Cricket 2002

"Yet Another Flawed Cricket Sim"

Cricket 2002 is just one of those games that you can't help but notice the (Many) wrongs that are present, yet end up enjoying it at the same time. Although it comes close, it ends up as another sport-sim that doesn't quite do the real game justice.

Cricket is a game where two sides, each fielding eleven people, go out onto a pitch, and attempt to score as many 'runs' as possible. Each batsman has eleven batsman to amass a score.

The controls are simple, fluid and flowing. Relatively few buttons are used in the control scheme of this game. The buttons are programmable to any keys that you want, and you'll find that, most of the time, you'll achieve the desired result from the control system.

The gameplay is simple; however, this doesn't take away anything from the enjoyment of the player. Before facing a ball, you can see the ball cursor. You'll have a relatively good idea of where it will pitch, so you can move into position, in order to play the desired shot. Once the bowling cursor goes away, you can't move any further. You choose a shot, and choose whether to play it of the front or back foot, or if you want to advance down the pitch, or whether you want to leave it altogether.

A simple power boost can be achieved, with a pre-mapped power boost button. Timing of the shots obviously plays a big part in the batting process, and will most likely determine the outcome of the shot, like whether it goes for 4, 6, or you get out. Playing the power boost button puts more risk on the shot, but you'll have a chance of hitting sixes, and a higher chance of hitting fours.

Bowling is simple to control. A simple cursor will appear, and you can move it around to decide where the ball will pitch. You have a limited amount of time to do this, and as the difficulty increases, the cursor becomes increasingly harder to position. After the cursor is set, the player will then decide the pace of the ball, using a 'power bar' of sorts. If the orange that creeps up the bar passes a set mark, a no-ball will be called, giving the opponent a free run. Along with this, the movement of the ball can be set, with a small marker that appears on the face of the ball. You can set where you want it, using the movement buttons. The ball will spin/swing accordingly, although it is difficult to control, for the most part.

The bowling is highly tedious and annoying. Most players will end up skipping the bowling part altogether.

Much of the criticism can be leveled at the obvious lack of realism. Even at the hardest difficulty levels, it is extremely easy to notch up a century. The shot selection, is at most time, poor, failing to emulate the scope at which the various shots can be played in real life, often leaving the player puzzled on what to do. The graphic animation and 'feel' of the various shots isn't captured with any accuracy. Sweeps being played from well outside the off stump, front foot drives off of bouncers, and even hooks off of seemingly pitched up balls.

Fielding, specifically the accuracy of throws, is so shockingly accurate that it leaves you to wonder what the developers were thinking.

The array of bugs also detracts from the experience of the game. Some of the time, one batsman will stay at one end, while the other runs to the same end, when you had specifically called them back. The accuracy of LBW decisions is shockingly inaccurate, often getting out to balls that pitch outside the leg stump, a situation that is never apparent in real life.

The graphics are ordinary. The player models offer nothing new, and the crowd is, shockingly, cardboard. However, the stadiums are done relatively well, and the environmental graphics offer variety.

Cricket 2002 contains a decent amount of replay value, featuring many different tournaments, test match series, and even unlockable teams, stadiums and tournaments. An Australian domestic season would have been nice, but the amount of challenges and events are adequate.

However, the main downfall of this game, and many other cricket games, is that it largely fails to capture the feel of the real life game. The heartcrunching lows of losing by one run, the thrill of a one-day run chase, the inspiration of a tail-end rearguard action. All of these feelings are never truly captured in this game, which detracts from the gameplay.

So, should you buy it? I would say try it first, before making a decision. It may appeal to fanatics of the cricket genre, it will pass time well, and it will create enjoyment, if only for a while.

In the end, there really is nothing better than the real thing. For anything else, this game is adequate, but not spectacular. It's good for a cricket sim, but doesn't measure up well to other genres. Oh well, there is always next time...

Reviewer's Score: 5/10, Originally Posted: 04/08/04