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AJ Styles names his best wrestling game ever, praising deep customization, accessible mechanics, and classic Nintendo 64 grappling.
A Wrestling Favorite With a Soft Spot for Games
When a wrestler has spent decades inside the ring, his favorite wrestling game carries a little extra weight. AJ Styles’ choice isn’t the obvious modern blockbuster—it’s a Japanese Nintendo 64 title built around creativity, timing, and the joy of making your own superstar.
Styles discussed his gaming preferences during an extended interview with Chris Van Vliet. Wrestling and video games have always been closely connected for him, and that relationship remains part of his life today through the Phenomenally Retro podcast, where he talks about both hobbies and revisits the games that shaped his tastes.
You can find the podcast here: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=a584gIV-g44
That combination makes Styles’ opinion particularly interesting. He isn’t simply picking a game because it has a famous roster or flashy presentation. His favorite comes from an era when wrestling games often relied on readable controls, flexible creation tools, and systems that rewarded players for learning the rhythm of a match.
The Phenomenal One’s Long Road to the Ring
Before looking at his game ranking, it helps to understand the career behind the opinion. AJ Styles, whose real name is Allen Neal Jones, is one of the best-known American wrestlers of his generation. He performs under the nickname “The Phenomenal One,” a title that fits both his athletic style and his unusually long career at the top level.
Styles began wrestling professionally in 1998. Over the years, he became widely recognized through major runs in TNA, Ring of Honor, and Japan’s New Japan Pro-Wrestling. Each stop added another layer to his reputation, from high-flying offense to technical exchanges and dramatic championship matches.
That background also explains why a game with strong mechanical foundations would appeal to him. A wrestler who has worked in several different styles and promotions may notice details that casual players overlook: how movement feels, how holds connect, how much freedom the player has once the opening bell rings.
A Career Packed With Championships
Styles’ résumé includes major championship achievements across several promotions. During his time in NJPW, he won the IWGP Heavyweight Championship twice. In TNA, he captured the X Division Championship six times and became world champion on two occasions.
He joined WWE in 2016 and continued adding major titles to his collection. Styles won the WWE Championship twice, the United States Championship three times, and also became Intercontinental Champion and Tag Team Champion.
That list is worth remembering when considering his favorite wrestling game. Styles has experienced wrestling as an athlete, performer, and character, so his ideal game naturally leans toward more than spectacle. It needs to let players shape a wrestler and create the kind of match they want to see.
The Best Wrestling Game, According to Styles
Styles placed Virtual Pro Wrestling 2: Ōdō Keishō at the top of his list. Released for the Nintendo 64 in 2000, the game was developed by Japan’s AKI Corporation and officially released only in Japan.
That detail alone gives the game a certain mystique. Many players encountered it through word of mouth, imported copies, or memories passed around by wrestling-game enthusiasts. It wasn’t the kind of title that simply sat on every shelf beside the most familiar licensed releases. It had to be sought out, which tends to make players treasure it even more.
At first glance, a Japan-only release might sound like an awkward choice for the top spot. The presentation and roster are less immediately familiar to many English-speaking players, and the game doesn’t have the same broad recognition as some licensed wrestling classics. Still, the more I think about Styles’ reasoning, the more convincing it becomes. The real attraction is not simply the branding—it’s the toolbox underneath.
Why Customization Matters So Much
The major strength Styles highlighted is Virtual Pro Wrestling 2’s character creation and customization system. Players could build their own wrestler almost from the ground up, adjusting attributes and selecting a personal move set.
That level of control made it possible to recreate real wrestlers even when their official licenses were missing. In an era when rosters could age quickly and downloadable updates were not part of the experience, that flexibility was a huge advantage. A creative player could fill gaps, invent new characters, or construct a roster that better matched personal preferences.
This is where old wrestling games often showed their personality. Modern games can offer enormous amounts of content, but older titles frequently asked players to do more of the imaginative work themselves. You weren’t just selecting a finished character; you were deciding how that character moved, fought, and felt.
There’s a simple elegance to that approach. Give players a strong wrestling system, then let them build the cast. It’s rather like handing someone a box of action figures and a wrestling ring, then stepping back while the afternoon disappears.
Simple to Start, Difficult to Master
Styles also considers an important design principle central to a good wrestling game: the basic mechanics should be easy for newcomers to understand while still leaving room for experienced players to improve.
That balance is harder to achieve than it sounds. If every move is complicated, new players lose interest before they even understand the match. If everything happens automatically, veterans quickly run out of reasons to keep playing. The sweet spot sits somewhere in the middle, where the controls feel approachable at first but reveal extra depth over time.
Virtual Pro Wrestling 2 appealed to Styles because its customization supports that philosophy. A beginner can understand the basic idea of entering a match and performing moves, while a more dedicated player can spend hours refining a wrestler’s abilities and move list.
I’ll admit my first reaction was that a Japan-only wrestling game from 2000 would feel too specialized to sit above more familiar choices. But the emphasis on accessible mechanics and player-created fighters changes the picture. A game doesn’t need the biggest roster to remain memorable; sometimes it needs a foundation that lets players keep making new reasons to return.
The Runner-Up: WWF No Mercy
Styles placed WWF No Mercy second. It was also developed by AKI for the Nintendo 64 and is widely regarded by wrestling-game fans as one of the genre’s high points.
The connection between the two games is clear. Virtual Pro Wrestling 2 и WWF No Mercy share a similar AKI gameplay foundation, even though they differ in their rosters and some of their available features. Players familiar with one can recognize the family resemblance in the other: the emphasis on timing, reversals, grappling exchanges, and a match flow that feels more deliberate than button-mashing.
Putting No Mercy in second place is hardly a rejection of it. In fact, the ranking suggests that Styles values the underlying wrestling engine more than the fame of the license attached to it. No Mercy may be the more recognizable name for many players, but Virtual Pro Wrestling 2 offers the creative freedom he seems to value most.
There is, however, one small drawback to Styles’ top choice: a powerful creation system can demand patience. Building a wrestler is rewarding, but not everyone wants to spend an evening adjusting attributes and selecting moves before starting a match. For some players, that preparation is the main event. For others, it’s the part standing between them and the opening bell.
Third Place Goes Back to the NES
Styles’ third choice was Pro Wrestling for the 8-bit Nintendo Entertainment System. Compared with the two Nintendo 64 titles above it, this is a much older and more stripped-down experience.
That contrast makes the ranking more interesting. Styles didn’t limit himself to games with advanced customization or more elaborate mechanics. Pro Wrestling represents an earlier, simpler form of the genre, where the focus is placed more directly on recognizable moves, distinct characters, and the basic pleasure of controlling a wrestling match.
Its inclusion suggests that nostalgia plays a role, although it would be unfair to reduce the choice to nostalgia alone. Older wrestling games often had to communicate character and impact with limited resources. A small animation, a familiar move, or a clear reaction from the opponent had to do a lot of work.
I’m not completely certain that every modern player would enjoy returning to that style today. The simplicity can feel refreshing, but it can also seem restrictive after spending time with the deeper systems of later games. Still, the choice makes sense beside Styles’ other picks: all three games put the match itself ahead of excess decoration.
What Styles’ Ranking Says About Wrestling Games
Taken together, the three choices reveal a consistent preference. Styles appears drawn to games that understand the fundamentals of wrestling: timing, readable actions, character identity, and the feeling that the player—not the presentation—is directing the contest.
Virtual Pro Wrestling 2 leads because it combines a strong base with extensive creation tools. WWF No Mercy follows with a similar AKI foundation and a famous roster. Pro Wrestling rounds out the list by showing how much can be achieved with a simpler design.
The ranking also offers a useful reminder about retro games. Bigger doesn’t always mean better. A game can have fewer characters, fewer modes, and less visual polish while still offering a more satisfying core experience. Sometimes the old cartridge has one trick, but it knows that trick cold.
For Styles, that trick appears to be making the player feel involved in the match. You aren’t just watching wrestlers perform a sequence of moves. You’re building the competitor, choosing the tools, and learning how to make the action work.
Final Bell
AJ Styles’ best wrestling game pick is a thoughtful one. Virtual Pro Wrestling 2: Ōdō Keishō may not be the most obvious title in the conversation, but its character creation system and accessible-yet-deep mechanics explain why it stands above even the celebrated WWF No Mercy. His second and third choices also show an appreciation for wrestling games that understand the ring before worrying about spectacle.
Which game would you place at the top of your own wrestling-game hall of fame?
ЧАСТО ЗАДАВАЕМЫЕ ВОПРОСЫ
- What is AJ Styles’ favorite wrestling game?
AJ Styles placed Virtual Pro Wrestling 2: Ōdō Keishō first on his list of favorite wrestling games. - When was Virtual Pro Wrestling 2 released?
Virtual Pro Wrestling 2: Ōdō Keishō was released for the Nintendo 64 in 2000. - What makes Virtual Pro Wrestling 2 stand out?
Its character creation system lets players build wrestlers, adjust attributes, and choose customized move sets. - Which game did AJ Styles rank second?
Styles ranked WWF No Mercy second. It was also developed by AKI for the Nintendo 64. - What was Styles’ third wrestling-game choice?
His third pick was Pro Wrestling for the 8-bit Nintendo Entertainment System.
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