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WWE Legend Mick Foley Talks Mankind, Attitude Era And WWE13

Posted: Dec 7th 2012 By: CMBurnham

Mick Foley is still active in professional wrestling. Although these days his body doesn?t allow him to do the types of bone-breaking moves that wowed millions of fans, he still has his unique sense of humor and presence in the WWE ring. Foley had so much personality that he brought multiple characters to life during his illustrious career, including Mankind and Cactus Jack. All of his incarnations are featured in THQ?s new WWE 13 game.

In fact, Foley is a central figure in the game?s Attitude Era campaign mode, which allows fans to live through the span of wrestling history where heavyweights like The Rock, Stone Cold Steve Austin and Triple H changed the face of wrestling. Foley went back and recorded dialogue to bring historical encounters inside and outside the ring to life with today?s video game technology.

Foley, who?s now a bestselling author, talks about his own gaming background ? and offers a very revealing story from his childhood gaming days ? in this exclusive interview.

What?s a favorite video game memory from when you were young?

My fondest memory up until now of being part of a video game was when the game out in 2000. I was a pretty central part of the game, although oddly, not as big a part of that game as I am of this current WWE 13 game, which is beyond cool. At that time, I would insist that my children be Mick Foley, and then I would just put that toggle switch to forward at a slow speed. I would walk into a variety of offense, so I actually never lost when I was being played as Mick Foley or Mankind by my kids. I?ll do the same thing. I have younger kids now. They will unknowingly be dad as one of the three characters, and I will be undefeated as long as I?m playing against me, if that makes any sense.

When you were a kid, do you remember playing at the arcades?

Oh, man. You?re not gonna bring me back to Pong, are you? Yeah. I remember a friend of mine had Atari, and just sitting for hours as that little ball went, ?boop, boop, boop.? Then I became a Ms. Pac-Man fan. Honestly, I?m not much of a gamer, although my mom did walk in on me when I was playing Mattel Electronic Football without my clothes on. That was not a good moment in my life. I?ll make sure if I?m playing this game that I am dressed appropriately.

We?re not going to go into the Mattel story here.

It?s too soon. It still stings. Every time I hear the?there?s a song?it has that noise in it, the Mattel Electronic Football, and it still brings up that memory. It?s terrible.

What are your thoughts about how far video games have come since those days?

It?s amazing. I don?t know how they recreate it. Every year they manage to top themselves. I remember driving in 1996 when I just joined WWE. I was wrestling Invader, who was showing me the graphics of the game that was out then. I had just missed the deadline to be part of that game, and I was so envious. It looks like Mickey Rourke in The Wrestler playing that game, where this little guy just mowing very awkwardly; no realism whatsoever. But that was light years ahead of Pong, so I don?t know how they do it. It?s amazing. I don?t understand the technology. I?m just fortunate to be a beneficiary of the technology.

You?re around a lot of the current superstars. How popular are video games today with these guys?

Games are huge. Guys bring their controllers. We?re not just talking about the PS3s. I don?t know the technology. I don?t want to leave any of it out. Nintendo DS, I think my son had. They actually bring the consoles. Some of the top superstars have buses they travel in, and they pass the time by playing games and reading my new children?s book, A Most Mizerable Christmas, which is on sale everywhere now and on Amazon.com. But they do, they love the game, and I?d like to think that there will be some Mick Foley going on in those buses.