The next addition in THQ's Smackdown! wrestling series comes into the squared circle at full force. Once again, player models look absolutely gorgeous (minus a few of the characters). Wrestlers like Brock Lesner, The Rock and The Undertaker (among others) all look so incredible, you'd think they could jump out of the screen and rip your head off. Also added into WWE Smackdown!: Here Comes The Pain are fully three-dimensional fans in the first few rows, adding to the eye candy during entrances and matches.

In-game audio is very good too, when it comes to entrance music and sound effects. But, like its Xbox cousin, WWE Raw 2, it fully lacks any kind of commentary or character voice-overs during the Season Mode. It's very unfortunate too, because pursuing a career in World Wrestling Entertainment would be so much better if you could hear every slap-ass comment that Vince McMahon utters your way.

Every wrestling title ever made has always offered a much more fun multiplayer experience than playing by yourself could offer. All of that is about to change! Here Comes The Pain is the first wrestler in a long line of games to make the single-player experience not only a blast to play, but also very, very addictive. This is not to discredit the multiplayer games, but just like when watching the WWE on Spike TV, you're guaranteed to be drawn into the soap opera-like storylines. And just like when watching on the boob tube, the stories seem to only get better and better.

With Here Comes The Pain's Season Mode, you won't just wrestle match after match. You won't even get bored with a limited story. While there are actions that will repeat with different characters, the soap opera always seems to throw something new at you when you least expect it. With many unexpected twists along the way, your superstar or created wrestler will get involved in everything from backstage brawls to spraying milk over your opponents with the truck you just drove ringside. Also, as you progress, you will be able to create Stables and (new) Factions of wrestlers to disrupt the WWE. But the best part of the Season Mode is that the story will progress only according to your responses to questions and criticisms. And as you continue on, you will gain and lose points used to buy unlockables, as well as attributes. Choose your path wisely, and prepare to layeth the smackdown on as many people as you can.

Of course, no wrestling title would be complete without an intense multiplayer setup. Here Comes The Pain is no exception, and unlike Raw 2, keeps the pace running smoothly and quickly. The competition can be fierce, but the fluidity of the game (even with 6 wrestlers on screen) is outstanding. THQ has even added more grappling combinations and a better button layout with the addition of specific reversals, all without increasing the learning curve that much. And for those of you who like to team up, newly added Tag Team moves have also been created. I just can't say enough good things about WWE Smackdown!: Here Comes The Pain.

New to this year's Smackdown! are a few extras too. On the match side of things, not only does this year's game continue to include greats like Hell in the Cell and Royal Rumble, but also the new Elimination Chamber and (for those looking to get a cheap thrill) the Bra & Panty match, specific to WWE Divas. And for those of you (and me) crying for the addition of WWE (or WWF back in the day) Legends, your wish has been granted. Sergeant Slaughter, Jimmy 'Superfly' Snuka, and George 'The Animal' Steele are among the former greats to grace Smackdown! 3 on your PlayStation 2. Unfortunately (and surprisingly), the man who helped make wrestling what it is today, Hulk Hogan, is nowhere to be found. Huh?

Smackdown!: Here Comes The Pain throws a smooth degree of difficulty at you from the start. In multiplayer mode, each wrestler is set up with his or her own attributes and abilities. Because of this, choosing your wrestler can make all of the difference in the world. However, this is wrestling, and in wrestling you always have to be prepared for crazy comebacks. At any time you can be whooping up on your opponent, only to have them drop the smackdown on your candy ass and score a quick victory. While this is 'realistic' by wrestling standards, it does get very frustrating, especially in Season mode. Here, you start out as the low man on the totem pole, and will have to build up your stats in order to perform on a Superstar level. What I love about this is that it can take a while to be able to win matches, especially when competing for the different titles against big-named wrestlers like Goldberg and Brock Lesner.

As mentioned above, THQ has tweaked the controls in Smackdown!: Here Comes The Pain. The grappling system now allows you to perform many more moves, based on the four different types of grapples you can perform. In addition, reversals are a bit more difficult because not only will you have to time them correctly, but you'll also have to guess your opponent's next move due to separate reversal buttons for attacks and holds. Finally, and one of the most intriguing tweaks, each wrestler can now perform various Smackdown moves based on their styles and positions. In fact, you'll even be able to bust out special moves with weapons for an added punch.

PS2 owners have reason to be happy. WWE Smackdown!: Here Comes The Pain is ultimately the best in the series, and the best wrestling title available for any system. If you're into the single-player aspect as well as multiplayer, you can't go wrong buying this year's adaptation. The Season mode is unbelievably fun, despite the lack of voice overs. Multiplayer action is as good as ever with newly added match types and fluid gameplay. This is one of the best party games around.