aka: Test Match, Test Match & Limited Overs Cricket
Moby ID: 18026
- Overview
- Credits
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- Released
- 1983 on ZX Spectrum
- Credits
- 1 person
- Releases by Date (by platform)
-
- 1983 (ZX Spectrum)
- 1984 (Electron)
- 1985 (Amstrad CPC)
- Publishers
-
- CRL Group PLC
- Moby Score
-
n/a
- Critics
- 55% (3)
- Players
- (4)
- Collected By
- 2 players
- Genre
- Sports
- Sport
- Cricket
ZX Spectrum Specs
- Media Type
- Cassette Tape
- Input Devices Supported/Optional
- Keyboard
- Number of Players Supported
- 2-5 Players [ view all 8 specs ]
Description
This cricket management game can be played in two different ways, featuring one-day matches on side B, and the full length test matches (featuring two innings each, played over five six-hour days) on side A. A program detailing the instructions and game system (including some precise explanations of the mathematics used by the game to calculate the results of each bowl) loads before the main game.
By default the game features England and Australia, although you can manually type in different team names. Before each over the bowling team must choose their bowler, while the batting team chooses its two opening players, and which play should come in after each dismissal. Both batsmen and bowlers are number in descending order of ability. The action is viewed from above, and when a shot is played the batting team must decide whether to run or not - after each run the positions are updated and the decision made again.
Screenshots
Credits (ZX Spectrum version)
| By |
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Reviews
Critics
Average score: 55% (based on 3 ratings)
Players
Average score: 2.1 out of 5 (based on 4 ratings with 1 reviews)
Closer to a computerised 'Rock', 'Paper', 'Scissors'
The Good
Cricket is a very under-represented sport when it comes to computer games - not having penetrated the American, European or Japanese market, this is hardly a surprise.
This marked one of the earliest attempts at translating the game on the computer screens and for the whole does a reasonable job at capturing the key decisions that take place on a cricket pitch.
The game zips along and you can easily cram in a few innings over the course of an afternoon.
The bird's eye view of the pitch and the graphic representation of your shots is helpful and while basic, the graphics do have a certain charm to them.
The Bad
Unfortunately the gameplay doesn't stand up to scrutiny. Each decision you make is basically a weighted calculation of the odds - whether to run, whether to stand, the computer will make a determination of how successful your decision is. This means the game is boiled down to gambling against the best odds - there's little to no skill involved and you have no control over how well the bowler performs (other than avoiding selecting the same ones too often to reduce the risk of fatigue).
The longer you play, the more you realise how shallow the game actually is - a real pity because it is fun in the short-term, it's just not one that you'll be going back to.
The Bottom Line
Credit for making the game in the first place and for trying something a little different, unfortunately it just doesn't hold up to scrutiny once you realise how the pie is baked.
Amstrad CPC · by Ritchardo (2958) · 2023
Analytics
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Identifiers +
- MobyGames ID: 18026 [ Please login / register to view all identifiers ]
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Contributors to this Entry
Game added by Martin Smith.
Electron added by Kabushi.
Additional contributors: Ritchardo.
Game added June 7, 2005. Last modified August 31, 2023.
