A new wrestling game for the PC! Stop before you say ''Wow! Cool''. This game is far away from being a wowable occasion. The last Wrestling game that was released in PC was WCW Nitro, and for WWF, it was "WWF in Your House 99". Well WWFIYH was a pretty nice game, it had a good roster, and although it lacked game modes, it was fun to play. WWE Raw is a major shift from both Nitro and IYH, both in terms of graphics and gameplay. While IYH had Pixelated DOS graphics and Nitro had basic 3D graphics (with Glide and D3d), Raw supports Dx 8.1 and it also has support for most graphics cards released within the last year or two. Sounds great, eh? But the reality is harsh. They forgot two things, firstly, gameplay. And secondly, Roster. To make a successful wrestling game, it needs to have an updated roster, cool graphics and satisfying gameplay. Now lets see what was wrong in WWE Raw: Roster Justin Credible, Haku, K-Kwik, X-Pac, Perry Saturn...who are these people? Can't recall? Well, WWE Raw will help. These are all ex-wwe superstars. Actually the game should have been called WWF Raw, cause the roster is really, really backdated. However, this game gives you the chance to play with late Crash Holy. Although there is Undertaker, Kane, Rock, Stone Cold, Triple H, I desperately missed HBK,Brock, Goldberg, Booker T, RVD and all the new cruiserweight wrestlers of Smackdown, e.g. Rey Mysterio, Ultimo, Jamie Noble etc. Most wrestlers also have old looks,which makes it even worse. if you're strictly a PC gamer, and also a WWE fan, this game will be very frustrating for you; in terms of roster. But if you own a console, you may get some fun playing with old wrestlers who aren't available in the latest games. Gameplay This is where this game does it all wrong. Four finishers for each wrestler? Sounds groovy, but executes poorly. It is very frustrating to see your opponent getting up in a second or two after being hit by a finishing move. I once gave someone the Crippler Crossface. Instead of forcing the opponent to tap out, Benoit stood up after a while, and my opponent followed suit. Similarly, out of the 4 finishers, two are totally useless. The top of the rope finishers don't work always, and most of the ground finishers are complete jokes. How the hell can a ''kick to groin'' move be a finisher? And the finishers also require a number of conditions to be met, before it can actually be executed. The end result is not worth the hassle, which makes it very frustrating. The double feature mode does make the finishers look good, but that doesn't add much to the gameplay value. The grappling system is the most flawed one I've ever seen, in any wrestling game till date. Maybe I haven't played the bad games, but this one's pure insane. Button bashing is a part of life, when it comes to fighting games. But this one's insane. I buttons are not responsive, and you first need to actually ''grab'' someone before you can perform a slam. This isn't realistic, cause in reality, most moves are done instantly. You don't hold and then grapple. You hold, or you grapple. It's almost impossible to hold and slam instantly, in this game. The kicks and punches are better options. The flying and weapon moves are okay, but nothing special. You don't have a shooting star press, and although you can get weapons, you don't go backstage with'em. You can use them only within the arena. Game Modes This is one of the better aspects of the game. You can play regular exhibition matches (hardcore/single) as 1 on 1, 2 on 2 tag, 2 on 2 Tornado, Battle Royal, Triple Threat, Fatal 4 Way,king of the ring etc. Unfortunately, there's no ladder, cage, hell in a cell or tables match. This is quite weird, cause even an old game like WWF Smackdown! 2 (for playstation 1) has these modes. And there's no season, either. However, compared to IYH and Nitro, Raw has quite a lot of game modes, so it gets a 5 here. Graphics Graphics is top notch, most wrestler models are highly detailed, and the arena also looks great with the pyros and spotlights. The entrances are nicely done, especially those of Undertaker, Kane and Triple H. However, some character faces are not properly done, e.g. Triple H looks a bit like Val Venis with long hair, Kurt Angle and benoit is not accurate as well. But as a whole, the game looks lovely. The double feature thing also gives you a TV feeling. As if your match is actually being shown on TV. Sound The game has all the cool themes, and regular wrestling sounds. The in game sounds aren't special, but is adequate enough to serve its purpose. Create A Wrestler Mode CAW mode is an essential feature for most wrestling games nowadays. There's a neat CAW mode in Raw, I must say. You can create almost anybody, using your imagination and the default models and moves provided by the game. This feature can compensate for the lack of new wrestlers. However, some required moves are missing, e.g. peoples elbow, f-5, etc. Extras There are many items that can be unlocked, but you can't do anything with them except wearing them or beating people with some of'em. However, I'm not sure whether unlocked items can be used for CAWs. There is a museum mode, where you can view wrestler profiles and their titantron movies. This is a neat feature. This is indeed oe of best things about this game. You can unlock 4 hidden characters. They aren't fun to play with and you need to go through a hell lot of hassle in order to unlock'em. But what you get is not worth the hassle required to get it. You can watch a preview of another THQ game and also a ''how to play'' movie. But none of these are essential features, and doesn't add much to the game. Replay value Not much, cause you'll soon get bored of the single play experience. And once you win all the belts, what do you have to play for? A season mode was dearly required. To wrap up things, I must say, the game should have been released earlier, and it could include some additional features for the PC crowd, e.g. multiplayer support over internet, updates, wrestler downloads, etc. I give this game 6, cause the CAW mode, Sound or Graphics can't save a game which plays so bad.
The Good: If you have a second controller, you can play multi-player with your freinds The Bad: There is so much bad I can't possibly put it all down. WWE Raw is a good game when you first start to play it, but I... Read Full Review
My son's name is Jake and he is my 13 yo son and he's been after a wrestling game for ages (not owning a console, and only allowed to play computer games when he gets to stay with me one weekend a month). EB Games said t... Read Full Review
