Future Publishing
7th February 1992Rugby: The World Cup
Hey! It's Scrum Off! Well, not quite, but it is a pretty blatant attempt by the Doms to adapt Anco's footy classic style to the rough 'n tumble, if you will, 'world' of rugby. Of course, as any fule knows, rugby and football are very different sports, with the former lacking the non-stop speed of the latter. Not, then, perhaps the best game to try to shrink to fit into Kick Off's hard and fast playing style.
However, as it 'appens, it all works pretty well. Sure, the action is a bit stop and start, but there is a definite flow to the game and few lapses in pace. The game is viewed in plan view, with the pitch scrolling to follow the player's... er... player (who is, natch, the one nearest the ball).
Throws and kicks are controlled simply by the joystick, and it lacks the subtlety of Kick Off (no aftertouch here). Scrums are a case of frantically waggling the joystick to force the opposition back, and this is fine - unless you're playing the All Blacks, in which case you need to waggle at sub-light speeds to beat them.
In fact, that's probably the biggest criticism - the top teams are too tough. There are other minor niggles, such as the way player sprites overlap on top of each other and the way that the other members of the team don't put themselves in good positions to pass, meaning that play often revolves one-man rushes from mid-way down the pitch to the try line. But while Rugby may not be perfect, it's still a pretty good 'try'. (Cue sound of reviewer being shot.)