Parcelmoose
Associate Cricketer
- Joined
- Oct 19, 2017
- Profile Flag
- England
Game info
Release Dates
PS4, Switch, Xbox One: 28 May 2019
Steam: TBA
Steam page
ECB press release (6 March 2019)
ECB press release (18 April 2019)
The Cricketer preview (6 May 2019)
TheSixthAxis preview (6 May 2019)
Yahoo preview (6 May 2019)
TheXboxHub preview (7 May 2019)
Compiled by @wasteyouryouth
Media
Screenshots
Stadia
Cover Art
Video Teases
https://video.twimg.com/amplify_video/1100327050085388288/vid/1280x720/ESEnbFHxxL0MoABN.mp4?tag=9
https://video.twimg.com/ext_tw_video/1118817517344940032/pu/vid/1280x720/n2l0iy-squMWhnJV.mp4?tag=8
Press Day (29 April 2019)
Release Dates
PS4, Switch, Xbox One: 28 May 2019
Steam: TBA
Steam page
Earn World Glory At The Pinnacle Of Cricket!
Lead your team to international glory with Cricket 19. The truly global cricket simulation from Big Ant Studios, the leading name in authentic, realistic cricket action, Cricket 19 allows you to take control of your team, from club through national level, and lead them to T20, ODI, or Test Match glory.
Create your own club, stadia, sponsor logos and uniforms via Big Ant’s acclaimed Cricket Academy to recreate your local matches and dramas!
Dive into the deepest, story-driven career mode in the history of cricket video games. Build a rookie player’s career from their junior years at club cricket. Perform well and before you know it, you’ll be leading your nation on to the field.
Key features include:
Deep player, stadia, logo and scenario creator.
Full support for all formats of cricket - T20, ODI and Test Match.
Real world AI and tactics.
Dozens of teams to choose between.
Lead your team to international glory with Cricket 19. The truly global cricket simulation from Big Ant Studios, the leading name in authentic, realistic cricket action, Cricket 19 allows you to take control of your team, from club through national level, and lead them to T20, ODI, or Test Match glory.
Create your own club, stadia, sponsor logos and uniforms via Big Ant’s acclaimed Cricket Academy to recreate your local matches and dramas!
Dive into the deepest, story-driven career mode in the history of cricket video games. Build a rookie player’s career from their junior years at club cricket. Perform well and before you know it, you’ll be leading your nation on to the field.
Key features include:
Deep player, stadia, logo and scenario creator.
Full support for all formats of cricket - T20, ODI and Test Match.
Real world AI and tactics.
Dozens of teams to choose between.
SYSTEM REQUIREMENTS
MINIMUM:
Requires a 64-bit processor and operating system
OS: Windows 7 (x64) or higher
Processor: Intel Core i3-3210 / AMD Athlon II X4 555
Memory: 4 GB RAM
Graphics: Radeon HD 6670 or NVIDIA Geforce GT710 with Min 2GB Memory
DirectX: Version 11
Network: Broadband Internet connection
Storage: 17 GB available space
Additional Notes: Controller Required
RECOMMENDED:
Requires a 64-bit processor and operating system
OS: Windows 7 (x64) or higher
Processor: Intel Core i5-4200 / AMD Phenom II X4 970
Memory: 8 GB RAM
Graphics: AMD Radeon R9 390X or NVIDIA GeForce GTX 970 with minimum 2GB Memory
DirectX: Version 11
Network: Broadband Internet connection
Storage: 17 GB available space
Additional Notes: Controller Required
MINIMUM:
Requires a 64-bit processor and operating system
OS: Windows 7 (x64) or higher
Processor: Intel Core i3-3210 / AMD Athlon II X4 555
Memory: 4 GB RAM
Graphics: Radeon HD 6670 or NVIDIA Geforce GT710 with Min 2GB Memory
DirectX: Version 11
Network: Broadband Internet connection
Storage: 17 GB available space
Additional Notes: Controller Required
RECOMMENDED:
Requires a 64-bit processor and operating system
OS: Windows 7 (x64) or higher
Processor: Intel Core i5-4200 / AMD Phenom II X4 970
Memory: 8 GB RAM
Graphics: AMD Radeon R9 390X or NVIDIA GeForce GTX 970 with minimum 2GB Memory
DirectX: Version 11
Network: Broadband Internet connection
Storage: 17 GB available space
Additional Notes: Controller Required
ECB press release (6 March 2019)
Big Ant Studios, in collaboration with the England and Wales Cricket Board (ECB), is proud to announce Cricket 19 - The Official Game of the Ashes.
Building on the fan-favourite Ashes Cricket, Cricket 19 features all formats of the international game, both men’s and women’s teams, and all host venues. This includes the Specsavers Ashes, fully licensed for both England and Australia. But that’s just scratching the surface of this year’s title.
Deep enhancements to the AI engine mean that the opposition is more realistic than ever before. When bowling, the AI will suss out your player and team’s weaknesses, and target that with a concentrated bowling strategy. When batting, the AI will rotate the strike to protect weaker players, and actively look for gaps in the field.
New features to be added to Cricket 19 include a scenario mode, which allows players to recreate the greatest matches in history, and then share them online to challenge other players to achieve difficult run-chases, or play out a draw from a disastrous situation. Enhancements to the career mode build a story around your player; how you look in the news headlines affects your potential career trajectory.
For the first time ever, a deep, rich cricket simulation will also be playable on the go. Cricket 19 will be available on the Nintendo Switch, allowing you to play both single player and multiplayer anywhere, anytime.
Big Ant CEO, Ross Symons, said: “We have the most active and passionate community. Many of our players logged thousands of hours with our previous cricket titles, and Cricket 19 is very much built on the experience of those players.
“Whether you’re looking to enjoy a 20-year cricket career that takes you from the club level to captaining the national team, re-create an ODI or IT20 series or take part in the Ashes, or just bash some balls around with friends, Cricket 19 has you covered."
ECB Commercial Director, Rob Calder said: “We are thrilled to announce Cricket 19 with Big Ant Studios. We have a huge summer of cricket to look forward to in England and Wales this year and this is another great way for fans to enjoy all the action.”
More details about the new features and gameplay modes in Cricket 19 will be announced at a later date. The game releases on all consoles – PlayStation 4, Xbox One and Nintendo Switch – in May, with an exact release date TBA. A PC (Steam) version will follow shortly after.
Building on the fan-favourite Ashes Cricket, Cricket 19 features all formats of the international game, both men’s and women’s teams, and all host venues. This includes the Specsavers Ashes, fully licensed for both England and Australia. But that’s just scratching the surface of this year’s title.
Deep enhancements to the AI engine mean that the opposition is more realistic than ever before. When bowling, the AI will suss out your player and team’s weaknesses, and target that with a concentrated bowling strategy. When batting, the AI will rotate the strike to protect weaker players, and actively look for gaps in the field.
New features to be added to Cricket 19 include a scenario mode, which allows players to recreate the greatest matches in history, and then share them online to challenge other players to achieve difficult run-chases, or play out a draw from a disastrous situation. Enhancements to the career mode build a story around your player; how you look in the news headlines affects your potential career trajectory.
For the first time ever, a deep, rich cricket simulation will also be playable on the go. Cricket 19 will be available on the Nintendo Switch, allowing you to play both single player and multiplayer anywhere, anytime.
Big Ant CEO, Ross Symons, said: “We have the most active and passionate community. Many of our players logged thousands of hours with our previous cricket titles, and Cricket 19 is very much built on the experience of those players.
“Whether you’re looking to enjoy a 20-year cricket career that takes you from the club level to captaining the national team, re-create an ODI or IT20 series or take part in the Ashes, or just bash some balls around with friends, Cricket 19 has you covered."
ECB Commercial Director, Rob Calder said: “We are thrilled to announce Cricket 19 with Big Ant Studios. We have a huge summer of cricket to look forward to in England and Wales this year and this is another great way for fans to enjoy all the action.”
More details about the new features and gameplay modes in Cricket 19 will be announced at a later date. The game releases on all consoles – PlayStation 4, Xbox One and Nintendo Switch – in May, with an exact release date TBA. A PC (Steam) version will follow shortly after.
ECB press release (18 April 2019)
Big Ant Studios, in collaboration with the England and Wales Cricket Board (ECB) and Maximum Games, is pleased to announce that Cricket 19 – The Official Game of the Ashes, now has a release date.
Cricket fans across the globe will get their hands on it on 28 May.
Ahead of the 2019 Ashes, fans will be able to play along with all the intense action that will take place throughout England and Wales this summer.
Whether it’s guiding their team to Ashes victory or battling it out for ODI glory, every fan will be able to play cricket on their terms, the way they want to, with Cricket 19.
“Big Ant Studios’ games have always been known for deep customisation and flexibility”, Big Ant Studios CEO, Ross Symons, said.
“With Cricket 19 we take this to the next level, with even more gameplay modes, more options, more ways to play and much more customisation.”
As the Official Game of the Ashes, Cricket 19 features photo-realistic character models of all men’s and women’s players that will duke it out for the trophy.
Additionally, there’s a full suite of gameplay modes, including the ever-popular career mode, now deeper and more narrative-driven, a world championship tournament, and the scenario mode, allowing you to recreate classic matches, and then share them online to challenge people to change history.
ECB Commercial Director, Rob Calder said: “We are excited for fans to be able to get their hands on Cricket 19. Big Ant have been great to work with ensuring that the game achieves authenticity and realism.
“The Ashes is cricket at the highest level and Cricket 19 delivers a first-class experience for gamers.”
Cricket 19 – The Official Game of the Ashes will release on PlayStation 4, Xbox One and Nintendo Switch. A PC version will be available via Steam shortly after the console launch.
Cricket fans across the globe will get their hands on it on 28 May.
Ahead of the 2019 Ashes, fans will be able to play along with all the intense action that will take place throughout England and Wales this summer.
Whether it’s guiding their team to Ashes victory or battling it out for ODI glory, every fan will be able to play cricket on their terms, the way they want to, with Cricket 19.
“Big Ant Studios’ games have always been known for deep customisation and flexibility”, Big Ant Studios CEO, Ross Symons, said.
“With Cricket 19 we take this to the next level, with even more gameplay modes, more options, more ways to play and much more customisation.”
As the Official Game of the Ashes, Cricket 19 features photo-realistic character models of all men’s and women’s players that will duke it out for the trophy.
Additionally, there’s a full suite of gameplay modes, including the ever-popular career mode, now deeper and more narrative-driven, a world championship tournament, and the scenario mode, allowing you to recreate classic matches, and then share them online to challenge people to change history.
ECB Commercial Director, Rob Calder said: “We are excited for fans to be able to get their hands on Cricket 19. Big Ant have been great to work with ensuring that the game achieves authenticity and realism.
“The Ashes is cricket at the highest level and Cricket 19 delivers a first-class experience for gamers.”
Cricket 19 – The Official Game of the Ashes will release on PlayStation 4, Xbox One and Nintendo Switch. A PC version will be available via Steam shortly after the console launch.
The Cricketer preview (6 May 2019)
The weeks immediately preceding release day are a nervous time for games developers and, even with 32 years of experience, Mike Merren is no exception.
"Every time you release a game there's that excitement and trepidation as well," he says. "It's your baby. You just hope that everybody loves it."
Merren is the development director at Big Ant Studios, the company tasked with producing Cricket 19 - the official game of the Ashes.
The latest of five cricket simulators to have been produced by Big Ant, it is due to go on sale on May 28, just prior to this summer’s World Cup and a matter of months before England and Australia do battle over five Tests.
When it is finally made available to the public, it will be as the result of a 15-month process involving as many as 40 developers, animators, testers, contributors and artists, all of whom fall under Merren’s direction.
"As soon as we’d finished the Ashes Cricket game at the end of 2017 we jumped onto this," the expat Englishman says during a pre-release sneak-peek day for select media at Lord's.
"It's a fair bit of work that goes into actually getting the game on the shelves.
"First of all, you have to make everything look as authentic as you can. You've got to do Lord’s in-game and make it look as close as possible.
"We've got all five of the Test grounds which are being used in this summer’s Ashes.
"Then you’ve got every player that’s involved.
"We've done close to 200 players because most of the Australian state side players are in there, as well as the Australian and England Test teams."
Cricket 19's impressive facial graphics are generated by high-tech photogrammetry software, which uses 17 individual cameras to take a single image of players' features.
Motion capture has been employed to make sure that shots in the game are as authentic as possible - Big Ant called Aussie international Glenn Maxwell into their studios to assist in the process - while Merren is particularly proud about the extent of the artificial intelligence deployed in the game which, for example, can develop strategies to target a user's weaknesses with bat or ball.
"When you think of cricket games over the past 20 years, AI is the hardest thing to get right," Merren says.
"You've got Test matches, you've got T20s, you've got ODIs… all these formats which has to have the AI working in the right way. It takes a lot of time to get right.
"Over five iterations of games now I think we're getting pretty close to getting it perfect."
Cricket and video games have an inconsistent relationship and Merren believes that is down to the sheer scope of creating a simulation of one of the more complex sports on the planet.
"History says it's one of the more difficult ones to do," he says. Even the rules; you can't have fielders here, you've got to make sure you can only have a certain number of bouncers per over in some formats and another number in other formats.
"All those things have to add up. We've made it really easy for ourselves because we've added another element to the game where you can tailor those rules to whatever you want - whether that be 10-ball overs or two runs for a no ball or how many challenges you get."
New features in Cricket 19 include a scenario mode, in which users can manually create situations from cricket history and upload them to a server for others to download.
In time, Merren expects a library of historical matches to be available, created and curated by gamers themselves.
But it is the visuals of Cricket 19 which he likes the most.
"We thought we did pretty well with Ashes but when you see what we’ve got now it's maybe not night and day but it's considerably jumped up," he says.
"What we've done with the replay systems - making it a little bit more like broadcast - is great and the AI we've got has upped the level."
Now it's time for Merren and his team to turn their baby over to the world.
"Every time you release a game there's that excitement and trepidation as well," he says. "It's your baby. You just hope that everybody loves it."
Merren is the development director at Big Ant Studios, the company tasked with producing Cricket 19 - the official game of the Ashes.
The latest of five cricket simulators to have been produced by Big Ant, it is due to go on sale on May 28, just prior to this summer’s World Cup and a matter of months before England and Australia do battle over five Tests.
When it is finally made available to the public, it will be as the result of a 15-month process involving as many as 40 developers, animators, testers, contributors and artists, all of whom fall under Merren’s direction.
"As soon as we’d finished the Ashes Cricket game at the end of 2017 we jumped onto this," the expat Englishman says during a pre-release sneak-peek day for select media at Lord's.
"It's a fair bit of work that goes into actually getting the game on the shelves.
"First of all, you have to make everything look as authentic as you can. You've got to do Lord’s in-game and make it look as close as possible.
"We've got all five of the Test grounds which are being used in this summer’s Ashes.
"Then you’ve got every player that’s involved.
"We've done close to 200 players because most of the Australian state side players are in there, as well as the Australian and England Test teams."
Cricket 19's impressive facial graphics are generated by high-tech photogrammetry software, which uses 17 individual cameras to take a single image of players' features.
Motion capture has been employed to make sure that shots in the game are as authentic as possible - Big Ant called Aussie international Glenn Maxwell into their studios to assist in the process - while Merren is particularly proud about the extent of the artificial intelligence deployed in the game which, for example, can develop strategies to target a user's weaknesses with bat or ball.
"When you think of cricket games over the past 20 years, AI is the hardest thing to get right," Merren says.
"You've got Test matches, you've got T20s, you've got ODIs… all these formats which has to have the AI working in the right way. It takes a lot of time to get right.
"Over five iterations of games now I think we're getting pretty close to getting it perfect."
Cricket and video games have an inconsistent relationship and Merren believes that is down to the sheer scope of creating a simulation of one of the more complex sports on the planet.
"History says it's one of the more difficult ones to do," he says. Even the rules; you can't have fielders here, you've got to make sure you can only have a certain number of bouncers per over in some formats and another number in other formats.
"All those things have to add up. We've made it really easy for ourselves because we've added another element to the game where you can tailor those rules to whatever you want - whether that be 10-ball overs or two runs for a no ball or how many challenges you get."
New features in Cricket 19 include a scenario mode, in which users can manually create situations from cricket history and upload them to a server for others to download.
In time, Merren expects a library of historical matches to be available, created and curated by gamers themselves.
But it is the visuals of Cricket 19 which he likes the most.
"We thought we did pretty well with Ashes but when you see what we’ve got now it's maybe not night and day but it's considerably jumped up," he says.
"What we've done with the replay systems - making it a little bit more like broadcast - is great and the AI we've got has upped the level."
Now it's time for Merren and his team to turn their baby over to the world.
TheSixthAxis preview (6 May 2019)
There’s a lot of things you can mutter the phrase “It’s just not cricket” at, but Cricket 19 is not one of them. That’s mainly because, though it’s in video game form, it is actually cricket. Just in time for what is bound to be one of the biggest cricketing summers for fans, what with the Cricket World Cup starting at the end of May, and the Ashes through the height of summer, Big Ant Studios have returned with another entry in their cricket series.
Though it has an audience that spans the globe, cricket isn’t a sport for everyone. Many in the UK will just tune in for the Ashes (just like those who pay no attention to tennis outside of Wimbledon), but given it’s huge popularity throughout the rest of the Commonwealth it’s perhaps a little surprising that it doesn’t have more of a presence in video games, similar to how MLB The Show does for baseball.
Speaking to Big Ant’s Development Director Mike Merren, he said, “It’s a weird one, and you could go into great detail over what the sport has going for it and not going for it, but the key thing with baseball is that it’s all under one big umbrella. You’ve got MLB, they own everything, and everything about it can be given to someone as a license and off they go. For cricket, yes it’s a global reach, in the commonwealth countries anyway, but you’ve got people who are fans of T20 cricket, people who are fans of test match cricket, you’ve got guys who are into Indian Premier League, you’ve got county cricket… it’s so diverse.”
With their licenses only covering the England and Australia teams, he admitted, “Right now, with the best will in the world, we’ve got a game that will appeal in England and Australia. It still has some reach in the likes of South Africa and New Zealand, but it’s still not exploding in India because it hasn’t got that IPL license.” Still, the plucky community can dip into a mode that lets you customise uniforms, players and more that can be shared online, similar to PES.
One thing that does help is that the game’s relatively easy to pick up and play. You’re given plenty of different camera angles, from behind the batsman to first person bowling, or just a traditional TV-style angle when playing local multiplayer. Thanks to the on-screen UI displaying all the options, the controls are relatively straightforward to figure out as well.
On the bowling side of things you simply select the type of ball you want to deliver, angle it slightly as you take the run up and hit the mark on the two consecutive power meters. As a batsman, it’s a case of getting your position at the crease, picking a shot direction and type, and then timing it right. With the bowling and batting difficulties at their lowest, the timing is at it’s loosest for both, with a healthy dose of assistance on shot direction for the batsman.
Mike said, “I think when you’re on easy, especially if you’re on easy batting, I’d say it’s probably skewed more towards the batsman as opposed to the bowler. But as you take the levels up, and if you’re more on medium or hard, you’re going to find that difficulty levels up quite quickly, and that actually the bowling becomes the one that you want to do more.”
Thanks to this, playing on easy let me spot the gaps in the field and let rip, racking up fours and sixes like nobody’s business until a bit too much recklessness sent balls into waiting hands. Stepping the difficulty up a notch and it definitely takes more effort and concentration to get it to come together, the timing shifting around a little – you see after a ball how you did with various ball and shot selections, as well as timing.
Some of a batsman’s performance comes from their building confidence through an innings, which builds as you select the right shot for the occasion and loosens up the timing for your shots – “if you want to win matches you’ve got to block the ball sometimes.”
However, there’s more to consider here, from the deterioration of the ball through the overs, making spinners more useful, through to the effects of weather. Mike explained, “Overcast skies, as much as scientists will say doesn’t affect the swing of the ball, I think you can talk to any fast bowler and they’ll say they totally believe that it does affect the ball. So our game does, because I think anybody who’s into cricket at all will expect that to have an effect.”
Of course, as a first time player, a lot of that nuance was probably lost on me, and I was more trying to get a handle of the basic strategy at play. What should I look for in a ball’s path for shot selection? Can you really build an over to try and lull someone into a trap? It’s definitely there, but it’s something that would take much more play time to figure out.
“We’ve brought this into the AI,” Mike told us. “In terms of the bowling strategy that they’ve got, they will effectively bowl to their fields. They know the batsman, and the different skills that that are attributed to the players and their weaknesses. So one might be a hook shot as one of the weaknesses, so they’ll put a fielder out deep and then entice them with some bouncers to do that.
“The AI will definitely try to entice you to do those kinds of shots, especially because as you go up the levels, to do it correctly, you’ve got to get your footwork right, get the shot type right as well as the timing. So if they’re putting a bouncer at your head, you’ve got a choice to duck and miss it, or do that hook shot and get on top of it to bring it down. Mistime it slightly and off it goes, you’re out.”
Of course, playing against another human and a lot of that can be thrown out of the window. In that instance, Mike continued, “It’s more to do with their ability than it is the actual batsman. You might know them and, for whatever reason, they might be weak against spin because the timing window changes slightly, the ball’s slower, whatever it is. So as soon as you know this, you can bring the spinners on to affect him, or just change one so that one end’s got the spinner, one end’s got the pace bowler, and that can screw up people’s timing if they’re not concentrating.”
Even at the best of times, cricket isn’t a fast-paced sport, and even speeding things up through the magic of video games, a T20 match, let alone one day or test match are going to take a good bit of time to play through. It’s a blessing that Big Ant have got a short and sweet five over mode that can be stuck on for a quick blast.
“We’ve got a good range there,” Mike said, “from the more simulation side, if you want to call it that, through to the more arcade. I like to call our game a sandbox cricket game; with all the creator tools and being able to tailor the rules to how you want to play it with the match designer, it is a sandbox. Bring some players down from the server, create some bats, put in some rules, set up a tournament and away you go. It’s all there for someone to create whatever they want.”
Cricket 19 ticks a lot of boxes. It looks pretty decent, the gameplay mechanics are solid if a bit robotic when fielding, there’s both realistically long and ultra-short forms of the game to take on, and it’s coming out this month ahead of what’s going to be a summer-long feast of real world cricket for fans. The trick will still be getting more people to pick it up, so Big Ant are taking it to the sport’s fans: “As this series starts and the world cup starts, there’ll be lots of chances for people to actually get exposed to the game and have fun at the grounds. There’s actually going to be booths around each of the grounds for the world cup.”
Maybe they’ll even put one next to the Pimm’s bar for the members at Lord’s to give a go.
Though it has an audience that spans the globe, cricket isn’t a sport for everyone. Many in the UK will just tune in for the Ashes (just like those who pay no attention to tennis outside of Wimbledon), but given it’s huge popularity throughout the rest of the Commonwealth it’s perhaps a little surprising that it doesn’t have more of a presence in video games, similar to how MLB The Show does for baseball.
Speaking to Big Ant’s Development Director Mike Merren, he said, “It’s a weird one, and you could go into great detail over what the sport has going for it and not going for it, but the key thing with baseball is that it’s all under one big umbrella. You’ve got MLB, they own everything, and everything about it can be given to someone as a license and off they go. For cricket, yes it’s a global reach, in the commonwealth countries anyway, but you’ve got people who are fans of T20 cricket, people who are fans of test match cricket, you’ve got guys who are into Indian Premier League, you’ve got county cricket… it’s so diverse.”
With their licenses only covering the England and Australia teams, he admitted, “Right now, with the best will in the world, we’ve got a game that will appeal in England and Australia. It still has some reach in the likes of South Africa and New Zealand, but it’s still not exploding in India because it hasn’t got that IPL license.” Still, the plucky community can dip into a mode that lets you customise uniforms, players and more that can be shared online, similar to PES.
One thing that does help is that the game’s relatively easy to pick up and play. You’re given plenty of different camera angles, from behind the batsman to first person bowling, or just a traditional TV-style angle when playing local multiplayer. Thanks to the on-screen UI displaying all the options, the controls are relatively straightforward to figure out as well.
On the bowling side of things you simply select the type of ball you want to deliver, angle it slightly as you take the run up and hit the mark on the two consecutive power meters. As a batsman, it’s a case of getting your position at the crease, picking a shot direction and type, and then timing it right. With the bowling and batting difficulties at their lowest, the timing is at it’s loosest for both, with a healthy dose of assistance on shot direction for the batsman.
Mike said, “I think when you’re on easy, especially if you’re on easy batting, I’d say it’s probably skewed more towards the batsman as opposed to the bowler. But as you take the levels up, and if you’re more on medium or hard, you’re going to find that difficulty levels up quite quickly, and that actually the bowling becomes the one that you want to do more.”
Thanks to this, playing on easy let me spot the gaps in the field and let rip, racking up fours and sixes like nobody’s business until a bit too much recklessness sent balls into waiting hands. Stepping the difficulty up a notch and it definitely takes more effort and concentration to get it to come together, the timing shifting around a little – you see after a ball how you did with various ball and shot selections, as well as timing.
Some of a batsman’s performance comes from their building confidence through an innings, which builds as you select the right shot for the occasion and loosens up the timing for your shots – “if you want to win matches you’ve got to block the ball sometimes.”
However, there’s more to consider here, from the deterioration of the ball through the overs, making spinners more useful, through to the effects of weather. Mike explained, “Overcast skies, as much as scientists will say doesn’t affect the swing of the ball, I think you can talk to any fast bowler and they’ll say they totally believe that it does affect the ball. So our game does, because I think anybody who’s into cricket at all will expect that to have an effect.”
Of course, as a first time player, a lot of that nuance was probably lost on me, and I was more trying to get a handle of the basic strategy at play. What should I look for in a ball’s path for shot selection? Can you really build an over to try and lull someone into a trap? It’s definitely there, but it’s something that would take much more play time to figure out.
“We’ve brought this into the AI,” Mike told us. “In terms of the bowling strategy that they’ve got, they will effectively bowl to their fields. They know the batsman, and the different skills that that are attributed to the players and their weaknesses. So one might be a hook shot as one of the weaknesses, so they’ll put a fielder out deep and then entice them with some bouncers to do that.
“The AI will definitely try to entice you to do those kinds of shots, especially because as you go up the levels, to do it correctly, you’ve got to get your footwork right, get the shot type right as well as the timing. So if they’re putting a bouncer at your head, you’ve got a choice to duck and miss it, or do that hook shot and get on top of it to bring it down. Mistime it slightly and off it goes, you’re out.”
Of course, playing against another human and a lot of that can be thrown out of the window. In that instance, Mike continued, “It’s more to do with their ability than it is the actual batsman. You might know them and, for whatever reason, they might be weak against spin because the timing window changes slightly, the ball’s slower, whatever it is. So as soon as you know this, you can bring the spinners on to affect him, or just change one so that one end’s got the spinner, one end’s got the pace bowler, and that can screw up people’s timing if they’re not concentrating.”
Even at the best of times, cricket isn’t a fast-paced sport, and even speeding things up through the magic of video games, a T20 match, let alone one day or test match are going to take a good bit of time to play through. It’s a blessing that Big Ant have got a short and sweet five over mode that can be stuck on for a quick blast.
“We’ve got a good range there,” Mike said, “from the more simulation side, if you want to call it that, through to the more arcade. I like to call our game a sandbox cricket game; with all the creator tools and being able to tailor the rules to how you want to play it with the match designer, it is a sandbox. Bring some players down from the server, create some bats, put in some rules, set up a tournament and away you go. It’s all there for someone to create whatever they want.”
Cricket 19 ticks a lot of boxes. It looks pretty decent, the gameplay mechanics are solid if a bit robotic when fielding, there’s both realistically long and ultra-short forms of the game to take on, and it’s coming out this month ahead of what’s going to be a summer-long feast of real world cricket for fans. The trick will still be getting more people to pick it up, so Big Ant are taking it to the sport’s fans: “As this series starts and the world cup starts, there’ll be lots of chances for people to actually get exposed to the game and have fun at the grounds. There’s actually going to be booths around each of the grounds for the world cup.”
Maybe they’ll even put one next to the Pimm’s bar for the members at Lord’s to give a go.
Yahoo preview (6 May 2019)
The 2005 Ashes series is generally regarded as one of the greatest ever.
The five-match Test series was won 2-1 by England as the hosts tore the iron grip of Australia away from the world’s smallest trophy.
For fans of video games, though, that experience is coming to console for the first time. Or for Australians, a chance to make amends.
Cricket 19, the latest in a series from Big Ant Studios, is set for release later this month ahead of a mammoth summer of cricket.
England will play hosts as the Cricket World Cup precedes the Ashes, but the ability to replay crucial historical moments feels as fresh as the upcoming action.
“Scenario mode is one of the biggest new features,” Development director Mike Merren explains. “You can go in and there’s the ability to play creative scenarios which might be to get a certain amount of wickets in a certain amount of overs or to score a certain amount of runs quickly.
“I think the guts of it will be when people start creating all those ones that people can share.”
But what about those of us who are less enamoured to build from scratch?
“The scenario editor means you can spend hours setting up real life scorecards that have happened in the past, that could be to get the last wicket in the 2005 Ashes series at Trent Bridge.
“Those things can be shared on the sharing server. Scenarios can go on there and then get downloaded, so people who may not be as patient can still get those scenarios.”
He is, of course, referring to ‘The Academy’, a longstanding part of BigAnt’s cricket games which emphasise their authenticity.
The Academy is a creative mode within the game which allows fans to build players from scratch among other things.
Umpires, stadiums and kits also feature as the community can unite to add extra gloss to the gaming experience.
For the first time though, Cricket 19 will see the mode released before the game - so fans on PC can get busy building in preparation.
“The biggest thing is making it easier for people to create players,” he added. “We’ve added the PlayFace feature. This was added to AO Tennis when it came out.
“When using the PC version, people can use a texture to create a face, and then upload that to the server and then the console guys can use it. I think it will add a fair bit.
“People need to know what they’re doing, but the stuff created for tennis was incredible.”
Cricket 19, like its predecessor Ashes Cricket, will feature a fully-licensed Ashes series mode with photo-realistic player shots.
The five-day Test series has been enhanced with ‘intelligent’ AI and improved tactics, which means matches should last the full five days. Or at least four.
And the new edition will also bring back the popular career mode, with an increased emphasis on player longevity.
“Career mode now has changed how the skill system works, and we’ve added the perks system.
“For any given match you can change one of the smaller perks - for example a slight improvement against a spin bowler, or to bowl better as a spin bowler - but the gold perks will give you big boosts, and you can only change that when you level up.”
Cricket 19 will be released on May 28 on PlayStation 4, Xbox One and Nintendo Switch. A PC version will be available on Steam shortly after.
The five-match Test series was won 2-1 by England as the hosts tore the iron grip of Australia away from the world’s smallest trophy.
For fans of video games, though, that experience is coming to console for the first time. Or for Australians, a chance to make amends.
Cricket 19, the latest in a series from Big Ant Studios, is set for release later this month ahead of a mammoth summer of cricket.
England will play hosts as the Cricket World Cup precedes the Ashes, but the ability to replay crucial historical moments feels as fresh as the upcoming action.
“Scenario mode is one of the biggest new features,” Development director Mike Merren explains. “You can go in and there’s the ability to play creative scenarios which might be to get a certain amount of wickets in a certain amount of overs or to score a certain amount of runs quickly.
“I think the guts of it will be when people start creating all those ones that people can share.”
But what about those of us who are less enamoured to build from scratch?
“The scenario editor means you can spend hours setting up real life scorecards that have happened in the past, that could be to get the last wicket in the 2005 Ashes series at Trent Bridge.
“Those things can be shared on the sharing server. Scenarios can go on there and then get downloaded, so people who may not be as patient can still get those scenarios.”
He is, of course, referring to ‘The Academy’, a longstanding part of BigAnt’s cricket games which emphasise their authenticity.
The Academy is a creative mode within the game which allows fans to build players from scratch among other things.
Umpires, stadiums and kits also feature as the community can unite to add extra gloss to the gaming experience.
For the first time though, Cricket 19 will see the mode released before the game - so fans on PC can get busy building in preparation.
“The biggest thing is making it easier for people to create players,” he added. “We’ve added the PlayFace feature. This was added to AO Tennis when it came out.
“When using the PC version, people can use a texture to create a face, and then upload that to the server and then the console guys can use it. I think it will add a fair bit.
“People need to know what they’re doing, but the stuff created for tennis was incredible.”
Cricket 19, like its predecessor Ashes Cricket, will feature a fully-licensed Ashes series mode with photo-realistic player shots.
The five-day Test series has been enhanced with ‘intelligent’ AI and improved tactics, which means matches should last the full five days. Or at least four.
And the new edition will also bring back the popular career mode, with an increased emphasis on player longevity.
“Career mode now has changed how the skill system works, and we’ve added the perks system.
“For any given match you can change one of the smaller perks - for example a slight improvement against a spin bowler, or to bowl better as a spin bowler - but the gold perks will give you big boosts, and you can only change that when you level up.”
Cricket 19 will be released on May 28 on PlayStation 4, Xbox One and Nintendo Switch. A PC version will be available on Steam shortly after.
TheXboxHub preview (7 May 2019)
I’ve just finished taking in a full tour of the world-famous Lords Cricket ground, fully informed be a brilliantly bearded man with fetching sports jacket. Now I’m not the biggest cricket fan, but you can’t help but be impressed with the history, items, and nostalgia of this 200-year-old ground. Particularly when the team dressing rooms are adorned with honour boards which mark every century made in a Test match on the grounds, and all instances of a bowler taking five wickets in Test innings, or how Lord’s is most famous for having a sloping outfield. For the record, the south-west side of the ground stands almost two and a half meters lower than the north-west side, causing considerable deviation to the ball when bowling.
Further to that, a stuffed sparrow is also on display; memorialised as the unlucky ‘bowled out’ victim of a deadly beamer from Jahangir Khan of Cambridge University during a match in 1936. It also has a museum with the famous original Ashes trophy (a lady’s perfume bottle) housed within. And it is because of that urn that I am here – to have a bit of hands-on time with Cricket 19 – The Official Game of the Ashes which is coming to Xbox One, PS4 and Nintendo Switch on the 28th May 2019.
Playing the game for a few sessions in the actual location that this game is set is a very strange experience. Especially when you find yourself hitting the ball towards the exact spot you are playing the game. It feels like breaking the rules of physics and time travel… and all because of cricket.
So, anyways, Big Ant Studios have created a game that has enough customisation and in-depth gameplay that will make it appeal to the most knowledgeable of cricket fan. But at the same time, someone who is new to the game – that’ll be me – will see the franchise change a few settings so the every day layman can whack a hundred sixes into the crowd if they fancy. It must be said, when taking in the surroundings, the company, and the overall environment, I really enjoyed the time I had playing Cricket 19, especially as time wore on and the chance to get involved in various batting strokes and bowling techniques allowed me to start to develop an actual game plan; even if it did surprise me more than my opponent.
But further to just smashing out some fours and sixes, I also got to speak to Mike Merren, the Development Director of Cricket 19 – The Official Game of the Ashes. Naturally, I asked him what the newest features of this game were:
“The biggest new feature is the scenario mode where we’ve added the ability for people to add scorecards for famous matches in the past. You, the player, can then go in and change history. You can start the game at any point in the match, wherever you want and then you can go in and set a condition, say England need 500 runs to win in a day and then off you go. There are 13 different conditions to choose based on famous scenarios from the history of the game. You can replay history for a whole match, or play a small part of the game that might only last 10 minutes, like get a wicket in the last over.”
I also asked Mike how many scenarios there were.
“Well, we have provided 10 at the moment. But there is a scenario designer that will allow people to set up scorecards or team creations, or player creations, logo creations, and even stadium creations. You can change the rules of the game as well if you like. You can have 10 ball overs, or the match to last for 70 overs. You can also change up the difficulty levels for each player to provide a more even playing field. All these rules you can set up so you can have your own match type, and all these creations can be shared across all formats in the online community.”
As well as the tie in with the Ashes this summer, allowing fans to play along with all the action at home, I just had to ask Mike about the career mode. After all, that’s probably where the majority of Cricket 19 fans will get the enjoyment.
“We changed it from the last game in a number of ways. In the old game, you would finish a game and get a certain amount of skill points and then you could assign them to any skill. So if you did well at batting you could still put all your points into bowling. That felt strange. So now in the game if you do really well in batting and say your hit ratio against pace bowlers was very good, then your skill level with this attribute will go up. Also, there is a perk system that unlocks through the game, giving little advantages and there are gold perks that you unlock when leveling up that gives you major improvements. You can also start from the beginning of a career from a rookie in club cricket trying to impress all the way to being the captain for your country in test cricket.”
So, some insightful moments from Mike and that has ensured that from my little bit of time with Cricket 19 – The Official Game of the Ashes at Lords Cricket ground, I have to say that I’m pretty excited about a game that I hadn’t really thought about much before. For the avid cricket fan, this is quite possibly going to be the must-play title of 2019, what with the deep customisation found within the scenarios, the amendability of the creation studios, the inclusion of the career mode and having the chance to get all your favourite players and locations together in one place.
Even for a newcomer like myself Cricket 19 has made me want to put on some white trousers, rub a ball across my leg and get my name on one of the Lord’s dressing room honours boards.
Further to that, a stuffed sparrow is also on display; memorialised as the unlucky ‘bowled out’ victim of a deadly beamer from Jahangir Khan of Cambridge University during a match in 1936. It also has a museum with the famous original Ashes trophy (a lady’s perfume bottle) housed within. And it is because of that urn that I am here – to have a bit of hands-on time with Cricket 19 – The Official Game of the Ashes which is coming to Xbox One, PS4 and Nintendo Switch on the 28th May 2019.
Playing the game for a few sessions in the actual location that this game is set is a very strange experience. Especially when you find yourself hitting the ball towards the exact spot you are playing the game. It feels like breaking the rules of physics and time travel… and all because of cricket.
So, anyways, Big Ant Studios have created a game that has enough customisation and in-depth gameplay that will make it appeal to the most knowledgeable of cricket fan. But at the same time, someone who is new to the game – that’ll be me – will see the franchise change a few settings so the every day layman can whack a hundred sixes into the crowd if they fancy. It must be said, when taking in the surroundings, the company, and the overall environment, I really enjoyed the time I had playing Cricket 19, especially as time wore on and the chance to get involved in various batting strokes and bowling techniques allowed me to start to develop an actual game plan; even if it did surprise me more than my opponent.
But further to just smashing out some fours and sixes, I also got to speak to Mike Merren, the Development Director of Cricket 19 – The Official Game of the Ashes. Naturally, I asked him what the newest features of this game were:
“The biggest new feature is the scenario mode where we’ve added the ability for people to add scorecards for famous matches in the past. You, the player, can then go in and change history. You can start the game at any point in the match, wherever you want and then you can go in and set a condition, say England need 500 runs to win in a day and then off you go. There are 13 different conditions to choose based on famous scenarios from the history of the game. You can replay history for a whole match, or play a small part of the game that might only last 10 minutes, like get a wicket in the last over.”
I also asked Mike how many scenarios there were.
“Well, we have provided 10 at the moment. But there is a scenario designer that will allow people to set up scorecards or team creations, or player creations, logo creations, and even stadium creations. You can change the rules of the game as well if you like. You can have 10 ball overs, or the match to last for 70 overs. You can also change up the difficulty levels for each player to provide a more even playing field. All these rules you can set up so you can have your own match type, and all these creations can be shared across all formats in the online community.”
As well as the tie in with the Ashes this summer, allowing fans to play along with all the action at home, I just had to ask Mike about the career mode. After all, that’s probably where the majority of Cricket 19 fans will get the enjoyment.
“We changed it from the last game in a number of ways. In the old game, you would finish a game and get a certain amount of skill points and then you could assign them to any skill. So if you did well at batting you could still put all your points into bowling. That felt strange. So now in the game if you do really well in batting and say your hit ratio against pace bowlers was very good, then your skill level with this attribute will go up. Also, there is a perk system that unlocks through the game, giving little advantages and there are gold perks that you unlock when leveling up that gives you major improvements. You can also start from the beginning of a career from a rookie in club cricket trying to impress all the way to being the captain for your country in test cricket.”
So, some insightful moments from Mike and that has ensured that from my little bit of time with Cricket 19 – The Official Game of the Ashes at Lords Cricket ground, I have to say that I’m pretty excited about a game that I hadn’t really thought about much before. For the avid cricket fan, this is quite possibly going to be the must-play title of 2019, what with the deep customisation found within the scenarios, the amendability of the creation studios, the inclusion of the career mode and having the chance to get all your favourite players and locations together in one place.
Even for a newcomer like myself Cricket 19 has made me want to put on some white trousers, rub a ball across my leg and get my name on one of the Lord’s dressing room honours boards.
Compiled by @wasteyouryouth
Media
Screenshots
Stadia
Video Teases
https://video.twimg.com/amplify_video/1100327050085388288/vid/1280x720/ESEnbFHxxL0MoABN.mp4?tag=9
https://video.twimg.com/ext_tw_video/1118817517344940032/pu/vid/1280x720/n2l0iy-squMWhnJV.mp4?tag=8
Press Day (29 April 2019)
Last edited:
