Concern In WWE That More Releases Are Coming, 'Mania, IC Title, More
THQ, Inc. and JAKKS Pacific, Inc. sent out a press release regarding the upcoming WWE Legends of WrestleMania videogame:
COVER SUPERSTARS ANNOUNCED FOR WWE? LEGENDS OF WRESTLEMANIA? Andre the Giant, Hulk Hogan, Stone Cold Steve Austin and The Rock To Team with Bobby Heenan and Jimmy Hart For Front Cover of New World Wrestling Entertainment? Videogame Property AGOURA HILLS, Calif. – November 26, 2008 – THQ Inc. and JAKKS Pacific, Inc. today announced that six World Wrestling Entertainment? luminaries will be featured on the cover of WWE? Legends of WrestleMania?. Renowned Superstars Andre the Giant, Hulk Hogan, Stone Cold Steve Austin and The Rock, along with vibrant managers Bobby Heenan and Jimmy Hart, will set the tone for the new videogame property, which is poised to deliver a distinguished roster, arcade style gameplay and historic, vintage presentation. WWE Legends of WrestleMania is scheduled for release in March 2009 to coincide with WrestleMania 25 in Houston, Texas. "Andre, Hogan, Austin and The Rock represent the breadth of incredible talent that players can use to relive, rewrite or redefine history in WWE Legends of WrestleMania," said Cory Ledesma, senior creative manager, THQ. "In addition, they will have access to dynamic managers, such as Heenan and Hart, who will play important roles throughout critical gameplay moments." About WWE Legends of WrestleMania WWE Legends of WrestleMania will embrace the leading sports entertainment organization's rich history to relive, rewrite or redefine the definitive elements of WWE from the Eighties and Nineties. Players will experience the entertaining lives of 40 larger-than-life Legends and have control over Legendary Managers, each of whom will play crucial roles in match outcomes. The game's new grapple-based fighting system will capture the high-energy action and drama seen in vintage WWE matches, while a historically accurate representation of past WWE telecasts will set the stage, including dynamic visual treatments, signature ring entrances, renowned commentators and notable venues. WWE Legends of WrestleMania will also include a WrestleMania Tour Mode that allows players to participate in key matches from multiple WrestleMania events, a Create-A-Legend system to develop the Legends of tomorrow, as well as online functionality for players to compete on the biggest stages in WWE history. More information about WWE Legends of WrestleMania can be found at www.legendsofwrestlemania.com and www.thq.com.
A number of WWE employees besides the wrestlers are worried about their job security. Some of the road agents are even concerned that cuts could be coming their way, not to mention that some of the creative team members believe they're not immune to the budget cuts. WWE recently altered schedule for referees to cut down on the number of them being used in order to save money. Additionally, Vince McMahon has been to known to threaten creative team members by saying could be coming when he feels he doesn't have their full attention. McMahon recently made one of those threats, which put some of the writers on edge. One source added that they don't want to see anyone lose their job, but felt the company do without some of the agents. The source said, "Let's be honest, if everyone in the room says yes, how many agents do you really need?" He also added that most of them have a "yes men" reputation.
In case you don't know, the History of the Intercontinental Champ DVD set was released yesterday. WWE didn't bother to run a commercial promoting the release on either Raw or ECW. It's 3-disc set featuring the fans' favorite Intercontinental Championship matches from each decade, as voted on WWE.com.