How To Block Smack In Smackdown Pain

[Minette Mccandrew]

ByDoug Radcliffe

Design by Katie Bush

Strap on your favorite WWE superstar's boots, join the Smackdown or RAW roster, and enter the squared circle. Begin a full season of wrestling, battle your rival in a hardcore match at the pay-per-view, get embroiled in a nasty feud with Brock Lesnar, or ask a gorgeous WWE Diva to become your manager. THQ's WWE Smackdown: Here Comes The Pain offers a new season mode in which you can assume the role of your favorite WWE superstar or create your own star and work up the ranks from jobber to World Champion.

General Strategies: This section provides strategies applicable to all match types and season mode. Look for tips on mixing up the action, dirty tactics, increasing your Smackdown meter, and stealing your opponent's finisher.

Chapter 1: Wrestler Guide

This section provides statistics for all selectable wrestlers. You'll also find brief biographies of each wrestler, which includes vital statistics like height and weight and other data from the game, such as their finishing moves (and how to perform them) and to which roster they belong. Finally, find the statistics for the unlockable legend wrestlers, such as Jimmy Snuka, The Million Dollar Man, and The Road Warriors.

Wrestler Biographies

This section provides brief biographies of the WWE superstars and includes vital statistics, such as height and weight, and other data from the game. You'll also find each superstar's special moves compiled here and how to perform them.

Goldberg is one of the most exciting superstars in the WWE. He's also one of the top wrestlers in the game. Choose him for season mode if you're looking to stick on top and participate in the best matches and pay-per-views.

Shawn Michaels, the Heartbreak Kid, or simply HBK is a highly decorated superstar. True fans will always remember him from the bad hair 80s days in the tag team, The Rockers, while true Bret Hart fans will never forgive him for Survivor Series '97.

Unlockable Legends

There are six legendary WWE superstar wrestlers available for unlocking in the ShopZone, which is featured as part of WWE Smackdown: Here Comes the Pain "season" gameplay mode. Earn money in season mode and save up to unlock the legendary wrestlers (each costs $35,000 Smackdown dollars to unlock). These wrestlers can be used in exhibition and season mode.

Mix it up! The computer controlled opponent (and certainly a human controlled opponent) will catch on quickly if you're only doing grapples or only doing strikes. Smackdown's combo system makes it very easy to mix up your maneuvers. For instance, perform two strikes against your opponent then go in for the grapple. Or just perform one strike then move in for the grapple. You could even move in for the grapple and instead of performing one of the moves, revert back to strikes. Many of the top computer controlled wrestlers excel at counters (especially those with a high technique rating, such as Chris Benoit) so it's important to mix up your style so you can avoid being countered constantly.

WWE Smackdown: Here Comes The Pain features location-based damage. That means you can inflict damage to specific areas of your opponent's body: the head, torso, arms, and legs. Damaging your opponent is always important but inflicting location-based damage will help you gain the upper hand for submission maneuvers. For instance, if you control a wrestler with a special submission "Smackdown" maneuver, like Chris Jericho's Walls of Jericho, you can work on damaging a specific area (in this case, the torso), then after it's sufficiently damaged, slap on the special maneuver to force your opponent to tap out. You can detect damaged areas by its color: blue means none or little damage, yellow is light damage, orange is moderate damage, and red means heavy damage. Along the lines of "mix it up," don't begin a match going straight for grapples. Strikes are as effective as grapples; though strikes don't inflict the same kind of damage, the variation of moves keeps your opponent off guard. Further, the strikes help increase your Smackdown meter as you start down the path of cracking a finishing move on your opponent. If you're looking to make your opponent bleed, certain maneuvers will be required. Check the move lists (in "Create" mode) to see which moves have a "B" next to them, like Undertaker's Irish whip to big boot combination. Weaken your opponent's head region (check the location damage next to the wrestler's name in the corner of the screen) and perform one of the specific maneuvers and you may cut open your opponent. Don't get careless during a match and allow your opponent to steal a victory away from you. You could have your opponent all red with heavy damage to all parts of the body but your opponent can still pull off finishing maneuvers. Even if you're just moderately damaged, you could get pinned after a finishing move and all that damage you inflicted to your opponent will be lost. Finish off your opponent and don't let them hang around longer than necessary.

Go for a pin right after a finishing move. Don't waste time with other moves or your opponent can get a second wind and kick out. After a finishing move, move your opponent to the center of the ring (hold down "circle" and then use the directional stick to move your opponent around the ring) and go for the pin. Don't go for the pin near the edge of the ring if "ropebreak" is active in the match or you won't be able to get the pin. By the time you get your opponent down again, he'll likely kick out.

General Strategies - cont.

It's not necessary to go for a Smackdown finishing move as soon as you have a Smackdown icon. This could happen early in the match and your opponent could barely have sustained damage. Instead, consider saving up a couple Smackdown icons so you can perform multiple finishers in a short amount of time. This can be a devastating series of events to any opponent. Go for the pin quickly!

Taunting can be used to increase your Smackdown meter and gain Smackdown icons. However, realize that your entire taunt animation must complete before you receive any benefit to your Smackdown meter. And you must be careful because an opponent or even you can interrupt your taunt animation. If you're struck during the taunt, the animation interrupts. If you jiggle the right analog stick during the taunt animation, the taunt will be interrupted. The entire animation must complete. Also, note that longer taunts (those that take more time to complete) generate more on your Smackdown meter. Finally, realize that the taunt's benefit to your Smackdown meter won't accumulate past a Smackdown icon. So if you have just a little bit to go on your meter, perform a short taunt to get the icon. When you're that close to a new icon, a long taunt will generate the same amount for your Smackdown meter. It goes without saying that your strategy should be dictated by your wrestler of choice's statistics. If you're a power wrestler with high strength and endurance, don't hesitate to mix it up close and brawl. A wrestler like Brock Lesnar or Undertaker should stick in close and dish out power maneuver after power maneuver. But if you're a smaller, speedier wrestler then you won't be able to hang up close with the power guys and will need to use hit and run techniques and more Irish whip and aerial maneuvers to hang tough. Note your wrestler's statistics and let them form your strategy. If you have a high submission rating, use those submission grapples to weaken specific body parts. Once you've knocked down your opponent, make him earn the right to get back on his feet! Use ground strikes to pummel your opponent on the ground. He'll get up eventually but he'll have to suffer through additional strikes before getting a chance to stand. You can also use ground grapples to perform grapples on the prone opponent or even pull your opponent up for additional standing maneuvers. Keep the pressure on. Be creative and mix it up. Go off the top turnbuckle; pull your opponent up then knock him right back to the ground; and stomp on his head until he finally rolls over and rises more damaged than before.

Wish you could pummel the referee without consequence? In a match with disqualifications on, you'll need to put the referee temporarily out of commission if you want to get away with any nefarious deeds. But taking out the ref requires a careful touch. Do not focus your wrestler on the ref and attack (you change focus with the R1 button). Instead, make sure you're focused on an opponent before "allowing" the ref to get in the way of your strikes or grapples. For instance, if you're focused on your opponent, you can run and clothesline the ref without consequence. You can also strike and grapple as long as you aren't focused on the ref. With the ref down and knocked out temporarily, you can grab weapons and use them against your opponent! Just keep tabs on that ref and when he gets back up, don't use that weapon any longer! You can "steal" your opponent's Smackdown finisher as long as you have at least two Smackdown icons saved. You also must be in the correct position to pull off the finisher (for instance, if you want to steal Ric Flair's Figure-4 Leg Lock then you must stand over a prone opponent's legs). If you meet all criteria, press L1 and L2 at the same time. It will deplete both of your Smackdown icons but you will have used your opponent's finishing move against them! It's immensely satisfying to F-5 Brock Lesnar! Now go for that pin! Weapons are a fantastic way to wear down an opponent very quickly (and increase your Smackdown meter equally as fast). But you must be careful because a ref will disqualify you if he sees you with a weapon (if DQs are on in the mission). You can get weapons from underneath the ring (items like sledgehammers, chairs, and tables). You can also Irish whip an opponent into the ring steps; the steps break apart and a piece can be picked up and used as a weapon.

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