Luchadors have been side characters in many games, but this is the first time that a full title is being devoted to the sport. How does it feel to be the first developers to make a Lucha Libre game, and what kind of challenges does it bring?

The opportunity to develop Lucha Libre AAA: Heroes del Ring was such a blessing. We are huge Lucha Libre fans. Our cultural background really made the process easier for us. Lucha Libre is a cultural phenomenon. When we started the project, one our main goals was to recreate the Lucha Libre experience, as well as present character depth and provide fans with different locations that are unique to the sport. And it is a sport in Mexico. It appears in the sports section of all newspapers. It is the second most popular sport to what you call soccer.

Our passion for Lucha Libre also allowed us to establish the differences between WWE and Lucha Libre. As you know, Lucha Libre began almost a century ago. It has been an influence to many US based wrestling leagues including WWE. So there are some similarities, but fans will see almost instantly the differences. We took create measure to perfect the differences.

Not only that, but it’s the first game from this publisher, Slang. What advantages/disadvantages have you faced because of this?

It has been a collective growing experience, to tell the truth. Both Slang and the AAA league provided us with support. The game is based on a real AAA Mexican league. The roster contains actual wrestlers from the AAA league, but we call them luchadores. I never get tired of telling this: at an early stage, some of the developers had training sessions with the legendary trainer of AAA, el Apache. He took us through training sessions and even battled with us. He slammed many of our developers. Though I am glad to report no one missed a day of work due to injury.

What inspired you all to make this game?

In Mexico, wrestlers have been beating each other for almost to century. Their fame is as big in Mexico as some of the NBA players in the US. Some of the masked luchadores’ popularity has transcended sports into films and other venues. This fame adds to the experience that fans enjoy while cheering for their favorite luchador. The exciting flavor of Lucha Libre is far too tasty not to share with the world.

Have any other games influenced the design of Lucha Libre AAA: Heroes del Ring? Perhaps a few developer favorites, or industry heroes?

Yes, although we wanted to add our own ingredients to the title, truth be said, the development team was influenced from many other titles. We hope fans will find those ingredients in the game by themselves. I cannot complete the question without mentioning some big influences like beats legendary developer AKI. We also took some influence from non-wrestling games - in fact, one big influence in developing the combat system was the CQC combat that Snake has made famous in the Metal Gear series.

Just how different will Heroes del Ring be from the many games based on WWE and other wrestling leagues?

Well it has quite a lot of differences. First of all, as I mentioned above, one of our main goals was to recreate the flavor of Lucha Libre. From the details and background of the luchadores, to the story lines, crowd interaction and venues. This game is not a wrestling sim, but rather a fun fighting experience. You can pick-up and play this game, but in order to dominate online you must master the controls. Lucha Libre AAA: Heroes of the ring also differs from US based wrestling games like WWE. Battles are much faster in speed with more dynamic moves. In addition, you have to earn the respect of the crowd. If you stand still or take a rest or run around the ring, you lose the respect of the crowd. The crowd’s respect or support is importante. Without it, you cannot unlock special finishing moves. Without it, you cannot win unless there is a disqualification. Lucha Libre’s biggest difference is the characteristics of the luchadores and their styles. You can actually feel the differences between the luchadores. You can even create your own luchador and his fighting style. And, you can fight in one style, but you must be able to adapt and strategize as you climb up the ranks. Your style may dominate one luchador but it may play into another luchador’s strength. So you have to be smart. You can create a luchador who is more aerial or more of a grappler or as a blunt force weapon.

What feature or aspect of the game are you proudest of?

There’s a lot of elements, but, if I were to mention two points. I would go first on the variety of the styles and the differences between the games’ rosters. Each luchador is unique. Its moves, appearance and style. The moves are unique, even when two luchadores share a similar fighting style: you cannot use the same fighting approach with each fighter. You may be an aerial brawler but you have to be able to adjust with each new luchador. Also, another element of the game that I really like is the luchador editor. There are thousands of options when creating your own luchador. The best part is the creation of the mask. I’m not talking about a mask with 4 or 5 classes to choose one from. No, it is an editor that let you create a mask from scratch with thousands and thousands of possibilities. To add on to the masks and their creation, there is an online mode called Mask vs. Hair. In this online ranked match, you actually wager your created mask or hair against your opponent. Winner takes all. Loser gets their mask ripped off or their head shaved. And, if you lose, you have to win three ranked matches before you earn the right to create a new mask.

Will Lucha Libre AAA: Heroes del Ring be a standalone title, or will we be seeing more Lucha Libre games from Immersion and Slang?

During the creation of the first title in the franchise we discovered several gameplay features that we didn’t have time to incorporate in this version. It’s been a great learning experience. We are excited to see consumers playing this game. We will listen to fan response and make key decisions on what may or may not make it into a possible second title in the franchise. Stay tuned and enjoy Lucha Libre AAA: Heroes del Ring. We believe we have created a title that will help reignite a stalled genre in video games. Let’s face it. Competition makes everyone better and the ultimate winner in this competition will be the fans.