Favorite Hockey Video Games

Jeff · Post by **Jeff** » Sat Nov 06, 2004 4:22 pm

Just curious as to everyone's opinion here. What is your favorite hockey game of all time? NHL 94 Sega? NHL 2k3 for the next generation systems? These are probably my top 2. This year's offerings are good, but these two are classics.

Thoughts anyone?

Jeff

mobiggins · Post by **mobiggins** » Sat Nov 06, 2004 4:26 pm

NHL 94 SNES (always preferred the way that one controlled over the Genesis version)

Blades of Steel

NHL 2k5

NHL Hitz 2003

XXXIV · Post by **XXXIV** » Sat Nov 06, 2004 4:27 pm

After the 8-1 loss I took today in the DSP league I have to say its ESPN2K5.
The shear beauty of the massacre was a wonder to behold.

dbdynsty25 · Post by **dbdynsty25** » Sat Nov 06, 2004 4:33 pm

NHL 94 on the Genesis.

pk500 · Post by **pk500** » Sat Nov 06, 2004 5:07 pm

1. ESPN NHL 2K5 with Grog's most recent All-Star slider set, Xbox. I'm more astonished at how good these sliders are every time I play. Every game feels different; every goal feels earned; every game feels realistic as hell.

2. Blades of Steel, NES. Did it get any more fun than this?

3. Fox NHL Championship 2000, PSX. The best effort ever from Radical, arguably the best hockey game developer ever. Man, I would have loved to see what Radical could have done with a hockey game in this generation. Fox NHL was so far ahead of either 989 or EA's offerings in terms of realism that it was like comparing WE/PES to FIFA.

I never owned a Genesis -- took a hiatus from gaming from 1991-97, so I can't comment on the early versions of the NHL series. But I hear nothing but good things about them.

Take care,
PK

tjung0831 · Post by **tjung0831** » Sat Nov 06, 2004 8:12 pm

NHL 94 without a doubt was the pinnacle of the EA hockey series for me. The original NHL Hockey which was released in August of 1991 was great as well. I actually broke out my Genesis two weeks ago to play all of those hockey games(I have them all up to NHL 96) and they are still quite fun and the battery backup still works 10 years later on my NHL 94 cartridge as my 864-212-117 record is still intact! The Blackhawks were my team on NHL 94...that "here come the hawks" theme sent chills down my spine every time I scored.

Tim

Jeff · Post by **Jeff** » Sat Nov 06, 2004 10:29 pm

I had forgotten about NHL Championship 2000, pk! That was a great game, probably the best effort from anyone on the psx. Sega's next generation efforts were very good, always felt 2k3 was the best. This years ESPN and last years efforts are and were very strong too.

But NHL 94 is the one of the main reasons I have kept my Genesis all these years. The game just plays great. Its so funny...with all the "bells and whistles" the next gen. games have, something like this title that looks so dated, can still be one of the finest.

If you like "GM" simulations, I picked up the other day.."NHL-Eastside Hockey Manager" for the PC. This game has a tremendous engine, but it has a very limited US release. My local Gamestop special ordered it and were lucky to get it. It made by Sports Interactive Games/UK.

Jeff

blueduke · Post by **blueduke** » Sat Nov 06, 2004 10:30 pm

In no particular order:
1. NHL 2K3 Xbox
2. ESPN NHL 2K5 Xox
3. Fox NHL Championship 2000 PSX
4. NHL Powerplay Sega Saturn (PSX version sucked imo)
Now those games had realism

NHL 94 was very fun but lacked the realism I crave

Jeff · Post by **Jeff** » Sat Nov 06, 2004 10:43 pm

Yeah, Powerplay was great on the Saturn. What about those that were easy to forget? Saturn's first game...was it simply NHL Hockey. You had those graphics that made your eyes bleed. Also that behind the glass view ARGH! You know one that was not terrible, but again the view was bad. You always had a behind the goalie view, it was Brett Hull Hockey. But the gameplay was respectable.

989's entries since the next gen. era have been fairly weak as well. My rankings would be..

1 - NHL 2k3
2 - NHL 94 Sega
3 - Powerplay Saturn
4 - NHL 2k5
5 - NHL Championship 2000

Jeff

Jeff · Post by **Jeff** » Sat Nov 06, 2004 11:02 pm

Correction. That first hockey game for the Saturn was called NHL All-Star Hockey. Some things you can't forget, even though you would like to.

Jeff

Sully · Post by **Sully** » Sat Nov 06, 2004 11:46 pm

1. ESPN NHL 2k5
2. NHL 2k3
3. NHL Faceoff- the original that was available when the PS first launched. I thought the game was incredible, and it looks like...according to everyone's list, that I was the only one that liked it.

TRI · Post by **TRI** » Sat Nov 06, 2004 11:56 pm

Here are my favorite NHL hockey games:

1. ESPN NHL 2K5
2. NHL Championship 2000
3. NHL 2K3
4. NHL 2K2
5. NHL HITZ PRO

azmark · Post by **azmark** » Sun Nov 07, 2004 12:16 am

Although the fighting really was horrible, I did like EA NHL 1999...very tweakable, and easy to custom. Talking about the PC version btw...
Very good community with a lot of roster mods, along with arena mods...was a lot of fun to play. I am enjoying ESPN. 2005..but playing it on XBOX...was a lot more fun playing it on PC...if not for game play then for community.

vader29 · Post by **vader29** » Sun Nov 07, 2004 12:54 am

1. Blades Of Steel - Probably played close to 500 games of it back in the days.
2. NHL 98 - Ended up playing 3 full seasons of it that year on the Playstation.
3. The NHL 93-95 series on Genesis - I didn't have a Genesis(had the SNES instead) but the neighbors did and they were a bit better than the Nintendo versions.
4. ESPN 2k5.
5. NHL Rivals - Hope the series makes a comeback.

skinsfan · Post by **skinsfan** » Sun Nov 07, 2004 8:51 am

pk500 wrote:1. ESPN NHL 2K5 with Grog's most recent All-Star slider set, Xbox. I'm more astonished at how good these sliders are every time I play. Every game feels different; every goal feels earned; every game feels realistic as hell.

2. Blades of Steel, NES. Did it get any more fun than this?

3. Fox NHL Championship 2000, PSX. The best effort ever from Radical, arguably the best hockey game developer ever. Man, I would have loved to see what Radical could have done with a hockey game in this generation. Fox NHL was so far ahead of either 989 or EA's offerings in terms of realism that it was like comparing WE/PES to FIFA.

I never owned a Genesis -- took a hiatus from gaming from 1991-97, so I can't comment on the early versions of the NHL series. But I hear nothing but good things about them.

Take care,
PK

Care to post those sliders if you get a chance?

laurenskye · Post by **laurenskye** » Sun Nov 07, 2004 9:39 am

What was the one at the playstation launch? You know when full motion video was supposed to be the big next thing.

It had John Davidson doing the pregame. I thought that was so cool and imagined that in the next few years we would be seeing full motion video everything and it would seem like a real game.

Ahh, but a week later the stuttering started then the skipping and finally the freezing. And full motion video died...

blueduke · Post by **blueduke** » Sun Nov 07, 2004 10:14 am

I'm thinking the one at the PSX launch was NHL Faceoff.

Diablo25 · Post by **Diablo25** » Sun Nov 07, 2004 10:23 am

NHl 94 by far! I'll never forget the first game I played with it. My guy took a shot right in the mug! At the time I couldn't believe it. My roommates (I was in college back then) and I went nuts. When I saw "Swingers" for the first time I pretty much pissed my pants laughing. For those of you that have never seen "Swingers", in the movie a few of the main characters are playing
NHL on a Genesis and talking smack. One of the best scenes ever!

Slumberland · Post by **Slumberland** » Sun Nov 07, 2004 1:06 pm

Here ya go, skinsfan...

http://digitalsportspage.com/modules.ph ... c&start=20

They're about halfway down the page. They're truly crazy. In a good way.

Jimmydeicide · Post by **Jimmydeicide** » Sun Nov 07, 2004 2:28 pm

1. WGH3 with HLS2- my first pc venture into upgrade to play
2.PP96/98
3.NHL94pc 5 disks just brilliant
4.NHL2k2 I bought a dreamcast for it ,great decision.
5.2k3 THE single best game of all time.

6. 2K5 online is brilliant, current best.

2K3 takes it for me.

pk500 · Post by **pk500** » Sun Nov 07, 2004 4:35 pm

Hmm ... I'm really surprised that NHL 2K3 is held in such high regard around here. I owned it and enjoyed it, but if memory serves me correctly, didn't it have the same stone-wall goalies as ESPN NHL 2K4 that everyone ripped around here?

I find ESPN NHL 2K5 much better than NHL 2K3, especially with Grog's All-Star sliders. Both are very good, but I prefer ESPN NHL 2K5 due to the realistic goalies.

Take care,
PK

Jimmydeicide · Post by **Jimmydeicide** » Sun Nov 07, 2004 9:56 pm

pk500 wrote:Hmm ... I'm really surprised that NHL 2K3 is held in such high regard around here. I owned it and enjoyed it, but if memory serves me correctly, didn't it have the same stone-wall goalies as ESPN NHL 2K4 that everyone ripped around here?

I find ESPN NHL 2K5 much better than NHL 2K3, especially with Grog's All-Star sliders. Both are very good, but I prefer ESPN NHL 2K5 due to the realistic goalies.

Take care,
PK

Well pk i was so into 2k3 we used finns editor and tweaked it even further the goalies werent superhuman just human and with the Daflyboys rosters sliders and tweaks still is the best single player hockey available.
Now 2k5 with same editor is another story were just getting started, who knows with some more mucking and grinding we may have a new single player winner.

Airdog · Post by **Airdog** » Mon Nov 08, 2004 2:02 am

Jimmydeicide wrote:
pk500 wrote:Hmm ... I'm really surprised that NHL 2K3 is held in such high regard around here. I owned it and enjoyed it, but if memory serves me correctly, didn't it have the same stone-wall goalies as ESPN NHL 2K4 that everyone ripped around here?

I find ESPN NHL 2K5 much better than NHL 2K3, especially with Grog's All-Star sliders. Both are very good, but I prefer ESPN NHL 2K5 due to the realistic goalies.

Take care,
PK
Well pk i was so into 2k3 we used finns editor and tweaked it even further the goalies werent superhuman just human and with the Daflyboys rosters sliders and tweaks still is the best single player hockey available.
Now 2k5 with same editor is another story were just getting started, who knows with some more mucking and grinding we may have a new single player winner.

With the right sliders NHL 2K3 had an amazing goal variety - clear shots found a way to realistically find themselves into the back of the net and deflections are a hundred times better in 2K3 than in 2K4 or 2K5. If they combined a lot of the stuff from 2K5 with 2K3 then it'd be hockey heaven.

What Treyarch could've done...