I have been playing WWF games since I first encountered WWF Superstars in the arcade back in 1989! I recently wrote about my most wanted features in WWE 2K24, but today we are going old school and looking at my top five 8-bit WWF games. I will be honest with you, four of these are games that I actually think are good and one is pretty much here to make this a top five, but I had some fun putting this list together. If you disagree with my picks, be sure to leave your own top five in the comments section.
Number 5
WWF King of the Ring
NES
This was also on the Game Boy, but that version is missing characters, one of which is the freaking Undertaker! This was the last WWF game for the NES and was released in 1993, it is a late title for the system. It features a pretty stacked roster of wrestlers as well as giving you the ability to play as “yourself” and there are some basic stats, but this is as basic as it gets. You can beat a guy with a punch and then just stomping him to death! There are no special moves and the game looks like it was made in Microsoft Paint. I picked this because it has the King of the Ring tournament which was a pay-per-view that started earlier in 1993 and it has the bracket like the actual event did!
Number 4
WWF Betrayal
Game Boy Color
Next up we have something that I consider a hidden gem. If you looked at my top five SNES games, you know that I love beat-em-ups, and what we have here with WWF Betrayal is a WWE themed beat-em-up. Stephanie McMahon has been kidnapped and Vince McMahon has promised either The Rock, Stone Cold Steve Austin, The Undertaker, or Triple H a championship match if they can get her back. This is basic, but fun stuff, as a wrestling fan I get a huge kick out of the cheesy dialogue which is actually different depending on the wrestler you pick. It may lack the depth of something like Streets of Rage or Turtles in Time, but I always have a smile on my face when I play this.
Number 3
WWF WrestleMania Challenge
NES
WWF WrestleMania Challenge was one of the first games I got when I got my NES and I have a ton of nostalgia for this game. This lets you play as one of eight WWF wrestlers including The Ultimate Warrior which had me super excited or you can play as Yourself and try to beat all eight WWF Superstars to become the champion. The gameplay here is a bit of an acquired taste, but I love it, you view the action from an isometric point of view and your characters zoom around the ring. The wrestlers have slightly different move sets which is fun and you get some awesome 8-bit renditions of their theme songs. I always had a lot of fun playing this with friends back in the day.
Number 2
WWF WrestleMania 2000
Game Boy Color
Here we have another hidden gem and if it was not for nostalgia, WWF WrestleMania 2000 would be my number one pick! This game has a large roster for a handheld game and the wrestlers are captured so well! It has a fun story mode that is like you are in the WWF and it even has little entrances that I still get a kick out of. The gameplay does take a while to get used to as it is not a simple button masher. However, I think the fact that this does have a bit more depth compared to the other 8-bit WWF games we had before this does make it stand out. It is always overlooked due to how amazing the Nintendo 64 version of WWF WrestleMania 2000 is!
Number 1
WWF Superstars
Game Boy
Yes it only has five wrestlers and you can beat the game in like ten minutes, but I freaking love WWF Superstars for the Game Boy. This game captures the vibe of the WWF better than any of the NES WWF games. You get superstar interviews that differ depending on who is wrestling and you also get after-match analysis from Vince McMahon. It has these big chunky sprites that look so much better than any of the other WWF games on Game Boy. Plus, each wrestler actually has their own special attack, granted it is just a punch, but it is more than any of the other WWF games on Game Boy had. This is just a fun game and it is a real shame they never ported this to the NES or built upon this for WWF Super Stars 2 as that game sucks compared to this!
So that is my top 5 WWF 8-bit games! Be sure to leave your own in the comments section down below after you have trained, said your prayers, and taking your vitamins BROTHER!