22 entrance gear.  |
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Post by Shadow Master on Jan 28, 2024 11:47:00 GMT
I thought so, too. Yet, Cara Negra's body tattoos and mask remind me more of Mysterio.  Additionally, we also have Shu Wei. Since this game came out in 2013, I'm gonna guess that Wei could have been based on Gail Kim, Mia Yim or Kana (now Asuka).
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Post by Shadow Master on Jan 30, 2024 16:40:07 GMT
For fans of Fire Pro World's PS4 and Steam Workshops, upcoming title Casual Pro-Wrestling may scratch that creator itch. While still in early access, Casual Pro-Wrestling's Steam Workshop is already filled with about 500 fan-created CAWS; all based on real-life Wrestlers.  |
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