AEW: Fight Forever is a wrestling game that challenges the current king of wrestling games with its fun-loving spirit, strong sense of style, and solid fundamentals. However, it falls short in executing its potential to the fullest. Despite its audacity to try by leaning into arcadey design ideas from yesteryear and embracing a pick-up-and-play philosophy, it lacks genre-standard features, has an underwhelming single-player campaign, and suffers from mechanical issues.
In terms of style, Fight Forever comes out swinging with cartoony character models and energetic animations. Most of the 52 available competitors have well-rendered caricatures, with Kenny Omega and Jon Moxley’s among my favorites. Even the ones that seem off, like an air fryer-shaped Chris Jericho, get the benefit of not needing to be “realistic” to get the appropriate vibe across. Due to a tangled web of licensing agreements it’s not possible to release a wrestling game with a roster that fully matches the television show, and many games come out featuring wrestlers who either don’t look the same now as they did when their character models were designed or are no longer in the company. That said, there are some noticeable, almost inexcusable absences of characters and championships in the in-game roster that have been heavily featured in the real-life product for years, like Toni Storm and Daniel Garcia.
When they get busy in the ring, there’s an almost Def Jam Vendetta-like exaggerated explosiveness to every bump, kick, and punch that ramps up the over-the-top nature of the aerials and acrobatics of wrestling the way that comic books do for superhero violence. Outside of the lively animations, there’s a small number of occasions where some moves can actually affect the way you play in cool ways I haven’t seen before in a game like this. For example, grumpy Dutch goth kickboxer Malakai Black can spray black mist into opponents eyes when he gets desperate. If you’re on the receiving end, your controls will scramble for a brief few moments.
However, outside of the ring, the style is less evocative. Most menus are clean but not at all interesting. The music, some of which is performed by AEW wrestlers like Swerve Strickland and Max Caster, has a lot of energy but is still pretty forgettable. The very few voiceovers in Fight Forever are hit and miss, with the introduction to the big single-player campaign being a hit and everything else being misses. Legendary wrestling announcer Jim Ross’s delivery is so especially bad that if I didn’t know better and you told me he was one of the most recognized and beloved voices in wrestling history, I’d assume you’d been hit in the head with a steel chair too many times.
Overall, AEW: Fight Forever is an homage to fondly remembered wrestling titles of the past. It features a large roster, simple controls, numerous game modes, and a wonderfully entertaining match flow. However, some issues such as occasional graphics bugs and clipping, lack of commentary issues keep it from grabbing the gold.
REVIEW : JSAUX OmniCase 2 with Steam Deck and Laptop Stand
