The WWE Thunderdome Experience

03/15/2021 10:33:28 AM

(Updated 07/17/2021 05:41:38 PM: Heads-up. The following has been written months before WWE end its Thunderdome arena program this past Friday, 16 July 2021.)

It's no secret that the pandemic has screwed the events industry in one way or another. Be it sports, corporate presentation, or even concerts, everything that involves this 6-letter word was practically paralyzed. For the worse part of the year, every city, town, or country has been placed on lockdown; which also meant shows have to be either rescheduled (until further notice) or cancelled; and audiences were forced to stay home.

Such in the case of professional wrestling. Florida was then-the only state to allow the sporting event scene to thrive, but with the strict ruling in favor of publics health standards, leading to two rivalling promotions resuming their operations in a very skeletal basis. WrestleMania went on despite having zero live audience. Other promotions also follow suit, though All Elite Wrestling managed to bring in live audience in a very limited number and space.

Meanwhile, the National Basketball Association looked for ways to keep the 2020 season going by going into 'bubble.' This set-up, took place at the Disneyland Resort in Orlando, Florida, involved virtual fans gaining access to watch the game.

Going back to the squared circle, World Wrestling Entertainment has finally figured out to keep their programs lively – even in a virtual form of its own. Through its grand arena-ish set-up called Thunderdome, WWE has brought back the lights, sounds, the pyros, and... yes, fans. It was formally introduced last August – the Friday before SummerSlam – and the results were breath-taking. It's like WrestleMania all-day long with the eye-candy visuals, larger-than-life entrances, and superb overall production work – just as they promised prior to launching.

But let's stray away from the vibe the Thunderdome has been bringing onto screens. It also served as an opportunity for fans around the globe to watch WWE programming as it happens.

Or did they really let you have fun?

WWE Thunderdome has a lot of rules, if you think about it, such as having a better lighting spot and a mobile phone stand in case you're using your phones; you shouldn't be doing anything that may get you banned from being in the virtual set for the episode; and the preference of wearing WWE merchandise (which is obviously, understandable, business-wise speaking)

There's also a virtual floor director that directs orders through voice whoever you should cheer or jeer. Besides, you'll be watching in your screen the entire time so there's no bathroom break for you or mukbang or anything (well, unless you have guts to do the latter). And chances are, the more you show activity on the screen, the more you'll be moved to the front rows. Of course, your can't also expect your screen to be on worldwide television all the time since slots are quite limited as well as certain call times. 

Hell, sometimes, you're trying to login minutes ahead of your schedule and still you couldn't be able to go in because the Thunderdome is already full. So the phase of actual entering the venue can be really a pain in the ass on timing, but the actual experience of being in the WWE Thunderdome is quite a rewarding – though, not fully.

Author: slickmaster | © 2021 The SlickMaster's Files