One thing I forgot to mention in my previous column was the game “WWF Backlash”. This was a title for the Nintendo 64 which THQ dropped after Nintendo decided to retire the N64 in favor of the GameCube. Though “WWF Backlash” was never released, screenshots are available online of the unfinished game. There are various reports that the game was 20 - 50% completed before the decision was made to pull the plug.
Well here we go with the sixth entry in this series, and we start off with a real oddball of a game in…..

Title: WWE Crush Hour
Release Date: February 2003
Platforms: Playstation 2 / GameCube

Wrestlers Featured:
The Big Show
Kurt Angle
Billy Gunn
Lita
Matt Hardy
Booker T
Bradshaw
Ric Flair
Rikishi
Brock Lesnar
Bubba Ray Dudley
Rob Van Dam
Chris Benoit
The Rock
Chris Jericho
Stacy Keibler
Stephanie McMahon
Christian
Chuck Palumbo
Stone Cold Steve Austin
D-Von Dudley
Test
Triple H
Edge
Hulk Hogan
Trish Stratus
The Undertaker
Kane
Jeff Hardy
Kevin Nash
Vince McMahon
William Regal

Innovation & Gameplay: Well if you thought “In Your House” was odd with it’s “Mortal Kombat” like fighting, or “Betrayal” was odd in it’s Mario Brothers like storyline, then you will be amazed at “Crush Hour”. I debated whether or not to include this game in the column, but considering it was a licensed WWE game, I figured I couldn’t leave it out. Set in a futuristic world where Vince McMahon and the WWE run all venues of television entertainment, Vince unleashes his new show “Crush Hour”. Each of his wrestlers gets a modified vehicle complete with various weapons such as machine guns, land mines, bombs and twisty rockets. Competitors will begin in various arenas and the object is to destroy the other wrestlers’ cars, all while Jim Ross and Jerry Lawler provide commentary. If this sounds a tad bit familiar, that is because “Crush Hour” is a direct rip-off of the popular “Twisted Metal” series. While it can’t hold a candle to “Twisted Metal” in game play or innovation, I do have to admit that the cars are pretty imaginative and cool looking, and the gameplay while not original can be fun if for no reason than to hear JR constantly yelling out the names of various weapons used.

Availability: There are plenty of both the GameCube and Playstation 2 games available on Amazon starting at $3.65.

Title: WWE Wrestlemania XIX
Release Date: September 2003
Platforms: GameCube

Wrestlers Featured:
William Regal
Vince McMahon
Victoria
The Undertaker
Trish Stratus
Triple H
Torrie Wilson
Test
Tajiri
Stone Cold Steve Austin
Stephanie McMahon
Stacy Kiebler
Shawn Michaels
Scott Steiner
The Rock
Goldberg
Goldust
Hulk Hogan
The Hurricane
John Cena
Kane
Kurt Angle
Lance Storm
Lita
Matt Hardy
Randy Orton
Rey Mysterio
Ric Flair
Rikishi
Rob Van Dam
Edge
Eddie Guerrero
D-Von Dudley
Dawn Marie
Christian
Chris Nowinski
Chris Jericho
Chris Benoit
Chavo Guerrero
Bubba Ray Dudley
Brock Lesnar
Booker T
The Big Show
Batista
Al Snow

Innovation & Gameplay: What’s old is new again when it came to “WMXIX”. Players could once again design and edit arenas which was last available on “WWF Attitude” a few years earlier. Once again the create-a-wrestler feature was very popular, and very detailed. And in homage to the game “Betrayal”, “WMXIX” had a very unique story line mode called “Revenge”. Basically the player chooses a wrestler who is then fired by Vince McMahon. Your character teams up with Stephanie McMahon, and you set out to ruin Wrestlemania. You must go to various parts of the arena beating up security guards, and backstage staff, with the occasional wrestler thrown in as well. You must also try to destroy any and all WWE property you come across. After several various levels you finally get to square off against Vince McMahon in the ring at Wrestlemania XIX. While it’s not a straight wrestling storyline, it manages to be entertaining, and unlike “Betrayal”, at least the storyline culminates into a final showdown.

Availability: Amazon lists this title starting at $4.99.

Title: WWE Raw 2
Release Date: September 2003
Platforms: Xbox

Wrestlers Featured:
A-Train
Batista
The Big Show
Billy Gunn
Billy Kidman
Booker T
Bradshaw
Brock Lesnar
Bubba Ray Dudley
Chavo Guerrero
Chris Benoit
Chris Jericho
Christopher Nowinski
Christian
Chuck Palumbo
Crash Holly
D-Von Dudley
Edge
Eddie Guerrero
Goldust
Goldberg
Hardcore Holly
Hulk Hogan
The Hurricane
Jacqueline
Jamie Nobel
Jazz
John Cena
Kane
Kevin Nash
Kurt Angle
Lance Storm
Lita
Mark Henry
Matt Hardy
Molly Holly
Nidia
Randy Orton
Rey Mysterio
Rhyno
Ric Flair
Rico
Rikishi
Rob Van Dam
Scott Steiner
Shannon Moore
Shawn Michaels
Spike Dudley
Stacy Keibler
Stephanie McMahon
Stone Cold Steve Austin
Tajiri
Terri Runnels
Test
Torrie Wilson
Triple H
Trish Stratus
The Undertaker
Val Venis
Victoria
William Regal

Innovation & Gameplay: “Raw 2” was a vast improvement over “Raw” for the Xbox. The graphics were still top notch, and unlike its predecessor, “Raw 2” featured more fluid movement during gameplay. “Raw 2” also allowed players to create their own Titantron entrance, along with editing the existing roster and the extensive create-a-wrestler options. One oddity about “Raw 2” was that it was one of only a handful of WWE games where the entire roster was “unlocked” at the start of gameplay. You could still play to unlock additional wrestling moves and new arenas, but the entire roster was at your disposal right away. The “Season” game mode of “Raw 2” allowed for much more player freedom, you could choose whether to play as a heel or a face, and that decision impacts the rest of the game. You can form alliances, make challenges, you could launch surprise attacks and steal moves from your opponent. Of course, the object is to take you character from winning house shows to headlining and winning the title.

Availability: Amazon has used copies available starting at $7.97.

Title: WWE Smackdown! Here Comes the Pain
Release Date: October 2003
Platforms: Playstation 2

Wrestlers Featured:
A-Train
Batista
The Big Show
Brock Lesnar
Booker T
Bubba Ray Dudley
Charlie Haas
Chavo Guerrero
Chris Benoit
Chris Jericho
Christian
D-Von Dudley
Eddie Guerrero
Edge
Eric Bischoff
Goldberg
Goldust
The Hurricane
Jazz
John Cena
Kane
Kevin Nash
Kurt Angle
Lance Storm
Lita
Matt Hardy
Randy Orton
Rey Mysterio
Rhyno
Ric Flair
Rico
Rikishi
Rob Van Dam
The Rock
Rodney Mack
Sable
Scott Steiner
Shawn Michaels
Shelton Benjamin
Stacy Keibler
Stephanie McMahon
Stone Cold Steve Austin
Steven Richards
Tajiri
Test
Torrie Wilson
Triple H
Trish Stratus
Ultimo Dragon
The Undertaker
Val Venis
Victoria
Vince McMahon
**And for the first time WWE introduced what would become a very popular feature. Unlockable Legends:
Legion of Doom (Hawk & Animal)
George “The Animal” Steele
Hillbilly Jim
The Iron Sheik
Jimmy Snuka
Nikolai Volkoff
Roddy Piper
Sgt. Slaughter
Ted DiBiase
Dead-Man Undertaker

Innovation & Gameplay: Gameplay for “Here Comes the Pain” remained virtually unchanged from what “Shut Your Mouth” offered. The graphics were still top notch, the action played out at a nice speed as well. “Pain” introduced three new matches players could compete in; Bra & Panties Match, First Blood Match & The Elimination Chamber Match. One nice improvement was in the form of a “submission meter”, you could now see just how close you were to getting your opponent to tap out or conversely, you could see just how close you were to tapping out. But of all the improvements made, the one that had gaming and wrestling fans most excited was the introduction of the Legends. You could unlock the Legends competing in various challenges in the Career mode, and by earning points. But now you could have Hillbilly Jim take on Triple H, or Legion of Doom take on the Dudley Boys. Some of these wrestlers hadn’t been in a game since the late 80’s/ early 90’s long before realistic graphics were available. This was a nice feature that has been carried over into today’s games.

Availability: Amazon has used copies starting at $4.45.

Title: WWE Day of Reckoning
Release Date: August 2004
Platforms: GameCube

Wrestlers Featured:
Batista
The Big Show
Booker T
Charlie Haas
Chavo Guerrero
Chris Benoit
Chris Jericho
Christian
Danny Basham
Doug Basham
Eddie Guerrero
Edge
Garrison Cade
Hardcore Holly
John Cena
Kane
Kurt Angle
Lance Storm
Matt Hardy
Mark Jindrak
Molly Holly
Randy Orton
Rey Mysterio
Rhyno
Ric Flair
Rob Van Dam
The Rock
Shawn Michaels
Shelton Benjamin
Stacy Keibler
Triple H
Trish Stratus
The Undertaker
Val Venis
Victoria
***Legends:
Roddy Piper
Andre the Giant
Bret Hart
Brutus Beefcake
Greg Valentine

Innovation & Gameplay: Players could choose to play either “Exhibition” or “Story” game modes. In Exhibition players could choose a wrestler off of the roster, or create their own and compete in a variety of matches against the other wrestlers. In Story mode, the player creates a wrestler and takes him from the developmental territory to the main roster as which point you choose to compete on either Raw or Smackdown. Your wrestler becomes part of a stable and you must continue winning matches while seeking the title, eventually your stable falls apart and you get put into an iron man match at Wrestlemania. This was a pretty impressive storyline, and played out over a 12 month period. For the second time in a game, and for the first time on a GameCube game, Legends were available for gameplay.
Availability: Amazon has used copies starting at $3.25.

Title: WWE Survivor Series
Release Date: November 2004
Platforms: Game Boy Advance

Wrestlers Featured:
Booker T
Kane
Kurt Angle
Chavo Guerrero
Chris Benoit
Randy Orton
Chris Jericho
Rey Mysterio
Christian
Rob Van Dam
Eddie Guerrero
Shawn Michaels
Edge
Triple H
John Cena
The Undertaker

Innovation & Gameplay: The Brand Extension hits the hand held game. “Survivor Series” featured a roster of 16 wrestlers, 8 Raw and 8 Smackdown. The object of the game was to work your way up through the ranks of a chosen show. Once you won the title of the chosen show, you would then start over on the other show. While “Survivor Series” still featured a limited roster, the variety of match styles available was very impressive for a hand held game; singles, tag, submission, 6 man tag, 3 and 4 Way matches, Lumberjack Match, hardcore etc. There was no create a wrestler mode available for this game, and one major disappointment fans of Game Boy’s “Road to WMX8”, the WWE Shop Zone feature was not available on “Survivor Series”.

Availability: There are a few used copies available on Amazon starting at $18.24

Title: WWE Smackdown! Vs. Raw
Release Date: November 2004
Platforms: Playstation 2

Wrestlers Featured:
RAW Wrestlers:
A-Train
Batista
Chris Benoit
Chris Jericho
Christian
Chuck Palumbo
Edge
Garrison Cade
Kane
Matt Hardy
Molly Holly
Randy Orton
Rhyno
Ric Flair
Shawn Michaels
Shelton Benjamin
Stacy Keibler
Tajiri
Triple H
Trish Stratus
Victoria

Smackdown Wrestlers:
The Big Show
Booker T
Bubba Ray Dudley
Charlie Haas
Chavo Guerrero
D-Von Dudley
Eddie Guerrero
Hardcore Holly
J.B. Layfield
John Cena
Kurt Angle
Mark Jindrak
Paul Heyman
Rene Dupree
Rey Mysterio
Rico
Rob Van Dam
Sable
Scotty 2 Hotty
Torrie Wilson
The Undertaker

Legends:
Andre the Giant
Animal
Bret Hart
Brutus Beefcake
Hawk
Old School Undertaker
Mankind
Masked Kane
The Rock
Roddy Piper

Innovation & Gameplay: The gameplay for “Smackdown vs. Raw” was very similar to the last Smackdown, the button configuration , the ability to store and use finishing moves, and even the graphics remained the same. While “Smackdown vs. Raw” wasn’t particularly innovative, it did manage to update features found on older games, such as players being able to create a title, and a pay per view. Players could now compete in a Parking Lot Brawl, and the Season mode allowed you to guide a player from the under card to the main event. The General Manager mode allowed you to compete against a friend or the computer to see who could put on better shows, and wrestlers could now compete in mini-competitions before a match, including a stare down, the shoving match or the chopping match before the real action took place. The soundtrack to “Smackdown vs. Raw” was basically the same list of songs found on “Day of Reckoning”. “Raw vs. Smackdown” became the best selling WWE title of all time up to this point.

Availability: Amazon lists used copies available starting at $1.78.

I promise to wrap this series up by early next week at the latest. Once again, if you would like a copy of the word documents with photos of the games cover art please shoot me an email.

Thanks for reading!