WWE Raw 2 (Xbox) 2003
Over on Xbox, Anchor got another crack at making a decent WWE game, and did a lot better job than previously. It built on the original by importantly finally including a season mode. Controls remained the same but almost everything was improved upon. The controls were actually the closest that games at the time got to emulating No Mercy although obviously not as good. Everything had been slowed down compared to the rival games, which was for the most part welcome but a few moves did look a bit TOO slow. The presentation was even better than before, with replays being handled interestingly rather than being an inconvenience. They popped up in a secondary "Double Feature" window just like on TV, which I always thought was a better way to do it, though it never did catch on. Gone were the majority of the silly items that the first game had, adding even more realistic weapons with even better physics this time round. TLC matches in particular were a highlight in Raw 2, with moves from the top of the ladder being better than they had been done. While the first game in the series seemed rushed, the team seemed to take much more time with Raw 2 and realised better what people wanted from a wrestling game. It finally attempted a story mode, taking in 12 months of a WWE calendar in a hunt for either World Title and gaining points along the way to unlock more content. Each show gave you the choice to get involved in other happenings on the show, though the more you took part, the more energy you would loose ahead of your own match later in the event. Interestingly, it also included up to four-player drop in multiplayer within season mode. Create a Wrestler was overhauled again with another incredible amount of detail. It allowed for the editing of existing WWE stars, a feature that is to make a return in WWE 14. The added detail was made even sweeter by the already existing fact that the Xbox allowed for custom soundtracks, allowing any song you wanted to be a wrestlers entrance. This meant that every aspect of the entrance could be customized, including synchronizing pyro and lighting and even creating your own entrance video, a feature that returned in recent years, making Raw in some ways ahead of its time. Graphics still looked a bit soft in places but were mostly good with a lot more detail on everything. Raw 2 didn't get as much attention as it probably should have being that it was an Xbox exclusive and up against the established and much more popular Smackdown series. But to be fair, it was a pretty good WWE game, and a strong runner up to Here Comes the Pain for best WWE game of the time.