WWE 12: New and Creative Ways To Belittle Opponents Make Game a Must-Have

Don’t be fooled by the title.

Sure WWE '12 (set for release on Tuesday) isn’t the most exciting name for the latest wrestling video game, but the folks at THQ have made this one of the greatest installments yet.

Forget SmackDown vs. Raw, this is the beginning of a new era in the video game franchise and what better way to kick things off than to revamp the way you can pummel your opponent?

Sure you can still do pins and submissions, but getting there has changed. THQ has created “Breaking Point” and it is essentially a bunch of button-mashing when trying to get a submission out of your opponent. That gets old rather quickly, but when playing against a friend it can really up the intensity of the match. You have to stretch out your hands to be ready for this one.

The new system for pins is a lot more fun and less exhausting. When you have an opponent in the correct spot, it turns into a variety of mini-games that take legit skill to complete in a timely manner. It adds a whole new level of skill to something that previously didn’t require very much.

The other big addition is “Predator Technology” which brings a new animation engine and graphic renderer. No more outdated animations that crippled previous versions. This game lets you embarrass the crap out of your opponent without floating heads and choppy motions.

That more than any other improvement makes this a must-own for all wrestling fans.

The camera angles are vastly improved and the beefed-up single player modes make this the best wrestling game in the last half-decade.