Brian Lara International Cricket 2005
Encyclopedia
Brian Lara International Cricket 2005 (BLIC) (also known as Ricky Ponting Cricket in Australia and New Zealand
) is a cricket
video game from Codemasters
, available on Xbox
, PlayStation 2
and Windows
PC
platforms. released on 21 July 2005, which was the first day of the 2005 Ashes series. The game is followed by Brian Lara International Cricket 2007
(Ricky Ponting International Cricket 2007 in Australia and New Zealand and Yuvraj Singh International Cricket in India).
(also known as Shane Warne Cricket '99 in Australia and New Zealand). It contains the 2003 Cricket World Cup
in Africa and the 2004 ICC Champions Trophy
. These two competitions are licensed by the International Cricket Council
(ICC) and contain official player names, faces, kits, badges and sponsors. All other modes are unofficial as the rights for these belong to EA Sports
and therefore some players and kits are made up; for example Graham Thorpe
becomes "G Thrip" and Shane Warne
becomes "S Worde". The only correct names in these modes are Brian Lara
himself, (shown as "B Lara"), and Australian Captain Ricky Ponting
(similarly shown as R Ponting). The game is also first to include licensed bats such as the Kookaburra Diablo and the GM Purist. The game takes the perspective of the normal cricket TV coverage, other views and displays in the game also try to emulate TV coverage of cricket, for example Hawk-Eye
, an electronic system used to track cricket ball
s as they are bowled is featured in the game.
and Jim Laker
.
, the 1933 Bodyline
test match, Garfield Sobers
' six sixes, and the 2003 ICC Cricket World Cup final. There are 10 challenges in total.
There is also a minor error. Ravi Rampaul
, the West Indies fast bowler of Indian descent, is classified as a leg-spinner. As a result, he usually opens the bowling for West Indies in the game.
New Zealand
New Zealand is an island country in the south-western Pacific Ocean comprising two main landmasses and numerous smaller islands. The country is situated some east of Australia across the Tasman Sea, and roughly south of the Pacific island nations of New Caledonia, Fiji, and Tonga...
) is a cricket
Cricket
Cricket is a bat-and-ball game played between two teams of 11 players on an oval-shaped field, at the centre of which is a rectangular 22-yard long pitch. One team bats, trying to score as many runs as possible while the other team bowls and fields, trying to dismiss the batsmen and thus limit the...
video game from Codemasters
Codemasters
The Codemasters Software Company Limited, or Codemasters is a British video game developer founded by Richard and David Darling in 1986...
, available on Xbox
Xbox
The Xbox is a sixth-generation video game console manufactured by Microsoft. It was released on November 15, 2001 in North America, February 22, 2002 in Japan, and March 14, 2002 in Australia and Europe and is the predecessor to the Xbox 360. It was Microsoft's first foray into the gaming console...
, PlayStation 2
PlayStation 2
The PlayStation 2 is a sixth-generation video game console manufactured by Sony as part of the PlayStation series. Its development was announced in March 1999 and it was first released on March 4, 2000, in Japan...
and Windows
Microsoft Windows
Microsoft Windows is a series of operating systems produced by Microsoft.Microsoft introduced an operating environment named Windows on November 20, 1985 as an add-on to MS-DOS in response to the growing interest in graphical user interfaces . Microsoft Windows came to dominate the world's personal...
PC
Personal computer
A personal computer is any general-purpose computer whose size, capabilities, and original sales price make it useful for individuals, and which is intended to be operated directly by an end-user with no intervening computer operator...
platforms. released on 21 July 2005, which was the first day of the 2005 Ashes series. The game is followed by Brian Lara International Cricket 2007
Brian Lara International Cricket 2007
Brian Lara International Cricket 2007 is a cricket computer game from Codemasters available on PlayStation 2, PlayStation Portable, PC and Xbox 360 . It is endorsed by West Indian cricketer Brian Lara. It follows Brian Lara International Cricket 2005 released 2 years earlier...
(Ricky Ponting International Cricket 2007 in Australia and New Zealand and Yuvraj Singh International Cricket in India).
Details
This game is the follow-up to Brian Lara Cricket '99Brian Lara Cricket '99
Brian Lara Cricket'99 is a 1998 PlayStation and PC cricket game, personally endorsed by West Indian cricketer Brian Lara, produced by Codemasters, and a follow-up to the successful Brian Lara Cricket and Brian Lara Cricket '96.-Game features:BLC99 boasts intelligent computer...
(also known as Shane Warne Cricket '99 in Australia and New Zealand). It contains the 2003 Cricket World Cup
Cricket World Cup
The ICC Cricket World Cup is the premier international championship of men's One Day International cricket. The event is organised by the sport's governing body, the International Cricket Council , with preliminary qualification rounds leading up to a finals tournament which is held every four years...
in Africa and the 2004 ICC Champions Trophy
ICC Champions Trophy
The ICC Champions Trophy is a One Day International cricket tournament, second in importance only to the Cricket World Cup. It was inaugurated as the ICC Knock Out tournament in 1998 and has been played every two years since, changing its name to the Champions Trophy in 2002...
. These two competitions are licensed by the International Cricket Council
International Cricket Council
The International Cricket Council is the international governing body of cricket. It was founded as the Imperial Cricket Conference in 1909 by representatives from England, Australia and South Africa, renamed the International Cricket Conference in 1965, and took up its current name in 1989.The...
(ICC) and contain official player names, faces, kits, badges and sponsors. All other modes are unofficial as the rights for these belong to EA Sports
EA Sports
EA Sports is a brand of Electronic Arts that creates and develops sports video games. Formerly a marketing gimmick of Electronic Arts, in which they tried to mimic real-life sports networks by calling themselves "EA Sports Network" with pictures or endorsements of real commentators such as John...
and therefore some players and kits are made up; for example Graham Thorpe
Graham Thorpe
Graham Paul Thorpe MBE is a former English cricketer who played for Surrey and England. A left-handed middle-order batsman and slip fielder, he appeared in exactly 100 Test matches.-Early life:...
becomes "G Thrip" and Shane Warne
Shane Warne
Shane Keith Warne is a former Australian international cricketer widely regarded as one of the greatest bowlers in the history of the game. In 2000, he was selected by a panel of cricket experts as one of the five Wisden Cricketers of the Century, the only specialist bowler selected in the quintet...
becomes "S Worde". The only correct names in these modes are Brian Lara
Brian Lara
Brian Charles Lara, TC, OCC, AM is a former West Indian international cricket player. Lara is generally regarded as one of the greatest batsmen of all time...
himself, (shown as "B Lara"), and Australian Captain Ricky Ponting
Ricky Ponting
Ricky Thomas Ponting , nicknamed Punter, is an Australian cricketer, a former captain of the Australian cricket team between 2004 and 2011 in Test cricket and 2002 and 2011 in One Day International cricket. He is a specialist right-handed batsman, slips and close catching fielder, as well as a very...
(similarly shown as R Ponting). The game is also first to include licensed bats such as the Kookaburra Diablo and the GM Purist. The game takes the perspective of the normal cricket TV coverage, other views and displays in the game also try to emulate TV coverage of cricket, for example Hawk-Eye
Hawk-Eye
Hawk-Eye is a complex computer system used in cricket, tennis and other sports to visually track the trajectory of the ball and display a record of its most statistically likely path as a moving image. In cricket and tennis, it is now part of the adjudication process. It was developed by engineers...
, an electronic system used to track cricket ball
Cricket ball
A cricket ball is a hard, solid leather ball used to play cricket. Constructed of cork and leather, a cricket ball is heavily regulated by cricket law at first class level...
s as they are bowled is featured in the game.
Game modes
There are a few types of cricket that can be played in the game. Test match, Test series, One Day match, World Cup, ICC Champion's Trophy and practice mode. Along with the types of cricket there are several difficulty settings. Slog mode, village, county and test. With each difficulty bowling and batting decreases in ease. The game also offers the player to construct their own team from cricketers already in the game, and to construct their own "Career Players" who gain experience with each match. There is also a "Classic XI" mode, which has famous cricketers of the past such as W.G. Grace, Imran KhanImran Khan
Imran Khan Niazi is a Pakistani politician and former Pakistani cricketer, playing international cricket for two decades in the late twentieth century. After retiring, he entered politics...
and Jim Laker
Jim Laker
James "Jim" Charles Laker was a cricketer who played for England in the 1950s, known for "Laker's match" in 1956 at Old Trafford, when he took nineteen wickets in England's victory against Australia...
.
Challenges
There are also a challenge mode in the game, where the player can take on cricketing challenges based on notable cricket matches from the past. The player can either recreate or rewrite history, depending on the team they choose to play as. These include such matches as The birth of The AshesThe Ashes
The Ashes is a Test cricket series played between England and Australia. It is one of the most celebrated rivalries in international cricket and dates back to 1882. It is currently played biennially, alternately in the United Kingdom and Australia. Cricket being a summer sport, and the venues...
, the 1933 Bodyline
Bodyline
Bodyline, also known as fast leg theory bowling, was a cricketing tactic devised by the English cricket team for their 1932–33 Ashes tour of Australia, specifically to combat the extraordinary batting skill of Australia's Don Bradman...
test match, Garfield Sobers
Garfield Sobers
Sir Garfield St Aubrun Sobers AO, OCC is a former cricketer who captained West Indies. His first name of Garfield is variously abbreviated as Gary or Garry. He is widely regarded as one of cricket's greatest ever all-rounders, having excelled at all the essential skills of batting, bowling and...
' six sixes, and the 2003 ICC Cricket World Cup final. There are 10 challenges in total.
Reaction and criticism
Reaction from the public and critics was very good with ratings averaging around 7.5 out of 10. Most criticism is of the player designs not resembling the actual people, which is a licensing issue. There is also a problem with the wicket keeper who doesn't wear a helmet like in many other cricket games.Some other shortcomings include no overthrows and running on overthrow, batsman cannot come down the track to hit or defend, the ball is always thrown to the wicketkeeper rather than at the stumps or to the bowler leaving balls driven to midoff easier to run on, and leaving the ball without playing a shot reduces the batsman's confidence. Batting and bowling averages of players do not evolve with play, unless the player has created a career player.There is also a minor error. Ravi Rampaul
Ravi Rampaul
Ravindranath Rampaul is a West Indian cricketer. He is the first quick bowler of Indian descent to represent West Indies at international level, playing Tests, One Day Internationals and Twenty20 Internationals...
, the West Indies fast bowler of Indian descent, is classified as a leg-spinner. As a result, he usually opens the bowling for West Indies in the game.
See also
- Brian Lara Cricket seriesBrian Lara Cricket seriesThe Brian Lara Cricket series is a series of six cricket video games that are endorsed by the West Indian cricketer Brian Lara and published by Codemasters.-The Games:...
- Brian LaraBrian LaraBrian Charles Lara, TC, OCC, AM is a former West Indian international cricket player. Lara is generally regarded as one of the greatest batsmen of all time...
- CodemastersCodemastersThe Codemasters Software Company Limited, or Codemasters is a British video game developer founded by Richard and David Darling in 1986...
- Brian Lara International Cricket 2007Brian Lara International Cricket 2007Brian Lara International Cricket 2007 is a cricket computer game from Codemasters available on PlayStation 2, PlayStation Portable, PC and Xbox 360 . It is endorsed by West Indian cricketer Brian Lara. It follows Brian Lara International Cricket 2005 released 2 years earlier...