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The November 17 installment of Monday Night Raw aired on Netflix featured Cena's ultimate appearance on the program as an active wrestler. It also saw the return and showdown between Brock Lesnar and Roman Reigns as they teamed up with their individual groups for the forthcoming 5-on-5 match at WarGames. Wedged in between the action were shockers like AJ Lee assisting Maxxine Dupri win the women's Intercontinental Championship, and Dolph Ziggler reappearing. In such a packed Madison Square Garden spectacle, the focus was grabbed by Lil Yachty, when he showed off his silver PSP for the camera, indicating he was playing SmackDown! vs Raw 2006.

Popular Incident: Lil Yachty and His Portable Console

Regardless of everything that happened on this historic Raw, it was Lil Yachty and his PSP that went viral. Could it be because of pop culture's undying love for Sony's mobile device? Might it be because people nostalgically recall the brilliance of the SmackDown! vs. Raw franchise? Alternatively, because WWE fans aren't interested in the more recent 2K games?

Examining SmackDown! vs. Raw 2006: A Iconic Title

Uninitiated fans, SmackDown! vs. Raw 2006 represented the series' first appearance on the PSP and was the ultimate entry in the SmackDown! vs. Raw line to remain exclusive to PlayStation. The game shifted the franchise toward increased realism and authenticity, moving away from the fast-paced feel of earlier titles. It brought in 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 diminished as matches grew more intense; flashier moves meant faster fatigue. SmackDown! vs. Raw 2006 finally became the most popular PlayStation 2 installment in the entire series.

Development of the Line

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

Gameplay and Special Elements

Back in the day, the SmackDown! vs. Raw games reigned supreme and appeared as an evolution of titles from the N64 era, thanks to enhanced graphics. When the franchise shifted to PlayStation 2, that feeling only heightened as titles with crisp visuals, new gaming modes, and RPG storylines were steadily introduced.

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

Sentiment and Heritage

The previous SmackDown! vs. Raw games were very zany, even when they targeted more realistic gameplay. The franchise moved toward total simulations with the 2K games, devoid of the creative ideas of their predecessors. But the older titles also served as time capsules of some of our favorite eras of wrestling.

Maybe fans are nostalgic for a similar, more "fun-based" time in their wrestling games. Maybe the joy of seeing a celebrity paying tribute to the greatness of the PSP, like the rest of the internet does, is what made folks applaud Yachty. Or perhaps SmackDown! vs. Raw 2006 was genuinely outstanding, and mirrors an similarly great era of wrestling, one that was led by John Cena, who will step away from in-ring competition on Dec. 13, at the Capital One Arena in Washington, D.C.