Rugby World Cup 2011

With the Rugby World Cup around the corner, 505 Games is tapping into the excitement by releasing the official game of the tournament.

Gamers will be able to take control of all 20 participating countries including England, New Zealand and South Africa. In the tournament mode, they can pick one team and take them to glory, with the option of playing with randomised pools of teams so every playthrough is different.

Rugby World Cup 2011 boasts a host of features that promise to thrill rugby fans and sports gamers. These include one-on-one online multiplayer matches over Xbox Live and PSN, the ability to change game rules, kick takers and weather and wind settings, as well as a Warm Up tour mode where teams from the Northern and Southern hemisphere can battle it out.

A winning catch

The title is in safe hands. Canadian developer HB Studios has built a strong reputation for producing quality, top-selling sports games including Rugby 08, FIFA 11 on PSP and NHL 09 (see ‘HB quality’).

HB has focused on making the gameplay in Rugby World Cup 2011 ‘fast, fluid, fun and flowing’. The title is easy to pick up but hard to master, so making runs or scoring tries are as enjoyable as possible. Even the graphics engine has been created especially for the game.

“The Rugby World Cup is probably the biggest sporting event that’ll happen this year, and it’s the first time we’ll see a rugby union game in the HD era,” HB Studios GM Alastair Jarvis tells MCV.

“We’ve seen our rugby titles perform well in the past, and with the build-up to the World Cup this year, we’re seeing a huge amount of excitement and anticipation for this title. We have high expectations for how it will perform.”

HB quality

Developer HB Studios has achieved chart success with a number of sports titles including:

- FIFA 11 (PSP) – No.1 in the PSP Top Ten
- NBA Live 09 ALL Play (Wii, PS2, PSP) – 1m worldwide sales
- UEFA Euro 2008 (PS2, PSP, PC) – No.1 in the PS2 Top Ten, No.3 on PSP
- NHL 08 (PS2, PC) – 500,000 worldwide sales
- Rugby 08 (PS2, PC) – No.10 in the UK All Formats Top 40, No.1 in New Zealand and No.4 in Australia
- Cricket 07 (PS2, PC) – No.5 in PS2 UK Top Ten, No.1 in Australia

Licensed to thrill

Rugby World Cup 2011 is an authentic experience, and includes the official World Cup branding, song and licences for teams such as England and France.

The real deal

This year’s Rugby World Cup takes place in New Zealand from September 9th to October 23rd. The first tournament was held in 1987, and runs every four years. 20 teams participate.

http://www.mcvuk.com/retail-biz/reco...up-2011/042697