Developer Big Ant Studios has today confirmed Don Bradman Cricket 17 will launch this December on PC, PlayStation 4, and Xbox One, smack bang in the midst of Australia’s annual summer of cricket.

The successor to the well-received Don Bradman Cricket 14, Big Ant explains DBC17 will feature a new lighting system, “photo realistic skin tones”, and also promises to add more control depth to what’s already an admirably nuanced cricket simulation. Those who make the upgrade from the previous Don Bradman Cricket will be able to import their players from the last game.

We’ll be able to get a glimpse of DBC17 from today with the launch of the new Don Bradman Cricket Academy, available free on Steam.

The ability to add tattoos is a new addition to the player creation tool.

“The first Don Bradman Cricket got us off to a great start, providing players with an authentic, exciting game of cricket that allowed them to feel like they were standing in the middle of the oval, right on the pitch,” said Big Ant CEO Ross Symons. “Now, we’re taking that realism further with the advanced new engine we have developed this year.”

“The impending release of the Don Bradman Cricket Academy will give players a taste of just how far things have come.”

For more insight into Melbourne-based Big Ant and the making of the original Don Bradman Cricket, check out IGN’s extensive chat with Ross Symons here.

Luke is Games Editor at IGN's Sydney office and thinks the Big Bash is the best thing to happen to free-to-air TV in recorded history. You can find him on Twitter @MrLukeReilly.