GAME REVIEW: WWE Raw (XBox)

[MrMacabre]

Just something I have whipped together that was originally going to be something I was preparing for an eBay auction. LOL

WWE Raw

The graphics are the best ever seen in a wrestling game. Everyone (Bar Triple H imo) looks like their real life counterparts, and all the textures are incredibly smooth.
The entrance music sounds *awesome* - probably the best I've ever heard on any console - and the Video Clips are just as impressive.

The controls are based more on 'wrestling' as opposed to the button-bashing antics of Smackdown series on PSX. It can be compared to such games as WWF No Mercy for N64, where 'grappling' is the preferred offensive.

Single player can get a little boring and trying to win a belt can be tiresome as you have to go through twelve matches before you are able to save. Each match can take anywhere from three to seven minutes (after you've become accustomed to the controls), so make sure you put an hour or two aside.

The game's real strength lies in Multiplayer mode, where you can have plenty fun with your beer buddies beating the hell out of each other with steel chairs and other crazy accessories (including whipping opponents with Kurt Angle's medals!). It's so realistic that after a few bashes with the chair, it literally breaks in half. The added beauty of it is that you now have TWO weapons at your disposal - the Frame of the chair or the seat of the chair; now just a chunk of metal that makes a satisfying 'clang' against the skull of your foe.

The game doesn't come with as many token 'Bells and Whistles' as the Smackdown PSX and PS2 series, but Come on people; Hell in the Cell and Ultimate Submission matches become somewhat complacent when you're competing in them every second match. . Like I mentioned before, WWE Raw focuses more on the 'wrestling' aspect than anything else. However, with that said, I do miss the TLC matches and the like. One plus is that you can use a Table realistically in the game - for example; holding someone up in a suplex, then bringing them down onto the Table; breaking it. From memory, this was something that couldn't be done on SD unless they had been 'placed' on the table first.

Overall; this is a game I'll keep because the multiplayer is a lot of fun and will justify it's spot in my XBox game collection. If there's one thing I try to do, it's to have a variety of multiplayer games at my disposal to entertain mates.

7/10

[DigitalG]

The games ok, but SD4 blows its balls away. RAW 2 and the new GC wrestling game, should be something special though, but we will have to wait & see.

Word