WWE SmackDown Here Comes The Pain Remaster: 10 Things It Must Have
8. Simplified Controls
One other thing Here Comes The Pain did well was intuitive controls. The control scheme was more complex than some of its predecessors (the first SmackDown game on PSOne, for example, stripped things back from Attitude's masochistic combinations), but not to the detriment of the overall experience.
Can anyone really, honestly say the same about WWE 2K19?
These games are at their best when they favour pick-up-and-play sensibilities without sacrificing depth if players want it. HCTP refined new ideas like individual body part damage and didn't make it difficult for fans to set up stacks of tables, ladders, chairs and other goodies. Using them didn't require you to painstakingly struggle against the game's mechanics.
A simplified button layout that's appealing, contextual without being overboard and accessible to players of all ages would make Yukes' title a better one. WWE games have become too fancy again, and this is the chance to change that.