WWE SmackDown vs. Raw 2009 (DS)
Over-the-top melodrama and online action. But where's the guy who can defeat 10,000 elephants?
11/19/2008 12:00 AM | 1 Comments | Page 2 of 2
What's Hot: Graphics are slightly better than average for DS; AI can be surprising.
What's Not: Controls are donkey-butt dumb; Screen's too small for this crazy experience; AI can be idiotic.
The DS version has many Create-A-Finisher options.
Hey, it's a terrific concept to make use of the bottom screen: That's what the DS is all about. But the controls need to respond quickly and intuitively, which the game does not do. They've obviously spent a huge amount of time adding a lot of stuff into the game, even the very cool Create-A-Finisher. There's no Inferno match, which in my book should be included before all else, but seven others are here, like Ladder and Table matches. But when the controls are way funky, all of the window dressing is for naught. The bells and whistles don't make one bit of noise when the reason you're here to begin with feels daunting. It's just not easy to fight in the game, not at all.
And there's no Tag Team co-op mode, one of the most touted additions for the console and PSP versions. THQ is gloating about its new Tag Team Explosion feature, which does add variety and some unexpectedly thrilling moments. But it's not present in the DS version.
It'll say a lot about you if you use that polka dot option.
The game just needs to be better designed. There's no play-by-play announcing and very little music -- often just the hollow noise of the crowd. It shouldn't sound like canned applause; it should be varied, since it's pretty much the only sound you hear in the ring. There's a tutorial mode, but it would have been smart to also allow a simple button-press to get a list of the over two dozen moves you must learn. You'll get only a few pop-ups to tell you about the controls. I'm not saying you have to be held by the hand to learn
SVR 2009, but when the controls are so oddly balanced, an in-game tutorial in the first mode you see on the screen is essential.
Load times are a breeze, far quicker than in the PSP version. Though the graphics are more pixilated and less detailed than in the Sony handheld, the gameplay is almost as fast -- when it works properly, which isn't that often.
Even if these weren't different economic times, I'd Fry this game. It just doesn't work well enough. You'll be frustrated when you play, and you don't want to spend your hard-earned money just to be annoyed and irritated.
This review is based on a retail copy of the game provided by the publisher.
