For some like myself, sports games such as Madden don’t matter. For the Pro Wrestling (Sports Entertainment) fan THQ’s long-time wrestling series is a must buy each and every year. But is this years game worth your cold hard cash or should you stick with last years iteration?

Gone is the WWE Smackdown vs. Raw series; re-branded and replaced with WWE ’12. Despite the name change it’s still the same franchise you’ve come to know and love with a vast array of match types, creation tools and online modes. Last years Smackdown vs. Raw 2011 had a lot of issues that really hurt the final product; namely bugs. For example, there was no way to defend a championship except in the WWE Universe mode once a month. Thankfully many of these issues have been corrected or at least addressed.

What really matters in a wrestling game, or with any fighting game for that matter, is its gameplay. If it’s not fun, it doesn’t matter how good the graphics are. This is where WWE ’12 is very different from Smackdown vs. Raw 2011. Gameplay has thankfully undergone a great overhaul. The first thing I noticed it that the action is much faster compared to last years game. You’ll be spending less time on the mat and more time punching each other on the face. You no longer use the analog stick to grapple; now it’s done with the A button (X button on the PS3). You have four chain grapples that can be performed anytime and four groggy grapples that can be performed either by punching the opponent and hitting the A button (along with a various directions) when your opponent is dazed or picking them up off the ground and pressing the A button. Depending on which character you play, there are various moves, styles, punches kicks and abilities. Perhaps in writing it sounds a bit complicated but within an hour one can easily be hitting a variety of suplexes or insane dives. Countering has also (thankfully) been made more simplistic. If you time your counter right, you can counter most moves with the press of the R1 trigger. Most anything can be countered from grapples to punches. Going counter-for-counter with your opponent is incredibly satisfying! The gameplay in WWE ’12 is without a doubt the best it has been in years. It has a brisk, arcade-like feel to it but still manages to simulate the WWE product well. Great additions like the wake up taunt (pressing up on the taunt button causes your opponent to rise allowing you to hit your finishing move) and comeback moves (moves that can be used when your health is low to change the tide of the match) add an even more authentic feel to the action.

One of the most appealing options has always been the create-a-wrestler mode. If you’ve ever dreamed of stepping into the squared circle you can now do so with an insane amount of customization. Not a lot has changed from last years create-a-mode but it still works. There are plenty of attires to choose from and whether you want to make Hulk Hogan or Superman you should be able to do so with relative ease. With tools such as the Create a Logo tool you can get as detailed as you want or just keep things simple. Customizing your entrance theme is here, although it’s unfortunate that it’s still a real pain to add your own custom music. Customizing your move-set also returns and gives you the option to create from scratch or simply copy and modify from an existing superstar. A lot of new moves have thankfully been added this year, a real plus for those of us who are hardcore fans. Returning creation modes also include Create a Finisher, Create a Story and Highlight Reel. None of these modes have been changed. But THQ has included a mode that many of us have been asking for: Create an Arena mode. Do you want the relive the glory days at the ECW arena or travel back in time to do battle in an AWA ring? You can now create them or create an arena that is all your own. I found this mode to be well done and simple to use in conjunction with the create a logo. Best of all, like your created characters you can upload your created arenas online for others to download!

WWE Universe mode returns and unfortunately it’s a bit of a let-down. Options such as creating your own brand don’t work well at all and are simply pointless. If you’ve ever wanted to own and run your own federation, this mode isn’t really going to make that dream much of a reality. There’s still fun to be had but much more customization would have been nice.

WWE ’12 has been boasting that it uses new “Predator Technology”. This does in fact make the game look more life-like than it ever has before. Camera angles have also been adjusted to simulate the television product. While this could still use some work it’s certainly a step in the right direction. Cut scenes during the Road to WrestleMania mode and WWE Universe mode have been vastly improved and now look far more realistic than they ever have.

The games sound is, overall really great! Thuds to mat sound brutal. I still wish punches, chairshots, chops sounded more realistic but there is no doubt that a lot of work has been done here to improve things. There is a variety of music tracks to choose from for your created grappler but for some reason THQ simply felt that one short track would be enough for the title screen, and every other mode in the game. It gets old really, really quick. Considering how many old songs that are available from WWE/WWF you’d think that THQ would simply use these nostalgic tracks as background music.

As of this writing, WWE ’12 has encountered issues with its online mode. Still, we were able to get into a few matches, download some characters and arenas. When online is up and working it works well. THQ has assured the online community that they are making changes to remedy the problem but we remain skeptical. With all the created wrestlers arena and additional DLC coming, the online mode should be a huge part of what makes WWE ’12 special just as it did Smackdown vs. Raw 2011.

WWE ’12 is without a doubt the best wrestling game to have been released in quite some time. Like its predecessors it has some quirks but the vast amount of content makes that easy to over look. If you’ve ever enjoyed watching men in tights do battle in the squared circle then WWE ’12 is a must have for both fans of Sports Entertainment and Pro Wrestling!

STORY/Road to WrestleMania mode: 8 / 10
GRAPHICS: 9 / 10
SOUND: 8 / 10
GAMEPLAY: 9 / 10
OVERALL: 9 / 10