Gaming Target - Xbox: WWE Raw 2: Ruthless Aggression

Written by Ryan Genno on June 09, 2003

First Impressions: All the fun of the WWE, none of the broken bonesЕ

When the first WWF game came to the Xbox in February of 2002 it was a fairly bitter- sweet game. Although its graphics and sound were currently some of the best around thanks to the system's strong engine, it also had its share of problems. Who could forget the ugly character animations (it looked like most of them had to go to the bathroom), a very outdated roster (there was no Rob Van Dam!), and there weren't even any of those crazy story lines that the cable show is famous for (remember that whole Vince McMahon 'kiss my ass' thing?).

The developers of the last game (Anchor) have been listening to the many complaints and they are trying to improve on these problems here in this new Xbox-exclusive game. Raw 2 not only has more options so you finally have those Ladder matches, Table matches, backstage areas, and even Hell in the Cell matches that the WWE is known for, but there is also a new and innovative Season mode that can let up to 4 players compete at once for a chance to become the next World Champion. Players can form alliances with other players, or you could easily turn heel on your partner(s) and go for all the glory yourself. Just be sure you're ready for the backlash. Anchor is also promising to throw in certain story-lines just like the show has as well to spice things up a bit.

Speaking of the show itself, just look how much wrestling has really changed in a few months, eh? The 'WWF' is now known as the 'WWE' because of a lawsuit, half the guys are now either on Raw or Smackdown for some reason, and there are several new wrestling personalities that are part of WWE television now. Gone are wrestlers like Haku, Raven, and K-Kwik (darn, I liked him), WWE Raw 2 now has many new guys like 'Big Poppa Pump' Scott Steiner, Rey Mysterio, Booker T, Brock Lesnar, the Hurricane, 'Nature Boy' Ric Flair, Stacy Keibler, and lots more. This Raw doesn't look quite so outdated (just as long there are no major delays like before of course). You can also expect some of Raw's old popular standbys like Stone Cold Steve Austin, The Rock, Chris Benoit, The Undertaker, and Triple H to make their return. There are over 40 wrestlers in this Raw game altogether but the full roster isn't known yet so wrestlers like Goldberg, Nunzio, and Nathan Jones may or may not be in the final version.