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Scan for outdated or missing drivers - takes under a minuteDriver Scan →Clear out junk files and repair common Windows errorsFree Scan →If you want the strongest all-around PS2 wrestling game, WWE SmackDown! Here Comes the Pain is the best pick in this ranking. This list covers licensed WWF- and WWE-branded PS2 releases, including arcade-style spin-offs, rather than claiming a complete worldwide catalog. The order is an editorial judgment based on match feel, modes, roster and customization, presentation, and replay value—not an official or consensus ranking.
How this ranking is scoped
The PS2 library includes the main SmackDown lineage, a release carrying the WWF name, and spin-offs with very different styles. The entries below focus on notable licensed WWF/WWE-branded PS2 games represented in the available historical sources. They include WWE Crush Hour and WWE All Stars as deliberate departures from the simulation-oriented SmackDown games. This is not a verified list of every regional release or spin-off.
| # | Preview | Product | Price | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 |
|
WWE Smackdown vs Raw 2006 - PlayStation 2 (Renewed) | $29.94 | Buy on Amazon |
| 2 |
|
WWE SmackDown vs. Raw (Renewed) | $29.00 | Buy on Amazon |
| 3 |
|
WWE SmackDown vs. Raw 2007 - PlayStation 2 (Renewed) | $29.00 | Buy on Amazon |
| 4 |
|
WWE SmackDown vs. Raw 2009 - PlayStation 2 | $13.98 | Buy on Amazon |
| 5 |
|
WWE SmackDown vs. Raw 2010 - PlayStation 2 (Renewed) | $27.99 | Buy on Amazon |
Rankings weigh match controls and pacing, mode depth, roster and customization, presentation, and how rewarding a game is to revisit. The main series generally offers the fuller wrestling-game experience; arcade spin-offs can be more immediately distinctive but serve a narrower taste.
PS2 WWE games ranked
1. WWE SmackDown! Here Comes the Pain (2003)
The strongest overall choice is Here Comes the Pain, thanks to a clear identity within the series and a damage system that makes targeting an opponent matter. WWE’s retrospective highlights its approach to character damage: players had to punish specific body parts to inflict maximum injury. That gives matches a strategic layer beyond trading moves.
#1 Best Overall
- Disc only. Original case and manual not included. Will come packaged in a generic case.
- This renewed game has been cleaned, tested, and shows minimal wear.
It also brought legends including Roddy Piper, Jimmy Snuka, and Sgt. Slaughter into the game, adding a nostalgia draw to the contemporary roster. The combination of tactical match flow, recognizable legends, and the established SmackDown format makes it the most rounded pick here. WWE identifies it as a PS2 release in its history of WWE video games; developer Yuke’s official catalog also lists the SmackDown series.
2. WWE SmackDown! Shut Your Mouth (2002)
Shut Your Mouth is an important turning point as well as a strong game in its own right. WWE says it brought SmackDown and Raw together, and its retrospective describes a shift away from over-the-top arcade-style fighting toward slower, more realistic, strategic action. That change gives the game a different rhythm from the more exaggerated wrestling games that preceded it.
Rank #2
- Play a new set of WWE Legends -- classic characters like Andre the Giant
- Incredible graphics update make all the action more amazing -- and make the bra & panties match more realistic
- Match Tactics lets players choose to fight dirty or play to the crowd
- Season Mode with new storylines, bigger double-crosses and over-the-top surprises
- Create your own Championship and then put it on the line against your friends in a fully customizable PPV event
It ranks just below Here Comes the Pain because the later game’s targeted body-part damage is a more memorable mechanical distinction. For players interested in the series’ transition toward a more deliberate feel, this is the essential earlier stop. WWE’s history article identifies it as a 2002 PS2 game and describes the shift; Yuke’s catalog corroborates the title.
3. WWE SmackDown! vs. Raw (2004)
The first SmackDown! vs. Raw entry represents the next step in the series’ identity. WWE’s retrospective says it added Superstar voiceovers to Career mode and permitted online singles competition. The online feature should be understood as a historical feature of the release, not evidence that an online service remains available today.
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- Disc only. Original case and manual not included. Will come packaged in a generic case.
- This renewed game has been cleaned, tested, and shows minimal wear.
It sits behind the two earlier entries in this ranking because those games have more defining changes to their match feel in the cited history. Still, the Career-mode voiceovers are a meaningful presentation detail, and the move to the SmackDown-versus-Raw branding marks a new phase for the series.
4. WWF SmackDown! Just Bring It
Just Bring It belongs in a list that includes the predecessor WWF branding. It is a PS2 release, though the available evidence here does not establish further details about its features or a direct comparison with the later WWE-branded entries. Its place is therefore based on its role as an early PS2 entry in the lineage, not on an unsupported claim that it outperforms the games above.
Rank #4
- Bring wrestling excitement to the PlayStation 2 with WWE Smackdown vs. Raw 2009
- Includes a large roster of WWE superstars
- Enhanced Tag Team matches include new double team moves and finishers
- Create-A-Superstar mode lets you customize your own wrestler
- Road to Wrestlemania mode offers deep and compelling story line
GameFAQs’ release-information page identifies it as a PS2 game. That makes the branding distinction explicit: the title uses WWF, rather than WWE.
5. WWE All Stars
WWE All Stars is best approached as an arcade-style alternative, not as another attempt at the main SmackDown formula. Its inclusion broadens the list beyond simulation-oriented entries, but that different design also makes it a less direct choice for someone seeking the more deliberate match style described in WWE’s history of Shut Your Mouth and Here Comes the Pain.
Best Value
- Go to the mat online with multiplayer action on Ethernet equipped PlayStation 2 models.
- Create your own WWE storylines with WWE Story Designer, as you choose Superstars, cutscenes, match-ups and camera angles. It's your script, your rules.
- Make the action in the squared circle your own with New Create-a-Finisher functionality that allows you to create your own high-flying finishing moves.
- A new and improved Road to WrestleMania mode. The popular story-based mode returns with key updates and new storylines, including a first-ever Divas storyline and a Create-a-Superstar storyline.
- Select from a huge roster of 60 wrestlers, pulled from Raw, SmackDown, ECW and a grab-bag of journeymen grapplers.
6. WWE Crush Hour
WWE Crush Hour is another spin-off rather than a conventional wrestling-game installment. It is worth including for readers who mean every kind of licensed WWE-branded PS2 game, but its arcade detour puts it at the bottom for a reader looking for the core wrestling experience. The ranking does not treat a spin-off’s different genre as a flaw so much as a reason it is less suited to that particular goal.
Independent reader supportYour contribution helps us test, update, and keep practical guides available for everyone.Which one should you play?
- Best overall: Here Comes the Pain, for its body-part damage strategy and roster nostalgia.
- Best for series history: Shut Your Mouth, for the shift toward a slower, more strategic style and the SmackDown/Raw crossover.
- Best for the next branding era: SmackDown! vs. Raw (2004), which added Career-mode voiceovers and historically offered online singles play.
- Best if you want a spin-off: All Stars or Crush Hour, depending on whether an arcade departure is what you are after.
The historical details above are documented in WWE’s video-game history and retrospective on the SmackDown series. Yuke’s official catalog corroborates the main series titles, while GameFAQs lists the PS2 release information for Just Bring It.
Quick Recap
Product prices and availability are accurate as of the date/time indicated and are subject to change. Any price and availability information displayed on Amazon at the time of purchase will apply.
