WWE SmackDown! vs RAW 2007 - hands-on

Features
By published

We go mano-a-mano with the Xbox 360 version of the next wrestling juggernaut

We've got no complaints about the interactive environments, though. There are around 25 to 30 interactive hotspots hidden around each arena, and whether we were ramming Cena into the turnbuckle or slamming him into the ringside stairs, finding new ways to pull off dirty tricks was a lot of fun. We also liked tossing Cena into the crowd and jumping in after him, at which point the audience members huddled around and offered us umbrellas, crutches and other blunt weapons as we fought.

Sadly, we weren't able to grab or harm the audience members in any way, but it still made for a cool change of scenery. We've also been assured that as the game nears completion, things like spilled drinks and flying popcorn will be added to the action.

There's been a lot of speculation about the 2007 roster, but only four wrestlers were playable in the version we tried - Angle, Cena,TripleHand Rey Mysterio. Further details are just rumors at this point, but if nothing else, the real-life Rob Van Dam put in an appearance at THQ's booth, which would seem to indicate at least a fifth wrestler for the game.

Mikel Reparaz
Mikel Reparaz
After graduating from college in 2000 with a BA in journalism, I worked for five years as a copy editor, page designer and videogame-review columnist at a couple of mid-sized newspapers you've never heard of. My column eventually got me a freelancing gig with GMR magazine, which folded a few months later. I was hired on full-time by GamesRadar in late 2005, and have since been paid actual money to write silly articles about lovable blobs.