Smackdown vs. Raw 2011 is a perfect example of how the yearly development cycle can hinder a franchise more than it can help. Whatever extra profit the publishers and developers gain from the yearly iteration and truncated development cycle is washed away by the ever-worsening quality of each title. It appeared as if Yukes was onto something with SvR '10, with a new creation suite and a way to share them with the world, an updated grappling system that combined the tested grappling of previous games with the fun ultimate control grapples and an expanded roster, which was the largest in more than four years.
All Yukes had to do was add a new layer of polish by addressing some major bugs, removing some exploitable moves such as the striking spear, and continue to update rosters and add new animations. Instead, Yukes completely reworked the grappling system without enough time to perfect it. They also removd much of the exploitable moves, along with a large amount of moves that had been in the game for years, making many CAWs impossible to make. And that's not even counting the ridiculous reversal window.
The roster is larger than ever, with some old favorites that are no longer with WWE, and even some surprising legends. But with the new community creations system being revamped, just about any wrestler can be remade, shared and edited by the community -- as long as the moves are still in the game. Noticeably missing are Hulk Hogan's entire suite, including the famous leg drop. Many of Ric Flair's moves have been taken out, along with Goldberg and Booker T. Others have to be unlocked, or downloaded through DLC, which makes them impossible to share on community creations. But at least players can now edit the items they download, as long as the original creator allows it.
At first glance, the new grappling system is fairly easy to grasp. Strong and quick grapples are replaced with chain grapples. The more an opponent is damaged, he will become groggy, when the player can institute groggy grapples. But good luck getting the player damaged enough by regular grapples. The reversal window has been expanded so much that short of playing the A.I. on Normal or Easy, or playing someone who has never picked up a controller before, you won't be able to pull off a chain grapple the majority of the time. But running grapples and strikes are just as easy to do as previous years, turning most games into a running grapple and strike fest. Sounds like fun, doesn't it?
The majority of the previous years' abilities have been removed. Turnbuckle exploder, weapon abilities, evasive dodge and several others have been removed. While no one will probably lament the absence of evasive dodge, it does hamper the cruiserweights to an extent. And with every wrestler, including the 600 pound behemoth you created as a CAW, having the ability to pull off turnbuckle exploders, there is very little to differentiate a cruiserweight and a super heavyweight. The lack of weight restrictions means Rey Mysterio can Batista Bomb the Big Show, and the Earthquake CAW you downloaded can scamper up the ropes like Shelton Benjamin. For a series that prides itself on being a "sim" in its marketing, it's about as far from that as one can get.
The majority of the other issues aren't even worth mentioning, since they're brought up every year. The game still uses some animations that date back to the Playstation days of the Smackdown series. Clipping is still a major issue, as is hit detection. Many pins still go unbroken because of drawn out animations, or horrible hit detection that prevents the player from saving the match.
The only good thing Yukes did with this year's edition, was the addition of the WWE Universe mode, which creates a constant running tally of all matches played in exhibition. Players can build feuds, challenge for belts and reign as champions with created CAWs or established wrestlers just by playing offline matches. It's a frivolous addition, but one that can prove fun and addicting, as long as you can stand the broken A.I. and gameplay.
SvR '10 is one step forward and two gigantic steps backward. In an attempt to appeal to a larger demographic of players, Yukes has managed to break the game. Chain grapples, the very foundation of a wrestling game, are completely useless. It's actually a hindrance to use them in regular gameplay. Running grapples provide a quicker, more efficient attack, and rarely miss thanks to some broken autolock on the game, which will cause the player to curve into opponents. Many chain grapple animations last longer than it takes for the opponent to recover, which means you're wide open for attack by the opponent you just body slammed. And that's even if you manage to pull off a grapple, despite the ridiculously long window open for reversals.
If you have friends that you can play with that you can trust won't ruin the game, SvR '11 can be fun. The removal of many exploitable moves is a welcome sight. But the Triple H running knee lift is still in, and as potent as ever. And with very little to counter running grapples, there's not much hope for public play. It's best to stick with SvR '10, or abandon the series until next year.