WWE SmackDown! vs. Raw 2008

With little notable improvement to the formula and steps backward in several key areas, SmackDown! vs. RAW 2008 is a big disappointment.

Here's the thing, this is some of the most fun I've had on the mat in a wrestling game in a long time and after three and a half months of playing it, I still look forward to putting it through the paces each morning. The controls are great and make the act of wrestling shine. However, I can't score this game as high as last year's PS2/360 title or pervious installments of the franchise. Single-player 24/7 Mode is a step backward for the series, the Create-A-Superstar and GM 24/7 are basically rehashes of last year's product, and the same complaints we've had for years -- awful AI, lame commentary, poor collision detection -- are still rampant. Plus, the lack of online voice chat saps some of the fun of multiplayer. Is WWE SmackDown! vs. Raw 2008 a fun game? Hell yeah, but it's the same fun you've been having for the better part of a decade.