International Cricket Captain 2008

It Says Something about the perverse nature of cricket that it often better listened to than watched, whether on a balmy summer afternoon or ensconced under the bedclothes on a winter night, receiving reports from an exotic land. The specific machinations of the sport can be too bewildering to comprehend, and it's sometimes more reassuring to simply know it's there.

Those of a more tactical bent can chance their arm in ICC '08, but as in life, setting everything to default is as good a plan as any. In fact, this game is best enjoyed while doing something else as it stretches the definitions of both 'interactive' and 'entertainment.' Furthermore, with 800x600 graphics that wouldn't look out of place on a mobile phone, it's simply too ugly to play full screen, and is best tucked away in a corner of the monitor while you attend to more pressing matters. In a nod to this, the action pauses whenever you're using another application.

Every so often you can go back to the cricket, instruct your bowlers and batters to be more or less aggressive, and play an over with as many or few highlights as you wish. Cricket fans will lap up the authenticity, but $20 is still a bit much for what ICC '08 delivers.