Cricket and India are something that has always gone together like bat and ball. I doubt that someone in this country would have grown up without ever hearing the name of our own 'Master Blaster' — Sachin Tendulkar. The man needs no introduction, his unending list of achievements speaks enough for him. But how many of us actually know about his journey? Are you aware of the fact that he was the youngest player to make his debut in International Test? He made his debut in the International Test format at the mere age of 16, an age when most of us are confused about whether to take Science, Arts, or Commerce for our board exams.
But what if I tell you that there's a game through which we can live his journey? Tendulkar himself, in collaboration with JetSynthesys, has launched Sachin Saga Pro Cricket, an immersive 3D simulated cricket mobile game. Commenting on the game, Tendulkar said, "The Sachin Saga mobile game franchise has been one of the ways for me to stay connected with cricket fans. Buoyed by the response that Sachin Saga got, the team started working on Sachin Saga Pro Cricket. I am extremely happy that the team has developed a game with aspirations of creating bigger benchmarks than the ones we have set in the past. There are a host of new features which have been added in this version, we hope players enjoy the same."
So, how does the game actually hold up?
Sachin Saga Pro Cricket Review
To 'Loft' it from the top, the game offers you four modes in which you can play, namely, Legends Journey (where you'll play Sachin's journey), Multiplayer (you can play with your friends here as well), Quick Match, and Test Match. In the beginning, only Legends Journey will be open for you and as you start to win matches and your level gets increased then other modes will be gradually opened as well.
As you start with the game, you'll notice two distinguishing factors which you might not have seen in other games, i.e., 3D view and the face of the players. The developers of this game have put in efforts to make distinguish faces for the Player Avatars.
The controls and the shots are somewhat similar to other games so if you have played them prior to trying this then you won't be flying in blind. For a moment, let's say that this is the first mobile cricket game that you're trying, and then there's a very short and to-the-point tutorial that you get in the beginning.
The graphics in the game is noteworthy. There has been some more detailing in the background, the stadiums and the lights as compared to other games which makes it a slightly better improvement. However, it is next to impossible to make the graphics look mesmerising without making the game extremely heavy for the device which is not the case with this game.
The commentary is interesting as it spices things up while you play, however, after a good five minutes it might get repetitive and boring.
The off-match movie is quite interesting. It gives similar vibes to the Bollywood movie Saaho's background, and music while Prabhas was making his grand entrance during the climax.
One thing that might be a bit disappointing for you is that in the Journey matches, you will only get to play as Sachin. Even if Sachin scores a single he only keeps the strike, where ideally the non-striker should be batting. Even the fielders throw only to Sachin’s end for a run-out.
Another interesting feature is the Dive option. While taking singles or doubles, when the ball is approaching the wickets and you're about to get run-out then you can make a dive to the crease and might be saved.
One thing that can be an ick for players is the bugs. While playing, the game might get stuck or might suffer lags, however, the developers are working to fix the bugs.
Where To Find The Game
The game is available on the Google Play store for fans to play through Tendulkar's journey in 3D. It is not available for iOS users at the moment, however, its previous version viz. the Sachin Saga Cricket Champions version is available.