Over the years, the number of rugby games on the market has proved to be very few.

Maybe because the sport is never really going to be as commercially-viable as other more popular sports and software developers would rather play safe with a new football simulation.

EA Sports has decided to take the bull by the horns and released PS2's first fully-licensed rugby game, titled simply Rugby.

The presentation is excellent and there are plenty of modes to get stuck into - a quick match, exhibition, cup competition or training.

Diving straight into a World Cup or Six Nations tournament is appropriate as all the international teams are available, complete with the full line-up of correctly-named players, each having his own set of attributes.

Although this all sounds great, the game itself is a little disappointing. The various stadiums from around the world are nice enough but the animation of the players is occasionally laughable.

Gameplay can be frustrating, and at times it is hard to work out who exactly you are controlling. EA has tried to compensate for this by having your teammates automatically tackle. This, however, leaves you feeling somewhat detached from play and wondering if it is your ability or the computer winning the game.

It is a bit of a shame because everything's there: Scrums, rucks, line-outs, conversions and Bill McClaren providing on-the-spot commentary. But you get the impression that the complexities of rugby do not seem suited for replication in a computer game. For die-hard rugby fans only.

Price: £39.99.

Contact: 0870 2432435.

Feel good factor: 5 out of 10.