the_motleykid's Full Review: WWE SmackDown vs. Raw for PlayStation 2
I have been playing the Smackdown games since the original came out. Before that I was madly grappling away with Acclaims WWF Warzone & Attitude, but when the Smackdown series came along I was introduced to smoother game play, graphics…wait a second everything was smoother (except for the dodgy create a wrestler mode, which I’m glad to say has been long since fixed). The games have steadily improved over the years with the biggest leap being 2003’s WWE Smackdown: Here Comes The Pain which really took a large leap forward from WWE Smackdown: Shut Your Mouth with graphics & most notably the game play system which introduced the “four grapple categories” which made for a more strategised match.
WWE Smackdown Vs Raw was released to a string of many different opinions on the game, some great, some good & some bad. This worried me because there was a lot of flack out there about this game, and me as a huge fan of the series, didn’t want to hear it. When I first played this game, I thought, what are the critics complaining about, this game has significantly improved over the last. But after I dwelled on that fact for a bit, it dawned on me that the critics wanted another improvement like Here Comes The Pain was over Shut Your Mout. And let me tell you, Here Comes The Pain was a BIG improvement over Shut Your Mouth.
But don’t get discouraged about this game just because the improvement may not be as large as Here Comes The Pain’s, it is without a doubt a big enough of an improvement to give the game a very fresh and exciting feel. This game does introduce many new features that you will enjoy, does online play sound interesting??? What about a new match type, “The Parking Lot Brawl”, which places you backstage surrounded by cars which you can put to use anyway you see fit (heads smashed through a window, anyone?). What about a new “Tactics” meter where you are rewarded for being a good or bad guy? Oh yeah, the Royal Rumble match has had an overhaul making it a lot more enjoyable. If you want to know about these features in detail, just keep on reading!!
First of all, the tactics meter. There are three options here to choose after you select your grappler: Dirty (Heel/Bad Guy), Clean (Face/Good Guy) & Neutral. Which ever you select, can play a important part in your match. For example, If you choose to play as dirty, your meter will rise when you perform “Ric Flair-esque” manoeuvres such as the low blow, removing a turnbuckle pad, arguing with the referee (by simply pressing the L1 button after a long two count) and cowardly taunting your opponent while your outside the ring. When your dirty meter fills up you get a special low blow which could gain you a cheap three count!!
But if you decide to play to the crowd like The Rock or Shawn Michaels by selecting “Clean”, to fill your meter you’ll have to come of the top turnbuckle, perform your signature moves and avoid low blows and cheap tactics. When your clean meter fills up, you become invincible for about 20 or so seconds & counter every move that your opponent tries on ya, but it don’t last forever so use it wisely.
Note: To activate your full tactics meter, simply move your right analogue stick!!! Moving on…
The Royal Rumble match is better than its ever been, with a brand new ring out meter. It makes surviving harder and easier at the same time (?). When a wrestler enters the rumble, they begin with a full “ring out” meter, which is decreased when they are thrown over the top rope (but just hanging on) and struck and pushed, and yep, you guessed it, when the meter empties, elimination occurs. That’s basically the Rumble meter in a nut shell, nothing massive but definitely adds to the match.
While the grappling system remains the same, a few in match mini games have been added for a little variety, such as the chop battles (press down + O while opponent is facing you, while leaning on the turnbuckle) which when activated a “kick meter” clone from the MADDEN games appears and basically its all about timing your button pressings. Also, when beginning a singles match you may also come across the Stare Down battle (where first wrestler to punch the other one gains the upper hand) & a test of strength which works by just quickly pressing the button that flashes up on the screen. There are a few other little extra features but I’ll let you discover them for yourself (you’ll thank me when the time comes).
The “create a wrestler mode” is much the same as it’s always been with a few new features thrown in. My favourite feature would be that you can take a photo of your creation which shows up on the wrestler selection screen. Just a few new pieces of clothing and different hair styles… Nothing much has really changed with this mode, but if it ain’t broke don’t fix it. You can still make some pretty awesome characters so that’s all that you need. You can throw an real or created wrestler into the Career mode, which has WWE superstar voiceovers (more on that below), and a new storyline, but does get repetitive after a few goes. There are only a few paths to follow with only a few possible outcomes, and something else that really ticks me off is the lack of championship belts up for grabs, no tag team belts, no cruiserweight belts, no womens belts, only the World Heavyweight Championship, Intercontinental Championship, WWE Championship & U.S Championship. A little disappointing but all and all it’s enjoyable to play.
Sometimes I have to do a double take when playing this game, just to make sure I’m not watching the real deal, ‘cause the graphics are damn impressive and very closely resemble the actual wrestlers. You really can tell that this game is a 25% polygon increase over the last, and that’s saying something because Here Comes The Pain was pretty to look at. Although long haired wrestlers like Edge and Triple H suffer from the poor hair mechanics because their hair seems stuck together (I guess that’s the best way to describe it), the wrestlers with short hair like Bubba Ray & Randy Orton have very realistic looking hair, especially the detail on Kane, you can actually make out the scars on the back of his head. (Sorry about the hair tangent I went of on, but it was really well done, so if/when you play the game, take a closer look.) Unfortunately the 25% rise in the polygon count means that there had to be a cut back of about 7 or 8 wrestlers. All the main grapplers you'd expect like Randy Orton, John Cena, Evolution & Chris Benoit are included, but Billy Gunn, Test and a few other low carders were left off. It's a tad disapointing but you'll get over it.
Finally the entrance music is up to date, every one from Kane to Randy Orton are sporting their current entrance themes, and maybe even more spectacular, the legends all have entrance music apart from Andre the Giant. That was something that disappointed me about the last game, legends had no entrance music, I would have loved if they put Ted Dibiase’s music in, because the tune just cracks me up. The game is driven by modern sounding rock which plays in menus, matches and season mode, and speaking of season mode (and speaking), there is dialogue recorded by the actual wrestlers. The quality isn’t consistent though, with some wrestlers who don’t sound that enthusiastic like Shelton Benjamin & Kane, but Trish Stratus, Vince McMahon, Eric Bischoff and others are quite good. But Vince McMahon sounds very rushed though, he says all his lines at a fast pace I noticed, not like his TV lines. The conditions that some wrestlers recorded their voices in are varied, the worst being Triple H in a barn like studio, but Triple H took it well even when one of the recording guys were late, you know what The Cerebral Assasin did while he was waiting with the the recorders who were there? He whipped out his new Motorhead CD and put that on for the sound guys, while swapping stories about the band!! True story.
Now for the part of the game that a lot of you are curious about I’m willing to bet, Online play! Well it could be better. There are only two matches available to play, Single & Bra & Panties (they run without stalling issues though). And you can’t keep track of your victories online either, there’s no “Championship League” or anything. Just a very bland two match selection. One of the best things though is that you can load up your created wrestlers and use them, but the good ends there. A bit disappointing, but let just hope next years game will fix it up a bit…
The Motley Kid’s Final Verdict
If you own a PS2, and are a big fan of the WWE, well you are lucky because when you take WWE Smackdown Vs Raw and put that in your PS2, you will experience the WWE in all it’s grappling, bra and pantie clad glory which is how you want it, right? This game is not without it’s faults, but unless your really picky, they wont stand in the way of this great game.
Thanks for stopping by…
The Motley Kid
P.S
I just received word that my grand father passed away today at 1:00pm. It isn't much but I would like to dedicate this review to him. I'll never forget you grandpa. R.I.P - 16/12/04
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