The Gimmick hits a six while wearing his wrestling mask
Publisher: Atari
Sat, 24 December 2005
by: The Gimmick
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Ok, now I know this review may seem a bit out of place here on planet Buttonhole, but to tell you the truth as refined and as sophisticated as I am now (hahahaha, I just said "fist"!) I still have a lot of "Yob Shite" in me, which is probably why I love my Aussie sport so much. Now I'm not saying that I'm so far Yob that I'm a fan of Jimmy Barnes, but I am a sports fan, which means I love my Footy, I love my Cricket, I love my Midget tossing. No not that kind, the non filthy one - You sick freaks! Anyway, because of my love of sports and my love of games, it seems reasonable to be a fan of the sports games genre on home consoles. Now, back in 1999-2000 Codemasters released a cricket game for the PSOne called Shane Warne Cricket and it blew my mind. The overall package was phenomenal and is still today one of those rare games I go back and play over and over again, even with the better looking games on my PS2. Well now my prayers have been answered, because Codemasters and Swordfish Studios along with Atari have released the newest cricket game for the PS2 entitled: Ricky Ponting International Cricket 2005.
It plays almost exactly the same as the Shane Warne version released 5 or so years ago which is awesome. I played the EA Sports cricket game when it was released, and I personally wasn't impressed. It was too realistic and hardcore which took away from a lot of the fun of playing a sports sim game. This game however is a lot of fun, and yet still has a style that requires you to be switched on. In other words, you don't seem to need a degree in cricket psychology and or match tactics to be able to play it, but you still need some brains. The game play options are standard with both One Day and Test Matches available in exhibition mode and also a Double Wicket game which is basically a two on two match. The game modes keep coming with ICC Cricket World Cup, ICC Champions Trophy, World XI Series, World Tour and Custom League.
 | | Someone should clean that red spot off the pitch |
All the teams are available including Australia, New Zealand, England, West Indies and India (and the others) but it also includes the lesser known teams like Canada, Namibia and Kenya. There is no domestic teams listing which I kinda liked in the EA sports game but that does nothing to diminish the overall strength of this title. Another weird thing is in exhibition mode the names of the players are not official names. For example, S. Warne is called S. Warde and A. Gilchrist is A. Gelchrast. Takes me back to old NES Cricket game where the players had strange alterations to their living counterparts. You can however alter their names in the edit section, so they will be back and feeling normal in no time.
The options are excellent and not only can you change the difficulty, but you can decide everything from the venue to the amount of overs played to the pitch conditions and even to the weather and the type of ball used. There is even a career mode which allows you to create someone including their facial features, their abilities, whether they're a left or right handed batsman, and then you can enter them into an international side. The more you use this player and the more runs you score with him or wickets and catches you take, his attributes will increase accordingly. There are also challenges that you can try to complete which unlock certain things, ranging from recreating historical moments in cricket to rewriting history.
The game's batting and bowling are great, with a couple of variations to the Shane Warne version. The bowling, first off, is pretty typical but with a few more added extras, including more deliveries and the ability to swing the ball before it lands- causing confusion with the batsman and hopefully a dismissal. The fielding is a lot more involved, and although the fielder will chase automatically, there is a throw back meter that judges how quickly you throw back to the keeper and a catch meter which determines whether you catch like an Aussie or drop it like a Pom.
 | | There is the man himself...my old mate, Caffa (and some other bloke) |
The batting control is awesome and, depending on how good you are at reading the delivery, you can pretty much hit it exactly where you want it to go; which gives it a nice realistic feel. There were a couple of little problems that arose whilst playing, such as- the fielders will always throw the ball to the wicket keeper, no matter where the fielder is, making it extremely hard to run someone out. Also, you can move back and forth along the crease when batting, but you can't head down the pitch ala Dean Jones and smack it down the ground, or cause a stumping. There is also a confidence meter that depletes and increases depending on what you do either as a batsman or a bowler, but it drops and rises too quickly and makes the player seem like he's got bi-polar disorder. But these little flaws don't hamper this game much at all.
Overall, there are so many little things that I like about this title, including playing classic challenges from 1880's and the players looking exactly like they came from that era and even presented in black and white vision. Or when a bowler beats a batsman he gives him a mouthful and the batsman gives some back. It's truly a great game, not only in comparison to other cricket titles, but as a stand alone. So, if you're like me and want to extract revenge on the Poms, or want to humble a Kiwi but don't want to suffer the ramifications of the law, or you just want a good cricket game that will keep you happy for a long time, then this is for you. It will definitely be another one of those rare games that keep me coming back for a long time.
Versions of Ricky Ponting International Cricket 2005 are also available for Xbox and PC
by: The Gimmick
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