WWE 2Kis the current standard-bearer for pro wrestling video games, but throughout much of the 2000s, SmackDown vs. Raw defined the genre. These games were made during the Ruthless Aggression era of WWE, and one of that era’s defining features was the splitting of the roster into the Raw and SmackDown brands, so games of that era focused on the rivalry between the two brands.
Overall, seven games were made bearing the SmackDown vs. Raw name before being discontinued in 2011. Each offers its own take on wrestling. Some of these games remain fan favorites to this day, while others are less highly regarded.
WWE SmackDown vs. Raw 2008 is by no means a terrible video game. It has a lot of positives going for it, including the introduction of the ECW brand, character-specific abilities, and a wider variety of hardcore weapons. However, the game is often seen as the weakest entry in the series due to its relative lack of content.
The main modes of the last two games, season mode and general manager mode, were merged into WWE 24/7, and it did a poor job trying to be two things at once. Additionally, the introduction of fighting styles was poorly received, as they severely limited characters' abilities and were difficult to memorize. As a result,neither of these features would ever return to a WWE gameafterward.
The first game to bear the SmackDown vs. Raw title feels a bit out of place compared to the rest, as it was essentially just a reskin of SmackDown: Here Comes The Pain from the previous year, only with an updated roster. While the game added some new features, like the ability to fight clean or dirty, at its core, the game was barely different from its predecessor.
That’s not to say a game copying Here Comes The Pain is bad, given that the latter is considered one of the best wrestling games of all time. But it’s clear that WWE video games have evolved a lot during the SmackDown vs. Raw era, and it wasn’t until later games that they started to carve out their own identities.
WWE SmackDown vs. Raw 2009 is generally considered a better game than 2008 by most fans, as it either improved on or reversed the previous game’s most criticized changes. Fighting styles were replaced by character abilities, which were more universally applicable than before, and the game’s new single-player mode, Road to WrestleMania, allowed fans to play through original stories starring WWE Superstars.
However, the gameplay was fundamentally unchanged, with the only new addition being reworked tag team mechanics. While some players enjoyed the core gameplay, others found it a bit watered down from older games. The removal of GM mode also rubbed many the wrong way, though new modes like Create-a-Finisher and Highlight Reels were welcome replacements.
WWE entered a brand-new decade with SmackDown vs. Raw 2010, with many players finding it to be WWE’s best game in a while. The game’s marquee new feature was its enhanced customization options. Aside from being able to create their own wrestlers, players could now recolor the outfits of existing superstars, upload their creations online, and make their own original story.
Despite that, the game did receive its fair share of criticism, mostly towards its gameplay being mostly unchanged from the previous year. However, most fans could forgive that, given that few people considered the gameplay to be bad in the first place.
SmackDown vs. Raw 2006 is where the SmackDown vs. Raw series really began to establish its own identity independent of the original game. In this game,THQand Yuke’s began to shift away from the arcade-style gameplay of its earlier installments and towards a more realistic wrestling simulator.
The most praised new addition was General Manager Mode, which was a management simulator mode similar to the Total Extreme Wrestling series. While the mode had its limitations compared to those computer games, only Smackdown vs. Raw allows players to simulate the matches they booked.
The final installment in the SmackDown vs. Raw series, WWE SmackDown vs. Raw 2011, was a fitting conclusion for this era of games, even if people didn’t know it at the time. After many years of gameplay feeling mostly the same, SmackDown vs. Raw 2011 vastly overhauled everything with aphysics enginethat makes characters realistically react to the environment they interact with, as well as greater control over how moves are executed.
The biggest new addition to the game was Universe mode, which serves as a solid replacement for General Manager Mode and allows players to simulate WWE stories without the business literacy needed in its predecessor. Players could book rivalries, guide champions on their rise to the top, and encounter big surprises in the game’s cutscenes.
Often seen as the pinnacle of wrestling games of that era, the 2007 installment builds upon everything that made the 2006 game a fan favorite and enhances it further. The gameplay was given major changes between the two games, with a brand-new control scheme and new environmental hotspots that cause extra damage when activated.
All the most popular modes from SmackDown vs. Raw 2006 return, including Season Mode and General Manager Mode, and new features, like the Money in the Bank ladder match, have been added. Notably, this was the series' introduction into the next generation, as it would be given an Xbox 360 release alongside its usual PS2 outing.
