Okay, so let me tell you about this deep dive I did into the WCW vs. nWo World Tour roster. It was a trip down memory lane, mixed with some serious spreadsheet action. Buckle up!
First things first, I got this sudden urge to revisit that game. Remember WCW vs. nWo World Tour on the N64? Man, that was my jam back in the day. I started wondering about the roster – who was actually in the game, who was missing, and all that jazz. Pure curiosity, really.
So, I fired up the internet and started digging. Found a few lists here and there, but nothing felt super comprehensive or definitive. That’s when I decided, “Screw it, I’ll make my own!”
Next step: I hopped onto YouTube. Yeah, I watched a bunch of gameplay videos. I mean, a lot of gameplay videos. I was pausing every few seconds, squinting at the screen, trying to identify every single wrestler. It was like being a wrestling archaeologist.
Then came the real work. I opened up a Google Sheet. Old school, I know, but it gets the job done. I started listing out every wrestler I could positively identify from the gameplay footage. Column A was “Wrestler Name,” obviously. Then I added columns for things like “Real Name,” “Finisher,” and even “Likeness Accuracy” (that was just for my own amusement).
Here’s where it got tricky. Some wrestlers had multiple names, or slightly different spellings in the game. Plus, the in-game character models weren’t always…perfect. So, I had to cross-reference everything with other sources, like Wikipedia, wrestling databases, and even some old forum posts. It was a real research project!
I spent a good chunk of an afternoon just filling out that spreadsheet. And let me tell you, it was satisfying. Seeing the whole roster laid out in front of me, organized and categorized – it was a beautiful thing. I even started adding little notes and trivia about each wrestler, just to make it more interesting.
After the initial roster was done, I started comparing it to other WCW rosters from around that time. That’s when I really started to notice some omissions. Some big names were missing, and I started wondering why. Licensing issues? Contract disputes? Who knows!
Ultimately, the spreadsheet became this little project of mine. It’s probably not 100% perfect, but it’s as accurate as I could make it. And honestly, it was a fun way to spend an afternoon, nerding out about wrestling and reliving some childhood memories.
So, what did I learn? Well, I learned that my memory isn’t as good as I thought it was. I also learned that WCW had a ton of wrestlers back then. And most importantly, I learned that even something as simple as a video game roster can be a rabbit hole of information and nostalgia. Now, if you’ll excuse me, I think I need to go play some N64.
