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| The iGamer Editor's Pick of The Year | ||
| by John Mundazio with additional editing by John Mundazio | ||
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THQ's 'WWE
SmackDown vs. Raw!™'—
Full Throttle Action! Now then, if you're a hardcore pro wrestling gamer and you’ve played WWE Smackdown vs. Raw! in the last few years, you will obviously know exactly what to expect from THQ’s latest incarnation of the ultimate gaming franchise, and trust us, that isn’t necessarily a bad thing, not by a long shot. WWE Smackdown vs. Raw! 2007 plays out in much the same way as the previous titles in the series; game modes are varied, offering gaming grapplers quick excursions along the lines of exhibition setups or more lengthy modes while the create a wrestler, entrance, and move set returns and is fundamentally not much different than last year, it still reigns supreme and rocks. They have also added the highly anticipated “Money in the Bank” match which definitely puts a sizeable spin on the typical ladder match premise [but no matter how you step up, a ladder match is rarely “typical” by nature].
Speaking of environmental hot spots, WWE SmackDown vs. Raw! 2007 includes a whole new section of the ring area that is littered with weaponry and other objects to slam your opponents into. Just drag your opponent over to the right section of the crowd and throw him over the ring barrier. Once you're there, there's a multitude of objects to use to decimate your opponent. Apart from the usual tables and chairs, you'll find heavy duty extension cords, fire extinguishers, giant racks of speakers, those bad-ass fan signs, and a mammoth production rig to propel yourself from. The fun part is, this is not at all different than the usual menagerie of weapons you would find in a televised hardcore match, but having an out-of-the-ring area to brawl in is a nice touch. It’s a bloody shame we couldn’t find the sledge hammer though… but alas, we do digress.
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Yet
another added feature/dimension is the new ultimate control move
system. In PS2, when you first get your opponent into a strong grapple,
instead of pressing a direction on the control stick, press down on the
control stick button and you'll pick up your opponent in one of a
multitude of ways. For example, you might pick him up like you're about
to suplex him to the mat, but instead you'll suspend him in midair and
have a few different options of how to dispose of him. By walking over
to the ropes and pressing up on the right stick, you'll drop him
midsection-first right onto the ropes. Pressing down will perform a
normal suplex. There are an excess of variations on popular wrestling
moves that players can easily utilize with this feature, like the DDT,
Samoan drop, choke slam, and the always dangerous pile driver [Stone
Cold… cough… cough…], to name a few. Players can also drag those pesky
unwanted opponents over to those previously mentioned environmental hot
spots like the ring steps, announcer tables while administering the same
sort of right-stick-based attack methodology, with all of these areas
acting as weapons. It's an extremely slick idea that's only a tad bit
hindered by the somewhat restricted number of ultimate control moves
players have access to actually using. 
What
players simply cannot grumble about in any of the more recent
SmackDown vs. Raw! games is the extensiveness of the full-throttle
content, and WWE SmackDown vs. Raw! 2007 is indeed chock full of some
pretty extraordinary content. Every single match type, game mode, and
feature found in last year's game is on hand again, and many have been
extended or adjusted to give them even more lasting value. So what’s the
final smack down here? Hands down WWE SmackDown vs. Raw! 2007 is the
best of entire series, because when push comes to shove [and there’ll be
plenty of shoving] it all comes down to the core game, the pulse… the
epicenter if you will. 
