WWE Elimination Chamber (Feb. 21, 2021) -- Results & Afterthoughts

WWE Elimination Chamber (also known as No Escape in Germany) was a professional wrestling pay-per-view and WWE Network event produced by WWE for their Raw and SmackDown brand divisions. It took place on February 21, 2021, and was broadcast from the WWE ThunderDome, hosted at Tropicana Field in St. Petersburg, Florida. It was the 11th event under the Elimination Chamber chronology and the final event to air on the American version of the WWE Network before its merger with Peacock.

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Match Results: 

Kick-Off: Fatal Four-Way Match

Winner joined the WWE United States Championship match on the main card.

John Morrison def. Elias, Mustafa Ali (with Mace, T-Bar, and Slapjack), and Ricochet

Elimination Chamber Match for an immediate WWE Universal Championship Match

Daniel Bryan def. Cesaro, Jey Uso, Kevin Owens, King Corbin, and Sami Zayn

SmackDown Elimination Chamber Match

Eliminated	Wrestler	Entered	Eliminated by	Method	Time
1	King Corbin	3	Cesaro	Submission	17:45
2	Sami Zayn	4	Kevin Owens	Pinfall	25:30
3	Kevin Owens	5	Jey Uso	Pinfall	26:50
4	Cesaro	2	Jey Uso	Pinfall	32:50
5	Jey Uso	6	Daniel Bryan	Pinfall	34:20
Winner	Daniel Bryan	1

Going into this match, I was all for Cesaro getting the win here and challenging Roman Reigns if he was going to get a proper title match later into the show. In hindsight, now that I have seen how they were going to lay all of this out, especially how they sent Roman out there to lay Daniel Bryan to waste after he survived the SmackDown Chamber match, then I was absolutely fine with Cesaro not getting the win. Anyone paying attention to my live tweets during the show last night could tell you that I was royally pissed off when he was eliminated though. 

Cesaro and Daniel Bryan were killing it since they were the two men to start this match. I had absolutely NO problems with Baron Corbin being eliminated first and rightfully so. Sami Zayn's cowardly heel antics, while occasionally funny, are getting stale at this point. I thought he was going to lure Kevin Owens to his side of thinking (again) after he has failed repeatedly to put down the Tribal Chief. 

A heel turn for Kevin Owens would be a logical course of action but at the same time, he's ran the well dry on that over the past few years. Alternatively, they could put him and Sami Zayn into a program for WrestleMania to rekindle that feud again since it's been a while since they have been at odds end. 

My heart sank like a brick to see Cesaro get eliminated by Jey Uso, who has been doing great work as one of Roman Reigns' cronies over the past year. This singles push for him in the wake of his brother being injured was the breath of fresh air that his career needed. I understand that they are simultaneously building credibility for him as a singles competitor and adding drama to the end of this match with the heels possibly getting the upper hand, but I didn't think it should have been done to Cesaro's detriment. The dude is already getting scraps as is with this current push or sorts - something that is highly unlikely that would be happening if Daniel Bryan didn't have creative influence on the SmackDown! brand. That being said, I wasn't mad with Cesaro's loss here in hindsight from how they followed up Daniel Bryan's narrow victory.

Singles Match for the WWE Universal Championship

Roman Reigns (c) (with Paul Heyman) def. Daniel Bryan by technical submission

Roman Reigns came out to defend his title immediately following the end result of the previous match, offering no breathing room for Daniel Bryan. Bryan managed to catch Roman out of the Spear with the Yes Lock, but there wasn't no moment of that hold where I thought he was actually going to make Roman submit. In my honest opinion, Roman Reigns shouldn't be losing that title until Summerslam - at the minimum. 

So yeah that means Edge (who came out there to lay out Roman with a Spear following his successful title defense) should go to WrestleMania and lose. That should serve as a grim reminder that none of these Rumble winners are guaranteed to win the big one at WrestleMania while at the same time, continue the show of force of Roman Reigns' monumental title reign.  

Triple Threat Match for the WWE United States Championship

Riddle def. Bobby Lashley (c) (with MVP) and Keith Lee John Morrison

As originally pictured above, Keith Lee was originally scheduled to be the third man in this match before John Morrison was added to this match after winning the Fatal 4-Way Match on the Kick-Off show. 

The first half of this match was simply a display of sheer force from "The Almighty" until Riddle and Morrison made the wise decision to work together in some capacity. I haven't seen Lashley look this dominant since his BDC (Beatdown Clan) run in IMPACT Wrestling when he was aligned with MVP in a similar manner as the Hurt Business there. The finish would come after Riddle took MVP's crutch and used it on Lashley, only to hit Morrison with his finish and steal the win from right underneath his nose. 

After that result, it was made painfully clear that Morrison was in there to eat the pin for Lashley could lose the title without getting pinned. Believe what you want from the dirtsheets and rumors floating around online, but it seems like WWE has enough stock invested into Keith Lee that they didn't throw him into this match merely to get pinned for another loss that he doesn't need right now, especially after joining the roster not too long ago. I would like to believe that they have plans for Keith Lee to challenge for the US title at WrestleMania in some capacity since he's clearly not in the conversation for the WWE Championship.   

This wasn't a bad match, but it merely felt like something that would be filling up time on your typical run of the mill episode of Monday Night Raw. I had to feel sorry for Morrison being regulated to mere filler here. Seeing him perform in this match makes me hope and wish that they have plans for him to have a singles run sooner more than later if the rumors of WWE signing his wife, Taya Valkyrie, to the company. Put those two together and let them paint the town red. I'm sure it would make for some good vignettes and segments. Hell... it can't get any worse, can it? Wait, wait, wait... lemme take that one back before someone on WWE Creative says, "Hold my beer..."

Tag Team Match for the WWE Women's Tag Team Championship

Nia Jax and Shayna Baszler (c) def. Bianca Belair and Sasha Banks

During this entire match, I was hoping and praying that we didn't have to endure another Sasha Banks Women's Tag title reign just to give Bianca and Sasha something to fall out over for their inevitable WrestleMania feud to start. They would be merely recycling or rather rehashing the same storyline where Bayley turned on Sasha Banks to spark her own turn to babyface. I don't know what they are going to do to kickstart that feud as both women are at their best heel in my honest opinion, but Bianca is the one who has the babyface momentum behind her, so Sasha SHOULD be the heel going into their WrestleMania feud. If any hint/clue from her interview with Stone Cold Steve Austin should be taken away from that sitdown session, it's that Sasha Banks firmly believes that she's the best all-round athlete, performer, and wrestler in the entire WWE - whether it's male or female. That's no gimmick either - she really believes that. I'm not going to knock the woman for having confidence in herself and knowing her own worth, but I can't help thinking that I'm sure her colleagues are looking at this interview and thinking she's coming off extremely arrogant. 

As for this match, it was what it was - an absolutely nothing filler of a match. Naomi and Lana have won the #1 contender spot over on Raw. Then you have the winners of the Women's Dusty Tag Team Classic, Dakota Kai and Raquel Gonzales, over on NXT who have a future title shot waiting for them too. I just couldn't fathom seeing Nia and Shayna lose to Sasha and Bianca here when they had such a great face-to-face encounter with Dakota and Raquel over on NXT last week. 

As of this posting, Dakota Kai and Raquel Gonzales are set to challenge Nia Jax and Shayna Baszler for the titles on NXT next week (3/3/21), so we could see that title change then. 

The ladies tried to make this match work, but ultimately, it just wasn't clicking - at least for me as a spectator. Then the finish was all kinds of stupid. If Reginald was going to cost Bianca and Sasha the match, then why didn't he just offer to manage them to the ring then just casually throw the champagne bottle in there as planned? That would have made a lot more sense than him just randomly showing up at the end of the match for the same spot. 

Elimination Chamber Match for the WWE Championship

Drew McIntyre (c) def. AJ Styles (with Omos), Jeff Hardy, Kofi Kingston, Randy Orton, and Sheamus

Raw Elimination Chamber Match

Eliminated	Wrestler	Entered	Eliminated by	Method	Time
1	Randy Orton	2	Kofi Kingston	Pinfall	8:55
2	Kofi Kingston	4	Sheamus	Pinfall	23:35
3	Jeff Hardy	1	Drew McIntyre	Pinfall	25:15
4	Sheamus	6	AJ Styles	Pinfall	30:15
5	AJ Styles	5	Drew McIntyre	Pinfall	31:10
Winner	Drew McIntyre	3

Now the second Elimination Chamber match I can't say that I was overly crazy about. 

They definitely missed the boat on having Mustafa Ali (along with the rest of Retribution) attack Kofi Kingston during this match and take his spot. The story was RIGHT THERE and they failed to capitalized on it. I couldn't help but laugh at Kofi looking over his shoulder during his entrance like Edge was going to attack him and take his spot like a few years ago. Color me shocked as all hell that Kofi managed to eliminate Orton (out of nowhere) without any interference from Alexa Bliss nor The Fiend. 

Kofi didn't even get a chance to pat himself on the back before Sheamus gave him a Brogue Kick so hard that Kofi had that Jamaican accent wrestling on ECW again. 

I honestly don't even see why Jeff Hardy was even in this match. He was just THERE wasting a spot for this array of former World Champions. They could have given his spot to Ali if they wanted. When was the last time Jeff Hardy has done anything of merit in this company? At this stage of his career, he's just biding his time until his next court case and/or waiting until that contract expires for he can join his brother in AEW. 

I have to admit that AJ Styles' entry into this match was a stroke of genius though. Omos tore off the plexiglass for he could exit the pod early following Orton's elimination and took advantage of the situation following Orton's barrage of RKOs on his way out. Unfortunately, it didn't result in any eliminations on AJ Styles behalf though. 

Styles had a few rare botches on his behalf towards the end of this match though. He was trying to do the Springboard 450 Splash he occasionally alternates from doing with the Phenomenal Forearm from that position, but it seemed like he misjudged the distance from where Drew McIntyre and landed on him awkwardly. Styles would coarse-correct that maneuver with another attempt a few moves later, but it still wasn't that much better when he eliminated Sheamus. 

Drew would retain the title after connecting with a simply beautiful Claymore Kick during Styles' Phenomenal Forearm and covering him for the 3-count. The Hurt Business' former United States Champion, Bobby Lashley, came out and made short work of Drew shortly thereafter, making way for the match that came up in an impromptu manner to close out this show.  

Singles Match for the WWE Championship

This was Miz's Money in the Bank cash-in match.

The Miz def. Drew McIntyre (c)

The Miz races out with the Money in the Bank briefcase and cashes it in on a helpless Drew McIntyre. (Laughing hysterically) And now... The Miz is the WWE Champion... I can't even type that with a straight face. 

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Closing Thoughts:

(Still laughing) I can't believe that this is the image that WWE wanted to leave people with when this show came to a close...

At least Drew McIntyre kicked out of the first pin attempt until falling to the second to lose the title to The Miz (who has be booked like a complete loser for the better half of the past year), but shit man, this was the best idea that think tank at WWE HQ had in mind? "Oh let's put the title on The Miz for more buzz going into WrestleMania season!" Vince should be shot out of his chair just like Gorilla Grodd was in the video below. 

To be fair though, The Miz is a company man, has multiple television projects outside of WWE and still somehow has maintained his mainstream appeal from his time on MTV's The Real World (It blows my mind that the Pluto TV app even reruns the episodes of Fear Factor that he was on while affiliated with that reality show prior to coming into wrestling...). So I could KINDA understand why they want to elevate him in a sense, especially if the endgame plan for him is a tag team match between himself and John Morrison against Bad Bunny and Damian Priest. I honestly would NOT put it past WWE to book a Bad Bunny versus The Miz match for the WWE Championship either in the meantime.

My problem is that Drew McIntyre was the guy who ultimately got robbed of his crowning achievement of winning the WWE Championship last year from Brock Lesnar was without a crowd of cheering fans, but instead in an empty warehouse. You would think that WWE would stay on the course of making him the guy to beat, much like Roman Reigns over on SmackDown, and keep him undefeated until they were able to get fans back into arenas in some capacity. First Drew got pinned by Randy Orton in a nothing match as part of their feud last year, only to win it right back a week later. Now The Miz beats him in another nothing match. I don't understand what they are doing with Drew McIntyre at this stage of the game. They had a great thing going between him and Roman Reigns last year in their build to Survivor Series, making you think that they were planting the seeds for Drew to take the title from the Tribal Chief at some point - preferably at WrestleMania. Edge's return nixed those plans (despite going for Roman Reigns after tonight's turn of events) and now, Drew is without a dancing partner. They had a promising contender in the making with Keith Lee when he got called up, but he's had so many starts and stops to his pushes in this company over the past few months that I have absolutely no idea if he's in their WrestleMania plans at all. Don't forget that WWE already already blew their loads on what could have been a WrestleMania worthy feud with Sheamus turning on Drew and challenging for the title on free television. After tonight, the obvious course of action should be Drew against Lashley at WrestleMania, but if either one of those guys wins the title back from The Miz at Fastlane or any show prior to that, then it's going to be a complete wash. Lashley hasn't been a World Champion in this company in like forever - and that's even if you want to even consider his ECW World title win in that conversation at all. One would think that he would be deserving of a lengthy title reign, but it seems like WWE wants to do some course correction and have Drew get his crowning moment again at this year's WrestleMania with the limited fans in attendance. From as highly protected and strongly booked that the Hurt Business, especially Bobby Lashley himself, have been portrayed on WWE programming that might be a costly mistake and Drew could wind up with the opposite reaction with fans back in the arena. I'm optimistic for that match-up, but at the same time, I want WWE to be mindful that they may not get that fairy tale ending of Drew being showered with cheers either. 

One match that was left off of tonight's card was Asuka defending the RAW Women's Championship against Lacey Evans. That match was written off due to Lacey Evans' unexpected real life news of her pending pregnancy. As of this posting, WWE has completely ended the storyline between her, Ric Flair, and Charlotte Flair to boot. We were denied of how that match would have turned out. I would not have been surprised if by some fluke or miscommunication, Asuka would have lost the title to Lacey Evans, due to Charlotte Flair's interference and that would have caused the rift to dissolve their current partnership. Charlotte could have easily ended this filler feud with Lacey Evans at Fastlane, only to have her WrestleMania rematch with Asuka a month later.

Then there's something else to think about. Rhea Ripley has been confirmed to be joining the RAW brand, so I have to guess that Asuka's days as RAW Women's Champion are numbered. I'm guessing that she will drop the title to Charlotte Flair at Fastlane, only for Rhea Ripley to dethrone the Queen at WrestleMania in a rematch of their NXT Women's title match from last year. Alternatively, I think it would make for a fun match if they wanted to get a triple threat between Asuka, Charlotte Flair, and Rhea Ripley too. In Charlotte's case, there's a lot of ways they could go with this.

On the other end of the pond, I know Roman Reigns is breathing a sigh of relief now that Edge has selected him (as he SHOULD have to begin with) to face at WrestleMania for the Universal Championship. I will repeat myself too and say that Edge should be going to WrestleMania and losing that match too. I firmly believe that Roman Reigns shouldn't be losing to anyone - at least not until roughly Summerslam to the right opponent. At this point, let Goldberg fight Riddle or Big E at WrestleMania if he wants a payday for that show. He sure as hell doesn't need to be challenging for any World titles in 2021. 

QUICKIE -- Cyber Shadow

Cyber Shadow is a side-scrolling action-platform video game created by Finnish indie developer Mechanical Head Studios and published by Yacht Club Games. Featuring an 8-bit aesthetic, it follows a cybernetic ninja named Shadow who sets out to rescue his clan in a world overrun by machines.

The game is being mostly developed by Aarne Hunziker, who is the sole member of Mechanical Head Studios. It was first shown at PAX East 2019, having been in development from years before and silently announced before that event. It contains stated inspirations from other platform video games such as Ninja Gaiden.

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Fact Sheet

Game Name: Cyber Shadow

Developer: Aarne “MekaSkull” Hunziker – Mechanical Head Games

Publisher: Yacht Club Games

Release Date: January 26th, 2021

Platforms: Steam, Nintendo Switch, PS4 and PS5, Xbox One

Price: $19.99

ESRB: E10+

Website: CyberShadowGame.com

Press Contact: media@yachtclubgames.com

Twitter: @MekaSkull , @yachtclubgames

Facebook: Yacht Club Games

Description

The world has been taken over by the evil Dr. Progen and his merciless synthetic army. A desperate plea for help sets Shadow, the sole survivor of his clan, on one last mission to uncover what started the path to perpetual ruin. Your robotic companion, L-Gion, is your only guide through the ruins of Mekacity. How far will Shadow go to protect his clan and the one he loves? Is there more to their bond than meets the eye? Only you can unlock the secrets to your clan’s ancient powers. Hurry before you run out of time! The road to redemption awaits in Cyber Shadow, the quintessential Ninja Action game.

Gameplay

Cyber Shadow is a side-scrolling platforming game in which players control a ninja character who battles enemies with a sword and various special abilities acquired as subweapons. It features an 8-bit aesthetic which shares similarities to Shatterhand and contains several gameplay elements of Ninja Gaiden, Mega Man, Castlevania and similar games, which include snaking paths and occasional backtracking. Several bosses are present

The game's story is told primarily through cinematic cutscenes, though in-engine ones are used as well.

Features

• Experience sharply honed ninja platforming action! Dash, slice, and leap your way through the depths of Mekacity as you explore claustrophobic factories, corrupted research labs, fortified coastlines, vast skyscapes, and more!
  
  
  
• Authentic 8-bit presentation with handcrafted sprites, a detailed pixel aesthetic, and perfect controls. Modern touches like fluid animation, multilayered parallax backgrounds, and evolved game design.
  
  
  
• Powered by the lost souls of the ninja clan, Dr. Progen’s army mercilessly hunted down all life forms. As the sole survivor, you must take down more than a dozen apocalyptic bosses, ranging from enormous war machines to your synthetically-enhanced clan rivals.
  
  
  
• Rescue your clan to unlock permanent Ninjutsu skills and abilities. Attack from afar with shurikens and kunai, or get closer by using your double jump, cross slash, or wall slide techniques. Summon fire, charge slashes, parries and much more to realize your true potential.
  
  
  
• Experience a gripping story– told both in-game and through animated cinematic story scenes between the action. Shadow returns from oblivion, hurtling through Mekacity on borrowed time for what will surely be his last mission. It’s unclear what transpired before he met his fate, but his clan was betrayed. What has become of the Clan’s master? Who can be trusted when nothing is as it seems?
  
  
  
• Pulse-pounding soundtrack by Enrique Martin.

  

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The Verdict:

In terms of difficulty, this game definitely lives up to the Ninja Gaiden (NES) comparisons. I can't say that it's as cheap and downright brutal in terms of the randomness that's involved with a lot of that game, but there's sections of this game that truly test your tolerance for these types of platformers with checkpoints far and few with the instant kill hazards. This game also sports that annoying as hell "knockback" (think classic series Mega Man) from suffering any type of damage. Hell, there's even some enemies that can juggle you or hit your hurtbox so many times during active frames that the damage multiplies per hit. That's insane for that to even occur when there's already enemies that deal 2-3 points of damage per hit then hazards that deal 4-5 points of damage in the tail end of the game.

Get ready for some Battletoads Turbo Tunnel PTSD flashbacks...

I liked that the difficulty doesn't just ramp up out of nowhere either. The first few chapters start off pretty fair until the game starts challenging your mastery of every new ability/skill you acquire. There's a motor bike section that's reminiscent of Battletoads' Turbo Tunnel, but nowhere as difficult. I'm sure most NES era gamers will have PTSD flashbacks during that section though. 

In-game "feats" are tied to unlockable trophies/achievements in this game that I'm sure will warrant a few replays of the game, such as completing the entire game in less than three hours, beating a specific boss with only your sword or merely the shuriken, or even a challenge where you take no damage throughout your entire journey to the first boss. Completionists will have their hands full trying to platinum this game. Some of those feats I read in the menu and flat out said fuck that noise when I saw them. 

I can't call this game a Metroidvania in a traditional sense as you really don't backtrack to all of the levels in a traditional sense. Later in the game, you have the means to fast travel back to the levels that you have completed for health and mana upgrades that you have missed. There's a few optional bosses that can be bested for bragging rights as well. These optional bosses are at the end of "alternate" pathways through some of the levels that are reminiscent of classic Castlevania titles. 

This boss wasn't too hard but the biggest challenge was NOT hitting the fire pillars confining you into the area that instantly kill you if you manage to touch them. That's pretty hard to do if you're trying to make the most of out hitting him with Dash Strikes repeatedly before he can recover/self-repair.

I thought the bosses were the highlight of this game with each one standing out over the one before it. They always test your mastery of new abilities or applications of a combination of techniques learned throughout the game. Struggling against a boss usually comes down to you not using one of Shadow's many skills/special moves to the best of your abilities. Like previously mentioned, there's some pretty gnarly feats/challenges tied to some of these battles for those looking for an additional challenge. 

I really hope that a boss rush mode is in the pipeline for a possible future update/expansion. This game has far too many fun boss fights to not have a means for you to revisit those encounters without having to replay the game in its entirety. 

Special Items

Special items can be found around Mekacity or purchased from service pods. They have 3 health which is depleted if you take damage.

Power-ups, or rather sub-weapons reminiscent to the Ninja Gaiden series, can be found sparse throughout the game. If you find a power-up or can manufacture them via spending collected essence at the save points/checkpoints, then you are able to further enhance Shadow's offensive capabilities. These power-ups last until you take three hits and are removed until either you regain them upon death or purchase another from that particular checkpoint. 

Gives your blade some extra reach. Accumulates on top of blade upgrades for some truly epic swings!

A blaster that follows you around and charges up a powerful shot if you refrain from attacking. Can be fired through solid obstacles giving you a strategic edge!

A rotating contraption that destroys everything in its path. Strike it with your sword and it will swing forward (or upward if using rising fire).

Another special item that can be acquired throughout the game.

And more! Using each special item to its fullest will significantly increase your firepower. Experiment with which one suits you best and try and hold onto it! Can you find all of them?

My personal favorite out of the bunch was the Swag Blade, but you definitely don't get to use that subweapon as often as one would like. 

 

Skills and Abilities

Speaking of his unique skills it should be noted of what each of them do to enhance Shadow's abilities throughout the game. 

Shuriken / Kunai (Up + Attack) 

This is one of the first abilities that you will acquire in the game. Throughout the game, you will find uses for Shurikens here and there, but when you get the powered up versions of all of your abilities, the Kunai will be your go-to option over the Shuriken over the duration of the game. Your Kunai explode after a few seconds and deal considerable damage. It's a much safer option than jumping up and slashing most airborne enemies, especially in the tail end of the game.

Airstrike / Charged Airstrike (Down + Attack, while airborne)

Think of this like your pogo jump of sorts, much like Scrooge McDuck's trademark attack of the same name from the classic NES DuckTales games or like Shovel Knight's main method of attack. Bouncing off enemies with this attack allows you to jump higher and allows you to do this attack again in succession. By the end of the game, you are highly encouraged to have full mastery of this technique to the fullest. While charged, this attack simply deals more damage. 

I like this move but it definitely has some flaws, with the biggest being that once you execute it, you MUST commit to that animation until you hit the enemy below or the ground. You can easily pummel to your death into a bottomless pit or pit of spikes by misjudging the distance with this attack. The upside of this attack is that it allows Shadow to bounce off several enemies or a single enemy multiple times in succession with proper placement. This makes dealing with airborne foes much, much easier. 

Rising Fire / Charged Rising Fire (Down + Attack, while standing)

This attack simply fires three fireballs above your head. This is useful for dealing with enemies closing in directly above you, but it should be noted that this attack deals massive damage to foes in close range as well if they are hit by all three projectiles at once. The charged version sends three homing firebirds at a target above you, dealing much more damage than the normal version. In my opinion, this move is VERY slow upon execution and I don't recommend it as a last resort - mainly because you have to remain stationary to use it. That being said, it's a great, safe opinion to use against the final boss.

 

Parry / Homing Parry (Tap Forward towards an incoming projectile)

This is arguably one of the most finicky abilities in the game. Sometimes it works like a charm, others, it doesn't work at all and you're stuck getting juggled for multiple hits by the incoming volley of projectiles. When it's performed properly, a blue orb appears in front of Shadow that you can slash with your sword to fire back at your attacker, dealing massive damage. The charged version doesn't simply fires a projectile back at your attacker. Instead, the orb(s) home into your attacker from any location they are on the screen. This technique is another ace in the hole for dealing with airborne and highly mobile threats towards the tail end of the game. It should be noted that perfectly timed parries will recover a portion of your SP gauge. 

Sliding down walls / Double Jump

Right off the bat, this game feels a little off that you don't have one of these two abilities at the beginning. In that sense, it reminds me a little of the start of the original Metroid game where you had to acquire the Power Grip ability before you could hang onto ledges.

  

L2 Sword / Charged Strike

Your basic attack gets two upgrades over the course of the game. The first being a more powerful slash attack and then finally the ability to charge this attack for an even more powerful strike. This is going to be your go-to option against 90% of what you encounter in this game, so you might as well get comfortable with it. 

Sprint (tap Forward twice/R1 button mapped in options) / Dash Strike / Charged Dash Strike

I dare say that this is your powerful attack option in the game, especially with the charged version that sends your "after image/shadow" with an additional attack dealing more damage that allows you to repeat the attack multiple times in succession as long as you connect with another Dash Strike. Visually, it reminds me of Ryu Hayabusa's Flying Swallow technique, but ironically has some of the same applications to some of the hazards and challenges in the tail end of the game. The Dash Strike is going to be another staple trick up your sleeve, especially during the final hours of the game. If you want to transverse the locales at high speed, then this is what you're looking for in terms of movement options. If you connect with the charged version onto an enemy, you're allowed to jump/double jump again and repeat the attack as many times as desired as long as you make contact with any enemy. It's another means to continuously attack foes without touching the ground. This skill takes a bit to master though as it's easy to sprint into lethal hazards throughout the levels. 

It should be noted that the game doesn't tell you this, but the input for this ability can be mapped to a singular button in the Option settings instead of double tapping forward in any direction while on the ground. I wasn't aware of this until I happened to stumble onto one of the developers' comments on reddit following a few players' complaints about the input for this skill. By that point, I was already on the final level of the game, but I did appreciate having an easier option to use this technique with, along with the ability to disable that double tapping input altogether. 

Play It or Don't Bother?

Don't worry, Shadow. I have nothing but love for this game.

For fans of NES era Ninja Gaiden goodness or fans of Yacht Games' work on Shovel Knight and its many expansions, then this is easily a no-brainer to check out. For everyone else, I could see this game being a tough sell for $14.99 to $19.99 at launch, especially given the fact that this is easily a 6-10+ hour adventure on your first casual playthrough. The length of the game is dependent on how much you struggle or decide to backtrack for all of the collectibles for 100% completion. A lot of the frustratingly cheap deaths and platforming for this throwback to NES era gaming may be a turn-off for many as well. For those that stick with this for the long haul will be rewarded with an exciting experience that serves simultaneously as a homage to the games of the past that inspired it while establishing a legacy of its own. 

My biggest gripe with this game is that there's no sort of New Game+ nor post-game content outside of reloading your save and using the teleporter(s) to revisit previously completed stages, but even that is a bummer when you can't face defeated bosses over again nor can you access certain areas once they are closed off due to completion. This in turn forces players to restart the game completely with a brand new save if they missed a particular secret/feats tied to those areas (fortunately, they aren't tied to the 100% item acquisition) or wanted to attempt the feats tied to besting various bosses with a handicap or with an additional challenge. Not everyone would be content with a one-and-done affair for a game like this. There are additional higher difficulty settings for those looking to challenge themselves even further after completing the game on the initial Normal difficulty. 

The developers have gone on record and said they have only used a fraction of the lore and content for this game, so it's safe to assume that they have more in store for this new IP. I personally have my fingers crossed for a wealth of expansions to this game like they did with Shovel Knight throughout it's shelf life. 

AEW Beach Break (Feb. 3, 2021) -- Results & Afterthoughts

AEW Beach Break was a professional wrestling television special episode produced by All Elite Wrestling (AEW). The event took place on February 3, 2021 at Daily's Place in Jacksonville, Florida and was broadcast on TNT, as a special episode of AEW's weekly television program, Dynamite.

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Match Results: 

Tag Team Battle Royal for an AEW World Tag Team Championship match at Revolution

Chris Jericho won by last eliminating Darius Martin

Had The Young Bucks (c) won, they would've chosen their opponents for Revolution.

The first portion of this match was an absolute clusterfuck and hard to follow with so much going on with so many people involved. I don't understand why AEW insists on doing so many of these multi-man matches that never come across well on television with so many people involved. For as much as people who used to give IMPACT/TNA Wrestling enough shit when they were doing these types of matches during Dixie Carter/Vince Russo's time there, AEW sure gets a pass on it. It was hard to follow there and it's the same thing here. Slow it down or limit how many people are in this thing.


I was already confused going into this thing anyway as I had to ask my Twitter followers why were the Bucks in this match, along with both the Dark Order having 4 members in this and the Inner Circle having 6 of their members in this match. The Inner Circle having all of their guys in this at least made a little sense since they are heels, but I thought the Dark Order turned over a new leaf following Brodie Lee's untimely demise?


The Dark Order's Evil Uno and John Silver had strong showings in this match and the same can be said for Top Flight and The Acclaimed. These throwaway efforts by Santana and Ortiz are doing absolutely nothing for their stock value in this company. Is there any other tag team in this company, outside of maybe FTR, who have fallen off the radar as much as Santana and Ortiz? Coming into this company, they were coming off a great run on the indies and in IMPACT Wrestling as the tag team to beat. Here in AEW, they have been regulated to being merely interchangable goofs aligned with Jericho who talk a big game but never get anything done. I have to wonder if they are regretting signing those contracts now.


At the end of the day, this match served as a backdrop for the ongoing rift between the members of the Inner Circle. Jericho unintentionally eliminated Sammy Guevara, but still won the match to win himself and MJF a future AEW Tag Title shot at Revolution. Speaking of the Inner Circle, it seems like whatever MJF is plotting behind the scenes to either destroy or takeover the faction from within is playing out exactly how he wanted. 




It was announced after the in-ring exchange between Sting and Darby Allin and Team Taz that Darby would be defending the TNT Championship against Joey Janela next week on Dynamite. I legitimately busted out laughing. Thank Tony Khan for giving us a free reason to flip the channel or to take a bathroom break during the middle of next week's show.


Team Taz and Sting are devaluing themselves each and every week at this point on this show. Sting is already overexposing himself since his debut to the point that his appearances on Dynamite aren't special anymore, despite the fact that he's not wrestling. At the same time, it's getting tiresome to see Team Taz talk a big game when they haven't accomplished nothing to back those claims up. The time for talk is past due. It's time to be marching down to that ring and beating the bricks off this old man and the skinny emo kid that surprisingly not his son.

The wedding between Penelope Ford and Kip Sabian with Miro and Charles the Butler (Chuck Taylor)

This wedding was officiated by the Sinister Minister himself, Father James Mitchell. That had to be part of their partnership with IMPACT Wrestling for sure. This wasn't as entertaining as what it could have and should have been, but they didn't drag this out for too long. Miro got his foot chained to the bottom rope, which allowed "Charles" to lay in some punches onto Kip. That skirmish caused Penelope to get a face full of cake before Orange Cassidy popped out of it to join the action. I guess this is leading into a tag team match between these two factions, but I couldn't care less at this point.

I'm legitimately happy for Penelope and Kip though.

Singles Match

Dr. Britt Baker, D.M.D. (with Rebel) def. Thunder Rosa by referee stoppage

I don't know why people were surprised that Baker had the best match of her career up to this point with Thunder Rosa. It looked Rosa was really laying it in to help knock sense into her to do business as she led her through most of this match, but I could be reading a little too much into things.


Britt Baker's win here tells me that she has to be in line to take that title from Shida sooner more than later. She might be the dark horse who comes out of the Women's Championship Eliminator tournament to get her shot next. Otherwise, we could see another match between Rosa and Baker as this feud is clearly not over from that finish. Alternatively, Rosa could beat Baker in this tournament and win the AEW Women's Championship herself. AEW has a few ways that they could play this as I have found it rather strange that Rosa hasn't gotten her rematch to the NWA Women's Championship after Serena Deeb won it from her, nor that any other NWA Women's talent have come to take it from her either.


Kamille had a rather telling tweet too a few weeks ago that was really telling. So there has to be some frustration going on that end of that partnership.

This February the #AEW Women's World Championship eliminator tournament begins! Here are your participants in this competition. pic.twitter.com/v9fqx8Q2b7

— All Elite Wrestling (@AEW) February 4, 2021

While I'm not too familiar with majority of the names on the Japanese end of the brackets, I have heard some good things about Maki Itoh, so I'm pulling for her and Aja Kong on that end of the brackets. As for the US side, I think Thunder Rosa, Riho, and Britt Baker are all favorites to make it to the finals. All-round though? This tournament has the potential for some bangers on paper. Let's just see how it goes in terms of execution. 

Tag Team Match

Adam Page and Matt Hardy def. Chaos Project (Luther and Serpentico)

Outside of being a personal favor to Chris Jericho since Luther is friends with him in real life, I can't fathom seeing why Luther is collecting a paycheck in this company or even presented on this television program this much. Keep him on AEW Dark where he belongs. Serpentico is just as bad as Luther, if not worse in some cases. The less I see of these guys, the better.


This was a complete nothing of a match used to further whatever they are teasing between Big Money Matt and Adam Page. I doubt this is going anywhere other than Page getting fed up of Page's bullshit and facing him at the next PPV.

Lumberjack Match

Lance Archer (with Jake Roberts) def. Eddie Kingston (with The Butcher, The Blade, and The Bunny)

Even though this was a rather messy match to watch with so many working pieces in it, I was happy to see Archer and Kingston get to duke it out again. The Lumberjacks got a little too involved at one point, but I was glad that Archer picked up the win here.

Hopefully this means that he's done with this feud and moving on. Given the match that they've confirmed for next week following the events of this show after the main event, that seems like the case, but we'll see.






Everyone involved in this Cody and Shaq feud must have had a come to Jesus meeting or an epiphany and realized that it might not be a good idea to have this match on PPV for multiple reasons. First and foremost, this is going to be Jade Cargill's first in-ring, televised match for this company. If she stinks the joint out on this one then that's not going to be a good look. Secondly, I believe Shaq is set to appear in the NBA All-Star game the weekend of AEW's upcoming Revolution PPV, so that would easily be a scheduling conflict. I still say it would be a good idea to give Jade a warm-up match or two on these weeks leading up to that match for she won't embarrass herself out there. So far they have been sending her out there to fail on her two feet. 

Six-man Tag Team Match

Kenny Omega and The Good Brothers (Doc Gallows and Karl Anderson) (with Don Callis) def. Jon Moxley and Death Triangle (Pac and Rey Fénix)

I'm going to sound like a Debbie Downer here, but man are the Good Brothers just as boring to watch here as they are in IMPACT and back when they were in WWE. It's wild too because I enjoyed their few matches that I saw when they were in New Japan. I don't know what is going on. It just seems like they are merely going through the motions without any substance behind it. I've stated on multiple occasions that Moxley's matches haven't done anything for me even back when he was in WWE and it still doesn't do much for me here. Pac and Fenix were the definite highlight reels for this match. I can't write off Omega here either as he was the glue that was keeping this whole thing together for the most part.


This whole match was easily forgotten as the entire wrestling world were talking about what transpired in the closing minutes of this show with the arrival of NJPW's KENTA (formerly WWE NXT Superstar Hideo Itami) laying out Jon Moxley. Moxley had appeared on NJPW's recent New Japan Strong show last week and laid out KENTA, so it was justified for him to return the gesture in his own backyard. 

NJPW's KENTA arrives in All Elite Wrestling.

The thing that I didn't understand why people were losing their minds about was that KENTA made no qualms about keeping it a secret on Twitter that he was appearing on this show.

Hey @ReneePaquette pic.twitter.com/Sa96PGuJQ7

— KENTA aka Lil’K (@KENTAG2S) January 30, 2021

Let me ask 🤔
How far from Orlando to JACKSONVILLE?? 🤔

— KENTA aka Lil’K (@KENTAG2S) February 1, 2021

ITS GOING TO BE A GREAT DAY

— KENTA aka Lil’K (@KENTAG2S) February 3, 2021

I won't deny that Schiavone's line about "The forbidden door has been opened..." was great though.


ALL of these companies SHOULD be working together, pooling resources against WWE. This makes for a great environment for not only the fans, but the talent as well. It gives talents more of that "territory" feel where you could get more experience and exposure in different companies, working against a variety of opponents who you wouldn't work with normally otherwise. This protects talents from being overexposed on television - a VERY common issue in WWE - while simultaneously giving your talents room to grow as performers. AJ Styles wouldn't be the performer he is today if he was just confined to working with exclusively IMPACT/TNA talent. He's a well-rounded wrestler from competing for years all over the globe for multiple promotions. He's able to adapt to any style instead of having one type of match he can wrestle - an issue that a LOT of men and women in not just AEW, but a lot of modern wrestlers as a whole have.


AEW Beach Break will be remembered in history for this moment, but also for the fact that this is the first time that IMPACT, New Japan, NWA, and AEW wrestlers all were on the same show and television network at the same time. Wrestling is pretty wild, sometimes, folks.