A History of EA Hockey on the Xbox Platform
Nothing is more Canadian than the image of a hockey player streaking down the left wing, his mullet flowing in the wind, and watching him rip a slap shot top corner over the goalie’s shoulder (where they keep the peanut butter). Since the dawn of the video game Era in the mid eighties hockey and video games have gone together like jam on toast. Who doesn’t remember making the tough decision in NES Ice Hockey of how many Fat guys to have on your team (my personal power line-up was 2 fat guys, 1 skinny guy for scoring, and a medium dude). Going forward to the 16 bit era, I have fond memories of epic seven game playoff series with my best friend where the stats were kept by hand in a worn out notebook. With the upcoming release of NHL 09, EA hockey video games have come a long, long way from those good old days. I thought it would be fun to take a look back at the history of the NHL series on the Xbox platform, and then give a little sneak peak of what to expect this year from NHL 09. Let’s go take a ride in the “way back” Zamboni and take a few spins around the rink. I was able to track down a copy of each game (some early titles were only 3 dollars in the bargain bin) and played at least one game with the default teams in order to bring you my impressions.
NHL 2002 marked the first appearance of the NHL series on the Xbox platform. EA got off to a great start by using Mario Lemieux as their cover athlete. Having one of the greatest athletes to ever lace up a pair of skates on your box art definitely helps sell copies. At this point in the series, realism did not seem to be the focus and the games I played were very fast and arcade like. Bells ring when you make booming hits and a really cool cinematic camera gets you right down to ice level on breakaways. You could see with the cards feature and the game story overlays that EA was trying to make each game you played into a story of sorts. Overall the game was fun to play and I’m sure the collector cards kept hockey fans playing to collect them all. A great start indeed to the franchise on Xbox. Final Score: Colorado (me) defeats New Jersey 8 - 1
NHL 2003 improved on some aspects of 2002 including adding more control options to the right stick. You were able to perform canned deke animations by using various combinations of the sticks. The Game breaker feature was introduced which basically put you into bullet time and allowed you to go one on one with the goalie. I also found the default camera to be a little too close to the action which made it harder to set up fancy passing plays and found that using the classic cam resulted in a much better experience as I could see more of the ice. One nice touch I liked that was added was the ability to control your celebration animation after scoring. I would actually pay EA money to bring that feature back for 09 it was so fun. Final Score: Detroit (me) loses to Carolina 4-3.
EA really stepped up its game for NHL 2004 as I immediately felt the gameplay was faster and more responsive. Hitting was still punishing though so it was best to keep your head up. You could even control when to trigger a fight which added a level of grit not seen since “blades of steel’. The improved AI and goalies made scoring a lot tougher and for the first time that I could remember you actually had to work for your goals. The focus seemed to be shifting in 2004 to a more realistic version of the sport. Improved graphics and sound also helped in this department. Final Score: New Jersey (me) defeats Anaheim 3 - 1
For the first time ever you were finally given the ability to play NHL hockey with friends over Xbox LIVE. With NHL 2005 EA continued towards a more glitzy and glamorous approach to the game. The fun factor was definitely still there though as you were given more control than ever before. Using the oddly placed white button (now the Left Bumper on Xbox 260) to take control of a player without the puck and call for a pass could lead to some awesome plays. NHL 2005 also included a new Free4all mode where you could compete with up to three other friends in an every man for himself score fest. Free4all came complete with rocking music and a “Big Head” mode, which is the first time I can remember seeing that in a hockey video game. Final Score: Tampa Bay (me) loses to Calgary 4-2.
NHL 06 dropped the “20” from the title and just months before the launch of the Xbox 360. The gameplay felt like an evolved version of 2005, but with even better control. You could even press the Y button to perform an auto deke move which could result in realistic plays like one handed dekes and not so realistic ones like flipping the puck up from behind the net and having a teammate bat it out of mid air. The hitting was definitely toned down a notch as well so you could focus more on your offence without being crushed. As the last title on the original Xbox to ship before the Xbox 360 launch, 06 was definitely a solid effort and a great step in the right direction towards a focus on the realism of hockey rather than earlier games which seemed much more arcade like. The puck physics were great too, with more deflections and realistic rebounds adding further depth to the gameplay. Final Score: Toronto (me) defeats New Jersey 5 -2 EA takes its NHL Franchise "NEXT-GEN"EA chose to sit out the launch of the Xbox 360 in November 2005 and not release a hockey game in time for launch. They weren’t just sitting on their laurels though as they were in the midst of re-imagining the NHL franchise from the ground up. The result of that extra year came with the critically acclaimed and amazingly realistic NHL 07 which shipped on September 12th, 2006. The biggest innovation to come to hockey games in my opinion was the introduction of the new skill stick. With this new system, the right thumb-stick literally became your hockey stick giving unprecedented control. Moving the stick left and right dekes, snapping forward performed a wrist shot and pulling back then pushing forward performed a slap shot. Passing was also moved to the right trigger and the left trigger kept you always focused on the opposing net. That simple control scheme gave you every tool needed and is what made NHL 07 such a revolutionary title. Touted by EA as the most intuitive and authentic hockey experience to date, NHL 07 delivered in spades. NHL 08 took everything that was great about 07, and improved on it. It also boasted a rock solid smooth frame rate, and more innovations to the skill stick. You could now separate your skater from the puck with the press of the left bumper to push the puck past or around defenders. Online team play was also added that allowed you to play on up to 6 consoles over Xbox Live. Nothing beats the fun of online team play and setting up goals with friends. NHL 08 feels and plays like a genuine hockey experience. The authentic attention to every little detail helps add to the realism and every game you play feels like a new experience where anything can happen (just like in the real NHL). As the local Microsoft office NHL 08 champion (I can claim that only because I am writing this article) I can attest to the intense competition and also the heartfelt last minute overtime losses I have handed out to my many opponents. (Craig, Jeff, Brian, J – the gauntlet has been thrown). They will claim the results of all my victories to be a factor of using the “Choose from 3 random teams” methods but I digress. So where can EA go from here? NHL 09 is where! Having been lucky enough to see and play the game several times over the last few months, all I can say is EA has done the impossible and stepped up their game yet again. This September will be a hockey fans dream and I am looking forward to living in their dream world.
The goal this year for NHL 09 is to remain as authentic as possible to the sport, while also growing the market and bringing in a wider audience of players by making the game more approachable. They want to be, as NHL 09 Producer David Littman told us at April’s community day, the next “great one”. In order to do that and achieve greatness EA is improving on their past two efforts and adding a ton of new features and innovations that left me as impressed as I have ever been with an NHL video game.
The skill stick continues to improve as you can now perform “Datsyukian” like one handed dekes on your back hand. Pressing the A button while controlling the puck also can be used to protect the puck by putting your back to the defenders. This compliments nicely with the already implemented vision control found on the left trigger which keeps your player always focused up ice. There are now more ways than ever to embarrass opposing defenders and be as creative as you can imagine when going one on one.
To counter this new offense the defensive side of the game has also seen several helpful tweaks. The most innovative of these is that you can now lift an opponent’s stick. EA has actually modelled stick on stick contact, which before now, has been unheard of in a hockey video game. Being able to lift a player’s stick and steal the puck or cause them to miss a one timer has always been a staple in the real NHL, and now you can do it in NHL 09. It’s as simple as making sure you are in position and then pressing A. Abuse this move too much though and you could end up high sticking your opponent and serving time in the sin bin (there are 4 minute minors this year, as well as 5 minute majors). Defenders can also perform 360 degree poke checks and sweep checks, which is a big improvement from last year’s system which would often lead to unwarranted tripping penalties. One other big improvement for 09 is the hitting engine. While it was fairly solid last year, there were some situations where once a defender locked onto you there was little hope of escaping as you were essentially left out to dry on the trolley tracks. EA has introduced an all-new physics-based checking and fighting engine featuring more than 300 new animations that really add another level of realism and intensity. Depending on the speed at which they are hit, or if they have their head down, the results can be devastating. On offense you actually do feel like you can escape checks now like Wayne Gretzky was so famous for doing. Skate across the ice though like Eric Lindros with your head down and prepare to pay the price. Another great addition for 09 is the new “Be-a-Pro” mode. You start off creating yourself, choosing your preferred position, and then are drafted by an AHL team to play on the third line. Be a pro mode uses a dynamic third person camera that follows you around the ice, and the better you play your position the better your player will improve. Your coach will even assess you after every shift and let you know what you did right, as well as what you could improve on. The ultimate goal of this mode is to make it to the NHL, and then be nominated into the hall of fame. There are a few other features this year that EA has in store for hockey fans that will absolutely blow your mind. I hope you are looking forward to this September as much as I am because this could be the pinnacle of the EA NHL series. One thing is certain; hockey and video games have come a long way since the days of 8-bit and I couldn't think of a better and more Canadian thing to talk about on Canada day. See you out on the ice! |
