BigBen Interactive and Eko Software released a new trailer for the upcoming release of Rugby 20 for home consoles and PC. The trailer clocks in at nearly three whole minutes, showcasing how the gameplay operates, what some of the new tactical elements are like, and how Eko Software overhauled the strategic aspects of player-control to make the game more dynamic and intense.
One of the key changes in this upcoming outing of Rugby is that you now have passing control features, such as being able to determine passing strength and distance to your teammates. When you have control of the ball you can lob the ball into the hands of a teammate before a tackle is committed, or you can do a quick hand-off if they’re close by.
You can check out the passing techniques being demonstrated in Rugby 20 with the video trailer below.
The video also covers how you can use kicks both defensively and offensively. You can use a grubber kick to get the ball out of your territory to break the skirmish and move the play back down the field, or you can use it to breach an opposing team’s defensive line. It can work both ways, depending on how the match is playing out.
Another new feature for Rugby 20 is the new right stick ball control. Much like the recent FIFA games from EA Sports, you can now perform feints, dodges, and evasive maneuvers using the right analog stick when engaging with opponents for control of the ball.
Much like American football, you can tackle opponents when you’re playing on the defense. You can also have multiple teammates attempt to tackle a single opponent at the risk of opening up your defensive line. This could mean that if you don’t perform it correctly, having two or more players tackle an opponent could leave your line open for them to do a quick hand-off to someone who isn’t being guarded, and they could make a play for the score.
Now I have to say, while I’m not big into sports game playbooks due to their limited usability on the pitch, I love how much control Rugby 20 gives you in the game. You not only have a play tactics handbook you can use to select what plays you want to use on the field, but you can even customize your plays to setup defensive lines, scrum positions, and fallback tactics.
You can modify plays on the fly by choosing the width of your defensive line, as well as how aggressive the line is when pressing an opponent on the field. You can swap player positions and even carry out move-for-move plays by pressing the corresponding buttons so that each play is executed on the field exactly as it’s setup in the playbook.
It’s quite in-depth and very impressive to be a lower budget sports title. You can look for Rugby 20 to make its way to the Xbox One and on Steam for PC starting January 23rd, 2020, while the PS4 version is set to arrive in North America on January 28th, 2020.
For more information feel free to visit the official Rugby 20 website.