On May 23, 1999, wrestler Owen Hart passed away due to an equipment malfunction during his entrance into the wrestling ring, dropping him to his death. In light of this, the game was delayed from its original June 3, 1999 release date to August 5th that year, and they dedicated it to Hart in the Nintendo 64 and PlayStation versions.

The Dreamcast version, however, completely omits the dedication due to a wrongful death lawsuit brought against the WWE (then known as the WWF) from the Hart family. However, he is still a playable character in the game.