WWE SmackDown! vs. Raw [PS2]

I've always accepted the fact that transition years are inevitable for yearly videogame franchises, but I never expected to see such an example twice for one series during a single console generation. I suppose that there's a first time for everything, though, and that's exactly what's happened with THQ and Yuke's latest wrestling effort WWE SmackDown! vs. RAW.

For those of you with hazy memories, the WWE SmackDown series underwent its first changeover period when the third title hit PS2s back in the winter of 2001. Essentially a higher-res version of the PlayStation One game, Just Bring It was widely considered a disappointment because of its barebones feature set, under-optimized memory card save, somewhat sloppy interface, and god-awful load times. Over the course of the last couple of seasons, however, THQ has done a terrific job of building on that foundation to create the single best wrestling franchise in America. Last year's Here Comes the Pain in particular was a stellar success for the company -- providing the most amount of upgrades we had seen in a single year. The Elimination Chamber, First Blood match, location-specific damage, Bra and Panties contest, weight detection, and a completely revamped career mode were just a few of the several new additions that were made. The general public was ecstatic about it too, and as a big wrestling fan myself; I was overjoyed at what the game had to offer. "If only it had a cool online mode," I secretly wished to myself a few months later. "If it just somehow could have that, it would be the greatest wrestling game of all time..."

Okay, so I was wrong.

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But don't misunderstand me, WWE SmackDown vs. RAW is still a great wrestling game. It's managed to take all the same qualities that made last year's title standout and improve upon them just enough to make it an even tighter, better-rounded technical achievement than it was previously. More importantly, it's managed to add a handful of new features that the fans have been asking for for ages. The ability to create your own pay-per-view, the option to design your own belt, and the long-awaited online feature have all made it to the dance in 2004 -- but not without sacrificing a few questionable elements -- and that's where my affection for this game gets a little bit hazy...

Online (Dis) Connection
You see, as cool as it may have sounded to get the online feature that I always wanted, it didn't quite turn out the way I had hoped. Because unlike most of today's other prominent sports titles, be they Madden, NBA Live, or what have you, WWE SmackDown! vs. RAW doesn't offer any type of supplementary online content whatsoever. So while most competitive broadband users out there are used to such features as Internet gaming leagues, automatic ranking systems, downloadable content, and multiplayer support beyond just two players, SmackDown offers none of that -- providing instead, a simplistic two-prong option for either wrestling in a singles head-to-head match or a females-only bra and panties bout.

Regardless of what kind of match they choose to play, however, gamers will never be able to track their win/loss records, defend created belts online, wrestle in tag-team and specialty matches, or even protect their pseudo-identities -- as the GameSpy-powered Interface doesn't allow players to save permanent IDs sever-side. Perhaps most disappointing of all, though, is the fact the broadband-only setup doesn't support USB headsets, only keyboards while in the lobby area.

With a diagnosis like that you can see why it's pretty disappointing to finally go online and match up against someone else -- it isn't quite the experience we're used to. But to it's credit, SmackDown's online interface is extremely easy to use, almost entirely lag free, and offers a hefty selection of rooms to choose from when in search of your appropriate skill level. As smooth as the online play is, however, it just isn't enough to make up for its lack of features. At least it's there, though, which is whole lot more than I can say for last year's version.