There aren't a lot of good wrestling games on PC - with a few exceptions, big-time publishers were keeping the genre on consoles up until mid- to late 2010's, when they realised there's a whole market, waiting to get their fill of ringside action. This list isn't going to be just about WWE, however, despite its sheer popularity, as there's enough wacky wrestling games to at least put a smile on your face. Or even to keep you, - and your buddies, - glued to the screen for hours.
To keep the list clean, we will omit promotion simulators and titles that focus more on the personalities than them actually wrestling. Remember, we want action.
15. Bop'n Wrestle
Bop’n Wrestle’s page on Steam
Bop'n Wrestle comes from the time when Hulk Hogan was king, computers were used more for work than they were for recreation, and software was loaded from cassette tapes. Not to mention joysticks only had one button, - which could be a problem with more complicated control schemes, like something you'd need for wrestling games, - but that didn't stop kids of the era from enjoying Bop'n Wrestle.
While it may be at the bottom of the list because of its roughness, - rarely does a video game from 1986 age exceptionally well, - it's goofy and light-hearted enough to warrant a spot. In singleplayer, you're in control of Gorgeous Greg (an obvious riff on Gorgeous George), going through a nine-match gauntlet for the championship belt. Every single one of your opponents looks equally as silly: there are hillbillies, there are punk rockers, there are cowboys, and there's even a knockoff of Village People's own Glenn Hughes. To add to the silliness, every beatdown is accompanied by boogie music.
Fun fact: Bop'n Wrestle is known under several names, including Ringside and Rock'n Wrestle, and is definitely not to be confused with its sequel Bop'n Rumble, which you may remember better as Bad Street Brawler. Either way, if that helps you alleviate the confusion, the DOS version is currently available on Steam.
14. WCW Nitro
WCW Nitro’s page on MobyGames
For being WWF's main competitor during Monday Night Wars, World Championship Wrestling didn't get a whole lot of videogames - and this is the only one that found its way to Windows 98 machines of the time.
While the game does bear the name of WCW Nitro for the original PlayStation, this is in fact the port of WCW/nWo Thunder - complete with a revamped roster and a slew of new modes, like the 34-man Royal Rumble. The gameplay may not be everyone's cup of tea, with somewhat stiff wrestlers that can perform up to three grapple moves, each being a fighting game combo, - but the game itself makes up for it with plenty of garbage to whack your opponents with, bizarre unlockable arenas and no less bizarre unlockable wrestlers. Why take the action to the ring, when you can take it into space and watch a knight in shining armour smash a guitar on an ant?
Remember, though: unlocking the fun stuff the normal way gets somewhat grindy. Do your psyche a favour - use the cheat code.
13. WWF Raw (2002)
WWF Raw’s page on MobyGames
Back when every major WWE title was exclusive to PlayStation 2, with loosely-inspired spinoffs appearing on the Nintendo Gamecube from time to time, WWF Raw was the only way for the PC gamers to participate in WWF's late Attitude Era.
Compared to Yuke's titles, it wasn't the full meal - only a taste of what it'd be like to act out a WWF match. Nevertheless, it came with most features you'd expect from a SmackDown! game at the time, including the character creator and all kinds of unlockables, though the gameplay was somewhat different, bearing a closer resemblance to the classic N64 wrestling games made by AKI Corporation. In a nutshell, you can perform a grappling move only after you grab your opponent, and your finishers are momentum-based, meaning that the more variety you put into your offence, the more your momentum gauge fills up. Getting beat up and performing repetitive moves, on the other hand, drains it.
While WWF Raw may not be up for sale anymore, chances are you'll find a modded copy somewhere on the internet - mods are the most likely reason people remember WWF Raw fondly.
12. WWF WrestleMania (Ocean)
WWF WrestleMania’s page on MobyGames
WWF WrestleMania, coming from the once omnipresent Ocean Software, is widely considered to be the first good wrestling game under this brand, not to mention one of the few that isn't available on consoles - only on personal and microcomputers. Compared to many WWF/E titles that would follow, this one is less of a sandbox and more of a journey for the WWF Championship Belt.
More to the point, you're given a choice of three playable characters: Hulk Hogan, The Ultimate Warrior and British Bulldog. Take your pick, and off you go, to rumble against the likes of Mr. Perfect, Sgt. Slaughter and, unique to this game, The Warlord. Curiously, you get to trash talk your opponent before every match - it doesn't affect the gameplay in any way, but it definitely gets the hype going.
Like most computer games at the time, it has to be controlled with four directions and one button, no matter if you use the joystick or the keyboard, - that said, Twilight, the developer, manages to make the controls feel as intuitive as possible, though you may need a manual for the full discourse. With the addition of the two-player mode and unusually large sprites for a home computer game, WWF WrestleMania may be the most cohesive virtual pro wrestling experience of its time.
11. WWE 2K Battlegrounds
WWE 2K Battlegrounds’s page on Steam
WWE 2K Battlegrounds is to NBA Playgrounds what Midway's WWF WrestleMania: The Arcade game was to NBA Jam. Simply put, it's a more laid-back version of WWE All-Stars which, instead of pitting old WWE Legends against the new blood, takes on a world tour to find the baddest, the fiercest men who ever jumped off the turnbuckle.
Similarly to WWE All-Stars, it's over-the-top, it has the slo-mos and it has WWE Superstars flying ten feet above the ring, leaving magic trails behind them, providing quite a spectacle. And, like its big brothers, Battlegrounds does feature online multiplayer and character creation - though the enjoyment may be marred by the abundance of microtransactions (which All-Stars was lucky to not get), used to unlock Legends and customisation parts alike; not to mention bugs that have an equal chance of amusing you or throwing you out of the ring.
10. Double Turn
Double Turn’s page on Steam
Take Brawlhalla and put it in the ring. That's how you get Double Turn - an easy-to-learn, pick-up-and-play slobberknocker, with gorgeous pixel art, constantly quick pace and intuitive controls.
Double Turn is very light on content, offering only a few modes and a total of four characters: luchadora The Storm, the street-smart Aidan Walsh, the punchin' Itsumi Hara and the muscleman Damien Carter. However, the matches involving those four can get quite hectic, especially if ladders and tables are involved, which warrants a night or two of fun. Preferably with three more friends by your side.
9. WWE 2K22
WWE 2K22’s page on Steam
Mainstream WWE titles are going to remain popular for years to come - whether it's because people are going to buy the new ones anyway, or because 2K Games keeps delisting the old ones at the drop of a hat, or because they're actually fun to play is up to debate, but there's enough fans and non-fans alike who find 2K22 enjoyable despite the criticism.
2K22 skipped a year after the colossal disaster that 2K20 was, and it definitely took its sweet time to improve, despite its roster befitting the moniker "2K21" more. Fundamentally, the gameplay remains the same, but the small details are improved upon: one anti-frustration feature it has is the reversal limit - or, rather, its removal. Otherwise, the game still tries to keep itself chock-full with content. Notably, the General Manager mode makes a comeback years after it's been featured SmackDown vs. RAW 2008, alongside Universe mode and myFaction, which lets you create, manage and upkeep your own wrestling stable.
As a cherry on cake, Monday Night Wars-era WCW arenas were included in plenty of WWE games prior, but 2K22 goes one step beyond and recreates them in astonishing detail, right down to the mist in the Souled Out! '97 venue. Really makes you feel like you're fighting in the real thing.
8. WWF WrestleMania: The Arcade Game
WWF WrestleMania: The Arcade Game’s page on MobyGames
It's a Midway arcade hit! Of course kids would be able to play it anywhere - and that includes every major console at the time and every computer running DOS. Featuring an all-killer, no-filler cast of mid-90's WWF top talent, such as The Undertaker, Bret "The Hitman" Hart and Shawn Michaels, WWF WrestleMania gives all of them superpowers and makes them zoom across the ring at neck-breaking speeds.
WWF WrestleMania is less like a traditional wrestling game and more like old Mortal Kombat (makes sense, since it's also a Midway title), except faster, wackier and much tougher to crack. Every wrestler in the game is digitised from their real selves. No special move is performed with just a direction and a button - they're full-on fighting game combos, which goes for grapples as well. And, of course, there's uppercuts that send opponents through the roof.
It certainly takes some time to learn, and even more time to master - but who said being the WWF Champion was easy? Still, if you're not sure you could handle it alone, bring a tag team partner with you.
7. Circle of Sumo: Online Rumble!
Circle of Sumo: Online Rumble!’s page on Steam
Sumo wrestling is still wrestling, right? Wrestling doesn't have to be scripted when it's an actual sport.
Except Circle of Sumo doesn't focus on being a realistic sumo experience in the slightest - instead, it's the battle of E. Honda clones zooming around some of the most trap-filled sumo rings ever devised by man. It's basically a party game with a ranking system, - ironically, the most close-to-life part of CoS, - and an added online component, so of course four people can try their hands (and their bellies) at pushing each other out of bounds. Just don't forget to salt the ground you're on, for good luck.
And if you haven't had your fill of wacky sports yet, there's always Circle of Football.
6. Wrestling Revolution 2D
Wrestling Revolution 2D’s page on Steam
There's no game just like Mat Dickie's Wrestling Revolution - and if there is, it's very likely one of its numerous sequels. Or prequels. Or spinoffs.
Released way back in 2012, Wrestling Revolution continues the long line of MDickie's amateur simulation games, which have covered commercial music, prison sentences, the Bible and movies - one thing they have in common is that most of them featured wrestling, one way or another. Most of them were nothing but pro wrestling, though.
Even though it's fundamentally a simulator, Wrestling Revolution plays off every match as it were real - complete with money management, injuries, rivalries being the same on-scene as they are off-scene and, of course, borderline lethal scenarios involving getting run over by motorbikes, slammed through Christmas trees, shot by loaded guns and blown up by bundles of dynamite. On top of that, it doesn't feature slots for custom characters, but it does let you toy around with the existing roster to your heart's content.
5. RetroMania Wrestling
RetroMania Wrestling’s page on Steam
Originally billed as a spiritual successor to Technos's arcade hit WWF WrestleFest, RetroMania Wrestling offers the classic gameplay with a modern-age makeover, complete with play-by-play commentary from Colt Cabana and Ian Riccaboni - a battle-proven team from the Ring of Honor days.
Unusually for an indie wrestling game, its roster features tons of personalities you might've heard of, including John Morrison (here known as Johnny Retro), ECW veterans Tommy Dreamer and Blue World Order, Austin Idol and Nikita Koloff. Notably, the only returning wrestlers from WrestleFest are the legendary Legion of Doom: Road Warrior Hawk and Road Warrior Animal.
Sadly, the game hasn't seen any updates in months, since the inclusion of Chris Bey, but the WrestleFest-like gameplay holds up well enough to give RetroMania Wrestling its deserved shot.
4. River City Ransom Underground
River City Ransom Underground’s page on Steam
While it's an unusual addition to the list, River City Ransom Underground does have a ring. Filled with people that will gladly suplex each other or throw bodies over the ropes. And piledrive someone into the floor, for good measure.
RCRU's Arena Mode develops further on Nekketsu Kakutou Densetsu's gameplay, - the game that featured garbage wrestling prominently, complete with landmines, spikes, conveyor belts and constant tag team action. Neither of those are traditional pro wrestling games as we know them: instead of straining the opponent, your main goal is to deplete their healthbar. No pins, no referees, no holds barred, falls count anywhere, even if it's a construction site or a delivery truck moving through the rush hour.
3. Action Arcade Wrestling
Action Arcade Wrestling’s page on Steam
AAW continues to live on even after its disassociation with the wrestling promotion Chikara. While not as ridiculously over-the-top as Midway's WrestleMania, it still lets wrestlers fry one another with laser eyes or even with lightning! Adding to the mayhem is a wide assortment of weapons and powerups appearing in the ring every few seconds: from burning tables to flaming swords.
For a game this little-known, it has a surprisingly flexible character editor. Don't feel like recreating your favourite childhood heroes? Download them online and pit all four Ninja Turtles against a tag team of Pac-Man ghosts.
Speaking of surprises, one feature in AAW that came specifically from the scripted realm of pro wrestling is spots. Every now and then, you may see prompts that tell you to perform a specific move under certain conditions - do so and get more points. Get more points and unlock more items to adorn your created wrestler with.
2. Wrestling Empire
Wrestling Empire’s page on Steam
Mat Dickie's Wrestling MPire series has been around since 2004 - and, after several iterations and spinoffs, it's back. Now with an E in its name.
If you've read the Wrestling Revolution 2D entry or played an MDickie simulator before, you know what to expect: wrestlers changing hands and confronting drama, cinderblocks, bats, barbed wire, dynamite and possibly even dismemberment. Among numerous new improvements are the revamped simulation mode, an optional hexagonal ring in the vein of old TNA Wrestling shows and a vastly expanded match creator, allowing you to not just set your own victory conditions, but litter the entire arena with weapons, and make them nothing but explosives.
Unlike most entries on this list, Wrestling Empire allows for an enormous amount of fighters to be in the arena, all at the same time. Just make sure you bring a powerful enough PC to enjoy the spectacle - a low-powered Nintendo Switch isn't gonna cut it.
1. Fire Pro Wrestling World
Fire Pro Wrestling World’s page on Steam
You saw it coming: the game that heralded our previous Top 15 list, the latest instalment of the long-running Fire Pro Wrestling series, and the first one to appear on two new platforms at once - the PC and the PlayStation 4! Everything from the previous games is back and better than ever, including extensive character customisation that allows you to tweak everything, from your wrestler's appearance to their AI.
Rarely do you see such attention to detail combined with genuinely fun gameplay and the ability to pit fighters from different promotions, be it WWE, AEW, or even UFC, against each other. That was the main draw of Fire Pro games throughout the years, as each came with at least a hundred pre-made characters, all based on existing wrestlers in anything but name. Unlike those, World doesn't come bundled with the knockoffs, but thousands of downloadable fan creations more than make up for it.
New to the series are the purchasable DLC - from licensed New Japan Pro Wrestling collaborations to tools for creating custom ring entrances, moves and even body parts. There's a few blasts from the distant past, too, such as Management of the Ring (returning from Fire Pro Wrestling 2 on the GBA) and the sequel to Super Fire Pro Wrestling Special's infamous story mode, from the pen of Suda51 himself.
