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WWE SmackDown vs. Raw 2007 |
| Developer(s) |
YUKE's Future Media Creators |
| Publisher(s) |
THQ |
| Release date(s) |
November 14, 2006 |
| Brand(s) |
WWE |
| Rating(s) |
T for Teen |
| Platform(s) |
Playstation 2, X-Box 360
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| WG Review Date |
8/27/07 |
| WG.com Average Rating |
3/5 Stars |
| Game Navigation |
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Preview
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Review
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Match Types
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Backstage Areas
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Roster
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Media
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Cheats
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Created Wrestlers
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Review
Since acquiring the WWE license seven years ago, THQ has sold millions upon millions of games under the Smackdown [vs. Raw] name. The series had become highly criticized since it's peak of Smackdown: Here Comes the Pain. In 2006, Yukes made the jump to next-gen, and produced their first non-Sony Smackdown game. Can Smackdown vs. Raw 2007 move to the next-gen and silence the critics?
Gameplay
This year, Yukes had made some additions to the gameplay of Smackdown that had been very similar for many years. The basic grapple/attack/counter system was primarily the same, but they added more control over moves by using the right analog stick. For instance, you could grapple your opponent, click the right analog stick, from their your character would pick up your opponent. Then, depending on how you move the analog stick, their are a number of different moves you can do, such as fallaway slam or backbreaker, or DDT or suplex. To add even more control, with moves like the backbreaker, you can hit your opponent with multiple backbreakers before dropping your opponent, but beware of your stamina as it drops fast while doing these attacks. There were also "hot spots" added into the game this year, where the user can drag their opponent over to a certain area(for instance, the announcers table) and then the "hot spot" would activate. Using the right analog stick you could decide to either choke your opponent with the headset wire or smash your opponent's head into the table. You also have the control to smash your opponent's head into the table over and over again, but you must be aware of your stamina that drops as you perform these attack. While these features are great additions to the game, it still has it's share of problems. Counters and reversals happen WAY too often and ruins any flow a match may have. It turns into a button masher of who can hit the most reversals to determine who wins. Also, while the stamina feature is great, it drains way too fast. There's no reason why a wrestler should be completely exhausted three minutes into a match. This series' gameplay engine really needs a complete overhaul rather than a few new features because it's very outdated...often times it feels like purely a fighting game than a wrestling game. It would also help if momentum would play a part in someway.
Sound
The sound in this game is pretty good. The menu music is good for anyone into newer rock music. The entrance music is all very crisp. Wrestler's voiceovers during season mode is done fairly well. The main complaint here is the commentary. It's way too repetitive, often makes no sense, and sounds very spliced together. THQ needs to take notes from EA's old WCW games as it pertains to commentary, it was the one area that EA succeed in during their wrestling game days.
Graphics
One area that this game took a huge step in the right direction by going to next-gen is visually. The game looks amazing compared to the older games. Many of the wrestlers look very close to their real life counterparts. The new sweat and blood system implemented looks nice as well, as you can see the wrestlers get sweatier as the matches progress, and when a wrestler gets bloodied, it spills all over the mat. It's not quite up to par with other 360 games, but it's a big step in the right direction.
Seasons/Career Mode
The season mode is the typical SVR formula. You pick a wrestler, and progress through various storylines with various wrestlers. There are supposedly over 40 different storylines included in this mode. Some of which you'll find very similar to those you've seen on WWE TV, others are completely originals, and others are just plain freaky. The story mode is very fun, the problem is that the story mode is very much predetermined. You have little control over how the storylines branch out, which is sad because branching storylines have been around since the N64 days.
Creation Modes
Create-A-Wrestler mode is a part of this game that really shines. Anyone with creativity and enough time on their hands can create literally anyone from wrestling past and present and it'll look exactly like their real-life counterpart. There's also a ton of moves and taunts to choose from to create your in-ring character. One problem with this feature is that a lot of the designs aren't online compatible...so don't expect to take you Sting CAWs online for battle. Also, for some reason there were quite a few moves removes from this game that were in past games, which makes no sense.
One final note on Smackdown vs. Raw 2007 is the horrible load times. THQ stepped up to next-gen this year, yet still has the same horrible load times that has plagued this franchise since PS1. The 360 has way too much power for this to be acceptable.
| Score Board |
Game Play
2/5 Stars |
Audio
3.5/5 Stars |
Graphics
4/5 Stars |
Story Mode
3.5/5 Stars |
Creation
4/5 Stars |
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OVERALL SCORE:
3/5 Stars |
| Final Thought |
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"Yukes first attempt at next-gen produced a very good looking game. Sadly, the rest of this game is really lacking. For a franchise that's been using primarily the same engine for the entire decade, you would expect it to be very crisp with little problems. Yet the same countering and reversal problems of year's past continue to plague this franchise, along with a pre-determined season mode and horrible loading times. Hopefully, THQ treats the move to next-gen much like EA's football games. First year they focus on the graphics, the next year they focus on the gameplay. This game desperately needs something to bring some sort of replay value, because the graphics just aren't enough to keep me coming back." |
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Released: August 29, 2005
Dvlpr: YUKE's Future Media Creators
Publisher: THQ
System(s):
Gamecube
4.5/5 Stars |
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