AEW: Fight Forever has several game modes and match types to participate in. Some are even quite arcadey and silly, which should lead to shenanigans when playing with friends. Here’s what you can expect from each game mode and match when you enter the virtual squared circle.
AEW: Fight Forever Game Modes Explained
AEW: Fight Forever has a few distinct game modes. Here’s a list of them and what to expect.
- Exhibition — Consists of several match types, including 1-on-1 matches, ladder matches, and more (detailed below).
- Online — Battle against other players from around the world. The match types here are some of the same found in Exhibition mode.
- Road to Elite — This is the game’s career mode. You can select an AEW wrestler or create a custom superstar/CAW to partake in a full season or roughly 17 matches. Some branching storylines might also lead to unlockable wrestlers like Brodie Lee and Paul Wight. Moreover, CAWs can learn new perks, which you can read about in our best Road to Elite skills guide.
- Minigames: These are short competitive activities involving four players. Examples include pushing enemies off a platform, running around to collect chips, answering multiple-choice questions, copying the correct dance pattern, spotting the difference, breaking a bunch of blocks, and more.
- Training: Lastly, there’s training mode. This is for you to practice certain movesets against a chosen opponent.
All AEW Match Types
1-on-1/Singles Matches
Singles matches come in three flavors: Normal, Light’s Out, and Falls Count Anywhere.
- A Normal match has the default rules enabled (i.e., countouts, disqualifications, and rope breaks).
- A Light’s Out match is simply a fancy term for Hardcore rules. That means the above rules are disabled, and you can use weapons. However, you need to pin or submit your opponent in the ring.
- Lastly, Falls Count Anywhere is just a Light’s Out match, except you can win while outside the ring, too.
2-on-2/Tag Matches
A 2-on-2 or tag match, as the name implies, pits one team against another. The idea here is to damage one combatant while preventing them from tagging their partner. While attempting a pin, both non-legal teammates will attempt to break it up/play defense. As such, you should incapacitate your other foe before pinning the legal combatant.
3-Way and 4-Way Matches
These matches essentially pit three or four wrestlers against each other. It’s one-fall to a finish, which means the first person to score a pinfall or submission wins. There’s no disqualification either, so you can use weapons. Unfortunately, there’s no “elimination” option, where you need to pin/submit each combatant until you’re the only one remaining.
Ladder Match
The ladder match in AEW: Fight Forever has fairly simple objectives:
- Bring the ladder inside the ring and set it up. You can do this by pressing R2/RT when near or when holding the ladder.
- From there, you’ll need to climb it (Circle or B button).
- Once you reach the top, press the right thumbstick to grab the large chip/title belt.
- Four segments must be “unlocked” by mashing the face buttons onscreen.
- While all of this is going on, watch out for opponents that will try to push the ladder from under you.
Casino Battle Royale
The Casino Battle Royale match type is fairly unique. Most battle royales (i.e., the WWE‘s Royal Rumble) operate on a clear rule: throw the opponent over the top rope, and have both feet touch the floor. This is done by grappling your opponent, then pressing R2/RT to throw them. If they still cling to the ropes, you must strike them so they fall outside.
The setup is similar for the Casino Battle Royale if you’re playing Solo Mode. However, there’s also Suite Mode, which is team-based. While the goal is similar, you have to face off against rival teams until only one remains.
To make this task easier, I suggest beating up your foes until you fill up your Momentum meter for a signature move. You can keep using your signature as long as you don’t get hit; if this happens, you can punch or kick someone until you fill up the meter again. By using your signature on hapless wrestlers, you’ll get them to a “green” or “blue” state. This makes it easier to throw them outside the ring.
Exploding Barbed Wire Deathmatch
This is another AEW: Fight Forever match type that’s very gimmicky. Basically, the ring is surrounded by barbed wire and explosives. Getting thrown or pushed to the ropes or corners causes an explosion that damages that combatant. Likewise, there’s a two-minute countdown. When it expires, the ropes will go kaboom, and anyone close to that area will take severe damage. As usual, you need to pin your opponent to achieve victory.
That’s all you need to know about the game modes and match types in AEW: Fight Forever. For other tips and info, you can visit our AEW: FF guides hub.
