Games Database
PC
Sport: Rugby
| Also for: | PS2 | ||
| Viewed: | 3D Combination | Genre: | Sport: Rugby |
| Media: | CD | Arcade origin: | No |
| Developer: | HB Studios | Soft. Co.: | Electronic Arts |
| Publishers: | Electronic Arts
(GB) |
Released: | 19 Sept 2003
(GB) |
| Ratings: | PEGI 3+ | ||
| Accessories: | Mouse, Keyboard | ||
Summary
Rugby Union essentially boils down to three distinct types of gameplay in real life, and so it goes in Rugby 2004 from EA Sports. If your team has fast-running backs and sure-handed players, the best way to score is to make sure the forwards feed the ball quickly to these players in what's known as the running game. Dummies, feints, sprinting and hand-offs are the key elements of this game style. For years, this style of play was known as Southern Hemisphere rugby, owing to the skills exhibited by the New Zealand and Australian teams. Nowadays, many teams play the running game, a game that produces fast-flowing, exciting, and often high-scoring games.
Then there's the kicking game. Ah yes, the good old kicking game…not as much fun as it sounds, we're afraid. This playing style is a game of percentages that relies upon forcing the opposition to make errors. It is best employed by teams with capable kickers and a heavy pack. A kicker will often kick the ball into the opposition's territory while his forwards use their strength to recover it. Good kickers can also put the ball into touch, close to the opposition goal, thus putting the defending team under pressure. Drop-goals and penalties - resulting from forced mistakes by the opposition - further bolster the armoury of teams playing the kicking game.
The tight game keeps the ball close to the pack and is best employed by teams with strong forwards, a powerful scrum, and an accurate kicker. Short passes off the base of the ruck to charging forwards enable a team to plough through the middle of the pitch and control the ball for long periods of the game while continuous big hits weaken the opposition defence.
Rugby 2004 lets the player take part in a number of tournaments including the World Cup, Tri Nations, Super 12's, Six Countries, World League, and domestic and friendly matches. With more than 1500 licensed players, 65+ highly detailed stadia, hard-hitting motion captured animation, and in-game commentary from John Inverdale and Gordon Bray, Rugby 2004 easily satisfies fans of virtual egg-chasing. For all its visual splendour and authenticity of detail, Rugby 2004 is not a game for beginners; that is to say, if you're not that familiar with the rules of the game, you'll struggle. It may not trouble the top of the sales charts, but it's the best of its kind in an admittedly small genre.
Then there's the kicking game. Ah yes, the good old kicking game…not as much fun as it sounds, we're afraid. This playing style is a game of percentages that relies upon forcing the opposition to make errors. It is best employed by teams with capable kickers and a heavy pack. A kicker will often kick the ball into the opposition's territory while his forwards use their strength to recover it. Good kickers can also put the ball into touch, close to the opposition goal, thus putting the defending team under pressure. Drop-goals and penalties - resulting from forced mistakes by the opposition - further bolster the armoury of teams playing the kicking game.
The tight game keeps the ball close to the pack and is best employed by teams with strong forwards, a powerful scrum, and an accurate kicker. Short passes off the base of the ruck to charging forwards enable a team to plough through the middle of the pitch and control the ball for long periods of the game while continuous big hits weaken the opposition defence.
Rugby 2004 lets the player take part in a number of tournaments including the World Cup, Tri Nations, Super 12's, Six Countries, World League, and domestic and friendly matches. With more than 1500 licensed players, 65+ highly detailed stadia, hard-hitting motion captured animation, and in-game commentary from John Inverdale and Gordon Bray, Rugby 2004 easily satisfies fans of virtual egg-chasing. For all its visual splendour and authenticity of detail, Rugby 2004 is not a game for beginners; that is to say, if you're not that familiar with the rules of the game, you'll struggle. It may not trouble the top of the sales charts, but it's the best of its kind in an admittedly small genre.
