Having thoroughly enjoyed playing all the previous versions of International Cricket Captain, I was gearing up for this latest release. Previous new releases of this title all seemed to be the same, with relatively few updates in an attempt to generate extra cash - would International Cricket Caption III prove to be any different?

First impressions are very good, with new modern menus making the overall look and feel of the game refreshing and at the same time a lot more accessible. As well as the new look menus, there are additional game modes in which you can control all aspects of your team's progress, from transfers and team selection to training and detailed match tactics. In Exhibition you can test your skills in a one off ODI or Twenty20 fixture, Match Series allows you to battle it out in a Test or ODI series between two international teams, while County and International Career lets you manage both a county team and an international team with a view to becoming the best in the country and world respectively. The final match mode available is the World Cup Series, in which you can attempt to do better than England; that shouldn't be too difficult - at least in theory!

The game allows you to take control of the team of your choice and select the team you think will do best in the conditions. There are a range of different types of pitches and weather conditions, which will suit different bowlers and batsmen, so your task is to tread that fine balance in your team selection. If a player under-performs then you can drop him from the side and ask him to play second team cricket in order to regain some form. As well as a first and second team, there is also a youth team that you can keep your eye on up and coming talent for the future.

Having selected your team to play the match, your next task is to win it! To do this you take complete control of every ball. When bowling you have to select the bowler, give him a plan to bowl to, decide how aggressive you want him to be and set the field. If you are batting then you decide how aggressive you want your batsman to play - do you try to make the most of the power plays and risk losing wickets, or do you tell them to take it easy ready for a slog at the end? Having chosen your playing strategy, you then have the option of simulating the next ball or the next over. As the ball or over is simulated, a series of highlights are played to show you the action in 3D. The highlights mode can be adjusted so that you can watch all or just parts of the action - for example, just wickets and boundaries. The gameplay is entertaining and addictive if you are interested in the tactics that go into being part of cricket management or a captain. With easy controls it's fairly simple to get to grips with, but if you're looking for a cricket sim where you're in direct control of the players then you need to look elsewhere.

At the end of each county season you're given a budget to sign players and set the amount you would like to spend on coaching and physiotherapy; the more you spend, the more sessions you can give your team. Your budget is determined by how well you did in the previous season, so win every tournament and you can afford to improve your team more, but win nothing and signing the all-important overseas players could be a problem.

There are a number of improvements on previous versions of the game, not to mention the new features. The enhanced game engine vastly improves ODI matches, giving an all-rounder the ability to do well with both bat and ball, rather than being dismal at both. The Career mode boasts a major improvement too, in the fact that you can now captain a County team and any International team of your choice, which will make all non-England (and England) fans happy!

The main improvements though, 3D animation and Hawk-Eye, come during the gameplay. Hawk-Eye is a feature that originated from television to determine whether or not a ball is going to hit the stumps in an LBW decision. However, in the game it gives you information so you can see where your bowlers are bowling, allowing you to make vital bowling changes if needed. The 3D animations are a breath of fresh air to the latest game in the series, putting the lacklustre 2D animations to bed for good and placing a real emphasis on the presentation; it's almost as if you're watching a game of cricket on TV. Although the new animations are not what you would expect from a high definition game, they are a huge improvement on what has gone before. The batsmen do still play some outrageous shots however, and there is still room for improvement in ICC 4.

The options menu has been significantly improved, with more and better options available, giving you control over different sound and visual aspects that hasn't been possible before. The commentary by Jonathan Agnew (Aggers) is a bit of a let down though, as it still uses the same phrases from the original game, which can get a bit repetitive after seven or so years! The sound effects really add to the highlights, although the crowd noise is disappointing, with little more than a gentle clap here and there.

With all the improvements that have taken place, there are still a few disappointments. For example, there is room for huge improvement with the coaching and training side of the game, as there is still no real ability to coach players and set them individual training schedules, or indeed different team sessions. The 3D highlights could still be improved upon too, with the addition of extra shots added and the fixing of minor errors, such as two players walk through each other!

International Cricket Captain III is an excellent cricket management game that I'm sure will be very popular with the past fans of the ICC series. The addition of the new animated 3D graphics have made the game look more refreshing and actually give fans a reason to buy the game, as there was little point of buying ICC 06 if you already had ICC 05. The gameplay is engaging as always and you will surely be hooked and lose sleep once you get into the depth and longevity that this game has to offer. Howzat sound to you?

Reviewed by Elliot Reeve for AceGamez (All Rights Reserved).