WWE '13

Customer Ratings:
List Price: $32.00
Sale Price: $19.99
Today's Bonus: 38% Off

I have been a huge wrestling fan and wrestling game fan for pretty close to 2 decades now. I was excited for this year's game mostly for the "Attitude Era" mode that replaced the Road To Wrestlemania from WWE '12. After playing a few matches and checking the movesets and also briefly starting the "Attitude Era" campaign, I must say I am throughly impressed with what THQ produced this year. The graphics are amazing, the gameplay is improved from last year, and the enhanced audio is somewhat better from WWE '12. There is very little to complain about in WWE '13, though there are very trivial minor things to mention;

1}Some character models are kind of wrong. Certain faces in the game are wrong. Classic example; Shawn Michaels. He looks like a cross between Chucky the killer doll from Child's Play and Bret Michaels from Poison. Seriously, couldn't THQ have scanned the real HBK's face and put that into the game? Also, some hair textures look awful. It's not enough to noticeably effect the fun factor, but hardcore wrestling fans will notice these things.

2}The gameplay is definetely improved, but still has a few bugs. Certain weapons have glitchy interaction and certain environments are kind of spotty and buggy as well. While certain things like table interaction have been improved, they still lack table finishers like the older Smackdown games had. Granted, the "predator technology" is a relatively new addition since WWE '12 and THQ will have to perfect it. It's all minor though and not something to harp on.

3}Outdated looks and/or missing parts; Some current superstars are missing entrance gear and their looks. In the case of Daniel Bryan, he doesn't have his ring jacket he's had since before last year's Mania. Also, his in-game character model looks the same as it did in WWE '12. His hair is exactly the same and his beard looks too neat and trimmed as compared to the "goatface" thing he has had since shortly after Wrestlemania of last year. Again, this doesn't affect the fun factor but true wrestling fans pay attention to detail. THQ needs to as well to truly capture the real WWE experience accurately. Kinda seems like rushing the product year-to-year makes THQ lazy and they simply use the same model each year unless there is drastic change in apperance.

Attitude Era mode has been great so far. The challenges are abit frustrating at certain points, but it is awesome to relive some of the moments from WWE's golden days. Certain events are given more weight than others, though. I didn't like how the Montreal screwjob was kind of glossed over in comparision to the detailed DX formation. That was a big event and not doing it in-depth is kind of selective. However, I've only started the DX campaign and haven't unlocked all of them. Bret Hart has an unlockable campaign, which I'm hoping will cover more of the Montreal event.

Bottom line: I haven't even begun to scratch the surface of WWE '13's wealth of material such as creation modes, WWE Universe 3.0, or other features yet. I've only played a couple of hours with it and I'm impressed with the overall product. People always want to claim WWF No Mercy on N64 or Wrestlemania 2000 were the best wrestling games. Not anymore. With additions such as catching finishers and Oh My God moments, this is as close to real life in-ring WWE as it gets. While there are minor things that THQ can improve upon, this game stands out as the best WWE game to date. Any true WWE fan or wrestling fan in general will appreciate what WWE '13 has to offer.

Click Here to Read More Reviews >>

Prior to my update; I had a very high opinion of this game (you can see my original review far below).

However, as of January 2013, I deem this game is in no condition to be sold.

It is HEAVYILY bugged.

The game developer THQ went bust, and now no one will fix the many problems still in the game!

Here are just some of the many bugs that will forever go unpatched;

** Story Designer bugs

(No crowd audio during matches in Story Designer. Also players have reported freezing when trying to save a created story among many, many other issues.)

** Superstar threads glitch

(When you create a new attire coloration for some superstars, the attire will appear spotty in-game)

** Ring announcer bug

(The ring announcer will sometimes not announce a superstar as they make their way out to the ring, but instead just say "AND")

** Created finishers bug

(Created finishing moves deal considerably less damage than ordinary special moves)

** Various moves cause perma-freezing

(Though not very frequently; at times when a player does a move on another, it will cause a perma-freeze to one or sometimes both superstars)

** 1 count bug

(even after heavily damaging an opponent [A.I. controlled] you'll get only a one-count)

** Broken Attributes

(Players have tested attributes and proven that many of them have no affect)

** Broken Pin bar

(even after dealing a considerable amount of damage to an opponent [user controlled] their kick out meter will still be large.)

** Triple-Threat matches don't work [A.I]

(A.I. in triple threat matches are the absolute worst. Triple-Threats will always turn into a handicap match one way or another because A.I. only changes target when you hit them. If nobody hits them, guess what? Whoever they were targeted on when the match begins remains their target throughout!)

Virtually every mode of the game has some sort of problem. Including the Universe mode.

I also want to add that the online servers are terrible. Even with 2k now "supporting" WWE '13.

Buy WWE '13 Now

Last year, when WWE 12 was released to mixed reviews, I personally believed it to be a great game for a fresh attempt. In alot of ways, I thought even WWE 12 was the best game of it's time. Coming from a hardcore wrestling game fan who's played just about every WWF,WCW,ECW,LOW(and loads others I'm probably leaving out)WWE 13 stands out as possibly the best WWE game ever released. The roster is deep for a wrestling game, plus you once again have 50 CAW slots. So basically, you have the ability to have every big name ever in wrestling in the game.

The Attitude Mode is a welcomed change and a fitting tribute to the most popular time in WWF/WWE history. I especially like the video packages that recap the real life events, as well as the in game cutscenes counterparts. The match objectives are cool as well, and despite being frustrating at times, is awesome when it rewards you with unlockables. I can't believe it took till now for WWE to do away with the RTW and implement actual footage and events from the real life shows. This mode alone is well worth the price of the game.

The creation modes are once again awesome, as they have a few minor changes, but otherwise are the same as last year. Not a bad thing though, since the creation material last year was superb.

The gameplay is by far the bread and butter of 13. If you're like me, then you loved it last year, and this year it is more polished and refined. With the additions of catch finishers,OMG moments and comebacks, it's about as realistic as a wrestling game can be to real life in ring action.

My only minor gripes with this game is some slowdown in gameplay, a few odd character models, and some collision issues. However, all of that is so minor and trivial that I still give this game 5 stars, as it is that fun and addictive. A must own for any diehard fan of wrestling and wrestling games...

Read Best Reviews of WWE '13 Here

It is all too fitting that the "Best in the World" graces the cover of, possibly, the best wrestling game in the world. If any ONE person has issue with this game, they have to be nuts. Sure, it has it's VERY minor inconsistencies (i.e. Bossman missing his gloves), but is that really any reason to completely trash and dismiss the game? It has TWO games worth of a roster and TONS of options. For me, the little things like having 4 attires for classic Kane, 3 themes and 4 trons for Undertaker, and probably every WWE titles that ever existed and more, makes the game a huge improvement.

But wait. For those who are all about everything that has to do with the gameplay, you're in for a treat, too. I expected the game (and would've been OK with, given the huge roster alone) to handle just like last year. Uh uh! This is a whole new beast, and as the controls have not changed, the flow and feel of every move has. Moves are executed with nearly 100% perfection and realism. Even the new, more enthusiastic crowd makes the experience that much better. Hearing that crowd during the match makes me feel like I'm there and that every moment is an epic one. It makes me want to keep playing the match or excited for the next one.

A big thing for me, is the existing superstars' movesets. It was just last year that I actually started to play Universe mode with the actual superstars and I felt that most of the ones I played with, their movesets were not accurate. So far, I've played as HBK, Miz, Kane, CM Punk, '98 Rock, DX Triple H, and Paul Wight and feel as though their stock movesets are as accurate as they can be. Even playing as Paul Wight (Big Show) was fun, and I've never enjoyed playing as Big Show!

Lastly, one other thing that I love (but get a little annoyed with) about the game is the reversal system. It is still the same, yes. But it seems to be much more touchy this year. Meaning you need to be more skilled than ever to nab a reversal. But this is certainly a good thing, as it provides a more challenging A.I. And I haven't even increased the difficulty in the options menu yet.

Want WWE '13 Discount?

Really, I am giving it 4 and a half stars and rounding it off to five. The Game play is easy to pick up, the graphics are very good. A code in the booklet allows you access to some content, but one drawback is they make you pay $19.99 for "WWE Fan Axxess" to get some other downloadable content, including some of the current WWE talent, one a current title holder and another a headliner on the Pay Per View event they just held two nights ago. I'd understand including them as unlockable content, but after just dropping $60 on the game, I think that the current roster should be included in the price of the game the way EA sports made Madden.