THQ has declared WWE Smackdown Vs Raw 2010 the biggest release of its financial year – and said that its release will cement its place as the fighting genre’s No.1 publisher.

The firm will unveil the game this weekend at WWE event Summerslam – a show it says emphasises the “crucial importance” of the title to its business.

“WWE Smackdown Vs Raw 2010 is a pillar release for THQ this Christmas,” THQ’s product marketing manager for UK and Europe Mark Cook told MCV. “The game remains our biggest release this fiscal year and will be launching on six platforms on October 23rd.

“Strategically the title is of crucial importance and will further cement THQ’s dominance of the fighting category, along with the launch of UFC 2009 Undisputed earlier this year in May.”

For this year’s iteration, THQ has taken a more reserved approach to revealing the game’s features.

“Our traditional campaign would be to announce the new title at Wrestlemania in March and then blow out the feature set and start the PR campaign from E3 onwards,” Cook explained.

“This year, we took a strategic decision to save the big reveal for Summerslam on August 23rd. It’s the biggest event of the summer for WWE fans and is a perfect platform for us to deliver a fully integrated announce programme.

“By holding back on the feature set for so long and teasing the fans with the upcoming PR initiatives, we have been able to whip the Smackdown Vs Raw gamer and WWE fan into a frenzy of excitement and anticipation about the big reveal.”

PR activity begins this weekend, including the first  on-air gameplay footage on The Jimmy Fallon Show and a sponsorship deal for all WWE programmes on Sky Sports.