• Help Support The Rugby Forum :

The more I play it.....the more I hate it.......

The more the game becomes a simulation, the more boring the game will get. This is just systematic of Rugby Union. If R2005 stoped and started as much as in real rugby union, no one would play it.

Games are more importantly than anything else, meant to be fun and stopping and starting wouldnt be much fun.
 
so, multiplayer mode is far better than the single player mode. and guess what ? there is no online mode to play on the web !! thank you ea.
 
Originally posted by beUf@Mar 29 2005, 02:44 AM
so, multiplayer mode is far better than the single player mode. and guess what ? there is no online mode to play on the web !! thank you ea.
Multiplayer is ALWAYS better than single player on ANY sports game. You cant blame EA for that. EA knew they had a lot of work to do on this ***le and I think online play was just asking for too much.

Ea also knew that if they delivered a solid game this time around it would sell regardless of online play or not. EA still have something up their sleeve for next time around now. They know 2006 will sell huge if they offer online play which im sure they will.
 
It is by far the best rugby game, BUT when England wins 9 out of 10 rucks when your team carried the ball in......I see a problem. Hard England AI vs USA (who is not a good team) I was passing left up 3 meters pass out right then up 3 m and so on because 9 of 10 rucks I lost the ball. As bad as they make the US team...not the only team this does this for....England would not blow them off a ruck the US carried the ball in to this many times.

Not realistic I guess I should say....


P.S. Kicking blows ass.
 
Originally posted by knowsleyroader@Mar 29 2005, 03:13 AM
Multiplayer is ALWAYS better than single player on ANY sports game. You cant blame EA for that. EA knew they had a lot of work to do on this ***le and I think online play was just asking for too much.

Ea also knew that if they delivered a solid game this time around it would sell regardless of online play or not. EA still have something up their sleeve for next time around now. They know 2006 will sell huge if they offer online play which im sure they will.
yep, i see what you mean.
actually, they've done a great work since rugby 2004. but it's really too bad, because that kind of little forgettings take the game down, whereas it could have been quite easily fixed (at least for the turnovers, i suppose)

if i remember well, rugby 2001 had the same problems......
<


but i still think that they could have managed to create an online mode : it's much easier (i got a pc...) to play on internet than with some friends. and it's harder for anyone (especially for those who don't know nothing about rugby) to play rugby 2005 than pes4...
 
Originally posted by NZL fan@Mar 28 2005, 11:52 AM
Everybody is entitled to there opinion, so here's mine............please note these thoughts are based on the one player mode. If games are meant to only be good on multiplayer then they should be advertised as such. The only real way to judge any other game, and compare it to others, is to base your judgement on single player mode - the most used mode by the majority of people playing the game.

Like most I bought the game on release and was amazed at how well HB studios had done. However as days wore on, and the improved graphics I had seen had lessened in importance, the poor gameplay and overall design of the game started to grate - to the point now that a week later I think I've had enough.

For instance.

*Difficulty modes are ********. Normal is far too easy, and hard is a real snooze fest against teams like England, where turnovers occur against you regardless of a given situation, and the oppostion players have been "sped up" to make it harder (rather then they actually play better). I can beat England more times then not on hard, but to be honest it isn't FUN in the way you have to play, due to the handicaps you have been given in hard mode.

*The game comes across as far too automated. In normal difficulty the same type of tries are scored all the time. You'll break the line, and regardless of how quickly you free the ball the opposition will have a perfect line of defenders waiting. Watch any super 12 game and look at the defensive lines after several phases of play. some players are deeper, some flat - not all lined up in a row like in rugby 2005. If this occured in rugby 2005 you would then be forced to try different attacking approaches, and defending would be harder. At present defending is FAR too easy, and on hard mode the opposition AI tends to just kick endless drop goals in order to acheive a win (yawn).

*Talking about the automated feel.........set pieces are still far too slow. On one of the set peices you can never tackle one of the passing players due to the animation being half completed!! Certain players in certain set moves always have a hole to run into.

*The biggest issue is the motion capture animation problems. This is especially evident when you go to pass but cannot (even though the tackler is still five mtrs away from you), because the "tackling animation" has already kicked in. More of a gameplay issue on the hard mode as the opposition have been unfairly sped up to make it harder, so the animation problem occurs when the tackler is even further away from you! It also affects the ability to grubber kick on the run, and also the use of the right stick.

*The right stick moves are fairly useless (mainly due to the timing problems caused by the "animation problem"). Some people will swear black and blue that they "use them all the time", but you'll actually find you'll beat more players by just changing direction yourself using the left stick.

*Lack of penalties awarded you. Penalties are an important element in any rugby union game. You hardly ever get a penalty given to you. I've played a lot of games and just about all my penalties came from the opposition collapsing the maul. I ONCE got awarded an offside penalty (yippee!!), but this was after about 40 games where the computer controlled opposition seemed to be able to tackle my players regardless if they had retired behind the last mans feet or not. Really annoying when your first five is tackled by a retreating player who suddenly tackles your man when he is at least 10mtrs offside!!

*All camera angles are crap - two are virtually unusable, the other two both have major gameplay issues, or are unattractive to play from.

*The rucks are a dogs breakfast. There appears to be no decent reasoning behind a majority of the ruck wins - in fact on hard mode the computer downright cheats to deny you possession. You can sometimes have your entire forward pack at the breakdown but somehow lose the ball to the opposition forwards arriving half an hour late. You can make multiple big hits that drive the opposition back 15 mtrs or so but still you can not get a turnover??

There are millions of other annoying things (ie. players "warping" into position, the 8mtr diving tackles, player creation problems, poor player research, unable to create a tourney, players seemingly anable to catch a simple punted ball, passes going 40mtrs backwards to nobody etc etc).

Yes it is the best rugby game created thus far (though that isn't saying too much!!) but I now find this game VERY boring.

In fact the biggest improvement have been in the graphics (which had very little to do with HB studios ability as developers) whilst the gameplay from rugby 2004 has been "tweaked", with some annoying issues still not rectified.

The real problem gameplay issue for me is hard to finger, but if I had to try to explain it I would say that it doesn't feel like real rugby (like PES4 feels like real football), and the PLAYERS seem to have no real redeeming qualities that make one seem different to one another (except for speed).

Thats it I think - the developers have captured the TEAM element of the sport without capturing the INDIVIDUALITY of the different players that make up the teams.........
Well just for the record, I'm still playing single player on hard and loving it, mainly because I have learnt the little nuances of the game and accepted there are floors. Yes there are gameplay issues, but for many of them there is a way round.

I am playing as England, and I am finding hard mode a real challenge, where the oppositon are able to break my line and score good tries, yet I am still able to score some spectacular tries, and put some great moves together. Some games can be boring just like in the real life, but at the same time I have had some cracking encounters!

It just takes patience and a lot of time on the practice field!! seriously if you are having problems go back to the practice field and keep trying moves until you crack them. Understand your set moves inside out and when best to use them. Learn to judge exactly when to initiate a special move, because they DO work!! The trick is to do everything much earlier than you think.


Even against the very best sides such as NZ I have pulled off some stunning running rugby, passing the ball all over the park, using grubbers kicks to good effect. Yet the games are still a real challnge and I tend to lose!

You can play exciting attractive rugby in this game, but just like real life its hard to pull off. You also need to make an effort to play good rugby. Its easy to just spin the ball one way and then another, but if you mix it up you'll be rewarded.

One of my latest tricks is to use the hand off special move with forwards around the ruck. You can make good ground, and sometimes break the line to realese the ball to your speedy backs. I have just brought robinson onto the wing and he is creating all sorts of havock!

yes there is a motion capture problem which means you cannot pass when the tackle animation kicks in. But once you recognise this you can judge the distance when the animation will start and make sure you pass before hand!! You have to be very quick with the passing, way before you think you need to pass. I can now judge it perfectly and tear the oppostion apart with great passing moves. If you mix it up between forwards and backs, use the special moves to gain extra ground, use grubbers and up and unders, you can have a great game.

Yes hard mode is fustrating but if you understand the game and how it works I promise you can work round this. I have have found all the tries very different in hard mode, not at all samey like normal mode. You really have to work your socks off to score, but when you do what a great feeling!

OK the AI does kick too much, but not always, and I still find them hard to stop when they use their backs.

Yes the lack of penalites is annoying but hone your drop kicking skills and you can still pick up those precious three points.

Single played will never be as good as mulitiplayer we all know that. But please give it another chance! I very nearly gave up on single player myself, I found hard mode too hard and fustrating. But then it suddently clicked. I began to really understand the game and now I am LOVING it.

So guys, go back to the practice pitch, learn the game, and then give it another go remembering this game isn't perfect.

You need to dig a little deeper to find the true gems in single player, trust me!!
 
Have to agree with you there mate, the game is definitely there to be enjoyed, you just have to give it a chance.
 
I cant understand people moaning about the tackle animations stopping you pass. Yes they do I realise that myself, but at least you do get tackled. If people are going to be that picky, what about when you were tackled in NRL with both hands free and it wouldnt let you offload ?

People need to do one of two things.

Accept the flaws that are there and get on with the game thats in front of you.
or
Dont play the game ever again, forget the flaws and wait for R2006.
 
If anything good comes from all the points being made about gameplay issues on this forum it will be that SIDHE pick up on it and make damned sure none of them are repeated in NRL2.
 
Originally posted by knowsleyroader@Mar 29 2005, 08:07 AM
I cant understand people moaning about the tackle animations stopping you pass. Yes they do I realise that myself, but at least you do get tackled. If people are going to be that picky, what about when you were tackled in NRL with both hands free and it wouldnt let you offload ?

People need to do one of two things.

Accept the flaws that are there and get on with the game thats in front of you.
or
Dont play the game ever again, forget the flaws and wait for R2006.
At least SJRL ALLOWED you the opportunity to offload at certain times........

To be honest I expected to get a little flamed for starting this thread...however it doesn't appear to be the case.

Jimmy 44: Interesting points you have. I don't have a problem winning on hard, but as I mentioned I have a problem with the way you have to play to be able to win on hard (I suggest that you play against England to see what I mean).

Hard mode against them isn't a lot of fun, more of a mechanised chore........and as for the "special moves", "set pieces" etc, in the end they have very little bearing on the final result.

The only real difference between individual players is their speed, and again speed is the only trait you need to begin winning all the time.

Yes it is a step up from rugby 2004, however if you closely look at it the biggest step is in the graphics (inherited from FIFA), whilst the gameplay isn't the huge step from rugby 2004 that people think it is.
 
well for the first time i reckon i'm on my own here

i hate multiplayer and cannot put it down in world league hard mode

the fact ur best mate has the opportunity to brag of a win after randomly winning a crucial ruck in the dying seconds kill the multiplayer experience, kills the skill levels on each human player.

u cannot justify winning in multiplayer when the rucks are decided on a flip of a coin.

under our 2 player rules u cannot kick it out after times up.......so when ur ahead and on ur own 10m line, with no time left, and a random turnover happens....there's nothing u can do but hope for a knock on or another turnover in ur favour.
there's no skillset in the most important foundation of a rugby match.

atleast when u get ripped off in 1 player the ps2 doesnt shout in ur face "i am the greatest, and ur ****"........coz in 2 player that happens all the time, when the AI won a match for u.
 
Hey NZL fan, have you started a world leage on hard?? I have experienced a lot of what you have said and have found its mostly aginst england that its not fun, they are the only team that play like super humans and make it unrealistic. So forget internationals for now and go to world leauge. Here you will find that alot of individual sats do count, e.g guys with poor hands with thow bad passes causing teamates to reach high or low and get hammered, players with poor hands will just drop the ball cold, hookers with poor hooking will lose all your scrums for you, poor jumpers will miss lineout balls etc, so this makes for a challenge, and makes it very rewarding searching out players with good key stats. I must admit I havent lost for a long time, but each game is still a battle and still fun, like real rugby. I made a rule for myself, along with my limit being 2 players per season, I can only select players in or below my division and each year I have to get one forward and one back. This makes the challenge last longer and makes you have to fight harder to win. Im almost at the point where I have to make my own rules and add them in, might start a thread on that soon and see what ideas everyones got.
 
Originally posted by Black|Raven@Mar 28 2005, 08:10 PM
RUGBY 2004 was a quantum leap backwards....
quantam meens small. It was a 'yuge' leap backwards.
 
Originally posted by knowsleyroader@Mar 29 2005, 08:07 AM
People need to do one of two things.

Accept the flaws that are there and get on with the game thats in front of you.
or
Dont play the game ever again, forget the flaws and wait for R2006.
where do people get off thinking if you shell out the cash for a full price game that you shouldn't be able to whinge about it and should shut up and get on with it or put the game down?

Why can some fans not bear to hear criticism about a game they play that they feel the need to tell people on a forum about what they should do if they don't like it.

it would be nice if the developers actually gave some kind of after sales support (at least for PC users) by releasing patches like they used to before the bad days of consoles having the same ***les out as pc's do. Frankly, the xbox and PS 2 have killed off the need for developers to actually fix bugs in their games.

game issues aside, this game is too easy if you go England, NZ, Aus, SA or France. Just dropping down to wales and selecting the default team the computer gives you is more than challenging, its constantly frustrating.

How many people here are moving all their wingers into the center and just replacing their guys for the fastest? That seems about all you need to do go running through the middle and scoring easy tries
<
 
Originally posted by Inertia+Mar 29 2005, 07:17 PM--><div class='quotetop'>QUOTE (Inertia @ Mar 29 2005, 07:17 PM)</div>
<!--QuoteBegin-knowsleyroader
@Mar 29 2005, 08:07 AM


People need to do one of two things.

Accept the flaws that are there and get on with the game thats in front of you.
or
Dont play the game ever again, forget the flaws and wait for R2006.
where do people get off thinking if you shell out the cash for a full price game that you shouldn't be able to whinge about it and should shut up and get on with it or put the game down?

Why can some fans not bear to hear criticism about a game they play that they feel the need to tell people on a forum about what they should do if they don't like it.

it would be nice if the developers actually gave some kind of after sales support (at least for PC users) by releasing patches like they used to before the bad days of consoles having the same ***les out as pc's do. Frankly, the xbox and PS 2 have killed off the need for developers to actually fix bugs in their games.

game issues aside, this game is too easy if you go England, NZ, Aus, SA or France. Just dropping down to wales and selecting the default team the computer gives you is more than challenging, its constantly frustrating.

How many people here are moving all their wingers into the center and just replacing their guys for the fastest? That seems about all you need to do go running through the middle and scoring easy tries
<
[/b]
You have every right to complain about the game, because there are a great deal of flaws and I agree, people should not shoot you down for having a negative opinion. I'm afraid it is one of the bad aspects of this forum. It happened to me!

I play as England and I can rarely just break down the middle and score easy tries. None of the tries are easy, you have to work hard for them. Against the best teams its a struggle scoring any points! I have moved robinson into the wing position and have chosen fast centres as you say but I still find it hard to score. Maybe I'm just c£$p at the game!!
 
ok. ok. even though rugby 2005 have these annoying flaws jimmy44 is right.
what i've done is compensate for them. (eg. pass earlier, time your set moves, mix up the gameplay....etc). BUT the only reason why i'm dissing rugby 2005 is that these were the most basic of flaws and SHOULD HAVE NOT BEEN IN THE GAME! its like EA have no memory of what they see and learn....SURELY IF YOU WERE TESTING THE GAME YOU WOULD'VE NOTICED:-
-AI kicks too much
-fly half is flat
-scrum half does circles before passing
-no offloads......and so on, and so on...

i seriously think they have rushed the game once again.....i wouldn't have minded if they had taken an extra month or year to fix the flaws..BUT SERIOUSLY i think what they did was to purposely leave in the flaws and leave out other stuff.

reason why......it makes money, people buy it then find the flaws then think, RUGBY 2006 will be way better....they see new **** outta rugby '06..but there are still flaws, and the cycle continues...you know why? they said its a new franchise....IF rugby 2005 WAS THE BEST RUGBY SIMULATION GAME EVER!!! then who would bother to wait for rugby '06 or '07..
<
i know i wouldn't!
<
 
Originally posted by Black|Raven@Mar 29 2005, 09:21 PM
ok. ok. even though rugby 2005 have these annoying flaws jimmy44 is right.
what i've done is compensate for them. (eg. pass earlier, time your set moves, mix up the gameplay....etc). BUT the only reason why i'm dissing rugby 2005 is that these were the most basic of flaws and SHOULD HAVE NOT BEEN IN THE GAME! its like EA have no memory of what they see and learn....SURELY IF YOU WERE TESTING THE GAME YOU WOULD'VE NOTICED:-
-AI kicks too much
-fly half is flat
-scrum half does circles before passing
-no offloads......and so on, and so on...

i seriously think they have rushed the game once again.....i wouldn't have minded if they had taken an extra month or year to fix the flaws..BUT SERIOUSLY i think what they did was to purposely leave in the flaws and leave out other stuff.

reason why......it makes money, people buy it then find the flaws then think, RUGBY 2006 will be way better....they see new **** outta rugby '06..but there are still flaws, and the cycle continues...you know why? they said its a new franchise....IF rugby 2005 WAS THE BEST RUGBY SIMULATION GAME EVER!!! then who would bother to wait for rugby '06 or '07..
<
i know i wouldn't!
<
Mate you've hit the nail on the head. thats EXACTLY why there are flaws in the game. Its a sales and marketing strategy as you rightly say. I'm afraid this is the world we live in.

The good news is that EA's rugby game will get better and better every year, so guys cheer up, we've got plenty to forward to!!

In the mean time I still think rugby 2005 is a damn fine game, and heaps of fun. Try and look at the glass as half full, because it IS half full!!
 
While that might make sense to even the most cynical person the reality is probably far from the truth.

Games have plans and release dates and as far as the top EA brass goes those dates must be met.

Even if RL 2005 was seemingly perfect, there are always ways to improve up each release. Most noticeably will be graphics as the capabilites are always pushed from year to year. AI engines will always be improved upon.

Releasing a **** game puts you in immense danager of losing customers per year that you might not get back.

I don't take that argument (posted above) at all. The fact sport has new line ups every year is enough for most people to have to buy the next edition...a certain completeness that not even home made patches will provide.

EA have done what they could have done in the time and while i'm not exactly flabberghasted by the this years results it was a remarkable improvement over 2004.
 
Originally posted by Inertia@Mar 29 2005, 11:27 PM
While that might make sense to even the most cynical person the reality is probably far from the truth.

Games have plans and release dates and as far as the top EA brass goes those dates must be met.

Even if RL 2005 was seemingly perfect, there are always ways to improve up each release. Most noticeably will be graphics as the capabilites are always pushed from year to year. AI engines will always be improved upon.

Releasing a **** game puts you in immense danager of losing customers per year that you might not get back.

I don't take that argument (posted above) at all.  The fact sport has new line ups every year is enough for most people to have to buy the next edition...a  certain completeness that not even home made patches will provide.

EA have done what they could have done in the time and while i'm not exactly flabberghasted by the this years results it was a remarkable improvement over 2004.
I agree if EA issue a **** game then they are putting themselves in great danger. But rugby 2005 is clearly not a **** game.

Whether it is a sales and marketing strategy of course we will never know, but I can see the sense in leaving gaps so that they can be filled, gradually, in later additions.

I actually DONT think improved graphics and new team rosters is enough to persuade people to buy the same game each year. Just look at the fifa series. Every year ea introduce new gameplay features whether its 'off the ball' or 'first touch' People are looking for significant improvements in game play. All we are saying is that by leaving a few strategically placed gaps, these improvements seem all the more significant. As long as it is managed carefully, this is a viable approach.
 
Originally posted by NZL fan+Mar 29 2005, 08:27 AM--><div class='quotetop'>QUOTE (NZL fan @ Mar 29 2005, 08:27 AM)</div>
<!--QuoteBegin-knowsleyroader
@Mar 29 2005, 08:07 AM
I cant understand people moaning about the tackle animations stopping you pass. Yes they do I realise that myself, but at least you do get tackled. If people are going to be that picky, what about when you were tackled in NRL with both hands free and it wouldnt let you offload ?

People need to do one of two things.

Accept the flaws that are there and get on with the game thats in front of you.
or
Dont play the game ever again, forget the flaws and wait for R2006.
At least SJRL ALLOWED you the opportunity to offload at certain times........

To be honest I expected to get a little flamed for starting this thread...however it doesn't appear to be the case.

Jimmy 44: Interesting points you have. I don't have a problem winning on hard, but as I mentioned I have a problem with the way you have to play to be able to win on hard (I suggest that you play against England to see what I mean).

Hard mode against them isn't a lot of fun, more of a mechanised chore........and as for the "special moves", "set pieces" etc, in the end they have very little bearing on the final result.

The only real difference between individual players is their speed, and again speed is the only trait you need to begin winning all the time.

Yes it is a step up from rugby 2004, however if you closely look at it the biggest step is in the graphics (inherited from FIFA), whilst the gameplay isn't the huge step from rugby 2004 that people think it is. [/b]
well I guess I'm ok because I don't play as anyone else but England! i suggest you have a go as england and see how you get on- its great fun!

i agree set moves or special moves may not have any direct bearing on the final result but they do help you get there! They will help you gain those precious few yards and on some occasions lead directly to a try, just as they would in real life.

I disagree about your point about individual players. You CAN see each players faults and strengths if you look closely. For instanse, tindall is very strong and is a tackle breaker. Hence he breaks loads of tackles and makes the hard yards! Robinson is quick and very agile, hense he can pull of special moves more effectively! Differences in kicking ability is also very obvious as are attributes like passing and handling. And most importantly they all have a bearing on the game, its just speed is the most obvious to the eye!

I can see the problem you are havfing against england, so if you can't beat em I sugest you join em!
 
Top