Product Details

• Amazon Sales Rank: #3562 in Computer & Video Games
• Brand: Codemasters
• Released on: 2007-03-23
• Platform: PlayStation2

Manufacturer's Description:
Brian Lara International Cricket 2007 expands the series’ trademark fluid, dynamic gameplay mechanics to deliver a thoroughly entertaining and competitive game that captures all the tension, skill and intensity of world-class international cricket. Thanks to the official ICC Cricket World Cup 2007 content, Brian Lara International Cricket 2007 features licensed players, including world cricket stars Andrew Flintoff, Ricky Ponting, Mahendra Dhoni, Muttiah Muralitharan and of course, Brian Lara himself.

In addition to players, the game leads with a dedicated ICC Cricket World Cup 2007 mode featuring all the official teams, stadia, kits and equipment of the tournament. Further modes include a fully licensed ICC Champions’ Trophy competition and exhibition matches including One Day Games, Test Matches and exciting 20-over run fests.

Brian Lara International Cricket 2007 adds extra depth to the series’ complete batting, bowling and fielding experience whilst retaining its trademark accessible playability. The acclaimed batting play sees the introduction of subtle edges, sweepshots and the ability to use your feet to dance down wicket and smash the ball over the boundary for six.

Bowling sees a much-improved set of delivery types, thanks to changes in the way the ball swings in the air and reacts off the pitch, showcasing Shane Warne’s huge variation of spinning deliveries and Steve Harmison’s raw pace and even reverse swing as the ball degrades. In Fielding, there’s a new reflex-testing slip catch system and players can now be run out at both ends and be stumped by alert wicket keepers.

A striking advancement is the photo-realistic visuals; with hundreds of real player likenesses being modelled in high detail, complete with animated facial expressions to capture the intensity and emotion of international cricket. Stadia, including all eight official World Cup venues, have also been created with a new level of textured detail and they make use of proprietary shader technology for realistic, subtle and changing lighting effects, such as time of day and weather.

Customer Reviews

Disappointed
Upon hearing that Brian Lara 2007 was due to be released, I couldn't wait to see how Codemasters had improved from the 2005 edition.
Like Pro Evolution is to EA Sports Fifa series, Brian Lara 2005 beat any of the EA cricket games hands down, and I was hoping this trend would continue in the 2007 instalment. But I was to be greatly disappointed, and further more frustrated with the game in the first 15 minutes of playing it. Here are the Positive and Negative points I found with the game:


POSITIVE

· Extra features such as being able to run down the wicket and the use of various sweep shots brings extra realism to the batting side of the game.

· Graphics are a lot smoother as to be expected.

· Being able to throw to either wickets as apposed to just the wicket keeper end.


NEGATIVES( where to begin! )

· Bowling was far to easy, my mate managed to Kenya out for a grand total of 2, and even the better teams faired only slightly better.

· The wicket keeper taking the bails off, even if you've ran and been in your crease for ages. Gets very frustrating when that happens and a replay always follows.

· The new catching meter is terrible, even simple catches are hard to time, very frustrating.

· The unlocks are now bats and caps, not very exiting when compared to 2005 where you could unlock classic players and teams. Surprised they didn't include the unlocks of grass colour and crotch shield accessories.

· Not being able to edit player names!!! Somehow the excitement is taken away when you get a wicket with Freddie Flantiff.

· Not being able to customise you own tournament is annoying and also the sheer lack of game and menu options as apposed to 2005

· Not being able to check what score/ target you have to reach during the game, as well as checking the previous batting teams innings during the game


I have yet to try the new EA cricket, and after this disappointment of a game i am willing to try anything!

One of the Worst World Cup cash-ins
As a connoisseur of sports sims I came to Brian Lara Cricket 2007 with high hopes, and as a Codemasters franchise it had had a moderately decent track record for delivering the goods. Not anymore.

While the potential number of shots and bowling options deserve eulogies, when the gameplay begins you soon begin to learn it's all for nought. As per usual for a cricket game you can play two or three shots which virtually guarantee a boundary for most balls so for a realistic game you're forced to contrive a result by holding yourself back.
Meanwhile your opposing batsmen will similarly slog a few fours, then let a ball through the gate, and never ever will they go for a safe defensive stroke. So under this inscapable pattern you literally bowl an entire team out cheaply yet they can often keep a strike rate of around 6/over. Point being the AI for the batting is poor.

There's worse, the fielding. For returns to the keeper and catching you need the reactions of hawk to anticipate a meter that quickly zooms by fully expecting you to stop it dead in the middle. This makes most catching situations virtually impossible to master.

Finally, the glitches and reliability. For some reason I can't save mid-game despite what the booklet says, and at the completion of my first World Cup match the game always freezes and I have to restart, so no campaign for me.
All of which means I'm returning my copy to the store, this game just isn't worth £[...] of anybody's money.

At the risk of sounding like comic book store guy, worst game ever!

Poor!
Still a ok game, which can be fun when you are entertaining mates, but it really lacks quality and realism.

Feilding isnt that much better and although you can choose what end you want to throw the ball, it is still very poor. Feilding is also pathetically slow and sometimes the batsmen can head off for another run when you pick the ball up and they still get away with it. You have to catch in the slips and wicket kepper which can be irratating when you miss a perfectly easy catch. Overall, feilding gets a 2/5.

Batting hasnt really changed that much, still unrealistic when you hit a ball, and hitting a six is much to easy for what it should be. One thing that is good though is that the tail enders have got much better, in Brain Lara 1 they were rubish and you were lucky to get 10 runs from the bottom 4 batters. Overall, batting gets 3/5

Bowling hasnt changed much either, although some of the spin you get from the spinners is completely unrealistic. You dont get close to the amount of seam you got from Brain Lara 1, which i suppose is more realistic. Bowling hasnt changed that much at all, so i give that 3/5.

I bought this game becasue i friend reccomended it, but he was well wrong, it lacks in every department and i keep wondering when someone is going to bring out a GOOD cricket game....