|
My Personal Review of SmackDown! 4 Rob Van Dam and Eddie Guerrero circle each other, looking for an opening to attack... Guerrero only just avoids a high, fast kick, then grabs RVD, snapping him into a suplex that leaves him temporarily brethless on the mat. Moving to the turnbuckle, Guerrero strips the protective padding away, wrenches RVD to his feet and hurls him into the corner. He runs at him, intent on keeping the advantage, but RVD moves away and Latino Heat ends up with a face full of turnbuckle. The crowd goes crazy as RVD grabs the top ropes, heaves himself skyward, does the splits in mid-air, then backflips onto the prone Guerrero... Thrilling stuff, but all possible in this, the fourth SmackDown! game. With an updated roster, enhanced Season mode and more variables in the Create a Superstar mode, THQ are proud of the advances that have been made. It's a game that has a built-in, ready-made audience, that has a solid game engine already in place - let's face it - it's going to fly off the shelves regardless of the reviews, but...should it? JUST FOR SHOW On the surface, Shut Your Mouth is an impressive game. The wrestlers actually look reasonably like their real-life counterparts, which is a remarkable acheivment in itself, given the current level of gaming technology. Even better, the moves look every bit as high-impact as any you'll see on the telly. In sections, you can almost believe you are watching a live match... but don't be fooled. Smoke and mirrors are used. SYM introduces half-a-dozen new moves that, the first two or three times you see them, make you think that the fighting system incorporates an unprecedented level of fluidity and attack/counterattack possibilities. The new actions are simply called Cruiserweight moves 1,2,3 and so on, and are strings of two or three acrobatic moves involving both wrestlers, but initiated by only one of them, and not requiring a single button press by the other (even though it looks like you're actively countering them). Cries of "Jeez, look at that!" will turn to exasperated sighs as you see the same ten-second animation for the eighth time that match. It may not seem a major thing to pick up on, but it's important because it shows that, instead of designing a new combat system, Yukes have essentially faked it the best they can with the only one they've got. It adds excitement and helps simulate the fast-paced, heavily-improvised-on-the-fly cruiserweight matches that Tajiri, Rob Van Dam and the Hardy Boyz have made so watchable. But it feels like a missed opportunity, or perhaps even a glimpse into the future - at the kind of things that will be genuinely possible in future installments. DEEPLY MOVING Other liberties have been taken with the move sets, as you'll discover when you browse through Create a Superstar mode. Some of the new moves are, frankly, bizarre, but in a good way. Play with Ric Flair and you'll discover quite a few of the interesting ones, at least two of which involve him begging for mercy on his knees before delivering a debilitating low blow. The Hurricane has one which simply involves offering his hand - it's a shame the other wrestler can't choose whether to take it or not, and must shake his hand (to the delight of the crowd), but it's a refreshing change from the ubiquitous suplexes and clotheslines. There's an eyebrow-raising spanking move, too, but I'll let you discover that for yourselves. Basically, they've been 'thinking outside the box' and should be heartily congratulated on it. When in the ring, other refinements and innovations become obvious too. TLC matches are a veritable journey of discovery - now, if you've got a chair in your hand and at least one finishing move available to you, you can perform a devastating chair-specific move; and yes, RVD has the Van Daminator. Not only can you simply hit people with a ladder, but you can lean it into a corner, Irish Whip someone onto it, then perform what looks like a modified Electric Chair Drop onto it. Equally, if someone is up a ladder, you can tip it over or join them up there and chuck them off. Lastly, of course, there's simply nothing more satisfying than piledriving someone through a table and knocking them out cold. Oh yes! Rummage under the ring apron with R1 and it's a veritable lucky dip of weaponry. Got a sledgehammer? Whack them with it, or even choke them with the haft. Got a dustbin? Slip it over their head and knock them to the floor. Lovely job. The Create a Superstar mode is always a big part of these games, and 'detailed' doesn't even begin to coverit. On the one hand, you have enormous creative freedom, and now you can even morph wrestlers' faces on a sliding scale of young to old! On the other, there's a hell of a lot of stuff there that no-one in their right mind will choose, unless you're acting on the 'let's make the weirdest-looking wrestler we can' impulse, and even then you're going to get fed up seeing Bobo the Transvestite Monkey Boy (or whoever) very, very quickly. Creating a wrestler will suck the hours out of the day, and that's even before you choose your moves. The odd thing is that there are dozens and dozens of moves to select from a list of hundreds, but when it comes to an actual fight, it feels like you're using the same four or five over and over again - a feeling that has haunted every SmackDown! game so far. As an aside, I'd really like the option to rename our moves. Maybe next time, eh? SEASONS IN THE STUN Season mode, for the first time, starts off with a draft. Vince McMahon (owner of SmackDown!) and Ric Flair (owner of Raw) pick from the pool of superstars one by one, and the rivalry between the two men and their shows becomes pivotal to the storyline as the year progresses. Once again, between bouts you can wander around backstage - you can even get on the subway! Sometimes a wrestler will be loitering and you can talk to them. They might offer a tag partnership or demand a matchup, changing the night's lineup, but more often than not the area will be deserted, and you'll get bored of trawling around on the off-chance every ten minutes. Storylines do develop around your superstar, but it can all seem a little random. And long. Very, very long. Worth it to unlock the extra move sets, though. The problem with SYM is the lack of precision. You only have your SmackDown! meter as a gauge of how much damage you've inflicted, and it's impossible to tell when it's the right time to attempt a pin, when you might tap them out and when you could be forced to tap out. The new counter system makes it hard, almost random, to stop your opponent grappling you if they get in first, and in two-player action it's common to have one of you completely controlling the action for long periods of time, with the other reduced topressing square in the hope that something might happen. It removes all the strategy and timing from the game, which is a shame. The controls aren't inituitive, but when you learn them there's a lot of cool stuff to try. Essentially, both the fighting and the season mode are based on flawed models. Yukes have gone nearly as far as they can within the current limits, and they really need to strip it all down and start again from scrath. That's easier said than done, but it's necessary if this brand is going to survive. Graphics - 22/25 OVERALL PERCENTAGE: |