Retro Grappling Game Steals the Attention at Cena's Last Monday Night Raw Show

The Nov. 17 edition of Monday Night Raw aired on Netflix featured Cena's last appearance on the program as an active wrestler. Moreover experienced the reappearance and confrontation between Brock Lesnar and Roman Reigns as they teamed up with their individual groups for the upcoming 5-on-5 match at WarGames. Among the action were shockers like AJ Lee helping Maxxine Dupri win the women's Intercontinental Championship, and Dolph Ziggler returning. In such a crowded Madison Square Garden spectacle, the focus was stolen by Lil Yachty, when he displayed his silver PSP for the camera, indicating he was playing SmackDown! vs Raw 2006.

Trending Event: The Rapper and His PSP

Despite everything that went down on this memorable Raw, it was Lil Yachty and his PSP that became a sensation. Could it be because of society's undying love for Sony's mobile device? Might it be because people cherish the memory of the excellence of the SmackDown! vs. Raw franchise? Or is it, because WWE fans have little enthusiasm for the latest 2K games?

Examining SmackDown! vs. Raw 2006: A Timeless Game

For those who don't know, SmackDown! vs. Raw 2006 represented the series' debut on the PSP and was the ultimate entry in the SmackDown! vs. Raw line to remain only on PlayStation. The game shifted the franchise toward more realism and authenticity, departing from the arcade-style feel of earlier titles. It introduced a new momentum bar that governed the flow of a match, taking the place of the previous "clean/dirty" and "SmackDown!" meters. Players could opt to wrestle “clean” as a face or “dirty” as a heel, with a endurance feature that decreased as matches grew more intense; more elaborate moves meant faster fatigue. SmackDown! vs. Raw 2006 eventually became the best-selling PlayStation 2 entry in the entire series.

Evolution of the Franchise

The franchise started with WWF SmackDown! on the original PlayStation and persisted as an annual release, except in 2021. It remained a only on PlayStation until WWE SmackDown vs. Raw 2007, which brought the franchise to additional platforms. In 2013, the series was rebranded as WWE 2K, starting with WWE 2K14.

Features and Unique Content

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

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

Retro Appeal and Legacy

The previous SmackDown! vs. Raw games were very zany, even when they sought more realistic gameplay. The franchise shifted toward total simulations with the 2K games, devoid of the creative ideas of their predecessors. But the older titles also served as reminders of some of our favorite eras of wrestling.

Perhaps fans are nostalgic for a comparable, more "fun-based" time in their wrestling games. Maybe the delight of seeing a celebrity celebrating the brilliance of the PSP, like the rest of the internet does, is what made folks applaud Yachty. Otherwise SmackDown! vs. Raw 2006 was truly exceptional, and reflects an equally great era of wrestling, one that was dominated by John Cena, who will bow out from in-ring competition on the 13th of December, at the Capital One Arena in Washington, D.C.