PlayStation 2

WWF Smackdown! Just Bring It

Smackdown! Just Bring It ist momentan das beste Wrestling-Spiel für Next-Generation-Konsolen. Kunststück! Es gibt ja noch keine Konkurrenz. Doch auch wenn die guten Neu-Ansätze (Kommentar, erweiterter Story-Modus) eher mittelmäßig umgesetzt wurden, können Wrestling-Fans ungefährdet zugreifen. Die Steuerung überzeugt wie schon zu PSone-Zeiten und die schiere Anzahl an Matchtypen sorgt für viel Freude. Gleiches gilt für die bis auf wenige Ausnahmen sehr gute Grafik und den herausragenden Editor. Trotzdem bleibt noch Platz für Verbesserungen in jeder Hinsicht - wir hoffen auf Smackdown 4. Doch das allererste Smackdown war ja auch weit davon entfernt, perfekt zu sein. Und trotzdem hats Spaß gemacht, vor allem mit menschlichen Gegnern. Das ist bei JBI nicht anders - ab in den Ring.

Wrestling fans with an extra 50 dollars lying around, and who are still getting plenty of enjoyment out of playing SmackDown! 2: Know Your Role, should feel confident that Just Bring It will deliver. It can be amazingly fun at times, and the production value, laden with WWF panache, is top-notch. Those game enthusiasts not particularly enamored with the WWF may still enjoy what SmackDown! Just Bring It offers on a purely arcade level, but this is expressly a product made to appease fans of sports entertainment. In nearly all possible aspects, it's an improvement upon what we've seen before, even though it doesn't make the dramatic leap from PS1 to PS2 that some other classic PlayStation series' have made.

I can talk about lack of gameplay depth all I want, but WWF SmackDown: Just Bring It is tremendously fun to play. You'll want to unlock all the characters and moves, master each gimmick match, and see every cutscene. If you're a wrestling fan, just buy it.

Smackdown: Just Bring It smells of being rushed. It’s still a good game, and a lot of fun most of the time, but still one that can be disappointing at times. The match types and variety gives tons of replay, as does the CAW mode. That’s what eventually saves the game, since it’s just good enough to play a lot to see all the match types and unlock all the secrets. If you’ve never played a Smackdown before you won’t notice the steps back, nor the steps forward, but you will find an enjoyable wrestling game with some flaws that you’ll have to get adjusted to in order to get the most out of it. For the next WWF game on PS2, let’s hope for all the things that make Smackdown great, just more improved. Until then, Smackdown will tide you over, because it’s always fun with some friends.

Although this is not the ultimate wrestling title, it offers enough features, hidden surprises, wrestlers and challenges to keep gamers and fans of WWF more than satisfied. The good stuff definitely overshadows the small imperfections in the gameplay and the graphics. Any gamer searching for a decent wrestling game should consider investing their money on this title.

WWF SmackDown: Just Bring It packs in a ton of things that wrestling fans have been screaming about since WWF War Zone, but its weakness lies in the attention to the game, not to the details. Wrestling maniacs will drool ferociously for this title, but non-fans still have no reason to bring it.

If THQ and Yukes want to publish and develop a next-generation product, they should really be sure that it looks, sounds and plays like one. I'm somewhat disappointed by WWF Smackdown! because it just doesn't feel like a Playstation 2 product, or a next-generation product for that matter. While the game does have an enormous amount of play modes, matches and whatnot, it severely lacks any innovation in the controls, audio, and visuals. Sure, it's a fun game, but it doesn't retain the true WWF presentation that the Xbox's Raw is War does, with its photo-realistic visuals, and superb overall detail. That is not to say JBI is a bad game; it's just outdated. I'll probably get burned by many of you readers, then again maybe many of you will also agree that JBI isn't a leap over its predecessors, but what matters most is that it's fun, one player or four.

My biggest disappointment, though, has to be Story Mode with its generic choices for all wrestlers and the plethora of useless backstage chores you have to endure. Just Bring It isn't a bad wrestling game, but the fact is I had a better time with its PS-X counterparts.

Another solid titles for Yukes. It’s not a perfect wrestling game, but its a pretty good one. There are problems with the gameplay and graphics/sound, but the sheer depth and replay value garauntees you’ll be playing for awhile. Recommended for any wrasslin fan.

Just Bring It challenged my sense of creativity and made me ponder these questions about self-expression and art. Its only unfortunate that the game was unable to provide a decent environment for my creation to frolic. The gameplay was the bottleneck to what could have been an enlightening merger of creativity as well as gameplay. As it stands, Just Bring It is like quality paint with no canvas.