"Smackdown VS. Raw 2010" is The Best Wrestling Game of This Generation

I’ve been a longtime wrestling fan my whole life. I’ve played the games, been to the events, met wrestlers and even gone to wrestling school.

It is my opinion that “Smackdown vs. Raw 2010” is the best wrestling game yet. It’s beautiful, deep and will satisfy even the most judgmental wrestling fanatic. As soon as you pick up the game you will notice the graphical upgrade that “SVR 2010” has received from last year. From the blood, sweat and tears to the long golden locks of HHH, THQ has really captured the detail and presentation of the WWE. THQ has added so much realism to the game that you would swear you’re watching a pay-per-view event right in your living room.

A great example is with the new Championship Scramble match: One 20-minute match with five men entering every five minutes and the last person to make a pin wins! You’ll see all the actual video broadcast of the stipulations before a new champion is crowned. Lets put it this way, if you see it on TV, you’ll see it in the game. Remarkable job.

As far as the gameplay, fans of the franchise will feel right at home. All the controls are the same but pulling off moves with a grapple using the right stick and then quickly flicking it into a different direction to pull off your move. Signature and finishers are still mapped to one button so you shouldn’t have any problem pulling off your special. THQ has also added a ton more moves this year including moves which can be done from the side of your opponent while he is down on the canvas. This is something new that we have never seen in previous games and opens up a lot as far as creativity during matches. Gone are the days of grappling at the head and feet of a prone wrestler. You can now perform side moves as well as drag your opponent around the ring to set him up for that Swanton Bomb off the top rope.

The reversal system has been simplified as well. Tired of having your opponent constantly tapping his buttons to reverse a grapple or strike? Well now everything is mapped to one button which makes things a lot simpler – but pulling off the reversal won’t be as easy as you think. You now have to time your reversal exactly and you only get one chance so this eliminates your opponent from just button mashing to block that upcoming suplex off the top turnbuckle.

One thing I did notice was the removal of the Casket Match which has always been a lot of fun to play but with the amount of extras it’s not that hard to be forgiving. Another personal favorite was the fact that all arenas are unlocked straight out of the case. No more battling crazy tasks to unlock the ECW arena or Saturday Night’s Main Event.

Some of the matches have even been tweaked to give you a much better experience in the ring. A major upgrade is the Royal Rumble match. If you are a button masher then chances are you were owning others during the Rumble in years past but this year is different. THQ has made the match much slower and more realistic by adding the feature of mini games. Depending on where you grapple your opponent you will be sent into a mini game as you battle to toss your opponent over the top rope and onto the concert floor. It’s fantastic to see two or three other wrestlers come over to help you eliminate your opponent from the Rumble just like in real life. Just like on TV, you will see three on one attempts trying to lift a wrestler over the top rope as he grabs on fighting for his life and a little more time to stay in the match.

THQ has also added the feature of storing special finishers for this match. You can use your finisher as usual to weaken your opponent or you may choose to save it to toss someone out of the ring with your actual finisher. Yes, this is as cool as it sounds.

Last year THQ promised tons of downloadable content. Well, we received about two downloads but that was about it. So what was their solution? A community server for CAW (create-a-wrestler). I know everyone loves to make their own wrestlers to take into the squared circle and battle for the gold – now you can share your champion with the rest of the world. This is basically a never-ending volume of downloadable content.

By Stephen O'Blenis

Source: EastBay RI