WWE PLE stages used to be so unique...What Happened?
Topics Discussed In this Video:
1. WWE Stages Are Boring in 2024
2. Modern Day WWE Stages Are Boring and Uninspiring
3. WWE News
4. Wrestling News
5. Wrestlelamia
WWE PLE stages used to be so unique...What Happened?
Topics Discussed In this Video:
1. WWE Stages Are Boring in 2024
2. Modern Day WWE Stages Are Boring and Uninspiring
3. WWE News
4. Wrestling News
5. Wrestlelamia
Stages and titantrons. Bring them both back.
i mean, we kinda still got titantrons
yeah
The boring single big screen setup they use is way easier so unfortunately this might be the only one we will be using for awhile
@@Jayjay0829 I get that it's easier but sometimes easy isn't best.
I miss the big fist for smack down 😂
The stages are boring & only putting the wrestler’s name in the titantron is boring. Bring back custom titantron like before. Seeing Logan Paul & Kevin Owens titantrons brings back memories.
Disagree. I stopped watching back in 2016 and all the stages were incredibly boring. A month ago I got back into watching and absolutely love what they have done with it
@@jendas333 you’re tweakin..
You forgot PatMcAfee
@jendas333 You definitely smoking something 😂
Agreed
The Armageddon set from 2008 where it looked like a ruined city was amazing.
Agreed.
the night hardy one right?
won*
@@therealuno808 yup that’s the one.
That had the smoke in the quaters was actually the best stage of all time and armageddon 04 just that ppv in general was great
Not to mention It takes away from enjoyment of playing the games when all of the modern stages look exactly the same with a diffrent graphic.
Bingo 🎯 I'm so irritated with WWE2k24 stages I thought they were going to switch it this year but the best stages are the Wrestlemania ones which I don't want to do every time so disappointed
Well you can create some old stages, but why 2K simply don't make them themselves and put in the game is beyond me...similar to attires - you have 2013 Kane, but you don't have his most iconic 1998 look, no Big Poppa Pump, no young Kurt Angle with hair, no nWo Macho Man, no Road Dogg at all (he still work for WWE and was in 22, so why he was cut?), no DX music etc...each year people waste their time to recreate the exact same arenas and wrestlers, instead of having most of them in the game already
@@vitaliydubkov4008exactly just like they have 2008 kane but don’t have slow chemical
This is a big one. I can’t find the same enjoyment in the games when it just feels like I’m doing in the same place over and over. I know you can create but it just doesn’t feel as authentic to me.
@@TreeyVibez2k is lazy
The music is the biggest problem. The video of Seth Rollins at the royal rumble 2024 was all of us. No one knows who the wrestlers are coming out because it’s not the same compare to Jim johnston
yeah, big L from wwe for letting go johnston
FACTS dude.
Some are good like seth, Roman, Jey (though gets repetitive), bray's theme was great, la knight, and a few others
Overall Jim Johnston is better
Jim Johnston and Jimmy Hart were THE musical voices of the wrestlers, as back then each song perfectly identified the wrestler, now the music is just noise just to get the musician over and not the wrestlers.
Can't fathom that back then we had incredible unique setups for both main shows and PPVs and now it's just a generic boring screen outside of WrestleMania events and it's sad, we need unique stages back and the pre-pandemic RAW and SmackDown sets
FACTS
I’ve been thinking this for years the stages are so generic looking and basic
@@alexrivera633 I've seen custom made arenas on 2K that look WAY better and creative...
sounds like everyone missing vince now
@@tripsix263 *STOP 🛑 THE CAP* 🧢
I miss the Smackdown fist.
me too, absolute classic!
It send to saudi arabia Riyadh
I bet you wish it wan in URANUS
I wake up every Friday hopin it would make a return….
Attitude era and Ruthless Aggression era are the best of stages
And WCW stages too. 1997-2008 was the best stages sets period. Around 2010 it all begin go downhill. Instead of wasting money on electronic ringsides, ramps, poles and all these 3D PS3 graphics you see on your TV, why not produse better stages at least for big 4.
I think you mean RA and early PG era. Attitude actually had pretty much nothing until it's final 2 years.
@CYB3R2K PG Era had the same boring stage for both raw and smackdown so no.
@@23bitchris60 I'm talking about PPV
@@vitaliydubkov4008Raw and Smackdown had good stages in the 2010s but cool ppv stages started to go down hill though.
The stage, the entrance themes, the titantron. They’re all the biggest problems in 2024.
A major reason why stars have a hard time getting over
Triple H said that he doesn't like those huge stages, so I guess we're going to expect less in that
Theyve sucked since about 2008 2010 dude …where were u all these years
the pyro and fire theme songs with lyrics
@@anoopraghunath2471 2008-10..still had unique themes ,unique stages , and actually had titanrons...so I don't know what you mean by your comment...generic presentation started in mid to late 2010s
The Raw 2005 stage was awesome and those old WCW stages in the 90’s were iconic.
Facts I hate SmackDown and Raw stage now
@@Zackey-Zackkwell they are just big screens now but they are still thousands of times better than what they used in 2017 - 19 those were the ugliest stages i have ever seen
@@JustAsh001 they need to go back to the old days just all around
The early 00's stages were awesome they need to bring them back it feels like only WrestleMania they continue to have a big stage for
I miss the swinging hooks from Backlash.
FACTS My favorites were the night of champions and taboo tuesday stage ramps where night of champions had all the wwe championships at the on both sides and taboo tuesday had a big 2000’s like computer.
that stage was sick.
So CLASSIC
Back in wcw days they had a pool surrounded the ring use that for summerslam
@@chrisdominguez5632 Such a great arena and a great idea
One of my favorite things from my childhood is watching the ppvs to see how they decorated it. And then I couldn’t wait to play the new video games every year to see how well they replicated it in the games. Hopefully they bring creative stages back 😭 same with the themes and entrance titantrons!
We could never order the ppv's but always made sure to watch Sunday Night Heat to get a glimpse of the stage.
Bingo
Old stage sets used to be so iconic. You could see the stage and know exactly which show and year it was. They also looked so cool. I hate wwe’s current stage sets. Their ppv’s all look generic and the same. Even the tv shows have boring designs. I just hate the current look in wwe. Especially dislike the set for bigger venues with the minimal stage and long angled ramp. If you’re gonna do no stage at least make it look like the garden
Weirdly enough, wrestling set stage designs was my first dream job. I cant express the amount of elementary school drawings of stages in notebooks and sketchbooks or combinations of toy sets i would create in my youth. When i got to art college, they switched to the hd era and everything normalized and that dream was killed haha😅
I miss the way the stage was designed on raw back in 2008
The last good year of WWE!!!😅😅
@@HulkMode365daysnah. Last good year of WWE was definitely 2011. 2011 was a hell of a year.
FACTS same.
@@darinwatts54312012 to 16 were way better.
It’s probably better rn than it was in 08
Stages, titantrons, pyros, theme songs, wrestlers intro presentation scenes before matches, title designs everything became minimalistic
Pyrotechnics had gotten better recently tbh
wwe still uses pyro
Wrestlemania 39 set was awesome. It looked even better in person.
Finally! A big channel said it! I really love when WWE designed their sets. It's the first thing you see every PPV back in the days. #BringBackTheFist
The stages and generic themes always been a problem. WWE needs to bring back Jim Johnston and pay CFO$ so the wrestlers can get their themes back starting with DIY
Jim Johnston retired. So don't think he will be back.
Its terrible. Awful. 😊
I just want the ruthless aggression ramp back on raw.
and the ruthless aggression stage set for raw
I’ll never forget when Jeff Hardy ended Armageddon 2008 on top of the stage that is iconic
Us
I absolutely agree. It is one of many reasons why I don't watch WWE as consistently as I once did. These stages are annoying. They abandoned the Titantron Videos, which are very important elements in the presentation of a WWE Wrestling Superstar.
I used to be obsessed with the Attitude Era ppv stages
The Clash at the Castle screen above the ring was one of my favorite elements. I'd love if the more unique PLEs had different elements like that
Royal Rumble 2014 was a sad day. That day began same stage PPVs.
Royal Rumble 2006 has to be one of my favorite PPV set designs ever Bringing back unique theming to each PPV would be awesome and I really hope they consider it
I do miss the big titantron and the unique ppv stages.
WrestleMania 33 had a fun Universial Studios inspired stage with this long ramp.
This year’s Backlash isn’t going to be in Paris, but in Lyon which is a different city in France, so it wouldn’t make sense to have the Eiffel Tower as a prop or something.
A theory of mine was that the reason why WWE uses the same stage is so that they can have enough money and budget for any elaborate stages for WrestleMania
Money is a big reason. It's not that they're saving money for WrestleMania's stage, it's just that they figured out it's easier and cheaper to transport generic sets, not to mention creating those sets.
@@areyouokayanniebecauseIam Plus 2k is lazy and I don't think they would bother putting extra work creating special sets for PLEs 😂😂
@@areyouokayanniebecauseIamBut pre pandemic Raw and SD had different stages. I mean even from 2015-2018, the stages they used were still unique and interesting even though they reused them for Raw, SD, B PPVs and NXT Takeovers
@@night6724 That doesn't disprove my point at all but ok
The real reason is that the sets are smaller, so they can pack more people in the stadiums/arenas
I've been saying this for YEARS! They just use the same generic stage for almost every PLE for nearly a decade! All they do is just swap out what logos are emblazoned on the LED boards and call it a day instead of going all in on a new design every time so you can look back and be like "Oh, that was Backlash 2016", "That was Elimination Chamber 2014", "That was Royal Rumble 2019". No, instead it's "when the hell was this?" "Was this SmackDown? Oh wait, it was Fastlane!?" Literally, same stage, different graphics!
Remember Bad Blood when it had the big drops of blood hanging. Or No Way out where the stage was a big lock and chains. Or King of the Ring where the stage was big chair. Man I miss the unique stages
For the rumble, bring back the Tron. When the timer hits 10 and counts down to one, pictures of random superstars (men and women) current and legends quickly flash on the screen then when it hits 0, it shows a picture of the next entry and after a few seconds plays their titantron video
I think another thing is the video packages in the titantrons during entrances. I miss those. Now it’s just the wrestlers name or logo
I’m a sucker for custom stages for huge shows. I would love to see those make a comeback.
Same here
💯
dont forget the WWE didn't have huge entrance sets in the past, they often just have a WWF logo as decoration. it shouldn't be impossible to combine physical objects and LEDs in different ways.
I absolutely miss unique stages and sets to death as well. BUT, if I have to say one thing positive, it’s that I actually enjoy the smaller more minimal stages with less screens and the crooked ramps. Those have been really fun to watch. Like SummerSlam 2022 for instance.
I missed having the videos of their entrance themes on the titantron on top of the entry door. Sadly they just have a big screen with the wrestler's name in poor text fonts or their logo.
The last time I can remember WWE having a really unique set for Summerslam was sometime in the early 2000's
I remember the one when Triple H returned from injury in 2007, there was surfboards and palm trees. Why can't they do that now?
I remember the cinema themed summerslam in 2008
Same
I miss the 2002 King of the Ring set. Simply stunning.
Other than WrestleMania, most of the PLEs nowadays will feature the same stage set ups as the Raw, NXT, and SmackDown sets and later remove pyrotechnics for a couple of years. It’s been like that since 2016 following the Draft that year. Not to mention the entrance videos just displaying just the Superstar's name or catchphrases aside from a few exceptions.
The PLE shows just feel like slightly extended house shows with its matchcards and presentation. Then Wrestlemania now just feels like a bigger extention of a PLE with a cool stage setup.
Recently they’ve been going heavy on the tunnel entrance stage for international shows or some US shows (Royal Rumble and Summerslam) to fit more people in the house. What doesn’t make sense is how they’re treating Summerslam. Big stadium but no stage…. Basic lighting rig above the ring. Disappointing. The big 4 PPVs should have 80 percent the production value and effort of Wrestlemania.
Wwe need to bring back the classic stages and ppv again like Armageddon ppv
FACTS
Yep i'll even add to it Unforgiven, No Way Out, Judgment Day, No Mercy bring all those old favorites back
@@chrisgarrett9727 oh yea for sure especially unforgiving that my favorite one
@@ShaneDouglas713 💯💯
FACTS dude.
It's because they sell so many tickets to PLEs that seating areas which would otherwise be walled off are utilized, meaning the sets are intentionally minimized to accommodate more ticket sales. Look at Survivor Series this year. There was almost no set at all because of demand. RAW is going back to Allstate Arena in Chicago in March and there are 4K less tickets being offered, probably to accommodate the RAW set.
We need opening pyro Back!
💯 I don’t care what those uneducated fake wrestling marks think 🤬🤬🤬🤬
💯 I don’t care what uneducated wrestling fans think 😊😊😊😊😊
The HD era stages were all the same with different graphics. At least stages are slightly different currently
Yup that was part of the excitement was seeing what different they would do with the stages to the pay per view
I miss the days of Attitude and Ruthless Aggression when every stage was unique and creatively beautiful. The slanted titantron of Ruthless Aggression Raw, the SmackDown fist👊, and PPVs such as SummerSlam 2007 and 2008 for example, Taboo Tuesday/Cyber Sunday, etc. all had beautiful stages and it made the aforementioned shows more memorable. I truly hope they can do this again for all PPVs in the future one day, outside of WrestleMania.🙏
Truly hope so too bro
I miss the raw stage from 2005 with the screen and the lighting sides
Same here
@@jumpman2326I miss the Smackdown fist everytime I see that I start reminiscing about the early 2000s those times were special and so much fun especially in WWE.
Another thing that is missed form the Attitude & Ruthless Aggression era are those times where songs from hard rock & metal bands such as Godsmack, Alter Bridge, and others to used to promote WWE Pay-per-views
100% agree with unique sets, they need to return. They also need to consider the experience of the fans in attendance, I was at the Elimination Chamber in Perth and the Stage was flat on the ground - I bought a gold package and had first row seats, however could not see superstars enter or come down the aisle until they got up onto the ring because the Crowd on the floor were all stood up. Each time a superstar would enter and their music hit, the live feed wasnt streamed to the screens either, because the screens were in full view of the camera, so we had the generic "superstar name" graphic displayed , instead of a view of their entrances. They really should bring back raised ramps and stages and consider their fans and their experience more. From what I gathered, I assume logistics had alot to do with why we only got a few screens, I have a feeling WWE sourced the equipment locally given they had issues getting the Chamber out here.
They could do it but things have gotten way to expensive since the 90s😅
Why don't they just re-use their older ones? They still own them!
The hooks for backlash!!! And that one Survivor Series with the different spotlights, they need the cool stages again.
Stages only affect the ones in attendance. The ones watching on TV it really doesn't bother. The stage is only shown for a minimal amount of time and as each wrestler is introduced, the CGI pops up as they pan the crowd. So, it's really not a big deal. Just as long as the in ring show is good, that's where the money is
I 100% agree with you. That was one of the biggest wow factors growing up in the late 90’s and 00’s. I would love my baby daughter to love Wrestling and WWE like I did, but how do you do that, if it’s not as captivating as it used to be regarding unique sets and that wow factor in presentation (Larger than life)
Wwe only needs to being back 2 things: Bright white lights and high volume music
Yall absolutely right!!! The prices they are asking us to pay is ridiculous and we definitely deserve better when it comes to these stages and entrance
WWE Needs to bring back separate stages for Raw And Smackdown and also as formentioned All PLEs needs different Stage and set but also Smackdown and Raw Logos needs to change too
The creativity of stages in WWE is what made most ppvs stand out in my book. And its really bland using the big one piece led light. I truly hope we get some more creativity and more unique ways to make ppvs more fun again.
Oh man they used the same curved entrance so many times... And the big screen that's on raw and smackdown. I do miss the old school custom entrances for each show and ppv
Only thing I miss is entrance videos with highlights of the persons career
I imagine the reason why stages are basically just one or two big LED screens, is because it’s cost effective and reduces waste. I’ve always wondered what happened to the sets and props after the event has ended and I imagine the answer is it’s stored away in a big warehouse never to be used again. So why would they spend money on designs that would only get used once, when you can just use the same LED screens that are used every week for Raw & SmackDown. I think there should be some kind of special stage design that sets Raw & SmackDown apart and makes them look and feel like the independent shows that they are. We all remember the SmackDown fist and the huge titantron that Raw had, and that design won’t go to waste as it will be used every week. But again, it’s time and money having to pay someone to set it all up before shows and tear it down after
I love the really simple sets for PLEs it means you can get more fans in and the packed feeling of a crazy event is just vibes like Backlash in Puerto Rico
They need to bring back creative stages
They should bring back the simple RAW stage from the mid-90s where it's just an entrance ramp, red drapes, and the Titantron.
makes sense they stop when most stages would only be used once and never used again
Thank you for putting this story out there! I don't even use the boring stages in the WWE 2K games.
Back 20 years ago or so even 30 years ago, the stages were unique and also very detailed and told the story. Now it’s too generic
I really miss the old days when they had unique stage sets. I just hope someday that they bring them back but I'm not holding my breath on that.
glad someone took up this topic
The pirate ship at Raymond James stadium wasn't a WWE prop. It's owned by the team/stadium. WWE just provided the sails.
I wish they still did their throwback show like Old School Raw and setup the old stages again.
Right. I miss the SMACKDOWN FIST. the Raw stage from 2002 to 2006 was dope as well.
@@darinwatts5431 the fist was so cool man. It was so unique, just having a big logo on a screen is so bland.
@@ass640 yea. It is. My opinion the last good Raw/SMACKDOWN stage was the stage from 2014-2016 with the W up by the ramp. I kinda miss that one to. That was pretty much the last stage to feature a actual titantron.
I don't care about stage designs anymore honestly. It's not necessarily something I pay attention too.
I always LOVED those banners at Night of Champions with the title belts. That set was one of my favorites.
Tbh I’m tired of the boring raw and smackdown giant screen and flat stage w no ramp
I’m glad someone said it, it’s been goin on for a minute now
I know there couldn't be as many people in attendance, but a show at the Vegas Sphere could be one of the coolest shows ever.
HHH made a point in the after show media to explain that they were dialing back on the stages to focus on the audience. I really appreciated the muted stage for WrestleMania way more than anything in the past. It felt good and proper.
When I was younger, I'd get so excited ordering a PPV & wondering what the set was going to look like.
I am so grateful for this video because I am so disappointed with WWE stages since 2014 when they started to get rid off the unique stage designs for each ppv. Especially someone who has so many subscribers like you doing such a video is so important and hopefully one day this request will be heard by the right people
For the royal rumble set they should have a titantron that shows the superstar about to enter the rumble similar to how they would do for the draft back in the day, but a separate screen
I’d go further to say that the brand shows have even lost their uniqueness. Other than the LED and lighting both brands are exactly the same. We can’t even get Red and Blue ropes anymore. They look very dull. We need a 2016 style boost to the overall production
They couldn't fit the money in the budget, or they would save it for the better shows.
It’s called cheapness, it’s not that complex.
Don’t kid yourself, they have the budget
I miss PPV stages and titantrons
No excuses they need to fix the problem they are making BILLIONS
@@NoMoreHeroes75 My reply exactly
It’s also a business move. The smaller the stage, the more people they can attend. It’s 1 less expense they have to spend on
The smaller the stage the fewer people needed to set it up! Thats how carnies become billionaires. Then you 💩 on staff and spend the $ you saved. 🤨👈
We don't care if they have to book big Arenas all the time just for great stages so be it throw the little Arenas in the trash then a sacrifice worth sacrificing because I didn't grow up on wrestling like this
RA era was peak entrance design. Now they have like one template that they use for every show. And this trend has been going on for years now. Back in late 2007 or early 2008 they removed the iconic stage designs for raw and smackdown just to introduce the generic looking entrance that was used for both shows.
I don’t know if this is a WWE problem or just a modern issue. Modern branding is an issue everywhere. A lot of companies put simplicity and modernism over personality and intriguing designs.
The inclusion of footage from the born this way ball was a crossover I did not expect but thoroughly enjoyed
Nothing beats RAW 1998 or SmackDown 1999 sets, imo.
Raw 2002 stage was better
@@jumpman2326 nah.
@@BeAGoodDoga hell yeah it was more creative
@@jumpman2326 but generic.
@@BeAGoodDoga you bugging how was the stage generic?
They could do the rumble entry graphic how the old draft graphic was used. Quickly cycle through all the superstars who can come
Thank you wrestlelamia for acknowledging the generic stages in ppvs today, I would always be hooked how the ppv stages looked before but now its only a big screen in every event, I'd love to see more variety again, that fits into the theme like they did before, at least nxt ppvs every often bring different designs on their ppvs, the nxt in your house ppv was a good example too, brought back the classic in your house stage
I would like it if WWE brought back unique stage designs for the PLE's. Theres a reason why people get excited for the Wrestlemania stage reveal....
6:26 "backlash is being held in Paris" it's litteraly written "Lyon" on the poster. It's not in Paris.
They stopped doing this to save money, and at the time it was a good idea. But we all know money isn’t a problem anymore as the product is better than ever
The product is not better
True i 100% agree 2015 was last year after that in 2016 stages are boring (excluding wrestlemania)
Totally agree 👍 Bring Back The WCW Halloween Havoc Stage 😈 The best In wrestling history 🎃
"Backlash is set to be held in Paris" The picture: Lyon-Décines
I do like your idea for the Royal Rumble. Have a screen that flicks through pictures of every wrestler before stopping on one, basically making it look like a random selection. Maybe add a picture in picture that shows the wrestlers sitting backstage, waiting to see who's next and then heading to the curtain so they can use all their entrance music. I've also been thinking they should change the countdown to use the sound from Chris Jericho's entrance. As far as sets, if you're going to call it a 'premium live event', you have to make the set look special. I think you have be able to design a skeleton set so you can effectively pin each set to it.
They need an intro with pyro 🧨 like in attitude era
I was super disappointed in 2014 after payback they decided “screw creativity let’s use the same stage for our weekly shows” even summerslam that year was a weekly television show stage seriously and I thought when summerslam in 2016 brought in a different look it then they used it for raw and it became evident that it was gonna be used for ppvs. I miss the days when wwe stages were unique and different especially backlash