Complete History Of WWE Video Games - Part 3 (2001-2005)

00 Brock Lesnar Here Comes The Pain We are less than a week away from the release of WWE 2K14 this Friday in the UK (November 1st.) Recently I have been slowly making my way through all the WWE games in history starting back in the 80s and gradually making it to WWE2K14. If you missed them, you can view parts 1 and 2 HERE and HERE, and get yourself up to date. If you've been with me all the way thus far, then lets pick up where we left off at the beginning of the PS2 years of wrestling game dominance.

WWF Smackdown! Just Bring It (Ps2) 2001

01 Just Bring It Just Bring It was the third game in the Smackdown series and the first to see a release on the PlayStation 2. Again, THQ and Yukes teamed up to put the game together and build on the basic groundwork that the first two Smackdown games laid down. Fans were expectant that the PS2 advancements would allow for an even better game, fixing the few issues that the previous games had. One of those PS2 advancements brought the ability to include authentic match commentary, provided by Michael Cole and Tazz. While an improvement that fans wanted for ages, it unfortunately turned out to be pretty awful. Commentary was incredibly basic with lots of pauses as they strung together small phrases in an attempt to make full sentences. "Welcome to... SMACKDOWN.... for this... SINGLES MATCH...between.... THE ROCK... and... TRIPLE H." There were more welcome improvements though, with the game now including 6 man tag matches and up to 8 person battle royals. It was also the first time a Smackdown game included two finishers, allowing for stars with numerous finishing moves in real life to have theirs included with a simple change of button press. Gameplay remained mostly unchained from Know Your Role, with more slight changes here and there. Wrestlers stay down for longer in an improvement from Know Your Role, though submissions were still not a great way to end a match. Match types were extensive, including TLC matches along with the already established match types. Just Bring It notably was the first in the Smackdown series to include full ring entrances to add to the whole presentation. Wrestlers how had full music, pyro and entrance walk to make everything feel more like watching the real show. PS2 graphics were good, but slightly disappointing for the next generation of consoles. They were more of a slight upgrade from the Playstation One games. There were still a lot of clipping issues and some very flat looking character models but for the most part, everything visual was an upgrade. Character movement was not as sturdy as it would become but it did include a massive array of moves for each character, more variety of camera angles and much better lighting particularly for entrances that used it extensively like Triple H and the Hardy Boyz. Fireworks for the first time looked really good too as seen most noticeably in the Dudley Boyz signature missile launch entrance. Importantly, licensed music made its first appearance allowing for songs like Limp Bizkit's "Rollin'" for the Undertaker's entrance. All these extra features were also added to create a wrestler mode, making for another extensive experience. Said mode was also the best its ever been, allowing for customization right down the minute details like eye and nose placement. For the first time, players could add text to a wrestlers attire/skin though at the time it was only one letter at a time. You could also create your own taunt by combining up to four other taunts, making one needlessly long taunt that would surely end up with you eating a clothesline. Learning from previous mistakes, a brand new story mode gave much more control over your chosen wrestler. It kicked off by letting you decide whether to proceed on your own or go forward with a tag team partner. Thankfully it was a massive improvement on the frustration that came from the Ps1 games, though it still had a few teething problems. While a decent inclusion, it unfortunately was a bit lacking at first try with there not being many different branches to explore. Story starts the same way each time, and it doesn't take long to get to know where to make your different choices. It actually didn't even seem to have as many branching options as No Mercy. In a particularly strange move, if you begin as a titleholder you only wrestle one match. It also introduced a Roaming Mode where you could explore backstage in a first person view. Though a commendable attempt, they still hadn't perfected the story mode but it was easily better than Know Your Role. Just Bring It was a good start for the PS2 era. With a roster of over 50 wrestlers, and improving on the past, it sold enough copies to become one of Playstation's earliest "Greatest Hits" or "Platinum" games. Like the PS1 titles, it was easy to pick up and play, with controls that didn't take a lot to master. It made for a fun, accessible experience though wasn't the huge step up from PS1 that some people were expecting. The improvements that did exist (mainly story mode) were a welcome change, but were not perfected until the next few games.
 
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I''m a freelance media producer and writer. Im into sports, gaming, TV and music but I mostly write about wrestling. Thanks for reading!