Video gaming is regularly portrayed as a male hobby, though many women are hardcore gamers. WWE Diva AJ happens to be one of those ladies. One of AJ’s favorite new games is THQ’s “WWE ’12.” Before she stepped into a WWE ring, AJ was a big fan of WWE’s video game series, something that continues to this day. She told WWE.com that she has all the WWE game from the SmackDown vs. Raw series, as well as the games that preceded them. In fact, she racked up plenty of in-ring video game experience before she ever learned to grapple.
“I would make myself in the games all the time. I would spend hours and days doing that,” the diminutive Diva explained. “Those games helped me live out my dream when I couldn’t actually do it.”
That’s one reason why AJ is so impressed with “WWE ’12.”
“The create-a-wrestler is way more detailed. You can draw in it, so you can make a very, very specific AJ in it, which I plan on doing, since I’m not in the game.”
Though she’s not in this year’s WWE video game, AJ has high hopes that she’ll make the cut for next year’s version of the game and beyond. One of her favorite things to do after creating herself is entering the virtual fray for the WWE Divas Championship against her fellow competitors. Once she does get into the game, AJ has some expectations as to how her character should look in the virtual ring.
“I hope that I’m true to size. I’m a 100-pound, 5-foot-2 tiny little person,” AJ explained. “I hope my moves are in there. And my fighting stance, I remember the games used to have a Lita stance and a Molly Holly one, different ways to hop in the ring.”
The rookie Diva went on to explain how little details from WWE games influenced her as she became a sports-entertainer. “I’ve always been really conscious of [the details], because of the games,” AJ said. “I was like ‘Wow, if I could do something more specific for myself with more personality, maybe I could actually be in a game one day.’”
As a female gamer, the stereotyping can get a little old, but as AJ explained, it’s still fun to shock an opponent every now and then.
“People definitely underestimate you,” the pint-sized Diva said. “Then you play them and murder them and they rethink their opinions.”
Until she becomes a real video game character, AJ will be spending plenty of time creating the perfect representation of herself. When she’s got it just right, there will be plenty of trash talking. Does the Diva have a go-to catchphrase after she decimates an unlucky foe?
“There’s definitely some DX catchphrases and/or hand gestures involved,” AJ said. “I always have two words for them.”
