"Stone Cold" Steve Austin Interview

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WWE All Stars Credit: THQ

11	On WWE All Stars

Aubrey Sitterson: So, have you had a chance to play WWE All Stars?

Steve Austin: Yeah, I was actually at the THQ headquarters there in Agoura, California a couple weeks ago. I got to sit down and play the game, and check it out. I put it through the paces to see what it does and what it doesn’t...and it pretty much does it all. It has more bells and whistles than any other game I’ve played and I’m not technically a gamer. I’ve been in a couple hundred video games, but man, I'm basically an outdoor cat, and don't watch too much TV either. But I love this game. I love the over-the-top, larger than life characters, I like the special effects and, I tell you what, with today’s technology, they can sure do a hell of a lot more than they used to.

Aubrey Sitterson: I'm thinking I already know the answer to this, but who did you like to play as?

Steve Austin: Man...(laughs) I only play as one guy: "Stone Cold" Steve Austin. That being said, I was playing against this guy who was pretty good, so I kept getting my ass kicked.

Aubrey Sitterson: Who was he beating on you with?

Steve Austin: Oh...Jesus Christ. I hate to say this guy’s name, but Hulk Hogan beat me in a video game. Can you believe that? (Laughs) It was hard to say that, but he could only beat me in a video game though.

WWE All Stars Credit: THQ

10	Comparing WWE All Stars to SmackDown vs. Raw

Aubrey Sitterson: Have you played SmackDown vs Raw recently?

Steve Austin: No, that is one game that I haven't played recently. Like I said, I’m not technically a gamer, but I have seen it played though.

Aubrey Sitterson: How would you compare it with WWE All Stars?

Steve Austin: I just think the technology in this one is just so much better. I like the special effects; it’s just a fast, fun game and I don’t have the vocabulary to express what I think about the technology. When guys fly across the ring, that kind of rainbow smearing super effect after a guy got really smoked or hit...it’s just a lot more fun.

Aubrey Sitterson: Do you think an over-the-top game like this could create unreasonable expectations for the WWE TV product?

Steve Austin: Oh no, I think the dog is wagging the tail. The dog is the WWE and the tail is all the stuff that comes off of that. That’s with all due respect to the video game. The video game would not have any influence. It's the in-ring product first and this won’t create any expectations of what Superstars are expected to do in that ring or around that ring.

WWE All Stars Credit: THQ

9	WWE All Stars' Roster

Aubrey Sitterson: Are there guys in the game that you enjoy seeing in action again?

Steve Austin: Oh there’s a bunch of guys and that’s the cool thing about this game because you've got two generations, and you've got one ring. Pulling from the Legends list you got Andre the Giant, Hogan, the Rock, and myself...all of the legends - I can’t name all of them. I had fun pitting the Big Show against Andre the Giant because that was kind of one of my dream matches that I would have liked to see, because those were the only two true giants that were ever in the business. So to see those two guys match up would be an awesome match if you could see it in real life. Because those guys are so similar in size, but different in style it would have been highly entertaining. I had a good time playing that one.

Aubrey Sitterson: Are there current, younger superstars that really impress you in the game?

Steve Austin: Because of the similarities and what people have mentioned in comparisons between the young Randy Orton and myself, I think that’s an interesting match-up, especially as Randy continues to move higher and higher up in the business. His father, "Cowboy" Bob Orton, was one of my favorite wrestlers of all time. Randy is a smart guy, he’s really putting all the pieces together and he has really done well for himself. I'm proud of that guy and I like what he's done.