Rugby - The World Cup

Rugby: The World Cup is a sports simulation developed by Walking Circles and published by Domark in 1991, featuring all 16 teams from the 1991 Rugby World Cup (New Zealand, England, Australia, France, Wales, Scotland, Ireland, Fiji, Japan, USA, Canada, Argentina, Romania, and others). Gameplay uses an overhead view similar to Kick Off, with a large scanner showing the entire pitch. The simulation includes scrums, line-outs, tries, conversions, and drop goals. Scrums and rucks are won by rapid joystick waggling. Conversions use a cursor that must be stopped as it swings across the goalposts.

Commodore 64

Released in 1991 on cassette and disk for PAL systems. The overhead view delivers slick graphics with minimal flicker and genuine speed. Controls allow backward passing and forward kicking, but take practice to master. One or two players supported; two-player mode is the most enjoyable. Sound is basic, limited to ball bounce effects and referee whistles with no substantial music. Commodore Format rated it highly, calling it "as true a rugger game as we've ever seen," praising speed and addictive gameplay while noting fiddly controls and poor sound. No copy protection on the disk version.