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Publisher – THQ
Developer – Yuke’s Co. Ltd, Amaze (DS)
Genre – Wrestling
Rating – Teen
Written by IXx JD xXI
WWE Smackdown VS Raw 2008 is the second in the series of wrestling game’s to be released on the Xbox 360.
The game has a vast amount of new features including the new Superstar Fighting Styles feature, this promises to change the very way that players experience the game. The second instalment of the series also introduces the WWE 24/7 mode, players will have to use all their skills both inside and outside of the ring by living the life of a WWE Superstar.
THQ inc. and Yuke’s Co have gone even further this year by making the game reflect what is actually happening with real life wrestling and now ECW invades WWW Smackdown VS Raw 2008 with the inclusion of ECW Superstars and the new ECW Extreme Rules Match ….This is not for the faint hearted and players can use any weapon from under the ring (I personally like the ladders it looks painful).
One of the last main additions to this year’s game is the new Struggle Submission System and it gives you complete control, just how much you want to wrench your opponents to submission is up completely up to you.
For me the coolest feature I found was creating your very own Superstar entrance. Now the game is able to use your very own music. Now the superstar I create can walk down to the ring with any song stored on my Xbox 360, what song would you pick?
On starting the game the first thing I did to do was watch the video’s they provide explaining the moves included in the game. I found this very clear and helpful, they are very short but straight to the point and I would recommend any new player to watch these first as they helped me a lot.
After watching the video’s I went to create my own Superstar in the game and created my Superstar, the options are endless as you create your Superstar from makeup to tattoo’s to get the right look. I created the Mad Man Killa and then created his ring entrance, again the options are endless in the advanced edit mode and with enough time and effort you can create an amazing entrance with any music you desire.
Now I had the complete wrestler I took him to the WWE 24/7 mode. You are taken in to the locker room and start your life as a WWE Wrestler. Here you can view your stats, save your game, check your messages and earn money to spend in the shop where you can buy new Wrestlers special entrance’s and fighter styles starter packs and more. For the first few days as a Wrestler you can train or even sign autographs to enhance your attributes, this can be a little time consuming but in order to get your Wrestler to the highest level then this needs to be done. For the avid fan this will certainly give them value for money as there is so much to do on the game. You can play or simulate your matches and once you have your Wrestler to the highest level it will be a lot easier to simulate the matches without loosing.
Not many matches will be simulated as the game play in the ring has a really nice feel about it. It is very smooth and looks very nice and really simulates the atmosphere you would find in the ring.
The crowd look’s very realistic and when you are giving your opponent a good pasting outside the ring its quite funny to read some of them, you can change the signs to suit your created Superstar to give you complete control of not only your Wrestler but your surrounding’s too.
With the amazing ring entrance I had created I got quite excited as my wrestler walked down to the ring and fight my way to victory. The only downside to the ring entrance is the loading times. After you have seen them once or twice I found myself skipping through them and say for instance your about to do a Tag Team match you have to view 4 entrances and each time they need to load so it can get a little annoying sometimes, however if you do watch them you are rewarded with some stunning graphics as they really do look awesome.
When in the ring you can really make the action look real as you beat your opponent with a nice drop kick or a body slam or use one of the many special moves. You have a body part indicator on the screen which tells you just how badly the opponent is hurt, once the body parts start going red it means they are badly hurt and once the complete body is red you know your ready for the pin.
When you’re beating your opponent you will notice a power meter on the screen. This shows your Wrestlers stamina and once full you can use the special moves and finishes as you go on rampage!
The right analogue stick carry’s out all your grapple moves and super slams, I found this to be my main weapon of destruction as when incorporated with the right moves before hand you can really make it look like you are a real wrestler and once you have pulled a nice move off simply press any button on the d-pad to taunt your opponent and show off to the crowd.
Another game mode is the Hall of Fame challenge mode. Here you have a variety of special matches from the past of wrestling to take on. All the matches have that special feel including one on my favourite match ups The Rock VS Stone Cold Steve Austin.
If you do not fancy taken on a challenge or playing in the WWE 24/7 mode you can create a match of your choice in the Exhibition menu. There are too many different types of matches to list them all but they range from one on one Steel Cage match or a 30 man Royal Rumble. Pick any match you want and create the rules, there is hours of game play to be found here.
The sound in the game is very nice and the crowd sounds good. Most of the songs in the game are rock and sometimes you just feel it would be nice to play another Genre of music however in all my time of watching Wrestling it’s always been Rock music or a little Hip Hop so I was not surprised to see the game filled with Rock tunes.
Overall the game is very nice, it looks nice, sounds nice and has endless options to keep you occupied for a long while. For a non Wrestling fan you may enjoy it for a while but after a while I can see it going to the back of your pile, If you are a Wrestling fan I fully recommend this game as it will immerse you in to the world of Wrestling and with over 30 million Wrestling games sold since the start it clearly has a huge market.
Graphics – 8.9
Gameplay - 9
Audio –8.4
Longevity - 9
Overall - 8.9
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