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The 17th of November edition of Monday Night Raw streamed on Netflix showcased Cena's ultimate performance on the show as an competing wrestler. It also experienced the return and face-off between Brock Lesnar and Roman Reigns as they teamed up with their individual groups for the upcoming 5-on-5 match at WarGames. Among the thrills were surprises like AJ Lee assisting Maxxine Dupri secure the women's Intercontinental Championship, and Dolph Ziggler reappearing. In such a crowded Madison Square Garden event, 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 Incident: Lil Yachty and His Handheld Device

Regardless of everything that transpired on this landmark Raw, it was Lil Yachty and his PSP that trended online. Could it be because of pop culture's lasting love for Sony's mobile device? Could it be because people nostalgically recall the excellence of the SmackDown! vs. Raw franchise? Alternatively, because WWE fans have little enthusiasm for the more recent 2K games?

Exploring SmackDown! vs. Raw 2006: A Iconic Title

If you're unfamiliar, SmackDown! vs. Raw 2006 marked the franchise's debut on the PSP and was the last entry in the SmackDown! vs. Raw line to remain only on PlayStation. The game shifted the franchise toward increased realism and authenticity, moving away from the arcade-style feel of earlier titles. It introduced a new momentum gauge that dictated the flow of a match, substituting for the previous "clean/dirty" and "SmackDown!" meters. Players could opt to wrestle “clean” as a face or “dirty” as a heel, with a endurance feature that decreased as matches grew more intense; more elaborate moves meant faster fatigue. SmackDown! vs. Raw 2006 ultimately became the most popular PlayStation 2 installment in the entire series.

Development of the Line

The series commenced with WWF SmackDown! on the original PlayStation and persisted as an regular release, except in 2021. It remained a exclusive to PlayStation until WWE SmackDown vs. Raw 2007, which brought the franchise to other platforms. In 2013, the series was rebranded as WWE 2K, beginning with WWE 2K14.

Gameplay and Special Content

In the past, the SmackDown! vs. Raw games dominated and seemed like an advancement of titles from the N64 era, because of upgraded graphics. When the franchise moved to PlayStation 2, that impression only heightened as titles with clear visuals, new gaming modes, and story-driven storylines were consistently introduced.

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

Sentiment and Legacy

The older SmackDown! vs. Raw games were very zany, even when they targeted more realistic gameplay. The franchise shifted toward total simulations with the 2K games, devoid of the out-of-the-box ideas of their predecessors. But the older titles also acted as reminders of some of our cherished eras of wrestling.

It's possible fans are longing for a comparable, more "fun-based" time in their wrestling games. Maybe the pleasure of seeing a celebrity honoring the brilliance of the PSP, like the rest of the internet does, is what made folks applaud Yachty. Alternatively SmackDown! vs. Raw 2006 was really that great, and mirrors an equally great era of wrestling, one that was dominated by John Cena, who will bow out from in-ring competition on the 13th of December, at the Capital One Arena in Washington, D.C.