Hi guys,
I was one of the lucky ones to be txt'd by EB Chatswood saying "come in on Tue 9th your copy is ready!" Grabbed it and had my manual all read 2x over and ready to go at 6pm for a good 5 hours of NRL'ing + a couple hours last night.
My Review:
I had given no more than 30 minutes to the previous versions as it made me sick to think this is what they are trying to pass as a RL game. I LOVED Et's rugby league as a kid and think it's still the best version of NRL (for it's time) to ever come out. ARL 96 wasn't too far off -Loved rabbz as the commentator and the gameplay wasn't too bad.
So from reading the hype reviews and seeing the images I had been expecting great things from this version. I knew it would be a steep learning curve, but the passion to play some great NRL games and do franchise with my team was enough motivation and I have to say I am not too disappointed.
Interface/Menu:
7 - The menu is easy to navigate and looks pretty decent for what I expected. I am disappointed with the options. As a bit of a noob I like to slow down the speed of the game so I can use my brain to think each play through better -sux to not have that choice. Also felt there was a resounding lack of options and a few nothing ones. -WTF is "Post to Facebook" and why would we care?
Sound Track/Commentary/Audio
7 -The commentary is in danger of getting old fast, it seems they have paid minimum wage to Voss & Gould and I am disappointed to not hear a huge range of commentary and it is a bit choppy as you would expect -It doesn't feel like a try is scored sometimes with the way they announce it.. The crowd sounds are pretty good and I made sure these are up the loudest. Would've liked to hear a few different varieties in cheers/boos/screams however. Music was OK -Some tracks are pretty good, others are just annoying. -Depends on preference I guess, but I would have liked more rock and even some electro rather than the 'middle of the road' play it safe stuff.
Gameplay/Control
8 -I jumped straight into Ametur SOO and really made the blues look good! 0-24 -Had a lot of trouble learning the passing methods and when to step/fend/break. Still learning a lot about who to pass to and how to make good charging runs with quick play the balls, my one major pet peeve so far, is even as Cam Smith: -it seems like it takes a lifetime to burst out of dummy half, there'll be no quick scoop ups in this game... Anyone have any pointers with this? -Sometimes it felt like they would get a good run out, other times it was like starting a tractor and taking off as the defense rushes you. I wish there was a way to try and get up quickly to play the ball, much like the defense can hold you down. It's also difficult to string together passes at times as it seems a lot of the players don't want the pass and they go to ground or get intercepted. Sprinting is a little lacking in fluidity as it seems the players speed up WAY too quickly when running with just a tap of the sprint button. Kicking isn't terrible and it's nice to have a few options. I agree with others that the wingers and FB's seem to be amazing at catch returns. Running right is still a huge challenge for me for making a quick cut-out pass. As you cant really step/fend, run and use r1+O/^/[] in the one motion. These seem like they all can take some getting used to and once I do, I have little doubt I will be able to utilise the strategy, play the arm wrestle, grind and make exciting bursts through the line.
Overall:
7.5 -The game falls a little short of an 8 -If BlueAnt announce a promise to patch it and make the game smoother and accept good feedback from the majority, this could quickly become a 9! I love seeing the teams and the names, the design of the players. Still yet to make my own player and it's a little disappointing to not be able to use them in Franchise, but you don't tend to notice too much once you start getting into the gameplay. I wish there was a feature to be able to watch an instant replay at any point of the last 10 seconds. Be also nice to see some set plays able to be implemented using the left control buttons (similar to the way they have defense working).
So if your a huge console+NRL lover and have some spare time in the off season, this game is definitely worth the $80 -I haven't even winced at online mode and I am hearing good things from others about it
too, so defiantly a worthy buy!
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