Brian Lara Cricket 2005

Summer is well and truly here, and there's nothing finer than the sound of leather on willow.

Cricket fans who are looking for a decent simulation on their console need look no further than Brian Lara Cricket 2005 from Codemasters.

Some of our friends across the ocean, and a few others who are unfamiliar with the sport, may struggle with the rules here, but the game consists of an Exhibition mode where you can choose from Test Match, One Day International or Double Wicket, a Tournament mode consisting of the ICC Cricket World Cup, the ICC Champions Trophy, the World Series XI and a World Tour, and a Challenge mode which allows for short term bursts of arcade-style action. A nice touch here is the opportunity to play classic games from the history of the sport, complete with dated-looking footage and facial hair.

Graphically Brian Lara looks good, although EA's dominationm of sport licences leaves the game with soundalike player names. The addition of Hawkeye and in-screen video makes the game look very much like it does on the TV.

Decent cricket games are hard to come by, but Brian Lara is possibly the best around.

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