3. Fire Pro Wrestling Returns (PS2, 2007, Agetec / Spike)
Fans waited for two long years before Fire Pro Wrestling Returns made it from Japan to the States in 2007, with Spike finally making its comeback after their announced end to the 2D-sprite-happy Fire Pro Wrestling series in 2003. For it is the ultimate wet dream for obsessive fans to live out their M.U.G.E.N.-esque fantasy match-ups between the 327 brawlers in the roster and fiddle with the extensive creation editor for up to 500 additional characters and custom rings, belts, logos, and refs. And even if there are no equivalents to favorite wrestlers in more popular brands like the WWE, the nearly overwhelming number of parts for heads, bodies, clothes, and accessories allows players to recreate them down to their names and fighting style, A.I. behavior, and moveset from a list of 1,649 maneuvers.
Beyond that, there’s nothing like whipping opponents into exploding barbed wire ropes, pinning their bloodied body for the win, and then kicking them when they’re down while your mouth shapes an evil grin. The only concern is that this game – and the Fire Pro Wrestling series in general – is strictly for the hardcore audience, with Fire Pro Wrestling Returns being either at the top of the list for fans of the wrestling genre or not on their list at all, a fact that can be debated in forum wars starting… now.
