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| Image Source: Amazon |
Publisher: THQ
Developer: Yuke's
Genre: Wrestling
Series: SmackDown! (It would become SmackDown vs. Raw and WWE in future)
Released: October 31 2002 (US) and November 15 2002 (UK)
Certificate: 15+ (Nowadays 16)
Consoles: PS2
After three SmackDown! games which had plenty of positives but also a fair number of negatives, the fourth title in the series was the first to bring everything together. Every area that had been lacking was addressed, whilst the elements which had been lauded by fans remained in place, resulting in one hell of a wrestling game. It was also the first SmackDown! game since the WWF changed its name to WWE, and once again a SD game had two different covers between the UK and US versions, as you can see here.
Shut Your Mouth benefitted from the huge influx of former WCW and ECW talent in the preceding twelve months. Whilst the Invasion came too late for the previous game Just Bring It to include the key players, this was not an issue for SYM, which saw series debuts for Booker T, Rob Van Dam, Diamond Dallas Page, Billy Kidman, The Hurricane and legends such as Hollywood Hulk Hogan, Ric Flair and Kevin Nash, as well as newcomers like Brock Lesnar and Randy Orton. When you combine that with all of the usual big names, you end up with a roster that is stacked with star power. Granted, Scott Hall's firing meant that he missed out, and some even complained that Steve Austin remained in the game after his June 2002 walkout, even though an eventual return was inevitable (fools). However, the 60-strong line-up not only easily bested the previous year's roster, but was an all-time great selection of talent during a memorable time in WWE history.
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