Googly, the physics under every ball

Stumped: Ultimate Cricket 27 runs on its own physics engine, Googly. Nothing about a delivery or a shot is canned: the ball flies, pitches and comes off the bat by the same rules every time, so the game plays differently every ball.

The batter meeting the ball, the bowler in his follow-through — Bat on ball. Where it meets the blade decides where it goes.

The ball in the air

A new ball swings. An old, scuffed one can reverse. How much depends on the bowler and the ball's age.
Seam bowlers move it off the pitch. Spinners drift it in the air and turn it off the surface.
Drag slows every ball between the hand and the batter, so a yorker has to be aimed fuller than it lands.

Off the pitch

Length decides height. At 135 km/h, a ball pitching six metres short of the batter reaches the top of the stumps, ten metres reaches the chest and eleven the helmet. A half-volley sits up to be driven.

Each ground has its own square: some quick and bouncy, some slow and turning.
Pitches wear. Rough builds up outside the batter's stumps for the spinners, and dew at night makes the ball hard to grip.

The ring on the pitch closing on where the ball will land — The ring closes on where the ball will pitch.

A bowler at the crease about to let the ball go — Bowling: aim the length, then time the release.

Bat on ball

The bat is a physical object, not a hit box. When you start a shot, Googly works out where the ball will meet the blade from your timing, your feet and the batter's skill.

Off the middle, the ball flies.
Off the toe or the shoulder, the bat twists or jars in the hands and the shot loses power.
Off an edge, the ball goes where the edge sends it: to the keeper, the slips or down to third man.

No two shots the same

The same button against the same ball can go three ways. A few milliseconds early and a cover drive goes squarer and higher; late and it's carved behind point. Pace, bounce, the batter's balance and the spot on the bat all change where the ball ends up.

Timing

Batting: a strip after every shot shows how early or late you were.
Bowling: a meter on the run-up. Release in the green for the length you aimed at.

The field

Pads, bodies, fielders and the umpires all stop the ball.
Stumps break where the ball hits them, and the bails fly.
DRS replays run through the same physics, so ball tracking shows what would really have happened.

Grounds

65 grounds: 11 international stadiums, 30 franchise grounds and 24 club grounds. Each has its own pitch, square, mowing pattern and stands, with grass banks and trees at the smaller ones.