WWE SmackDown! Vs. RAW 2008 DS impressions

Ever since I learned how radically different WWE SmackDown! Vs. RAW 2008 was going to be on the DS, I was really intrigued. If you thought you were getting a completely different experience on the Wii, than this game is going to blow you away. If you haven’t been following the DS version, just picture yourself playing the game entirely with the touch screen. Sounds pretty damn bizarre doesn’t it?!

Is is bizarre though? I really can’t give a full opinion on the game. I wrestled a couple matches, but this is one of those games you need a lot of time with you decide if you either like or dislike what is going on. The gameplay is a mix of a couple other familiar titles. Imagine a wrestling game that plays in an almost turn-based manner (like Pokemon), but it has you tapping numbered buttons and drawing lines in order to perform moves (a lot like Ouendan). There’s no doubt that the developers set out to try something truly unique with the DS.

This really does play out much like a turn-based wrestling game would. You are presented with a number of choices for your moves. For instance, in the screen above, I could have either grabbed my opponent’s leg, performed a grab, or…smacked my own ass. I don’t know what that last one is, I didn’t pick it! After you make your selection, you sometimes have to perform another stylus input. You’ll either draw a line in the direction of an arrow, press down on certain spots of the screen, or any other number of touch elements.

The gameplay was definitely interesting, and the moves were responsive, but I don’t know how it will pan out in the full game. Since this is a bit turn-based, I wonder if your move selections will have a greater/lesser ability depending on your stamina as well as your opponents. If they follow through with the way the gameplay is now, I could see the game turning out to be very engaging. As it stands right now, there are some fun ideas that may not work well as a whole in the final product.