Best EA effort at a game other than Soccer or Gridiron. Thought it was a great leap foward for the series. Fun to play.

User Rating: 8.4 | Rugby 06 PC
As an Australian gamer, there is not too many games out there that capture what I am looking for. The Brian Lara/Ricky Ponting Cricket series and to a lesser extent, Activisions AFL series have filled the void but EA has come to the table with the best one so far. The set plays are a stand out feature with the fluidity of the moves a real highlight. You really need a gamepad though to make this happen and it is a bit hit and miss, a good feature though. The graphics are defenitly the best we have seen in a Rugby/Contact game other the Madden, with the animations and tackles looking real and effective. the gameplay is also very accesiable witht he ruck formations still lacking a bit of control. With a bit of practice, this can be avoided to an extent. A little more development and work on the physics at the breakdown of the ball is neccesary. Overall it is a great game and it shows a light at the end of the tunnel for Aussie sports such as NRL and AFL to follow. If more games come out that try to match this benchmark, then that can only be a good thing. Lets just hope that the games such as cricket, rugby leauge and union and AFL get the treatment that the FIFA and Madden series have enjoyed through the years of development. Overall it was was a great game wich I have have played with great passion. Highly reccomended, looking foward to the next one.