Smackdown! Shut Your Mouth is the greatest wrestling game to date. Yes, it is true, THQ has finally made a game better than the Nintendo 64's WWF No Mercy! Shut Your Mouth has a long season mode, excellent create a wrestler, updated graphics and everything else you would expect from a Smackdown! game, the only drawbacks are its not fully updated roster, overall easiness and a few lacking features that everyone would love.
After THQ's pathetic story mode in Just Bring It (3 MATCHES), Smackdown! Shut Your Mouth's season mode is a breath of fresh air. You now have two years of wrestling ahead of you if you want to tackle season mode. Another addition to season mode are superstar points. How many superstar points you have determines whom you will wrestle against in season mode. The points also determine if you are eligible to receive a title shot. There are also many storylines packed into story mode. The Hair vs. Hair match, Armageddon 6-Man Hell in a Cell and even the Kiss My Ass club can all be found if you talk to the right people.
The Create a Wrestler mode returns in SYM and is just as good as ever. It does take some time to get used too, but once a person masters it, the creation possibilities are endless. There are many excellent versions of new wrestlers that were not around for the game's release. Team Angle, Nathan Jones, and Jamal and Rosie can all be found on the Internet. It is also easy to create many superheroes like Spiderman with the create mode. Darth Vader and Darth Maul can also be easily made due to their parts being included in the create mode's pieces.
Another great feature of SYM is its excellent visuals. The pyro in the game is steps above JBI's and the character models are the best ever. One drawback to the enhanced graphics is that you can now only have 6 wrestlers on the screen at once.
While the CAW mode can come in handy to create the new wrestlers, some of the deserving ones were left out. All of Rey Mysterio's parts are in the game, why couldn't THQ just make him a regular character. Another peeve is that Shawn Stasiak and Raven are normal characters, but Tommy Dreamer was left in the dust. Hopefully in the next installment THQ will not forget the important people.
A second drawback to SYM is its overall easiness. No matter what level you play on the computer is easy to beat. The only difference between the difficulty levels is the amount of moves the computer reverses. After a few matches with your friends you will have no problem disposing of your opponents in less than three minutes every time you play.
My final peeves are some of the features that should be in the game. What ever happened to the Create a PPV mode from the original Smackdown! Also why can't we create a belt so we can have championship matches with our friends? Hopefully, in Smackdown! 5 THQ will add these features.
Overall, Smackdown! Shut Your Mouth is the Greatest wrestling game to date. If you were a fan of the old games, or are a fan of wrestling this game should be on the top of your wanted list.
Graphics – 8
The Graphics are great, but for the second wrestling game on PS2 they should be more than just a little better than RAW for X-Box.
Controls - 10
The controls are like the other Smackdown! games. How can you improve on that?
Fun Factor – 10
SYM is extremely fun. Get a multi-tap and play with four of your friends!
Replay Value - 9
With the long season mode, good CAW and unlockable extras, SYM will have you coming back again and again.
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