TNA Impact! (video game)

TNA Impact! is geared towards a quick-paced, high-impact style of play, with lower emphasis on submission maneuvers. It supports up to four players at once, with online capabilities (which includes tournaments) standing at one-on-one.^[5][6][7] However, online play is restricted to the PlayStation 3 and Xbox 360 versions.^[8] Scans of the wrestlers were used in place of hand-painted textures to include small details, like skin texture and scars.^[9] Finishers are accessed by building up the "Impact!" meter. There is also a damage indicator that shows the condition of wrestlers. The game also features minigames for escaping pin attempts and submissions.^[8]

TNA's signature match, Ultimate X, is a playable match type, alongside the more standard Singles, Tag team and Fatal Four Way matches.^{[5][7][10][11]} Submission and Falls Count Anywhere matches are also included.^[11] Eight different venues—including TNA's main home: Florida's Impact! Zone, and arenas set in Japan, Mexico, England, Las Vegas, and locations designed to evoke the independent circuit feel—are available to house matches, with the Impact! Zone having an increased ringside area and hot spots for player interaction.^[7][8][9] Liverpool Olympia is also a playable arena.^[12]

The story mode's main character is a wrestler named Suicide. During every iMPACT! episode after the August 2008 version, the words "whoissuicide.com" flashed on the screen for less than a second. On the website, it shows Suicide is being taken from the game to real life television.^[13] At the Final Resolution pay-per-view in December 2008, Suicide first appeared on TNA programming.^[14] At Destination X 2009, Suicide participated in his debut match in TNA, which was an Ultimate X match, and then became the new X Division Champion.

After various negotiations with Electronic Arts^{[citation needed]} and Rockstar Games,^[15] TNA signed a multi-year agreement with Midway Games in November 2005.^[16] Midway announced their intentions to release Impact!, the first game in TNA's history, for each of the seventh generation consoles, which were released in 2008.

Several TNA wrestlers were involved in the production. The self described "hardcore gamers" Samoa Joe and A.J. Styles both participated in meetings with Midway staff to brainstorm gameplay ideas, and Joe, Styles, Christopher Daniels, Senshi, Sonjay Dutt, and Jeff Jarrett were all a part of the motion capture sessions.^[5][17] During the October 2006 tapings of the weekly TNA Impact! program, members of the TNA roster were "scanned" for the game, and audio samples of the Impact! Zone crowd were recorded.^[18] The Liverpool Olympia was used for reference photos to inspire the unlockable 'London' venue in the game.^{[citation needed]}

Classic TNA highlight matches were featured in the video game as TNA Extras, with two matches being filmed as Midway Games exclusive matches. These matches were a Knockouts Gauntlet Match and a Six Way X Division Match.

TNA Impact! received "mixed or average" reviews, while the Wii version received "generally unfavorable" reviews, according to review aggregator Metacritic.^{[25][26][27][28]}

The game was praised for its realistic graphics and simple control scheme, but criticized for its limited and repetitive movesets, poor entrances, lack of championship belts, and inconsistent AI.^[44][53] GameSpot was generally positive to the PlayStation 3, Xbox 360,^[33] and PlayStation 2 versions.^[32]

As of February 2009, TNA iMPACT! had shipped approximately 1.5 million units.^{[citation needed]}

In 2008, Longtail Studios created the game TNA Wrestling for Verizon Wireless mobile devices to coincide with this release. The game was re-released in 2009 for iOS.

In 2011, Namco Networks released TNA Wrestling Impact! for mobile devices.

Midway Games originally announced a sequel, but it was later cancelled after Midway Games filed for bankruptcy in February 2009.^[54][55] In July 2009, Time Warner (through its subsidiary Warner Bros. Interactive Entertainment) purchased the majority of Midway. The TNA license was not included with the purchase.^[56] Later in September, TNA president Dixie Carter said that TNA was looking for a new video game partner.^[57] In November, SouthPeak Games acquired Midway Games' TNA video game license in its quarterly report.^[58] The company later published TNA Impact!: Cross the Line for Nintendo DS and PSP, releasing it in June 2010.^[59] The game was basically the same as the 2008 release, with the addition of several new characters and the removal of older ones, such as Christian Cage who departed TNA in 2008.

• List of licensed wrestling video games