WWF Raw

WWF RAW is a video game released for the SNES, Sega 32X, Mega Drive/Genesis consoles along with a similar version for the Game Boy handheld console in 1994 by Acclaim Entertainment. It is the sequel to WWF Royal Rumble game that was released in 1993. Players can play either One-on-One, Tag Team, Bedlam, Survivor Series, Royal Rumble, or a Raw Endurance Match.

Match types

A One-on-One match is exactly as it sounds. In the most conventional match type, one wrestler will take on one opponent (a friend or the computer) for a face-to-face bout.

A Tag Team match is made up of two teams of two wrestlers. Whenever one wrestler gets tired, they can tag in their partner. Before a Tag Team match starts, you will choose a wrestler, then the computer or the second player will choose a wrestler. After that, the player will choose his partner, and the computer or second player will do the same.

A Bedlam match is similar to a Tag Team match. The only difference being that both team members are allowed in the ring at the same time.

A Survivor Series match is also similar to a Tag Team match. Instead of only 2 members on each team, a team can consist of up to four wrestlers. It is also elimintion style, in which a team is only victorious when all the opponents' teammates have been eliminated by pinfall, submission, countout, or disqualification.

The Royal Rumble begins with two wrestlers, and more adversaries enter as wrestlers are eliminated. Elimination is caused by throwing an opponent over the top rope to the outside of the ring. At the end of a Royal Rumble, score rankings are shown giving a wrestler's total time in the ring along with their number of opponents eliminated.Also before playing the Royal Rumble match,the player is alowed to view the order of entry before playing the match.

A raw endurance match is a mix between a Survivor Series and a bedlam. The player picks his first wrestler then up to five more partners. However, the choosing of partners is optional. You can go in solo, a 2 man team, a 3 man team, etc. When one team is completely defeated, the other team is the winner.

Like its predecessors, WWF Raw presents crisp and colorful graphics, however, it boasts more new features. Players may strike their opponent with steel chairs and a bucket found outside the ring, and after knocking the referee temporarily unconscious, one may use cheat tactics such as choking and eye raking. To better avoid losing via count out, wrestlers may also roll into the ring from the south side; ring entry was previously only possible through the left and right sides.
Match gameplay

After choosing the type of match you want, you must choose either the One Fall, Brawl, or Tournament stipulation. One Fall features an in-ring referee. It uses the basic method of 3-count pinfalls and count-outs, should a player stay outside of the ring for 10 seconds. It was also possible to make your opponent submit with the Bret Hart and Owen Hart's Sharpsooter. Wrestlers could also be disqualified for failure to exit the ring prior to a 10 count while not the legal man in tag-team and survivor series mode. In a Brawl, however, the referee is absent. This allows unlimited time outside the ring and the no-holds-barred rule. Cheat moves such as eye raking and choking are allowed at all times. The Brawl match doesn't require a pinfall win; instead, the first player to be entirely drained of energy "submits" in defeat. In a Tournament, a player must battle through the entire roster to win the championship belt. This follows the One Fall rules and is playable through One-on-One, Tag Team, and bedlam.

One Fall rules matches could become Brawls if a player wasn't careful. As is the case in actual wrestling, a referee can be knocked down by one of the wrestlers, whether it be inadvertent or purposely. If either of the players knocked down the referee too many times, the referee would get up after the last time, throw his hands in the air in frustration (as to say, "the hell with this"), and leave the ring, which turned the match into a Brawl.

The game itself was very arcade-like and involved a "tug-of-war" system in which; when the wrestlers lock-up, a meter shows appears above them and players must repeatingly press buttons to pull the energy away from the opponents side to theirs. With more energy, they can perform moves with greater impact.

RAW improved on Royal Rumble with its new stats system, enabling some wrestlers to be faster, stronger or heavier than others. Also included were "mega-moves", a damage-heavy but unrealistic move each character possesses (for example, Diesel's mega-move consisted of grabbing an opponent by the feet and throwing them upwards of 40 feet into the air and letting gravity take them down. The game also introduced a submission system for wrestlers with submission moves as their finishers, such as Bret and Owen Hart.