Vintage Wrestling Game Grabs the Attention at John Cena's Final Raw Appearance

The 17th of November installment of Monday Night Raw streamed on Netflix featured John Cena's ultimate performance on the show as an active wrestler. It also saw the reappearance and confrontation between Brock Lesnar and Roman Reigns as they joined their respective groups for the forthcoming 5-on-5 match at WarGames. Wedged in between the excitement were surprises like AJ Lee assisting Maxxine Dupri secure the women's Intercontinental Championship, and Dolph Ziggler making a comeback. In such a jam-packed Madison Square Garden show, the attention was stolen by Lil Yachty, when he displayed his silver PSP for the camera, revealing he was playing SmackDown! vs Raw 2006.

Viral Incident: Lil Yachty and His Portable Console

Despite everything that happened on this memorable Raw, it was Lil Yachty and his PSP that trended online. Is it because of society's lasting love for Sony's mobile device? Is it because people fondly remember the brilliance of the SmackDown! vs. Raw franchise? Alternatively, because WWE fans don't care for the latest 2K games?

Exploring SmackDown! vs. Raw 2006: A Classic Title

Uninitiated fans, SmackDown! vs. Raw 2006 signified the series' introduction on the PSP and was the ultimate entry in the SmackDown! vs. Raw line to remain only on PlayStation. The game transitioned the franchise toward increased realism and authenticity, departing from the arcade-like feel of earlier titles. It added a new momentum meter that controlled the flow of a match, taking the place of the previous "clean/dirty" and "SmackDown!" meters. Players could choose to wrestle “clean” as a face or “dirty” as a heel, with a stamina system that drained as matches grew more intense; showier moves meant faster fatigue. SmackDown! vs. Raw 2006 ultimately became the best-selling PlayStation 2 release in the entire series.

Development of the Line

The line commenced with WWF SmackDown! on the original PlayStation and carried on as an annual release, aside from in 2021. It remained a exclusive to PlayStation until WWE SmackDown vs. Raw 2007, which introduced the franchise to other platforms. In 2013, the series was relabeled as WWE 2K, beginning with WWE 2K14.

Innovations and Special Content

Back in the day, the SmackDown! vs. Raw games dominated and seemed like an advancement of titles from the N64 era, because of enhanced graphics. When the franchise shifted to PlayStation 2, that impression only intensified as titles with clear visuals, new gaming modes, and RPG storylines were steadily introduced.

The PSP version of SmackDown! vs. Raw 2006 features features not found on its PS2 equivalent, including three exclusive side games available from the start. The first, "WWE Game Show," quizzes players with 500 wrestling questions including everything from music and finishers to history and feuds, sometimes using audio clips or video snippets. The other two minigames are a poker game and "Eugene’s Airplane," where players guide Eugene (whose gimmick is being an intellectually challenged wrestling savant) around the ring as quickly as possible.

Sentiment and Impact

The earlier SmackDown! vs. Raw games were very eccentric, even when they targeted more realistic gameplay. The franchise shifted toward total simulations with the 2K games, devoid of the out-of-the-box ideas of their predecessors. But the older titles also acted as snapshots of some of our favorite eras of wrestling.

It's possible fans are nostalgic for a similar, more "fun-based" time in their wrestling games. Perhaps the delight of seeing a celebrity paying tribute to the greatness of the PSP, like the rest of the internet does, is what made folks cheer for Yachty. Or perhaps SmackDown! vs. Raw 2006 was truly exceptional, and represents an equally great era of wrestling, one that was dominated by John Cena, who will bow out from in-ring competition on Dec. 13, at the Capital One Arena in Washington, D.C.