IT'S TIME TO PLAY THE GAME! WRESTLEMANIA

WELCOME... TO WRESTLEMANIAAAAAAAA!

When I found out about this table earlier in the year, I was ecstatic. I'm a big fan of wrestling as well as pinball so having two of my favorite things together as one was a dream come true. There was a release party for Wrestlemania in late February that I was hoping to attend and get a review of the table but unfortunately, other plans got in the way...

Though a trip to House of TARG is nothing to scoff at!

Some of my friends went to the release party and told me a bit about Wrestlemania but it just wasn't enough to satiate my hunger. I needed to play Wrestlemania. I needed to step into the squared circle and fight for the top score. Even before the table was released, I was getting in the ears of any bar proprietors that I could, telling them that they should, no, have to get Wrestlemania. Luckily, my prayers were answered by my favorite little pub, Monarch Tavern. @MrMonarchy tweeted me to let me know that Wrestlemania had arrived... and I marked out pretty hard. I made plans that weekend with the Toronto Pinball Crew to hit up California Sandwiches for dinner and pinball then go to Monarch Tavern to take the new table for a spin.

Wrestlemania was a hit with the crew. The pro wrestling theme is well integrated into the design which makes for a great game. Wrestlemania was designed by John Trudeau, his second table under the Stern banner. Mustang was his first and turned out to be a bit of weak table. According to Trudeau in his interview with Pinball Magazine, he was unfamiliar with the Stern formula and so I think Mustang suffered due to that. It seemed as though Mustang was stripped of a lot of things Trudeau wanted to do and was considered a bit of a "filler" table until the release of The Walking Dead. In addition to being saddled with what some consider a "weak license", Mustang just didn't do so hot. I liked the theme though I am a car guy so I have a bit of a bias. But I digress... The Wrestlemania pinball table feels like Trudeau has gotten his style locked down within Stern's parameters and is ready to go for the top title!