Best Cricket Video Games Ever Made: Ranked and Reviewed
On this page19
- 01The best cricket video games at a glance
- 02Cricket 26 (Big Ant Studios, 2025)
- 03Cricket 24 (Big Ant Studios, 2023)
- 04Cricket 22 (Big Ant Studios, 2022)
- 05Ashes Cricket (Big Ant Studios / Tru Blu, 2017)
- 06Don Bradman Cricket 17 (Big Ant Studios, 2017)
- 07Don Bradman Cricket 14 (Big Ant Studios, 2014)
- 08EA Sports Cricket 07 (2006)
- 09EA Sports Cricket 2005 (2005)
- 10Brian Lara International Cricket 2007 (Codemasters, 2007)
- 11EA Sports Cricket 2004 (2003)
- 12Brian Lara Cricket (Audiogenic, 1994)
- 13Real Cricket (Nautilus Mobile, ongoing)
- 14World Cricket Championship (WCC, ongoing)
- 15How we ranked these cricket games
- 16Console vs mobile: two different genres
- 17At a glance
- 18What changed with Cricket 26
- 19If you’re new to cricket games
We rank by how complete the cricket simulation is today: batting and bowling depth, breadth of official licences, career-mode staying power, and whether people still actively play it. Newer engines start ahead, but a game only holds a high spot if it still rewards time in 2026.
The best cricket video games at a glance
| Rank | Game | Best reason to play |
|---|---|---|
| 1 | Cricket 26 | Most complete current simulation |
| 2 | Cricket 24 | Better-value modern option |
| 3 | Cricket 22 | Cheapest recent entry |
| 4 | Ashes Cricket | Strong post-launch recovery |
| 5 | Don Bradman Cricket 17 | Deep bowling systems |
| 6 | Don Bradman Cricket 14 | Series turning point |
| 7 | EA Sports Cricket 07 | Mod-supported cult classic |
| 8 | EA Sports Cricket 2005 | Underrated EA alternative |
- Current best
Cricket 26 (Big Ant Studios, 2025)
Cricket 26 is the best cricket game you can buy, released on 19 November 2025 by Big Ant Studios and Nacon. It replaces Cricket 24 at the top for one concrete reason: a new Management Career mode layers recruitment, player development, lineup construction, and match strategy on top of the on-field game, so you can run a side as well as play for it.
It ranks above Cricket 24 because it is the newer-generation build with a rebuilt engine — ray-traced lighting, dynamic weather that can trigger Duckworth-Lewis-Stern results — and wider licensed coverage across The Ashes, The Hundred, and other real competitions, with Ireland, West Indies, and Pakistan added to the roster. If you buy one cricket game in 2026, this is it.
Developer: Big Ant / Nacon · Released: Nov 2025 · Platforms: PS5/PS4, Xbox Series/One, PC · Standout: Management Career mode
- Best value
Cricket 24 (Big Ant Studios, 2023)
Cricket 24 held the "best cricket game" title from its 5 October 2023 launch until Cricket 26 arrived, and it is now the strongest value pick. It carries more than 200 licensed players across roughly 50 real stadiums, a deep career mode, and licensing tied to Cricket Australia and the England and Wales Cricket Board.
It sits below Cricket 26 only because it lacks the newer game's management layer and current-gen visual upgrades — the core batting and bowling still feel excellent. With a sequel on shelves, expect Cricket 24 to keep dropping in price, which makes it the smart buy for anyone who wants most of the modern experience for a fraction of the cost.
Developer: Big Ant / Nacon · Released: Oct 2023 · Roster: 200+ players, ~50 stadiums · Best for: value
- Cheapest modern entry
Cricket 22 (Big Ant Studios, 2022)
Cricket 22 was the release where a Big Ant cricket game finally felt complete rather than a work in progress. It shipped with the Ashes licensed, domestic competitions across several boards, and both men's and women's international teams, plus a career mode that runs from academy prospect to national selection.
It ranks behind Cricket 24 because the later title refines the same engine with smoother batting and a larger roster, not because Cricket 22 plays badly. As the oldest of the three current-era games, it is often the cheapest way into that modern feel — a sensible pick if Cricket 26 and 24 are out of budget.
Developer: Big Ant / Nacon · Released: 2022 · Notable: men's and women's teams · Best for: budget modern play
- Fixed after launch
Ashes Cricket (Big Ant Studios / Tru Blu, 2017)
Ashes Cricket launched buggy and clearly unfinished, but a wave of post-release patches turned it into a solid, licensed simulation of the 2017-18 Ashes series with fully motion-captured players. Once patched, the batting mechanics held up well.
It earns this spot as Big Ant's first attempt at a fully licensed single-tournament game rather than a generic cricket sim, and as a reminder that a Big Ant title's launch reviews rarely reflect where it lands a year later. That pattern repeated with Cricket 22 and Cricket 24.
Developer: Big Ant / Tru Blu · Released: 2017 · Licence: 2017-18 Ashes · Caveat: needed patches
- Bowling depth
Don Bradman Cricket 17 (Big Ant Studios, 2017)
Don Bradman Cricket 17 pushed bowling variety further than any cricket game before it, giving players a genuinely wide selection of deliveries — a mechanic later Big Ant titles built on rather than replaced.
Its career mode is deep enough that hardcore fans still rate it years later, and its camera angles and stadium-creation tools were ahead of their time. It ranks above Ashes Cricket's predecessors on simulation depth alone, and it remains a reasonable pick for players who prize mechanics over modern visuals.
Developer: Big Ant · Released: 2017 · Standout: delivery variety · Best for: simulation purists
- The turning point
Don Bradman Cricket 14 (Big Ant Studios, 2014)
Don Bradman Cricket 14 is the game that ended the long post-EA drought, released in April 2014 by Big Ant and Tru Blu. Its Cricket Academy creation suite and rethought batting controls became the foundation every later Big Ant title stood on.
It is dated by today's standards, but historically it is the pivot point for the entire modern era: the systems here carried straight through to DBC17, Ashes Cricket, and eventually Cricket 24 and Cricket 26. We rank it on that influence, not its current polish.
Developer: Big Ant · Released: April 2014 · Legacy: base for all modern Big Ant cricket · Feature: Cricket Academy
- Cult classic
EA Sports Cricket 07 (2006)
Despite the "07" in its name, EA Cricket 07 released in November 2006, and it endures almost entirely because of its modding community, which has kept rosters, kits, and full tournaments current for nearly two decades after EA stopped supporting it.
The gameplay is accessible and rewarding in a way few later games matched, even with visuals that are now clearly dated. It is the game most cricket fans across South Asia and the Caribbean grew up on, and it is still the most-played "classic" cricket title today — the reason it outranks the newer EA and Codemasters entries below.
Publisher: EA Sports · Released: 2006 · Platforms: PC, PS2 · Why it lasts: 20 years of community mods
- Underrated EA entry
EA Sports Cricket 2005 (2005)
EA Cricket 2005 built on the strong 2004 edition with a more polished commentary team and tighter gameplay overall. It never reached the cult status of Cricket 07, but at release it was the more technically sound game of the two.
It ranks below Cricket 07 purely on legacy — the modding scene coalesced around 07, not 05 — but players who followed the series year over year still remember 2005 as the smoother release of its moment.
Publisher: EA Sports · Released: 2005 · Platforms: PC, PS2, Xbox · Note: cleaner than 2004
- Online pioneer
Brian Lara International Cricket 2007 (Codemasters, 2007)
Codemasters' Brian Lara International Cricket 2007 did one thing no cricket game had done before: it added online multiplayer, letting players face opponents over the internet years before that was standard in sports games.
The series ran alongside EA's throughout the 2000s and leaned on Brian Lara's real standing among the game's greatest batsmen for its appeal. It was a genuine alternative to EA's line rather than a knockoff, which is why it edges the older EA entries here.
Developer: Codemasters · Released: 2007 · Platforms: PC, PS2, PSP, Xbox 360 · First to add: online play
- Career-mode origin
EA Sports Cricket 2004 (2003)
Cricket 2004 introduced a career structure to the EA series and built a dedicated following across South Asia during a period when console cricket games were still rare.
It is less remembered than Cricket 07, and it ranks below 2005 and 2007 because those releases refined what it started. But it laid the structural groundwork — career progression and licensed teams — that the later, more famous EA entry inherited.
Publisher: EA Sports · Released: 2003 · Platforms: PC, PS2, Xbox · First to add: EA career mode
- The original
Brian Lara Cricket (Audiogenic, 1994)
Brian Lara Cricket predates EA's cricket series entirely and was one of the first cricket games built around a single named player's endorsement, launching on DOS in 1994 before ports to the Sega Mega Drive and Amiga.
Its pseudo-3D graphics and advanced-for-the-time sound were genuinely impressive on release. It ranks here as a historical marker rather than a game you would play today: it set the player-branded template that Codemasters and EA both followed for the next decade.
Developer: Audiogenic · Released: 1994 · Platforms: DOS, Mega Drive, Amiga · Legacy: first player-branded cricket sim
- Best on mobile
Real Cricket (Nautilus Mobile, ongoing)
Real Cricket is the most polished mobile cricket franchise, built around realistic batting and bowling rather than the arcade controls common on phones. It supports multiple formats — matching the Test, ODI, and T20 structures of the real sport — and Nautilus Mobile pushes frequent roster updates.
We rank it against other mobile sports titles, not console sims: judged on that scale, it is the closest thing to a proper simulation you can carry in a pocket, which is why it leads the mobile pair.
Developer: Nautilus Mobile · Platforms: Android, iOS · Model: free-to-play · Best for: mobile simulation
- Mobile mainstay
World Cricket Championship (WCC, ongoing)
The WCC series is especially dominant in South Asia, where it often outranks Real Cricket in raw download numbers. Its career and tournament modes go deeper than most mobile sports titles attempt.
It ranks just behind Real Cricket on overall simulation feel, but it is frequently the entry point for younger fans discovering cricket gaming for the first time. Like Real Cricket, it is free-to-play with optional purchases rather than a premium release.
Developer: Nextwave Multimedia · Platforms: Android, iOS · Model: free-to-play · Strength: South Asia reach
Reader interaction
Build your ranking
Drag the entries into the order you think is right — or use the arrows — then submit to see how your list compares with everyone else's.
- Cricket 26 (Big Ant Studios, 2025)
- Cricket 24 (Big Ant Studios, 2023)
- Cricket 22 (Big Ant Studios, 2022)
- Ashes Cricket (Big Ant Studios / Tru Blu, 2017)
- Don Bradman Cricket 17 (Big Ant Studios, 2017)
- Don Bradman Cricket 14 (Big Ant Studios, 2014)
- EA Sports Cricket 07 (2006)
- EA Sports Cricket 2005 (2005)
- Brian Lara International Cricket 2007 (Codemasters, 2007)
- EA Sports Cricket 2004 (2003)
- Brian Lara Cricket (Audiogenic, 1994)
- Real Cricket (Nautilus Mobile, ongoing)
- World Cricket Championship (WCC, ongoing)
Audience ranking
How everyone ranked them
Built from reader rankings using position-based points.
The ranked cards above cover which cricket games are worth your time and why. The sections below explain how we ordered them, why console and mobile are judged on different scales, and what to know before you buy.
How we ranked these cricket games
We weighed four things and let them decide placement:
- Gameplay depth. Batting feel, bowling variety, and whether the match situation actually changes how you play.
- Licensing. Real teams, players, and tournaments versus generic stand-ins.
- Career-mode longevity. How long a single save stays interesting.
- Lasting relevance. Whether people still play it, either on its original release or through community mods.
Big Ant’s current titles top the list because they combine all four. Older EA and Codemasters games rank on the strength of the communities that have kept them alive for 20-plus years, and the mobile entries are judged against other mobile sports games rather than against console simulations.
Console vs mobile: two different genres
A phone cricket game and a console simulation are not competing for the same player, so we do not rank them on one scale. Console and PC titles from Big Ant chase realism — shot timing, field placement, and bowling plans that punish mistakes. Mobile games like Real Cricket and WCC trade some of that depth for pick-up-and-play sessions and free-to-play access. Both approaches are valid; the ranking simply reflects that the console sims go deeper, while the mobile pair win on convenience and reach.
At a glance
| Rank | Game | Year | Platforms |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Cricket 26 | 2025 | PS4/5, Xbox One/Series, PC |
| 2 | Cricket 24 | 2023 | PS4/5, Xbox One/Series, PC |
| 3 | Cricket 22 | 2022 | PS4/5, Xbox One/Series, PC |
| 4 | Ashes Cricket | 2017 | PS4, Xbox One, PC |
| 5 | Don Bradman Cricket 17 | 2017 | PS4, Xbox One, PC |
| 6 | Don Bradman Cricket 14 | 2014 | PS3, Xbox 360, PC |
| 7 | EA Sports Cricket 07 | 2006 | PC, PS2 |
| 8 | EA Sports Cricket 2005 | 2005 | PC, PS2, Xbox |
| 9 | Brian Lara International Cricket 2007 | 2007 | PC, PS2, PSP, Xbox 360 |
| 10 | EA Sports Cricket 2004 | 2003 | PC, PS2, Xbox |
| 11 | Brian Lara Cricket | 1994 | DOS, Mega Drive, Amiga |
| 12 | Real Cricket | Ongoing | Android, iOS |
| 13 | World Cricket Championship | Ongoing | Android, iOS |
What changed with Cricket 26
For most of the last decade, “best cricket game” meant “the newest Big Ant title,” and each release refined the same core. Cricket 26 is the first entry in a while to add a genuinely new pillar rather than a polish pass: the Management Career mode shifts you from only playing to also building a squad. That, plus current-generation lighting and weather effects, is why it displaced Cricket 24 at the top rather than simply matching it. If you already own Cricket 24, the upgrade is real but not urgent unless the management layer appeals to you.
If you’re new to cricket games
Cricket games reward understanding the sport, so a little practice with real mechanics goes a long way. If you want to get more out of the bowling side, our guides on how to bowl a yorker, how to bowl an off cutter, and how to bowl faster explain the deliveries these games ask you to reproduce. Start on a lower difficulty, learn to read the ball out of the hand, and treat wicket-taking as a plan rather than a lucky delivery.
Frequently asked questions
Is Cricket 26 a big enough upgrade over Cricket 24 to buy at full price?+
If you want the newest features, yes. Cricket 26 adds a full Management Career mode, ray-traced lighting, and dynamic weather that Cricket 24 lacks. But the on-field batting and bowling are evolutions of the same engine, so casual players who mainly want to bat will find Cricket 24 delivers most of the experience for far less now that it is discounted.
Do any cricket games have the official IPL licence?+
Not fully. Big Ant's recent titles include Indian T20 franchise-style teams and several licensed competitions, but complete, officially branded worldwide licensing across every league and national board has never existed in a single cricket game. Expect real players and some real tournaments, plus generic stand-ins where a specific licence was not secured. Player-created rosters and community edits usually fill the remaining gaps.
Can I play these cricket games on Nintendo Switch or Steam Deck?+
It depends on the title. Big Ant's console games target PlayStation, Xbox, and PC, and PC versions are generally playable on Steam Deck with some setup. Switch support has varied by release and is not guaranteed for every entry, so check the specific game's store listing before buying. The mobile options, Real Cricket and WCC, run on any modern Android or iOS phone.
Are the mobile cricket games free, and are they pay-to-win?+
Both Real Cricket and World Cricket Championship are free to download with optional in-app purchases. You can play and enjoy the core modes without spending money, though purchases can speed up unlocks and remove ads. Neither is a competitive pay-to-win esport in the way that phrase usually implies, since most play is single-player or friendly rather than ranked against paying opponents.
What is the best cricket game for a complete beginner?+
Cricket 24 is the friendliest starting point on console and PC: it is cheaper than Cricket 26, includes tutorials, and lets you dial difficulty down while you learn timing. On a phone, Real Cricket eases you in with simpler controls. Either way, expect a learning curve, because cricket games reward reading the delivery and shot selection rather than button-mashing.
Why do big publishers like EA no longer make cricket games?+
EA quietly dropped its cricket licence after Cricket 07 to focus on larger franchises, leaving nearly a decade without a serious console cricket game. The core issue is market size: cricket's audience is concentrated in specific regions, so the sales case is weaker than for global sports. Big Ant Studios has since built a sustainable niche, and it remains the only major developer actively making cricket simulations.
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