AEW Games 2.Show Answers Questions About Upcoming Games

On the night of Wednesday, January 6th, AEW Games presented their “AEW Games 2.Show” on their YouTube channel.

Announced on December 26th, no one really knew what this program was going to be about. Was it some sort of video game show, featuring some of the many video game-loving talents occupying the promotion’s roster? Was it some sort of update on the previously-revealed AEW video games? Was it —

It was the second one. Entirely and absolutely the second one.

Originally scheduled to air after the December 30th, 2020 episode of AEW Dynamite, it was postponed for a week following the tragic passing of Jon Huber, better known to AEW fans as The Dark Order’s “Exalted One,” Mr. Brodie Lee, as well as to WWE viewers as Luke Harper.

The show is available now in its entirety, which you can see here:

During the 17+ minute video, All Elite Wrestler and Twitch streamer (without consequence from management, who approve of his extracurricular activities) Kip Sabian spoke to AEW World Heavyweight Champion and executive vice-president Kenny Omega, asking a series of questions many people have been asking about the upcoming title. Here’s a brief recap.

1) When can fans get their hands on the game?

Long story short: There’s a lot going on, but one of their goals is to make a game that’s “legendary,” much like the Nintendo 64 title WWF No Mercy. He also said they want the game to “last for a long time,” which seems to imply that they might be shying away from the annual release model of titles such as the WWE 2K series.

The hope is for maybe next year, but it could be the year after that. Either way, Omega notes, they’ll be keeping us informed the whole way, and as soon as he knows something, we’ll know something.

2) Will the game feature a create-a-wrestler mode?

“Absolutely,” Omega says, adding that it will be really robust and have a lot of maneuvers you can equip to your created wrestler. It is a high priority for them, and will be in the game.

3) Will there be online competitive play?

“Absolutely,” he says again. With friends, against, with all sorts of options to play with. Crossplay functionality is something they’re exploring, and some match types will be exclusive to online play (Hm, multiplayer Casino Battle Royale? –Ed.). They’re still exploring ideas, nothing is set in stone just yet except that yes, there will be online play.

4) Will the game be arcade based or more simulation based?

Omega gives sort of a both/neither/somewhere in between answer here. He cites Fire Pro Wrestling as a popular example of a simulation-based wrestling, and notes that it might be a little too slow-paced in that regard for those players who basically just want to get in there and go, but also wants things to feel authentic, like you’re really there and performing the moves.

“I would expect the speed in terms of arcade play, but moves, countering systems, submissions, all that to feel like how you would feel if you’re actually in the ring with your opponent.”

Earlier, with regards to the first question, he said he played it and it felt a lot like WWF No Mercy, which is probably what we were expecting at this point. It’s not as arcade-y as something like WWF WrestleMania: The Arcade Game, WWE All Stars, or the recent WWE 2K Battlegrounds, but not quite as technical as something like the last several years of WWE 2K offerings, either.

4) What was the process of getting Hideyuki “Geta” Iwashita involved?

This is a bit lengthier, but Omega reveals he’s been laying the groundwork and planting the seeds for this project before AEW even ran their first show. While he was still in Japan, before relocating to the United States for AEW, he visited the former AKI Corporation (now syn Sophia), where all but one of the people involved in those turn-of-the-century titles had moved on. He later heard from someone he met at E3, who now works for Square Enix, who is good friends with Iwashita, who’d love to meet him. Omega and Michael Nakazawa took a flight over and held a business meeting, and spoke of making a wrestling game when the time was right. There were further meetings, and when they were ready to make a game, Geta was ready to come on board.

Beyond the Q&A, Aubrey Edwards sent in a short clip from AEW Elite General Manager, one of their two upcoming mobile titles. This clip shows off the “Gimmick System,” which allows you to equip different wrestlers with different weapons and items to influence the outcome of a match. Some shown include a sledge hammer, folding chair, and thumbtacks, but the real highlight has to be Sue’s Van, for when “your best friends mom saves the day,” granting 50% wrestler morale and a 15% increase in match popularity.

Finally, regarding AEW Casino: Double or Nothing, the other mobile game they have in the works, it will be available in “60 days or less” (59 or less now, I suppose).

Yep, that’s it. I figure that means it either is or will soon be going through the approval process, and will be available once that business is dealt with.

Regarding the rest, Omega mentions at the end that they’re looking at updates coming about once a month, which ought to be fun to keep up with as we see how things shape up.

Thanks for reading!

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David Oxford is a freelance writer of many varied interests. If you’re interested in hiring him, please drop him a line at david.oxford (at) nyteworks.net.