WrestleQuest
Release Date: August 22, 2023
RPG, turn-based, wrestling, 2D, humorous, indie games, jRPG, singleplayer
OpenCritic
A wacky RPG, in which we play as an aspiring wrestler. WrestleQuest has us exploring different areas, talk to NPCs, complete quests and participate in turn-based battles.
WrestleQuest is a wacky wrestling RPG inspired by Japanese games. It was developed by an indie team Mega Cat Studios and published by Skybound Games.
Plot
WrestleQuest has us playing as a rookie wrestler dreaming of world fame. Led by such stars as "Macho Man" Randy Savage, Jake the Snake Roberts and Andre the Giant, we gradually ascend the career ladder. The game is rather self-aware, full of absurd humour and fantasy themes.
Mechanics
WrestleQuest makes use of the top-down perspective. Players must traverse through various wacky locations, talk to NPCs and complete quests. We're not along on our journey, as along the way we'll gather a party of other wrestlers.
As befitting its theme, combat is a large part of the game. Battles are turn-based, requiring skillful use of our characters' abilities and team attacks (we can have up to two allies at once with us). Some actions are simple QTEs, requiring timed button prompts. We'll often use the environment in battle, while our special attacks are all surreal, such as magical spells or throwing huge burritos. The enemies are just as unusual; aside from wrestlers, we'll face various monsters.
As we progress through the game, we develop our fighter, adapting his combat style to our preferences. There's a wide range of moves, taunts and entrances to choose from, letting us create our own unique wrestler.
Technical aspects
WrestleQuest features colorful, pixelart visuals. The soundtrack constantly keeps the player going during combat.
Videos and Screens
[2:00] WrestleQuest launch trailer
[1:18] WrestleQuest trailer #3
Digital Chumps: 8 / 10 by Will Silberman
WrestleQuest oozes with charm, easter eggs, and sweet chin music thanks to how well it blends traditional RPG elements with a clear love of classic wrestling. It's easy to look past some of its design quirks because of how well other RPG elements are implemented that respect the player's time and encourage them to play an active role in worldbuilding. The Switch's current implementation ain't the best, but the game sure had me in a cobra clutch for hours.
God is a Geek: 5 / 10 by Lyle Carr
WrestleQuest is a fantastic concept for a video game, but slow pacing, annoying voice lines and a ridiculous amount of QTEs spoil it entirely.
Screen Rant: 3.5 / 5 by William Cennamo
Wrestlequest is a lot of fun, and there is clearly a strong nostalgia for wrestling here, as well as the old-school style of roleplaying games. This is both a blessing and a curse. Wrestlequest does its best to keep the player engaged, and the story is a delight even if you aren't a wrestling fan, but the slow pace of old-school RPGs can quickly wear on modern players. However, if someone is yearning for the old 16-bit Final Fantasy style of gameplay, Wrestlequest will absolutely scratch that itch: ooooh Yeah!
WrestleQuest Summary
Platforms:
PC Windows
PlayStation 4
Xbox One
Nintendo Switch
PlayStation 5
Xbox Series X/S
Developer: Mega Cat Studios
Publisher: Skybound Games
Age restrictions: 12+
WrestleQuest System Requirements
PC / Windows
Minimum: Intel Core i5-750 2.67 GHz, 8 GB RAM, graphic card 2 GB GeForce GTX 670 or better, 15 GB HDD, Windows 10 64-bit
Fantasy RPG Meets Wrestling in WrestleQuest
Turn-based RPG, fantasy atmosphere and wrestling in one game - this mix is not some random invention of a madman (probably?), but WrestleQuest. The title was announced at the ID@Xbox presentation.
video games
Jacob Blazewicz
March 17, 2022