Few things go together as well as video games and professional wrestling. Both are filled with action and excitement, while also offering an escape from reality.
Video games are ingrained into wrestling culture in a variety of ways. Wrestling video games have been a favorite of many wrestling fans, but some wrestlers have even managed to appear in other video games. Some wrestlers use video games as a way to relax outside the ring. Others use video games as a way to connect with their fans. Throughout recent years, many wrestlers have even used video game characters to inspire their gear.
10 Amy Rose & Pokémon
Amy Rose, from Ring of Honor, has never been shy when sharing her love for video games. Based on her social media, Pokémon appears to be among her favorites.
In 2019, Rose made her presence known to wrestling fans around the world when she managed Kenny King and joined the La Faccion Ingobernable stable in ROH. Alongside Rush and Dragon Lee, the stable dominated ROH in recent years. Outside the ring, Rose regularly posts photos of herself with the latest game in the Pokémon series or her favorite Pokémon plush.
9 Kazuchika Okada & Yakuza 6
IWGP Heavyweight Champion Kazuchika Okada has been at the top of New Japan Pro Wrestling for the past decade. His dominance in the ring led to him being the leader of the JUSTIS organization in Yakuza 6.
Many of New Japan’s top stars appeared alongside Okada in the game including Hiroshi Tanahashi, Hiroyoshi Tenzan, Satoshi Kojima, Tetsuya Naito, and Toru Yano. In the game, you had to fight gangs that were made of these wrestlers. It was game over if you got hit by Okada’s “Rainmaker” clothesline or Naito’s “Destino.”
8 Jade Cargill & Mortal Kombat
At AEW’s Revolution pay-per-view event, AEW TBS Champion Jade Cargill shared her love for the Mortal Kombat video game franchise.
Cargill dressed as Mortal Kombat character Jade when she made her first pay-per-view appearance. The undefeated champion did not disappoint in her match against Tay Conti. Cargill picked up the win and earned her 29th straight win in the promotion. As her stock continues to rise, it will be interesting to see if any video game characters inspire her gear in the future.
7 Adam Cole & Halo
The TBS champion wasn’t the only wrestler to wear video game-inspired gear at AEW Revolution. In the main event, Adam Cole wore gear inspired by the Halo video game franchise when he fought for the AEW championship.
Cole is an avid gamer and even has his own Twitch channel. While he has obtained quite a following as a professional wrestler, Cole has also gained quite the following as a gamer. His channel, called TheCHUGS, has over 117 thousand followers.
6 Zelina Vega & Pokémon
WWE Women’s Tag Team Champion Zelina Vega has also proven to be a major fan of the Pokémon series.
WWE’s first Queen’s Crown winner regularly cosplays as her favorite video game characters. When it comes to Pokémon, Vega has cosplayed as Nessa, the water gym leader from the Galar region. When she debuted in WWE, Vega was the manager of Andrade, who is now Andrade El Idolo in AEW. The two did a cosplay of the famous Pokémon duo Team Rocket.
5 Batista & Gears of War
Guardians of the Galaxy star, and former WWE world champion, Dave Bautista is a big fan of the Gears of War video game franchise.
Last year, Bautista turned down a potential role in the Fast & Furious franchise and instead expressed his desire to play Marcus Fenix in a Gears of War movie. After expressing his desire to play the video game character, Bautista was added to the Gears 5 video game as Fenix. The game even added Bautista’s wrestling finisher, the Batista Bomb, as a way for Fenix to add more damage to his enemies.
4 The Rock & Fortnite
Fans of the popular Fortnite video game were shocked when Dwayne “The Rock” Johnson was revealed to be a future playable charter at the end of 2021.
There is arguably no celebrity in the world more in-demand than The Rock. He is in multiple major motion pictures and has many more to come. He has his own sitcom on NBC. Now, it’s no surprise that he is also appearing in one of the world’s most popular video games.
Earlier this year, a skin, which is the appearance of a Fortnite character, of Johnson was released. In the game, the wrestling superstar plays the role of a character named The Foundation.
3 Paige & Twitch
Former WWE Divas Champion Paige has gone from the wrestling ring to become the self-proclaimed “Queen of Twitch.”
In 2017, an injury during a WWE live event put Paige’s wrestling career on halt. Since then, Paige has built quite the following on the Twitch video game streaming service. Her channel, SarayaOfficial, has over 221 thousand followers. While she is dearly missed in the wrestling ring, she continues to connect with her fans through her love of video games.
2 Kenny Omega
There is not just one video game connection that can be made when it comes to former AEW World Champion Kenny Omega.
Omega’s finishing move, “The One-Winged Angel,” is a reference from the game series Final Fantasy. He has also cosplayed as some of his favorite video game characters during his time in AEW. In recent years, “The Best Bout Machine” has done cosplays in honor of games such as Undertale and Street Fighter. Outside the ring, Omega has competed in Street Fighter tournaments.
1 Xavier Woods & UpUpDownDown
You cannot talk about professional wrestling and video games without talking about Xavier Woods.
Woods, who is the current WWE King of the Ring winner, has built his own video game empire with his YouTube channel UpUpDownDown. On his channel, Woods, under the name Austin Creed, plays video games with other wrestlers. The channel has well over 2 million subscribers on YouTube. The success of his video game channel has helped lead the New Day member into a hosting gig for G4 TV, a video game television channel.
Woods’ love for video games has also inspired his gear. Along with the New Day, Kofi Kingston and Big E, the trio has worn gear inspired by games such as Mortal Kombat and Gears of War. Like Dave Bautista, the New Day are also playable characters in Gears 5.
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