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The November 17 installment of Monday Night Raw aired on Netflix included Cena's final performance on the program as an active wrestler. Moreover experienced the reappearance and confrontation between Brock Lesnar and Roman Reigns as they aligned with their respective groups for the upcoming 5-on-5 match at WarGames. Wedged in between the action were shockers like AJ Lee supporting Maxxine Dupri claim the women's Intercontinental Championship, and Dolph Ziggler reappearing. In such a jam-packed Madison Square Garden spectacle, the focus was taken by Lil Yachty, when he showed off his silver PSP for the camera, demonstrating he was playing SmackDown! vs Raw 2006.

Trending Event: The Rapper and His Handheld Device

Despite everything that happened on this landmark Raw, it was Lil Yachty and his PSP that became a sensation. Might it be because of the public's lasting love for Sony's mobile device? Might it be because people nostalgically recall the excellence of the SmackDown! vs. Raw franchise? Or is it, because WWE fans aren't interested in the latest 2K games?

Examining SmackDown! vs. Raw 2006: A Iconic Release

Uninitiated fans, SmackDown! vs. Raw 2006 signified the franchise's introduction on the PSP and was the final entry in the SmackDown! vs. Raw line to remain PlayStation-exclusive. The game moved the franchise toward more realism and authenticity, steering clear of the fast-paced feel of earlier titles. It brought in a new momentum bar that governed the flow of a match, taking the place of the previous "clean/dirty" and "SmackDown!" meters. Players could choose to wrestle “clean” as a face or “dirty” as a heel, with a stamina system that decreased as matches grew more intense; flashier moves meant faster fatigue. SmackDown! vs. Raw 2006 eventually became the top-selling PlayStation 2 release in the entire series.

Evolution of the Line

The line started with WWF SmackDown! on the original PlayStation and carried on as an yearly release, except in 2021. It remained a PlayStation exclusive until WWE SmackDown vs. Raw 2007, which introduced the franchise to additional platforms. In 2013, the series was rebranded as WWE 2K, starting with WWE 2K14.

Gameplay and Special Content

Previously, the SmackDown! vs. Raw games were top-tier and felt like an evolution of titles from the N64 era, due to enhanced graphics. When the franchise moved to PlayStation 2, that sensation only intensified as titles with crisp visuals, new gaming modes, and role-playing storylines were gradually introduced.

The PSP edition of SmackDown! vs. Raw 2006 features modes not found on its PS2 version, including three unique mini-games available from the start. The first, "WWE Game Show," tests players with 500 wrestling questions covering everything from music and finishers to history and feuds, at times using audio clips or video snippets. The other two minigames are a poker game and "Eugene’s Airplane," where players direct Eugene (whose persona is being an intellectually challenged wrestling savant) around the ring as quickly as possible.

Retro Appeal and Legacy

The older SmackDown! vs. Raw games were very eccentric, even when they aimed for more realistic gameplay. The franchise shifted toward total simulations with the 2K games, lacking the creative ideas of their predecessors. But the older titles also acted as time capsules of some of our cherished eras of wrestling.

Perhaps fans are nostalgic for a alike, more "fun-based" time in their wrestling games. Maybe the pleasure of seeing a celebrity paying tribute to the excellence of the PSP, like the rest of the internet does, is what made folks applaud Yachty. Otherwise SmackDown! vs. Raw 2006 was really that great, and represents an similarly great era of wrestling, one that was dominated by John Cena, who will bow out from in-ring competition on December 13, at the Capital One Arena in Washington, D.C.