Pro Cycling Manager 2006 Demo

Pro Cycling Manager 2006 offers you the chance to take part in the most important international races at the head of a professional cycling team. In this latest version of the game, such well-known teams as T-Mobile complete an already impressive peloton of almost 50 official teams.

Pro Cycling Manager 2006 has, for the first time, secured the prestigious Tour de France licence, meaning that players can now compete for the legendary Yellow Jersey as well as the green (points) jersey and polka dot (King of the Mountains) jersey. Winning, or failing to win, such jerseys can make or break a season for a top team.

Cyanide, the game studio behind Pro Cycling Manager 2006, did not content itself with the signature of the most illustrious licences in the cycling world. It has also invested heavily to enhance, even further, player immersion. In the real-time 3D race sequences, decors are more varied and detailed with far richer colouring. Spectators run alongside riders and encourage their favourites and, as riders strain to climb the steep slopes, the crowds open out in front of them. New helicopter and motorcycle cameras have been integrated, enabling real-life, in-race, views and the finishing line gets a full revamp, including its own camera. And once a race/stage is over, replays provide a full sum of the highlights, from all angles.

In terms of gameplay, Pro Cycling Manager 2006 much vaunted AI has been honed to further improve the actions and reactions of the opposition, especially in stage races. Competitors now adopt new race strategies, depending on how the overall results table is looking. For example, a rider who is way back on the leader board may now launch a solo attack, far from the finishing line, so as to pick up the most points possible towards the mountain jersey.

The management section of the game has also received much attention. This goes beyond reworking the game's interface and controls. For example, the player finds himself obliged to regularly react to events. Beyond the standard contract, training and equipment management, he must now be ready to answer questions from the media with an inevitable impact on the moral of a rider or the team as a whole. His replies can even influence the confidence level of the team's main sponsor. And, finally, just so the manager doesn't get too lax as the seasons roll by, the routes of the major races now vary from year to year.