WWE 13 Full Preview

By Rob Boggan

Just hours ago at the SummerSlam Axxess event, WWE fans were treated to the grand unveiling of the full roster for THQ’s upcoming WWE 13 video game. Rocking the most massive roster to date, WWE 13 aims to be the biggest game yet, but not just by volume, but quality as well. Massive improvements have been made to the game, and while there still may be a few things left to be desired, there’s definitely more than enough to satisfy even the most hardcore critics.

First things first, the new Predator Engine 2.0 is awesome. It provides for much smoother game play and more realistic reversals and reversal counters. For those unfamiliar, Predator Technology was first introduced in WWE 12 with the aim of improving character models, adding more fluid game play, and giving gamers a more TV style presentation. While the Predator engine worked, it oftentimes had quite a few mishaps such as the infamous “spaghetti ropes” glitch, and characters randomly floating in and out of frame. Thankfully THQ developers took note of this and added a ton more animations, and tightened up the visual and audio presentation to make this the most realistic simulation yet. With Predator 2.0 fans can expect more interaction from the crowd, from announcers, and even from objects around the ring as everything has been molded to work together as one cohesive unit.

Building off the reversals and countering system from last year, THQ upped the ante tenfold with the Predator 2.0 engine. Playing WWE 12, I felt that reversals and counters could be, at times, performed entirely too easy. Looking at the new engine, it looks like players are really going to have to rely more on strategic counters versus button mashing to get their moves off faster than their opponent. In short, WWE 12 would allow for instant upper hand advantage with a simple counter, whereas in WWE 13 everything goes. For example, your opponent could counter an irish whip with a clothesline that puts you down, they from there can climb the ropes and attempt a high risk maneuver, and then wham! out of nowhere you’ve caught them in mid-air with your finisher and the match is over. Just like in real matches, momentum can change in a heart beat, and the new predator engine totally emphasizes that.

Formally known as OMG moments(thank God they changed that name), WWE 13 will introduce players to Spectacular moments. Spectacular moments are essentially events activated by certain actions that in turn, trigger complete momentum shifts when performed. Majority of these moments will be familiar to longtime WWE fans (Breaking the Ring, Mankind off the top of the Hell In A Cell), while others are from fairly recent WWE Pay Per views and live events.

Bridging the gap between past and present WWE fans, THQ and WWE have decided to include the biggest names from a time when WWE was at it’s largest: The Attitude Era. That means we’ll have the opportunity to  recreate and relive some of the biggest matches from WWE’s storied past, as well as create  new classics with old and new superstars. This is where most of the largeness of the WWE 13 roster comes from, as many of the characters are essentially duplicated from their current form, and recreated in their Attitude Era glory. Everything from the Attitude Era has been recreated, from the arenas, to the rivalries, and even the announce team(Good to hear Good Ol’ JR) has been resurrected to give the “Attitude mode” that much more credibility.

Hitting stores on October 30th, WWE 13 will be the biggest, baddest, most jam packed wrestling sim to date. Packing the right amount of characters, with awesome game modes and huge improvements to last years game will definitely be a formula for success.

They even gave in and are giving us our WWE ice cream bars. Well Sorta.

Check out the full roster as well as more info on the new predator engine 2.0 HERE