A bittersweet introduction to next-gen wrestling.

An emerging concept in the next generation video game industry has me frustrated with certain Xbox 360 games. There are more and more examples of games that are developed for the PS2 or Xbox and are simply ported to the newer consoles. I can understand this from a budgeting standpoint, but it's bothersome nonetheless. It's for this reason and this reason only that my impressions of Smackdown Vs Raw 2007 are so bittersweet.

Of all the wrestling games to carry the WWE license, I've always preferred the Smackdown games. Something about how these games are implemented stands out to me as playable where the other games fall far short. Even in the graphical department, the Smackdown games seem, at least to my eyes, to achieve a better look when you look at the animations, collision detection and special effects.

The latest version of the Smackdown Vs. Raw series is in almost every way identical to its predecessors. Before you take that the wrong way, realize that it's mostly a compliment. There are new features in the game that enhance it, but all the core gameplay elements that I require in a wrestling game to even consider playing it are there. That's not to say that this game defines wrestling games because it does not. But it is playable, has good looking graphics, all your favorite wrestlers and even a few new gameplay options that I think add to the game experience.

Where I say the game leaves a bittersweet taste in my mouth, I'm referring to the fact that I can't make out any significant graphical difference between the Xbox 360 version and the Playstation 2 version. I even did the old back and forth thing to try and detect some subtle difference. I didn't develop the game so I don't know whether they are in fact rendering anything extra on the Xbox 360 version, but for Christ's sake if you can't visibly tell the difference who cares? The only noticeable difference is the higher screen resolution on the 360, but without high detail models and high-resolution textures it looks anything but next gen.

On the upside though, unlike some other developers of sports games with exclusive license ownership, the developer did not strip out all the extra modes and game features that existed in the last revision. All of the match types are there, you can still create your own superstar or manage your own wrestling organization. Everything that was there before is there now. I find it hilarious that I get excited over the fact that a developer chose not to rip out a ton of functionality with the apparent intent of adding it back in future revisions.

Where you can really get excited about this game is in the new style of grapple control. Unlike past games where you pressed a direction and a button to initiate a grapple, SVR 2007 uses the right analog stick all by itself. You hold one of the triggers or bumpers to do a strong grapple, but in either case you just move the right analog stick in the direction you want to in order to initiate that grapple. It took a little getting used to, but once you do things like charging in and performing a backwards grapple are a cinch. In the old system, you'd have to move forward, then press backward with the grapple button and often the game wouldn't register the motion. It just led to the majority of my moves being started with forward, up or down.

What I really liked in the new version of the game were the Ultimate Control Moves. The way it works is when you get someone in a grapple, you press in the right analog stick. This activates the Ultimate Control mode. When you do, you see your stamina bar ticking down inside a black box with right analog stick motions. Sometimes there are two choices, sometimes there are three, it all depends on how you started the grapple. Each choice is an analog stick motion that perfectly implies the move that your wrestler will perform. If you have a dude in a bent over headlock, pressing back may perform a DDT, down may yield a face smash into the mat, but rotating the right analog stick from back to up to forward may perform a devastating Neckbreaker.

What's even better about it is the opportunity for a reversal has come and went so you get to revel in the close up of your victim's impending doom. As long as your stamina lasts, you can hold them there while you decide which move the bastard deserves.

It felt like for the first time in a long time you have the ability to put on a show for the fans. Messing around with the Ultimate Control was quite fun. It's not necessary to use, so you can still be the button masher type, but if you master it you can very easily set up exactly how you want your match to build up. I have to give kudos to Yukes/Jakks Pacific for finally starting to add a little complexity to their games and really trying some new things.

Another element in SVR 2007 that I really liked was the interaction with the environment. This time around, the fights that go outside the ring can take advantage of new environmental hotspots. This is really just a fancy way of saying you can use more stuff you find lying around outside the ring. Objects can be used as weapons, or you can slam your victim into a table or smash their head into the stairs. The point is to create a higher level of interaction with the environment, and it seems they've achieved that particular goal.

As far as the gameplay goes, I can totally get behind this game. As far as I'm concerned this is the best attempt so far at achieving a level of depth that will attract the attentions of those who go beyond the button mashers. I'd hate to see them stop there, though. I say press on, explore more avenues of depth and complexity that a serious gamer can delve into to unlock the secrets of the game.

But like I said before, I need more from a next generation console than the graphics I've been given. I know damn well that the system is capable of it. Yeah the wrestlers look right. They should, you've taken their photographs and slapped them on digitized sculptures of their actual heads. Of course it will look like them. Take a lesson from some of the masters of the art of people rendering. Try adding hinges to their jaws. Maybe add some actual speech during the superstars' intros. Do something short of an FMV for these wrestlers that makes me believe that I'm seeing the superstar not some lifeless robot clone that lacks the ability to express emotion and the powers of speech. Do that and I'll be the first to point out its genius.