Welcome Back To Wrestling’s Great Video Game Sign War

Wrestling fans have been away from international arenas for more than a year, but following high vaccination rates in the United States, they’re back. You know what that means. Hot takes about RPGs are also back.

Over the past few years, a strange thing has been developing in the background of wrestling shows: a phenomenon that’s become known as the Great Wrestling RPG War.

See, there’s massive crossover between wrestling fans and gamers — and we all know how passionate these groups can be. Rather than sharing this enthusiasm online, wrestling fans are channelling their energy into creating passive-aggressive signs featuring searing-hot takes on RPGs.

These signs then get brought to wrestling shows (both WWE and AEW so far) with the intention of them being shown on TV and sparking major debate.

Last month, Kotaku Australia reported on signs arguing for and against the best Final Fantasy games. These were relatively lukewarm takes and are issues that’ve been hotly debated by gamers for nearly three decades.

Now, Botchamania! creator Maffew Gregg has spotted even more of these RPG war signs in the wild. And folks, these takes are flaming hot.

The latest sign appeared on a recent episode of AEW Dynamite, floating along the main entrance barrier. In huge, blocky text it reads: ALADDIN FOR SNES IS INFERIOR.

I mean, wow. Where to begin?

This sign actually stems from a long-term debate about the SNES Aladdin adaptation and how it stacks up to its Sega Genesis counterpart. As pointed out by The Gamer, each version has its own merits, with Aladdin on SNES primarily being known for having a Jasmine-themed bonus stage and tighter controls.

On the other hand, the Genesis version does have more movie songs and Aladdin gets a sword.

While I’m on the fence about this hot take, I can definitely see where this wrestling fan is coming from. It’s a hot take, but swords are pretty cool and they might actually be right about the SNES’ inferiority.

In the same episode of Dynamite, Gregg also spotted a second, more passive sign.

Between Sting taking potshots, he noticed a wrestling fan with a sign bearing ominous words: REMEMBER SKIES OF ARCADIA.

This RPG is often considered one of Sega’s best but as the sign implies, it’s a game that’s rarely given the acclaim or attention it deserves. In 2024, rumours of a remaster were kickstarted by developers but sadly, we’ve seen nothing since.

Remember Skies of Arcadia? We hope Sega does one day, and that this sign kicks off a renewed interest in the game.

As debate around the best RPG games continues, we can expect to see WWE and AEW wrestling fans barracking the fort long into the future. Now that the RPG sign war has gone mainstream, we can expect to see more and more of this essential, much-needed commentary.

This post originally appeared on Kotaku Australia.