Preview by: Brian Rowe

"Bigger, badder and better," is the overall theme of WWE 12, and a phrase repeated numerous times in press releases and throughout my hands-on preview. THQ isn't trying to hide behind a curtain of razzle and dazzle. There was no mention of "revolutionary new features." Instead, WWE 12 is reshaping many of last year's features and using them as foundations for improvement.

Just how big and bad is WWE 12? Well, you will be able to create your own shows and tweak the progression of the season to your liking in Universe mode, just like last year. Nearly every conceivable match-type or Superstar can be created from scratch, much like before. You will also have access to 70+ Superstars, Divas and Legends; the same number in 2011. On the surface, WWE 12 has the appearance of the same exact game, but there are tons of small, but key revisions for the WWE-faithful.

As an example of one of these changes, the crowd was a point of distraction for me in 2011. It was all too obvious how frequently the audience members were repeated, especially when six copies of the same yellow-shirted fellow stood side-by-side. WWE 12 has the good grace to use a more shallow depth-of-field and less striking colors to help the audience sink anonymously into the background so that you can concentrate on the action. It's a small, almost insignificant feature, but it makes a noticeable difference.

More importantly, the controls are showing a drastic amount of improvement over last year's confusing mess of combos and contortions. WWE 12 has more 'pick up and play' appeal, without feeling like a button-masher for morons. Within five minutes I was targeting limbs and repositioning grapples, but still getting pummeled by counterattacks. As previously revealed, Comeback maneuvers offer failing players a chance to reverse the momentum of the match. A good player should have no troubles negating the Comeback, so it is hardly a game-breaking concept. In some cases…it may even be necessary.

The main problem that I ran into, constantly, was the targeting in matches with more than one opponent. I was wailing on a guy and, suddenly, I spun 180 degrees to face someone halfway across the ring and started punching thin air. And, when I've been pounding on someone for two minutes and I throw him into the ropes, it only makes sense that I would want to target him on the rebound. As experienced players know, it only takes a single slip-up like this to turn the tide of a match.

Universe mode is likely to be the main draw of WWE 12, and it works much like the previous game. As the season progresses, you can play the matches yourself or let the AI take over, and you have free reign to edit matches, stats, abilities of Superstars, create new brands, and so on. To put this into better perspective, it is possible to have an entire season featuring only user-created content. This includes fully customized entrances, including your own music; a feature missing since the original Xbox.