 | This articleneeds additional citations forverification. Please helpimprove this article byadding citations to reliable sources. Unsourced material may be challenged and removed. Find sources: "WWF SmackDown!" video game – news ·newspapers ·books ·scholar ·JSTOR(December 2011) (Learn how and when to remove this message) |
| WWF SmackDown! | |
|---|---|
 | |
| Developer | Yuke's |
| Publishers | |
| Director | Toshihiko Kitazawa |
| Producer | Sanders Keel |
| Designers | Toshihiko Kitazawa Daisuke Doi Osamu Hashimoto |
| Programmers | Tokuichi Kitaguchi Shintaro Matsubara Katsumi Nakagaki |
| Artist | Taku Chihaya |
| Composers | Masafumi Ogata Kei Morioka Rei Shimizu |
| Series | SmackDown! |
| Platform | PlayStation |
| Release | |
| Genre | Sports |
| Modes | Single-player,multiplayer |
WWF SmackDown!, known in Japan asExciting Pro Wrestling (エキサイティングプロレス,Ekisaitingu Puro Resu), is aprofessional wrestlingvideo game developed byYuke's and released for thePlayStation byTHQ. It is based on theWorld Wrestling Federation (WWF) and is named after the company's weeklySmackDown! television program. Originally released in North America on March 2, 2000, Europe on April 14, 2000, and Japan on August 3, 2000,[2] the game received a direct sequel released several months later, entitledWWF SmackDown! 2: Know Your Role.
The first WWF game on the PlayStation to be published by THQ,SmackDown! marked the start of a long running series of WWE video games from THQ, then continued by2K Sports and rebranded asWWE 2K. The game was also re-released under theGreatest Hits budget range.
The game's main story mode contains three main parts, first with the Pre-Season (for created wrestlers), but after ten in-game years of playing the Pre-Season, players are allowed to skip it. By playing and advancing in the season modes players gain rewards such as unlockables or attires, but instead of unlocking new characters, players unlock new body parts to put on new creations, to play as that "unlocked" character. Once players build a creation, they must fight in a Pre-Season year to build their skills and make their alliances. The story mode contains no voice-overs, instead the characters meet each other backstage with mouths that move to no voice and on-screen cutscene text. The game also lacks play-by-play color commentary.
WWF SmackDown! has many match types including Single, Tag Team, Hardcore, Steel Cage and many more.[3] The game features the late 1999 WWF roster followingSmackDown!'s premiere, including the then-newcomersThe Dudley Boyz.
Yuke's, the developer ofSmackDown! had previously created theToukon Retsuden series of wrestling games in Japan forNew Japan Pro-Wrestling. Despite this, thegame engine used inSmackDown! is not based on contemporaryToukon Retsuden titles, but ratherThe Pro Wrestling, a title developed by Yuke's as part ofD3 Publisher'sSimple series and released several months in Japan beforehand.[4]
| Aggregator | Score |
|---|---|
| GameRankings | 87%[5] |
| Publication | Score |
|---|---|
| AllGame |    [6] |
| Electronic Gaming Monthly | 8.75/10[7][a] |
| EP Daily | 8/10[8] |
| Eurogamer | 9/10[9] |
| Famitsu | 27/40[10] |
| Game Informer | 9/10[11] |
| GameFan | 90%[12] |
| GameRevolution | A−[13] |
| GameSpot | 8.7/10[14] |
| IGN | 8.8/10[3] |
| Next Generation | [15] |
| Official U.S. PlayStation Magazine | [16] |
WWF SmackDown! received favorable reviews according to video gamereview aggregatorGameRankings.[5] Daniel Erickson ofNextGen was positive to the controls, graphics, and game modes such as Season and Referee mode, but criticized its "shallow" arcade-like quality and create-a-wrestler mode.[15] In Japan, however,Famitsu gave it a score of 27 out of 40.[10]
Lamchop ofGamePro calledSmackDown better thanAcclaim'sWWF Attitude in terms of graphics and "speedier" gameplay, but thought thatAttitude has its full commentary and character voices than the former.[17][b] In another review, The D-Pad Destroyer praised the Season mode and called the title "one of the best wrestling games in the history".[18][c]
The game was a bestseller in the UK upon release,[19] and again three months later.[20] It also received a "Platinum" sales award from theEntertainment and Leisure Software Publishers Association (ELSPA),[21] indicating sales of at least 300,000 units in the UK.[22] According toPC Data,WWF SmackDown! sold 980,000 units in 2000.[23]