That's just one reason why PALGN is grateful for being able to review Ricky Ponting International Cricket 2005. Another reason to be grateful is that Ricky Ponting International Cricket 2005 is rather good. Certainly, it's better than the messy, far-too-hard-for-it's-own-good Cricket 2005, which we reviewed a few months ago. There's an array of reasons why Codemasters' cricket game enjoys superiority over EA's efforts, though many of these can be summed up in one word: approachability.
See, where Cricket 2005 threw you in at the proverbial deep end with a set of gameplay mechanics that bordered on unfair, Ricky 2005 eases you in gently. A cursory glance at the instruction booklet (the game even comes with an extra four-page 'Quick Start' pamphlet, neatly summing up how user-friendly and immediate the title is attempting to be) and you can be batting and bowling within minutes, all without the fear of being bowled all out by the AI for seven runs. In terms of first impressions, few sports titles leave such an indent. And it's not that it feels too easy either: this is no slogfest, and treating it as such will only result in wickets falling.
Create-a-player, We'd rather use the ones we know
Central to the Ricky 2005 experience are the 'Confidence Meters', a pair of guages in the bottom left of the screen that fill up according to just how cocky the bowler and batsman are feeling at the time. Bowl solidly for a few balls without conceding runs or bowling wides, and the bowler's meter begins to creep up (knocking a batsman on the arm or leg with a ferocious bouncer does the trick as well). And once the bars are full, the bowler can then make use of a 'special' delivery, with yorkers and bouncers becoming available for fast bowlers, and googlies and other variations for spinners. Conversely, a batsman who manages to strike a few boundary shots will see his meter fill, damaging the bowler's confidence and making those sixes just a little easier to obtain. The inclusion of these guages is a smart move, adding a balance to the experience and perfectly mimicking the gradual shifts of momentum that can make real cricket such an absorbing sight.
As for the actual bowling and batting, most of the game's strengths are to be found in the latter. As you'd expect, different shots are assigned to different buttons, with defensive shots, low attacking strokes and lofted shots your main options. Judging the flight and height of the ball is key, though get it right and the rewards are ample: PALGN can't remember another cricket game where guiding a drive through gaps in the fielding team (after checking the whereabout of fielders on the on-screen radar, naturally) was ever so gratifying. And that's a big compliment. Compare the batting mechanics seen here to those of Cricket 2005, and the chasm between the two titles is frankly gaping.
England 6-0 hey? Figures
Alas, the bowling feels slightly less rewarding. Variety is the key to success here, though against better sides capturing wickets can prove a veritable nightmare, no matter how much things are mixed up. And when wickets do arrive, it's difficult to shake the nagging feeling that you didn't have a tremendous amount to do with the fact that your victim is now strolling back to the pavilion. Having said that, the actual mechanics of bowling are well-implemented, with a flexible, confusion-free system that allows players to control the flight, bounce and length of deliveries. It's simple, but sensible. Which is more than the competition manages. Fielding is wisely dealt with as well, with the AI doing the running for you out in the field - the only role you'll have to play here is throwing and catching, performed by accurately stopping a moving 'throw/catch meter' at the right spot. It's real pick-up-and-play stuff, folks.
Indeed, possibly the only part of the game which is inferior to Cricket 2005 are the visuals. The slickness of EA's menus - a hallmark of any EA game, by now - and the solidity of Cricket's visuals simply outpunch what Codemasters' efforts manage, but Lara 2005 is no graphical slouch either. The player models are convincing (if a tad cartoony for our liking) and the stadia and crowds that fill them are also commendable depictions of the real thing. Admittedly, the sound is less inspiring. The actual sound effects during play are more than adequate, with the sound of willow on leather producing a satisfying 'thwack'. But the commentary (will any developer ever get this right in a sports game? Answers on a postcard, please) remains stunted and out-of-sync, whilst the crowd noises are far too samey. To top things off, the menu music is the very definition of 'generic'.
Create a player, then get him hit by the bouncer
They're not the only flaws in the package either. The odd animation is curiously missing (most notably when fielders appear to be lobbing the ball into the crowd, only for the ball to fly back into the wicketkeeper's hands), and there's an absolutely yawning gap between difficulty levels, though PALGN found it's level at 'Village' (the second easiest of the four difficulty settings) and suspects most of you will be the same.
Despite these brief moans, it's nice to finally have a cricket game that doesn't outstay it's welcome. Even fifty-over matches don't lose the player's interest, and Codemasters deserves a hearty slap on the back for constructing a videogame representation of cricket that can genuinely welcome all-comers. That's not to suggest it's a pushover - we dread to think of the kind of people who can overcome the game on 'Test' difficulty. But with those fans who know their Tendulkars from their Third Slips adequately catered for, this really is The Cricket Game For Everybody. And if you possess like-minded friends, the multiplayer only ramps up the enjoyment levels even more.
We will admit that there's probably an even broader debate to be had about whether cricket will ever truly be perfect videogame fodder. Cynics may point out that any cricket game ever created will ultimately boil down to the same three components (batting, bowling, fielding), which could arguably be interpreted as making the player trudge through the same three separate mini-games again and again. But what's here does the job admirably, offering an experience that is engaging and accomodates newcomers and veterans with aplomb. There's a handful of niggly flaws that can easily be ironed out in time for next year's version, but generally we'd say Codemasters can be happy with the latest entry in their venerable cricket series. Infact, we could even say that Ricky Ponting International Cricket 2005 knocks the opposition for six. We could, but we won't.
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