WWE’12

Bigger, Badder, Better…

THQ put on the newly announced WWE’12. While the Smackdown vs. Raw franchise is officially dead; a new era is taking shape.One that looks to provide the most fun and authentic virtual WWE experience ever created and one that stands out from every ones favorite WWE No Mercy game.

Some automatically assumed that this game looks the same as SvR’11 but just more polished. Well we our here to tell you there is more to WWE’12 then meets the eye .. THQ has decided to take a more dramatic yet action-oriented route with their menu scheme. While the art direction is solid, the music is pretty dramatic. I can’t help but think that Randy Orton is running down a street in slow motion while chasing John Cena

THQ has taken away the use of the right stick for grapple moves and have brought back the face buttons as the main focus for your wrestling action. The controls are as follows:

• A-  Grapple
• B-  Irish Whip/Pin
• X- Striking
• Y- Finishers
• LB- Action Button
• RB- “New” Limb Targeting System
• LT- Running
• RT- Counters
• DPad- Taunts
• LS-Move
• RS- Switching Opponents Position
• LT+RT- Dragging Opponent

For those who have been playing the SvR series for a long time now, you will get accustomed to these controls pretty quickly. I can see newcomers to the franchise feeling better off, especially if they play it at E3, as the controls are just as user friendly as WWE All Stars while still keeping the ability to have a more deep and enhanced gameplay experience.
Quick note: You can switch to last years control scheme if you prefer.

One of the newest additions to the gameplay is the new limb targeting system. When in grapple, you can hold RB and press one of the face buttons. Each button will represent a part of the body you attack; Y for the head, X or B for the arms, and A for the legs. The more damage you do on each limb, specific attributes or abilities will be affected depending on the area. Example: if you focus on the head, the opponent will be groggy longer and will have a hard time getting up. Or if you focus on the arms, when you lock in a submission, the percentage of your opponent giving up goes higher (especially when using Alberto’s Cross-Arm Breaker finisher). There was one specific problem with this as there was no way to counter this button interaction but this is just the E3 build and will surely be fixed by its release date.

A huge addition, or replacement, is the new “Breaking Point” submission system. THQ has been hearing your cries the past few years and the old submission system is gone. Replaced is a new and more fun submission mini game in which you and your opponent mash the face buttons or move the joysticks as the word “Breaking Point” fills up. If it fills up, your character will submit so be sure to button mash like your life depended on it. You will also have the ability to drag your body towards the ropes to try and execute a rope break. While some may not feel excited about this, compared to what we have had the past few years; this is a huge improvement.

The final gameplay addition is the new “Comeback Moment”. We should all know what this means. Every time we see Cena do his same three moves to the 5 Knuckle Shuffle or Randy Orton get on his crazy streak of clotheslines with a powerslam at the end; well all this will be possible in WWE’12. Each WWE Superstar will have their own comeback moment that will activate when their opponent has the upper hand during the entire match. Once it begins, a mini-game will commence where both you and your opponent will be put into button timing situation where one of you have to hit the designated button first. If completed, you will have gained a signature and the ability to get a finisher completely getting you back into the match. If you don’t complete it though and fail to comeback, you will not get that opportunity again. It is a one-time only feature in each match. It was a fun experience but unfortunately I never had to use it as I did fairly well against the CPU and my human opponents, including Matt Black from the WWE Games Community.

The new “Predator” technology really makes a difference in this year’s game and the animations are fantastic. The technology also makes the game look better in terms of graphics and you will start noticing some small things like the ropes and ring bouncing every time a move is executed. One major thing fans will see and like are how the wrestlers sell the moves. If Orton clotheslines Cena, Cena will get back up in a way that shows him selling the move as he is holding his head. This happens with every move and also helps keep the match flowing. There was never a dull moment in WWE’12. Wrestlers will also not stay down for hours on end after a few moves as the damage system has been improved. But it’s mostly the smooth animations that are helping all this be possible.


The momentum meter and finishers have seen a change in WWE’12. The little halo underneath your character is gone and is replaced with a meter. That meter will fill up throughout the match the more you beat down your opponent. Once it starts flashing, you will be able to perform your signature and once completed you will be given a flaming F (for finisher) which will provide you with a more powerful finisher then one you get if the game auto stores it for you. With that said, finisher storing has returned. You can’t manually do it, for now, but it’s worth mentioning as it automatically stores it after a certain amount of time.

Last but not least, presentation. In this E3 build I have been nothing but impressed with most of the aspects of the game but what really stood out to me was the presentation. The camera no longer swings around during the match and keeps a level camera like the one you see on the actual WWE program. The camera also has different angles when doing specific moves that just make it feel like a live show. It will even take close ups of superstars during finishers or even signatures. It shakes during the breaking point submission mini-game and when you try to go up the ramp the camera takes a nice angle and auto-zoom that will make fans happy. It’s really the little things in the presentation that fans will notice after a few matches that give WWE’12 a different look and feel.