Video game review: Rugby League Manager 2008

Rugby League Manager 2008

RRP: £0.00Creator: Alex Thomas
Website: www.rugbyleaguemanager.com

Its not everyday we are treated to two RL games in the same year. In fact its not every year we get a Rugby League game to shout about, so count your lucky stars we have what we're given to us no matter how poor they might be.

Rugby League Manager 2008 comes in on the back of the latest of Sidhe's popular but flawed Rugby League franchise, Rugby League: World Cup Edition. The review can be seen below this one. However the two games are completely different, in that RLM08 allows you to be the coach of any Super League side competing in the 2008 season as opposed to being the players ala FIFA. RLM08 is the equivalent to Football Manager, in more ways than one I believe. But the uniqueness of RLM08 is that the game is completely free via download. That's right, the game will cost you nothing to download and play. Isn't that a bonus?

Well possibly, right? Those of you that were unfortunate enough to play Championship Rugby Manager way back in 2000 will remember how poor that game was. Only in that game could Wakefield rack up 70 points against Saints, but still manage to concede over 50. Its what really let that game down, so much so I failed to get past June of the first season without giving up on it at any given point in the past eight years. The commentary was very stop/start and the matches consisted of a bird's eye view of an over sized ball moving about a rugby pitch on its own. But away from the in-game experience, the rest of the game was average at best with decent menus, presentation and human interactivity. It was fairly easy to play until game day, but even then nothing in that weeks build up to a match made up for the poor experience. And don't forget, we had to pay for that torture. So imagine my concern and hesitation when RLM08 came out for free.

But imagine my relief and joy when it turned out to be pretty decent. In fact, I could not get away from the laptop because it was so good. The presentation and display looked good despite the initial complications in selecting your team from the left side menu. Once you get round the user-unfriendliness of that left menu that is standard throughout the game and understand that it works similar to the My Computer sidebar on Windows Vista, the game becomes easier to use. In fact I would recommend playing with the sidebar and familiarising yourself with it to find out what features are where before really getting stuck into the game itself, therefore maximising your initial enjoyment instead of giving up if your a a novice to PC gaming. Past the menu though, the game is easy to play and understand. Information such as players names, attributes and other details are clearly displayed and include a wide range of skills that goes into quite a bit of detail. Selecting your team is easy enough although repetitive. Despite being scrapped mid-2008, the 20 man and 18 man squads are still needed which means you are selecting your team three times before the actual match. Possibly a bonus if you realise you want to make a few adjustments to the starting team after picking your initial squad but often a little annoying if nothing happens during the week.

RLM08 goes into more detail tactically than what CRM did. It allows more advanced moves on the field when players have played with each other more often over the course of the season. This often results in convincing wins, but not all the time. Take heed in selecting your squad for the next game after using advanced tactics, as one of the game's major bugs is it will freeze as you try to select your next 20-man squad.
Unlike RL2: WCE, you have the choice of selecting National League and NRL players to transfer and sell. While selecting Billy Slater and Benji Marshall sounds like heaven, the salary cap puts that idea to bed unless you have a forward pack of kids on £300 a week.

Once you have selected your team, its game time. Possibly the best aspect of the game. Its very similar to Football Manager's old 2-D birds eye view. Presentation is slick, clear and if you select the right options it can go into quite a bit of detail into how well your team is performing. Score lines are realistic and often the three-quarters score the tries. Theres a million and one different options to assess how your team is playing, which really makes this game what it is. A quality programmed game made by one man in his study, possibly on a laptop.

If this game were to be made by a professional studio with a few improvements, it would be one of the best games in the UK market.

Graphics – 7/10

Gameplay – 8/10

Sound – 3/10

Presentation – 8/10

Overall – 7/10