Ricky Ponting International Cricket

At first glance cricket games might seem like an arbitrary exercise. After all, unless you’re a hardcore nut who prays to a Buddha-like statue of Boonie every night, cricket is a boring-ass sport whose only exciting moments seem to be in your own backyard or school oval with mates. But if you think long and hard about the videogame medium and then look at the depth of planning and strategy involved in real-life cricket, a parallel forms. In essence the two aren’t that dissimilar, and gamers with any degree of patience (RPG, RTS and TBS games come to mind) can probably dig deep and find something of value within this slowly expanding sports game field.

EA’s Cricket 2005 was a reasonable attempt from the conglomerate to create an uber-realistic cricket simulation, but the difficulty of the overall product left players feeling somewhat ripped off. Enter Atari’s Ricky Ponting International Cricket 2005, a cricket outing whose balance in batting, bowling and fielding makes for an enjoyable and affable experience. Developed by Codemasters, RPIC 2005 offers excellent pick-up-and-play value for the casual gamer but also enough subtle depth for the truly hardcore. There’s enough to control on the field at all times without the overall game-plan becoming too overwhelming – an aspect Cricket 2005 seemed to lack. RPIC 2005 doesn’t throw in the deep-end and casually (but consistently) introduces you to the more subtle and deep adjustments available to you.

Both bowlers and batters have a unique meter called the “Confidence Meter” this meter is filled for either side for performing well. Fill it up and watch your cockiness reward you. Bowlers who manage maiden overs or consecutive wickets will fill their meter as will any batters who find the right fielding gaps or hit the ball to the fence on a regular basis. Fielding is mostly managed by AI though not so much so you feel like a third wheel. Batting direction and bowling strategy are all available to you at the single tap of a button during the course of action making for an easy to grasp control aspect, despite their being so many options to drive from.

While the gameplay is ultimately rewarding, the same cannot be said of the game’s visuals and presentation. Player animations are sloppy while character models lack any real depth. The commentary is woeful (games of this nature need an unlockable “12th Man Again” mode), while the sound effects throughout are just passable.Stadiums look ok for the most part and the crowds within do an ok job of selling the sensation of being there, but it is inconsistent when compared to the other visuals. The presentation from start-up lacks any polish and coming from the slick EA offering on Cricket 2005 doesn’t compare. Obviously this isn’t adverse when considering the actual gameplay, but I like my products to look good all-round.

An enjoyable multiplayer keeps things interesting if single-player gets too much, but both modes definitely make this game a worthy purchase for cricket fans. It’s not the perfect cricket game, but it’s the best of what was on offer in the field of the year that was. We’re readily looking out for the 06 instalment.