WWE SmackDown vs. RAW (formerly trademarked as WWE SmackDown! and as WWF SmackDown!) is a series of professional wrestling video games developed by Yuke's and published by THQ. The first game released was on the PlayStation console in 2000, which prompted the releases of sequels on the PlayStation Portable, PlayStation 2, PlayStation 3, Xbox 360, Mobile, Nintendo DS, and the Wii. The original series, produced from 2000 until 2003, was titled under the SmackDown! name, while the present series, which has been produced since 2004, is titled SmackDown! vs. Raw. In Japan, the series was published by Yuke's and was known as Exciting Pro Wrestling until 2005. Following SmackDown vs. Raw 2007, THQ took over as the Japanese publisher and the series adopted the western name.[1]
Each game is based on World Wrestling Entertainment (WWE), a professional wrestling promotion, is playable in different professional wrestling match types, and features a roster based on WWE. A season mode has also been included since the series introduction, which is an arcade-like feature in which the player chooses a superstar to work with through a series of storylines that involve challenging for championships and choosing options that affect the superstar's career.
The WWE SmackDown series reception has been positive, and WWE SmackDown vs. Raw 2009 was rated 31st and 28th (Xbox 360 and PlayStation 3, respectively) in IGN's "Top 100 Games" list.[2] The series has been criticized for its unappealing season mode, poor audio quality, and small modifications to the features in each game, although it has been praised for presenting an engaging representation of the WWE franchise.[3] Due to the series' popularity and reception, it is among the best-selling video game franchises, with 37 million copies shipped as of 2008.
History
The series began under the WWF SmackDown! series name, with the release of WWF SmackDown!. After releasing Know Your Role and Just Bring It under the same name, World Wrestling Federation (WWF) was ordered to change its name to World Wrestling Entertainment (WWE).[5] As a result, all WWF products, including unreleased video games, were ordered to avoid using the WWF acronym. Due to the name change, the series was renamed to the WWE SmackDown! series.[6] After the release of Shut Your Mouth and Here Comes the Pain under the same name, THQ announced the release of WWE SmackDown! vs. RAW, a new installment into the original WWE SmackDown! series.[7] Since the release of WWE SmackDown! vs. Raw, the WWE SmackDown games have been released under the WWE SmackDown vs. Raw name. Games released after WWE SmackDown! vs. Raw were titled with the year after their year of release, such as WWE SmackDown! vs. RAW 2006, which was released in November 2005. In 2006, with the release of WWE SmackDown vs. Raw 2007, the exclamation mark from the SmackDown logo was removed, prompting the renaming of the series to the WWE SmackDown series.[8]
There have been ten games released in the WWE SmackDown series—five under the SmackDown! name, and five under the WWE SmackDown vs. Raw name. The first game released was WWF SmackDown! and the most recent release was WWE SmackDown vs. Raw 2008, with WWE SmackDown vs. Raw 2009 currently in production.
No comments:
Post a Comment