Written: 2.4.07
Acquired: 2.12.06
Status: Cart only
Price: $6.10

How's that song go? Saturday night's all
right for fighting?

[Look it up, you lazy
bastard -Ed.]

Ah, Saturday Night Slam Masters. The summer of '94... the SNES was receiving a flood load of arcade translations during this time, and I remember it well and very fondly. Imagine my joy when I saw the import for rent before the
US version was released!
"You want some? COME GET SOME!"

I also saw the imports for King of the Monsters 2 and Fighter's History. Ah, the good old days.
I loved GAME HUNTER. Anyway, that's a story for another day... (see Memories of Renting)

Super Play put it best to describe the game's intro

• "The game opens up with a steroid-pumped wrestler ripping off his vest with an accompanying, raucous, almost anthemesque poodle-rock number which, whilst
  a bit tacky, certainly makes you sit up and pay attention"

I couldn't agree more!

When me and my brother rented this back in the summer of '94, I immediately took a liking to the big guy, Titanic Tim

He had two charging attacks that I derived immense pleasure out of

• Boot to the face

• Shoulder block

Any time I connected on the former I yelled "GET OUT OF THE WAY!"

The latter -- "MAKE ROOM!"

Hey, I was 10, and it was more fun that way, OK?  ;-)

      "GET OUT OF THE WAY!"                   "MAKE ROOM!!"

There are 8 wrestlers in the single mode, 10 in VS. The text profiling each combatant below is courtesy of Super Play (also note their original Japanese names -- in Japan this game is known as Muscle Bomber)

THE SLAM MASTERS

ZALAZOF

Fighting game tradition
dictates two things: that
there's a good all-rounder,
and that he/she will have
another fighter, almost
identical to themselves.
Have a guess where
Zalazof fits into things

COLT

A shorter-haired version
of Zalazof. The only real
difference we could find
is that Colt's slam goes
forwards, not back. Said
to be a close relative of
Guile out of SF II!

BUDA

A glitter-spitting Oriental
bloke with a penchant
for fancy costumes and
weird moves including
one whereby he grabs
his opponent by the
neck! A silly hair-do,
but a tough little cookie

STINGER

Stinger's the closest thing
you've got to a traditional
English wrestler, with a
Kendo Nagasaki-ish face
mask and his not-really-up-
to-American-size-standards-
really stature

Great corkscrew, though

HAGGAR

Metro City mayor-
turned-vigilante has
reverted to his original
trade. He brings with
him a Zangief-like
killer 360° spin, a
frame packed with
rippling sinew and
that very suspicious
moustache

SHEEP

Sheep's particularly porky
presence belies his formidable
power and skill in the ring. And
look at that completely original
and never-before-seen rapid
slap move. Ahem

GOMES

Gomes has got the most
disgusting and violent
move in the game. He
leaps onto his opponent's
shoulders, licks their face,
then brutally bites it off
(not literally)

TITAN

A relative of T. Hawk maybe?
He certainly has the same
chiselled features and girly
habit of putting feathers in
his hair. He's the big blighter
of the game with a breakdance
like special move

                                                                                       THE BOSSES

             At the end, you face the
             two boss characters, Scorp
             and Jumbo, or in Japan...
             Astro and Kimala

             But who are these guys?
             Let's take a closer look,
             shall we...

RASSLIN' MOVES

Traditional wrestling moves are here, in addition to the unrealistic wild special moves (more on those later). Good ole fashion wrestling moves include: inverted atomic drop, gorilla press slam and the ever-delightful Tombstone Piledriver (the finishing move of one, The Undertaker, see WWF-SNES Connection for more on the "Deadman") These moves can only be done by certain wrestlers, though. All in all, the moveset is limited

And if wrestling finesse isn't your
style, various weapons littered
outside the ring provide grounds
for serious mayhem. Unfortunately,
this is only available in the 1-on-1
mode. Also, in the battle royal, it
should be noted you can't leave the
ring at all... shame, but let's observe
the powers of a table when put to
proper use...

Ouch! Table is good for up to two hits. That jagged edge is bad news!

Also available: metal boxes, chairs, beer bottles, etc.

Although it seems Stingray is struggling to lift it, he in fact gets the last laugh

And that rivalry Gunloc and Biff share? Check out the intensity...

"HA! I got you now buddy!"

Well I'll be damn. He must be a relative of Guile after all...

YOWZERS! Gunloc
finishes the table off
(and quite possibly
Biff as well!)

SPECIAL MOVES

Each wrestler has a special move or two. By applying various SF II like commands in addition to Mortal Kombat tap tap presses, you can unleash these wicked maneuvers...

Ugh, Scorp is a cheap computer, and seemingly pulls this off at the drop of
a hat. Very unfair. As they say, it ain't the flight that hurts... it's the landing

El Stingray has a sick headsmashing dive. The opponent
is forced into a daze as the little guy jumps high in the air,
crashing down with all his might

Rasta gets one for good measure!

                             And with a simple Hadoken
                             motion, you produce this
                             effective (as well as cheap)
                             Jalapeno Comet

Grater's special move is pure destruction.
He may look like a dumb ox, but even he
understands the basic fundamentals of
gravity... as will Haggar, much to his
dismay!

Good grief! Grater flicks his victim with incredible english -- they
plummet straight on their head, causing a huge BOOM! explosion
on the mat... impressive every bit as it is effective!

Don't worry Mike
Haggar fans (I know
you're out there), he
gets his revenge as
he spins out in a
blind drunken rage!

     In the single match,
     quotes are posed at
     the VS. screen

And of course, taunting win phases are in there too. Hey, it's Capcom

Recall that Nintendo of America loosened up during this time period. If this were '93 you wouldn't see all those cuts on Gunloc there

The meat of the game though is the four-player tag team turmoil mode. I'll use my favorite bloke, and I'll take Rey Mysterio as my partner

Our opponents for
this fine evening...

Before the match, each wrestler (or team) storms to the ring, complete with their own
individual tune, billows of dry ice, flickering lasers -- the works. It's fun to watch once,
but after that you'll probably omit it every time. Still, nice detail

Opening the match, I chop away
at Haggar as if he were wood...
or something

                       Jumbo rams his size-22
                       boot down my throat
                      
                       Allow me to return the
                       favor, fatso....

"GET OUT OF THE WAY!"

           Ooof! Jumbo lives up to his name
           Meanwhile, my poor diminutive
           partner eats a fist that's bigger
           than his own head!

It's a close ball game, but this
cranium-crunching brain buster
just pulled the odds in my favor

                                  "MAKE ROOM!"

Oh my! Reverse
Russian Legsweep!

My team is pulling way into the lead now. As I choke out Jumbo, Stingray executes
a well-placed cartwheel kick! Talk about tag team cohesion! Working as one! Like a
well-oiled unit! Like Batman and Robin! Like Starsky and Hutch! Like Peanut butter
and jelly! Like... like... well, you get the idea don't cha?

[Oh? He's done now? -Ed.]

Haggar is gassed! Look at the
strength of my guy! "That's my
dawg!" as they say

[So you roll like dat, huh -Ed.]

           Haggar never quits, the stubborn
           bastard. Here's a back suplex for
           my troubles

Jumbo catches me in a giant
swing. He can also spew a
poisonous mist. Meanwhile,
Stingray goes for the kill....

[I'll refrain from a really
distasteful joke... -Ed.]

           WHEN REASON FAILS,
           FORCE PREVAILS!

Slam Masters is best when played with four players. Pretty obvious statement, but it takes a huge hit when you're by yourself, moreso than other four-player games, in my opinion. EGM said it best when one of their reviewers said, "This is awesome for parties and gatherings, but not one I'd want to sit down and play all day"

I had a blast with this game in '94. Me, my bro and our friends would all rotate having a go. I played it recently, for the 1st time in over a dozen years. It's aged well, but I'm reminded of how limited this game is. Yeah, it IS an arcade port, but you wish Capcom would have thrown in some extra modes. It's simply a straight port. What you see is what you get. This worked fine with Street Fighter II, but Saturday Night Slam Masters is the CLASSIC arcade game. By that I mean it's a hell of a lot of fun to play for a short go every time you stop by the arcade hall, but in longer spurts the game's flaws really creep up through the surface

Super Play put it best:

• "It's totally atmospheric and, along with the over-the-top glitziness of each of the 10 fighters, it makes for an entertaining game to watch, if never totally satisfying to play. The problem is it's very much an arcade experience. It's fine to stick a couple of quid in for a laugh when you happen to come across it at the Trocadero, for example, but it doesn't have the gameplay or depth backing it. It's just a matter of exchanging punches/kicks for a while, moving in for a spot of grappling, and hoping you get in there first. Sure, it may take a while to learn the special moves, and when to best apply them, but there aren't many, and that's as far as any strategy goes"

I don't mean to, pardon the pun, slam the game, as I do like it. I did then and still do now. In fact, I'm not much disappointed, if at all. I knew coming in what this was. It's not even a real wrestling game. Just play it for a bit and one can see with the various nuances it just doesn't come off as a wrestling game, even though it masquerades around as one. It's more of a free-for-all brawl lacking depth and strategy

WHAT THE CRITICS SAID

• EGM: 7, 7, 7, 8

• Super Play: 78%

CLOSING THOUGHTS

Fun with four, or fun in spurts. But when you take it for more than what it is, you may come away feeling a bit cheated. Computer can be very cheap, pulling off miracle comebacks and knowing your next move before you even attempt it

Pretty shallow, all in all, but as far as an arcade port goes, a solid job. Extra's would have been much appreciated, but graphics and sound are on par and what you'd expect from Capcom

Gameplay... it's by no means a deep game, so I knocked it down a point or two. It's just a matter of hanging in there and hoping for the best

Overall, it's a great arcade translation, but it was best played in spurts with four. Same applies here

Graphics: 8
Sound: 8
Gameplay: 7
Longevity: 7

Overall: 7.5

Bronze Award