Just about anybody who has played the Gamecube's debut wrestling title, WWE Wrestlemania X8, will probably tell you that it was pretty much a big let down. People expected the next No Mercy (one of the N64's best wrestling titles) but instead received a watered down version of SmackDown (PlayStation's blockbuster wrestling series). So, the big question here is this: Is Wrestlemania XIX another watered down SmackDown, or is it the next big thing?

Let's start off discussing the most important aspect of this, and any, game; the gameplay. Right away you should notice that this is much more than Wrestlemania X8 was. The game now features a light and strong grappling system, similar to No Mercy's. Simply tap the A button, or add a direction, to perform a light move. Holding down the A button for a few moments makes your character attempt to grapple. If successful, you tie up your opponent and then can perform another set of moves, stronger than the other ones. You can also drag your opponent anywhere, to better position yourself for moves. While in these grapples, pushing the B button will throw a punch, or any other strike move such as elbows, knees, and kicks. These help weaken your challenger to set him up for bigger moves. Hit him in the face enough and he will most likely start to bleed, making him even weaker. Throw in location specific damage, a huge assortment of reversals, good AI, a wide-variety of weapons and moves, new animations and many other gameplay improvements, and you have a very good wrestling engine. It's almost a combination of SmackDown and No Mercy but at the same time standing by itself as its own, unique experience.

That's not saying that the game engine has no room for improvement, as no game is ever perfect. Aerial moves move so quick and unrealistically you'd think the motion capture people played with action figures to get the animations. The sound has improved dramatically; you can feel your opponent crushing down onto the mat, the blood splatter and the crowd roaring right along with you... or against you. There are now chants, which all depend on the heel (badguy) or babyface (goodguy) status of your characters. If you select to be a heel, you will most likely hear chants such as "You suck!" but if you choose to be a babyface, you will hear character specific chants. These include The Rock's trademark "Rocky! Rocky! Rocky!" along with Kurt Angle's "USA! USA! USA!"

As with any sequel, the graphics have been improved greatly. Not all surfaces are shiny anymore, like in the previous game, but only surfaces that need to be. The engine may not look as realistic as some other games but it is very good nonetheless. While SmackDown has its amazing character models and RAW 2 has ultra-realistic looking graphics, Wrestlemania XIX has its own style and look. Most characters look like their real-world counterparts, although they still lack some minor details. Sometimes the graphics almost look cartoonish, which will turn some gamers off big time. Personally, I welcome this look as something different and unique and have warmed up to it considerably the more I have played the game.

A standard for wrestling games these days is the Create-A-Wrestler (CAW) feature. Last year's version of Wrestlemania featured a disappointing CAW system but that has completely turned around with the latest installment. Wrestlemania XIX has a very in-depth and detailed CAW system that lets you add anything to your wrestler. Can't find a design you want for clothes? No problem! The game comes complete with its own Paint system, which lets you draw and color anything you want, assuming you can do it digitally. It takes a little practice but is definitely a welcome addition.

Compared to the other WWE wrestling games on the market, Wrestlemania has the fewest characters, topping out around the 45 mark. The CAW mode lets you create 18 wrestlers per memory card and you can read from two memory cars at once (meaning you can have a wrestler on Card A face a wrestler on Card B), which puts your total CAW mark at 36 - not bad at all.

Most wrestling games include some sort of story, season, or championship mode, includeing last year's Wrestlemania. Things are completely different this time, as Wrestlemania XIX features a whole new concept, called Revenge Mode. What do you do in this mode, you ask? Everything except wrestle, until the very last level, anyway. The basic idea is that you were fired by Vince McMahon for some reason or another and with the biggest wrestling event of the year coming, Wrestlemania XIX, you're out to ruin him. You do this by visiting the events construction site and destroying it. Basically, you run around throwing construction workers off insane heights, and fighting a few wrestlers here and there. Revenge Mode continues at a similar pace through shopping malls, parking lots and even a harbour. Challenges include beating people up, getting a certain object or destroying objects. Some of them can actually be fun but some are just so ridiculously hard it's not even worth it.

When all is said and done, your rewards for beating Revenge Mode include a large amount of money (so you can purchase some CAW parts, moves and other things), new move slots for your CAWs, a bonus Revenge stage (6 more levels of frustration) and some other little things. Beating Revenge Mode a second time gives you a free roaming camera for use in some exhibition matches. Think of Revenge Mode like Tekken Force Mode; you didn't buy Tekken for that mode, you bought it for the fighting. Force Mode was just a bonus addition and it's the exact same situation here, except Revenge Mode isn't a bonus, it's just another mode. Does it belong in a wrestling game? No. Is it fun? Sometimes. Would I rather have a season or story mode? Most definitely.

All in all, Wrestlemania XIX answers the prayers of most Gamecube owners wrestling fans. It offers an improved and fun wrestling engine that's not too much SmackDown, not too much No Mercy, but a little bit of both. If you have some friends to play with the game is even more fun and if you're looking for a good multiplayer game that you can jump right into, this is one for you. Good graphics, good sound, a great CAW mode and the most important thing, fun matches, make this a solid wrestling title for fans of the genre.

Reviewed by Chris Martin for AceGamez (All Rights Reserved).