Previous Next

There seems to be a glut of sports sims emerging on the Zeppelin label lately - we've reviewed three this month! Perhaps they've found their niche. With two arcade sports sims out already, World Rugby neatly sidesteps into the management/strategy side of things. The aim is simple - choose from ten available national rugby union sides and turn the lazy swabs into a winning team.

There's a full three division league in which to compete, and also a cup competition.

The game's menu driven, with the player selecting available options (via a cursor) from a series of easy-to-understand lists. These include medical reports informing you of who's injured, in what way and for how long he'll be inactive. Team statistics give an idea of the strength of your team as a unit and there's also an assessment of overall results. Naturally there are also the obvious league tables, select team screen, etc. When you've picked your team (fifteen players and two subs), and trained them up, it's time to take to the field. This is where you'll see if your hard work's paid off. You've done all you can, now it's down to whether the lads can perform on the day Gary...

The match takes the form of a sports broadcast, presented by a complete dweeb who looks like Wiggy off Jasper Carrott. A clock ticks relentlessly towards eighty minutes, pausing every so often to show an animated sequence when the action 'hots up' - scrums, tries, near misses, etc. It ends with a look at the other results from your division, then it's either back to the drawing board or down the pub for a celebratory lemonade, depending on the result.

This could've been a refreshing change from all those footy managers swamping the computer market, but it has to go down as something of a missed opportunity. Presentation's reasonable, with all values displayed on pie-charts rather than boring menus. It's not until you start playing that the shallowness of the game becomes apparent.

Basically, all you do is select the best players and put them in the preset positions. Only one formation's available, and due to the 'international' theme there's no transfer market. You don't even select your squad, it's all defaulted.

With the tactical aspect conspicuous by its absence, there's just so little to do! The 'match highlights' boil down to four set routines, two showing you scoring a try, one showing you not scoring a try and the other of a conversion kick. Pointless. This bit is very reminiscent of Match Of The Day, spookily also by Zeppelin. It was bad then and equally bad here. Still, you could always sing "Swing Low Sweet Chariot" to yourself until it's finished.

It appears the programmers have tried to cater for all tastes and produce a strategy game that plays fast enough to interest arcadesters. Sadly, it falls well short of the mark on both counts! Oh well, at least they've had the sense to include a "quit game" option. How thoughtful!

What's this? Heavens, it's a management sim! Another text and icon controlled world beater? A game which overwhelms with giant amounts of choices and selections? Groovy match screens, beautifully animated players, running commentary and statistics galore?

Packed with tense, heart-pulpetating action? Crammed with absorbing hookability, stomping sonics and depth deeper than deep? Massive varied tournaments and fixture construction? Formation building, team creativity, illustrious presentation and original concept? Large meals, torpedo shaped boa-constrictors and folding armoured plates? No, it doesn't contain any of the above. A pity really, because I like boa-constrictors.

Presentation 40%
Dull screens with lists of options

Graphics 30%
Feeble match highlights and samey mugshots

Sound 20%
A few dreadful spot FX - naff said

Hookability 21%
There's hardly anything at all to do!

Lastability 9%
It's about as lastable as the Kennedy family

Overall 30%