TNA Scores a Two Count on PSP Port

The original TNA game was released by Midway in September 2008 and with excellent graphics, easy access controls and a bevy of gameplay modes, it was a more than modest first attempt at a wrestling game.

Almost two years later however, Southpeak Games, rather than continue to build off of an already solid engine and add the missing pieces, has simply ported over what they could and leaving out the extras, resulting in a decent game in itself, but one that is all too familiar to fans that one the companies first effort.

The end result is a missed opportunity that fails to both take advantage of the PSP’s capabilities and captivate hungry fans that were looking for something different.

With essentially the same roster and gameplay modes as the last game, “TNA Impact: Cross the Line” doesn’t bring anything new to the table. Those who loved the first game, will still enjoy this one, doing everything from performing the signature moves of their favorite wrestlers like AJ Styles, Kurt Angle and Samoa Joe and playing through the zany story mode featuring Suicide.

The same thing goes for the controls, which aren’t perfect, but get the job done on the handheld, despite problems with clipping and times when you’ll try to pin your character and end up leaving the ring entirely if you’re too close to the ropes. The lack of a real individual moveset too hurts the title as many of the wrestlers perform the same moves and you yourself will be such pulling off the same ones as well. These same problems detract from the fun, but don’t erase it entirely.

What does hurt the package is that none of the wrestlers featured have had any changes to their attires made since the last game, making the game feel incredibly dated to the hardcore wrestling fan. The graphics as well, away from the beautiful cinemas are a bit blurry and a far cry away from the breathtaking ones featured on the 360 version. However, again, in spite of these glitches along the way, the game is still competent. The excellent loading times and plethora of gameplay modes, such as the Super X Cup, Ultimate X, Falls Count Anywhere make this game more than playable and even extremely fun at times.

Nevertheless, at the same time, with all the changes the company has been experiencing over the past six months, with huge additions to their roster, the removal of the six-sided ring and a new championship, you can’t help but feel jipped a bit when playing this title.

There is absolutely no reason why Rob Van Dam, Jeff Hardy, Hulk Hogan are not in the game, but miraculously, Petey Williams, Scott Steiner and Booker T, three athletes who haven’t been on TV in months, are. It’s almost like a bad joke.

In the end, it’s not fair at all to the gamers who were expecting something different almost two years after the game’s original release.

On the other hand, if you never played the first game and have a PSP, this is not a bad wrestling option at all, especially considering how the WWE games on the system are known notoriously for their horrendous loading times and lack of polish.

Just don’t expect to be blown away.

Serving more as the scoop slam before a five-star frog splash than the devastating finishing move itself, “TNA Impact: Cross the Line” on the PSP packs a punch just not enough for a three count.

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About Patrick Hickey Jr. 14230 Articles
Patrick Hickey Jr. is a full-time Assistant Professor of Communication & Performing Arts and Director of the Journalism program at Kingsborough Community College and is the chairman of the City University of New York Journalism Council. He is the Founder and Editor-In-Chief of ReviewFix.com. He's also a former News Editor at NBC Local Integrated Media and National Video Games Writer at Examiner.com where his work was mentioned in National Ad campaigns by Disney, Nintendo and EA Sports. Hickey was also the Editor-In-Chief of two College Newspapers before he received his BA in Journalism from Brooklyn College. Hickey's work has been published in The New York Daily News, The New York Times, Complex, The Hockey Writers, Yahoo!, Broadway World, Examiner, NYSportScene Magazine, ProHockeyNews.com, GothamBaseball.com, The Syracuse Post-Standard, Scout.com and the official sites of the Brooklyn Aces and New York Islanders. His first book, The Minds Behind the Games: Interviews With Cult And Classic Video Game Developers was released in April 2018 and is chock full of interviews with legendary developers. His second book in the series, The Minds Behind Adventures Games, was released in December 2019. His third book, The Minds Behind Sports Games, was released in September 2020. His fourth book, The Minds Behind Shooter Games, was released in March 2021. The Minds Behind Sega Genesis Games and The Minds Behind PlayStation Games were released in 2022 and The Minds Behind PlayStation 2 was published in January 2023. Hickey is also a contracted comic book writer, currently penning his original series, "Condrey," as well as "The Job," "Brooklyn Bleeds" "Dem Gulls" and "KROOM" for Legacy Comix, where he serves as founder, owner and Editor-in-Chief. Hickey Jr. is also a voice actor, having starred in the 2018 indie hit and 2019 Switch, PS4 and Xbox One release, The Padre (also serving as English language Story Editor), from Shotgun With Glitters. The sequel, The Padre: One Shell Straight to Hell was released in February 2021- Hickey also served as a Story Editor and Lead Voiceover performer. He has also done narration and trailers for several other titles including The Kaiju Offensive, Relentless Rex and Roniu’s Tale. Hickey is also the lead voiceover performer on Mega Cat Studios’ upcoming title WrestleQuest, responsible for nearly 90 characters in the game, as well as Skybound's Renfield: Bring Your Own Blood, where he voices both Dracula and Renfield, as well as several other characters. He also stars in Ziggurat Interactive’s World Championship Boxing Manager 2, where he performs the VO of nearly every male character in the game. He also worked on the Atari VCS’s BPM Boy.

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