From WWE.com
In the early days of the last decade of the 20th Century, teens used to gather at shopping malls, sipping their Orange Julius, wearing their Converse All-Stars and denim jackets. They would congregate at the video arcade with pocketfuls of quarters, plunking silver into Street Fighter II, The Simpsons and X-Men arcade games.
However, also standing in the video arcade drawing a crowd was every arcade-goer's favorite WWE-themed rumbler, the 1991 American Technos classic, WWE WrestleFest!
For just 25 cents per game (or 50 cents at stingier establishments), the WWE Universe could compete inside the old-school red, white and blue ring ropes in two different modes: Competing individually in a Royal Rumble Match, or "Saturday Night's Main Event" mode, climbing the tag-team ranks to battle the then-WWE Tag Team Champions, WWE Hall of Famers Hawk and Animal, The Legion of Doom.
One to four players could play as top WWE Superstars of the day, including The Big Boss Man, Jake "The Snake" Roberts, Ultimate Warrior, Earthquake, Demolition Ax and Smash, and WWE Hall of Famers Hulk Hogan, "Mr. Perfect" Curt Hennig, "Million Dollar Man" Ted DiBiase, and Sgt. Slaughter.
With each Superstar having their own trademark arsenal of maneuvers, a collection of double-team moves to utilize in tag-team matches, and power-ups for just an extra quarter, WWE WrestleFest was a must-play for the serious WWE fan.
But now, in present day, with video arcades on the decline, its unlikely that another classic stand-up arcade grappler will hit the scene like WrestleFest.
But WWE.com holds out hope that some video game company will see the button-mashing appeal of vintage WWE Superstars battling it out, perhaps with a mix of today's best Superstars and Divas added to the roster, and BRING IT BACK for play on current video game consoles.
What do you think? Tell us on Twitter with the hashtag #BringItBackWWE!
