EXCLUSIVE: Internal Reaction To AEW: Fight Forever Revealed

All Elite Wrestling's first-ever console video game - AEW: Fight Forever - has been available on store shelves and digital marketplaces since its release on Thursday, June 29. The reception to the game has been mixed so far, with Fight Forever sitting at 65 on Metacritic for PlayStation 5. Cultaholic Wrestling's own review noted that Fight Forever had potential but the game in its current state might not be enough to keep players engaged before any potential updates.

The internal reaction appears to have been more positive, with AEW: Fight Forever Lead Narrative Designer Justin Leeper noting the team behind the video game are "pretty happy" with the reception to the title.

"I think we're pretty happy. I at least was aware that reviews may not be in the stratosphere but at the end of the day, I make games for the player. I make games so that people who are interested in it will pick it up and they'll find some fun and enjoyment of that. Does that mean I made a perfect mode? No, definitely not. Is this a perfect game? No it is not. Especially taking it as a from-the-ground-up first effort for a brand new IP, I think we accomplished what we wanted to do. I think I accomplished what I wanted to do on the mode," Leeper stated.

"I think we made an easy-to-play, hard-to-master kind of game that is intuitive in the controls and fun to play... It's something to build off of, very much so. I hope that there is some updates that come and maybe bring some other people into the fold who thought, 'Well maybe I'll wait on it and see what happens.' By and large, the people who I have heard from who are playing it, actually picked it up, downloaded it, bought it, and getting their hands on it, are enjoying what they're playing."

Leeper designed and wrote the Road to Elite career mode in AEW: Fight Forever, having previously worked on the Road to WrestleMania mode in WWE video games.

Check out Cultaholic Wrestling's full chat with Justin Leeper here.