The SmackDown! series has always been a top-seller for THQ and Yukes. Since its debut in 2000 on the PlayStation, it has become the dominant sales title for the WWE license. It's hard to argue that the series has been constantly evolving toward greatness, but has tended to have a few flaws that keep it from living up to the legacy of classics such as WWF No Mercy on Nintendo 64, which is widely touted as the gold standard for the WWE license in gaming. 2003's Here Comes the Pain came close with its complex control scheme, good graphics, and multiple modes, although the career mode had an imbalanced difficulty curve that resembled a fraternity hazing at times. Last year's SmackDown vs. RAW implemented real superstars' voices into the cutscenes and took the series online, which was a huge leap, but at the sacrifice of lots of different match modes. The franchise has always managed to be decent to good, but not great. That is, until now. There is little doubt that few wrestling game fans will find issue with what Yukes has managed to produce for this year's WWE title.

What's the newest and best feature? Without a doubt, it's the new GM mode. Taking a page from more mainstream sports titles, SDvR 06 puts players in the shoes of General Manager as they run their respective TV show while keeping ratings high and profits maximized. It's all about keeping the other show from gaining better ratings and higher fan approval while keeping the roster happy. Players must budget their shows and pay-per-views -- too many gimmick matches will prove both injurious to talent and expensive to run—it's a way of keeping GMs from turning their show into a would-be ECW and maintaining a degree of realism in a fake sport.


The in-ring presentation is as faithful as usual -- ring entrances have been extended beyond a one-minute limit to keep it genuine -- although the GM mode gives a new depth of authenticity to the game. The implementation of a mock WWE website and advice from Jim Ross on roster management really drives home the organization's branding.

Once again, the polygon count has shot up in each character model. With the exception of the issue of long hair (which has always plagued the series) not flowing realistically, each superstar looks as phenomenal as they would in games on other systems with superior hardware capabilities. The cutscenes in career mode really capture both the feel of participating backstage and on the shows, with dialogue that alludes to back storylines and nicknames -- an injury to Ric Flair leaves Triple H berating the crowd and lamenting that "Space Mountain is temporarily out of service." All around, it's the kind of loving attention to detail that, when combined with every other facet of this title, makes it truly shine among the greats.

The roster is good and comprehensive. There's no accounting, of course, for very recent changes to the SmackDown! roster such as Eddie Guerrero's recent death or Christian's release as they happened so close to release -- the fact that Hassan and Daivari are still a staple should indicate roughly when the rosters wrapped for most wrestling fans. However, most of the superstars of both shows are well-represented in the game, and the Legends roster is really good this year, with Stone Cold Steve Austin, The Rock, Mankind, Andre the Giant, and two Hulk Hogans ('80s Hogan and Hollywood Hogan) included. Other unlockable Legends, such as Jake "the Snake" Roberts can only be utilized through cross-communicating with the upcoming PSP release.