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by THQ
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Over the decades the
WWE has cultivated its special blend of sensationalism, bravado,
exploitation, and astounding athletic showmanship into an unstoppable
cultural phenomenon. The primary reason for its success seems to be that
the people running the show know what the fans want, and will do
anything to satisfy them. Why is it then that, after all these years,
the fans still havent gotten the videogame they deserve? Many have come
close. In fact, WWE Raw 2 comes real close. The broad range of
wrestlers, venues, and matches alone make it worth a look. However, the
slow control system and completely pointless Season Mode keep it from
being truly great.
WWE Raw 2 delivers
over sixty legends, including the likes of Goldberg, Ray Mysterio, Scott
Steiner, et all, including your favorite women of the WWE. Each wrestler
enters the ring with a barrage of video footage and special effects, as
we have come to expect, and bring all of their trademark moves, like
Goldbergs Jackhammer and Mysterios 619 Finisher.
For those who want
to enter the fray with their own unique wrestler, there is a
comprehensive character creator. Players begin by configuring the
characters profile, including background information, physical and
mental prowess, popularity, and more. The characters appearance is
next, with a different looks for the ring and backstage. You even get to
set the stage by creating your own entrance. Finally, the characters
moves are chosen from a list of samples.
If the first
incarnation of Raw left players wanting for gameplay options, Raw 2 will
overwhelm them with choices. Everything a fan could want is right here,
available for one to four players. Players begin by choosing whether
they want to wrestle in an exhibition match against the toughest
superstars, guide a single character through a full season to the famed
Wrestlemania grudge match, set up a King of the Ring tournament, compete
in a Royal Rumble against 30 opponents, or create a Tag Team Match. From
there, players have even more options for fine tuning their match. You
can play by the rules or allow wrestlers to smash each other with
chairs, tables, and other objects they find surrounding the ring.
Matches can be won by traditional pinfall, by throwing your opponent
through a table, or climbing out of the Cage. Players can even take part
in the dreaded Hell in a Cell, where escape means breaking through the
chain link fence or the roof.
In terms of
presentation, the game is solid and dependable, if not spectacular. The
graphics are great, with lifelike character models and animation. The
wrestlers stay true to the show with little touches like stomping their
foot as they punch and assisting their opponent as they are being thrown
around the ring. Details like texture and lighting effects are a bit
bland. Sound effects are spot on in terms of ambient crowd noise,
commentators and such. The soundtrack is exactly what you would expect:
hard, heavy, loud, and, unfortunately, a bit repetitive.
This is what WWE
Raw 2 does right. It is more than enough to make wrestling fans froth
and get everyone else in the ring for at least a few matches. However, a
couple of key faults are holding this game back. The control system is
unnecessarily fragmented and sluggish. The button layout is fine,
allowing players to punch, grapple, counter, and use objects. Movement,
on the other hand, is divided between running with the left stick and
walking with the D-pad. I dont think that I am alone in saying that I
hate using the D-pad for any prolonged duration of time, and as
grappling is difficult at best while running, you end up using it more
often than not. Isnt this exactly the reason why we have analog
joysticks? The superstars are oddly slow and unresponsive as well. They
punch slow, kick slow, climb slow. There seems to be a lag time each
time they transition from one move to another. After a character grabs
hold of his or her opponent, there is a slight pause before they go into
a move. Functionally, this allows the aggressor time to perform more
difficult button combos and the defender time to escape or counter, but
the effect is sluggish and cumbersome interactivitynot at all what you
want in a venue like this.
While multiplayer
matches are certainly a big draw for a game like this, developers need
to realize that a great single player season mode is the key for
evolving the genre. Sports titles like Madden Football are putting the
player at the epicenter of a national franchise, making them responsible
for running the teams, the stadiums, the press, everything. This seems
like a perfect fit for Sports Entertainment titles like WWE Raw. But the
Season Mode included in WWE Raw 2 is not even in the same ballpark,
ring, or universe. Essentially, players are confronted with a list of
upcoming matches, some involving their character, most not. They can
then choose to watch, skip, or interrupt the matches they are not in, or
sneak around behind the scenes and steal from other wrestlers (which
only results in the same cut scene each time, and is not at all tense or
exciting), until their match finally arrives. Nothing about the season
mode is interesting or fun. How cool would it be if players were able to
really take control of the big show? There needs to come a time when we
can manage the career of our favorite superstar, to have a say in their
performance inside and outside of the ring, to control their contracts,
set up press events, stage grudge matches, and so on. A true career
manager mode in a game like this would have all of the perks of a
franchise mode in other sports, while allowing more room for imagination
because, after all, it is all a show.
As is I was
disinterested in the season mode and the single events, while fun,
performed slowly and left me feeling like I was still watching the show,
rather than living it. I loved how the characters in the game act
exactly like the characters on TV. They pound the mat with their foot
while their punches miss their opponent by inches. They assist their
aggressors in shoving them across the ring. They act as if they are
stunned and cant defend after they are punched, and they pretend that
they cant stop themselves from bounding across the mat after being
thrown into the ropes. Yes, the characters in the game actually seem as
if they are acting, and that is precious. WWE Raw 2 is joyous in its
representation of sport as entertainment. There is a lot of good in the
single events and multiplayer matches. But until they can actually put
us in control of the show, we will always be bystanders.
Jeremy Kauffman (10/25/2003) |
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Snapshot
Ups:
Big list of stars, robust match options for single
events and multiplayer matches, up to four players.
Downs:
Slow control system. Season Mode is pointless.
Platform:
XBox
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