ICC Pro Cricket 2015 (PC) Review

How much depth can be squeezed into a game that is composed of three constantly repeating actions? Quite a lot, as Disney India proves in ICC Pro Cricket 2015. Cricket is based on three moments: the bowling, the batting, and the running. During the bowling section, the thrower marks the pitch and speed the ball will take and affects the possibilities for the bat to respond, and then the batter takes their turn positioning themselves and deciding how to hit the ball to ensure that it both travels far and does not get caught by the players on the field, all to ensure that they can run back and forth between the wickets as many times as possible.

These three parts of the game are very well designed in a clear, yet complex set of gauges to keep check on. The most complex one must, however, be the bowling. The bowling comprises of first putting in the distance and then drawing a line that will affect the route the ball takes and with what speed. Then, the bowling player must throw the ball by clicking at the right moment.

The second part is the batting. First, the batter must choose the direction to hit the ball, and then they must hit it by clicking at exactly the right moment. Straight after that, the running begins. This is done by pressing a designated button if they want to try to take a point, or just wait if they do not want to risk anything. Then it all rinsed and repeated.

There is, however, a lot of depth in this system and plenty to learn - initially, too many, though. There is a tutorial that guides gamers through all the mechanics but only the bare minimum is explained. This might cause confusion, but once the system is learned, the beauty of its depth is revealed.

Besides an advanced on-field system, ICC Pro Cricket 2015 adds a lot of extra enjoyment by having a fun customisation system that is based on collecting cards with cricket stars. By doing, teams can be freely personalised, with even the chance to train players and by gamers collecting doubles of a card, evolving them from bronze to silver, silver to gold, and so on. No matter if players just like to collect cards or enjoy the on-field action, there will be something there for those that like the sport. However, for someone who is not a fan of the activity might find the experience to be confusing and not all that enjoyable. There is no wider appeal to ICC Pro Cricket 2015 than to cricket fans, but that is all it needs to do and that it does very well.