Can't beat classic hockey

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VideoGameCritic
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Can't beat classic hockey

Postby VideoGameCritic » March 16th, 2020, 6:49 pm

So I had my friend Scott M over who's a big hockey fan and we played some hockey games. Hockey has always translated well to video games in my opinion with its bright visuals and frantic non-stop gameplay.

Normally we play NHL 94 (Genesis) which is considered by most to be the best but this time I opted for the Sega CD version to spice things up. What's cool about this is that while it has the same solid gameplay it also has a digitized crowd that creates a pretty amazing atmosphere. It sounds like you're playing in a big arena.

After that we played my newest hockey game - NHL 16. Wow, I'm way behind. Anyway, love the graphics and television style presentation of this one, but it lacks the fun factor. There's a lot of stoppages of play and the controls scheme twisted our fingers in knots. We played to a 1-1 tie after 3OT. Just another example of how you can beat the classics.

jon
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Re: Can't beat classic hockey

Postby jon » March 16th, 2020, 8:22 pm

On top of those old games being good, there was also the players (maybe the golden age of hockey perhaps). There was Gretzky, Robitaille, Lemioux, Jagr, Fedorov, Yzerman, Messier, Sweeney, Roenick, Belfour, Roy. And way more fighting than there is now. Back then most teams had an enforcer who'd get into a lot of fights. The Panthers had this guy Paul Laus (late 90's though). Years ago I got like 2k8 or something and thought I'd get right into the dynasty mode but it was bad.

Buttermancan
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Re: Can't beat classic hockey

Postby Buttermancan » March 17th, 2020, 8:12 am

Certain sports games really pass the test of time. One of my favourites from back in the day is NBA Live 95 for Windows 95/DOS! It had incredible presentation and the gameplay was incredibly fun. I wish I could still play it!

evergreen13
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Re: Can't beat classic hockey

Postby evergreen13 » March 17th, 2020, 11:14 am

I've honestly never been a huge hockey fan, but I will say that when Nintendo put out their NES games on the Switch, I found myself absolutely hooked on Ice Hockey. So simple, but it worked so well! And apparently that's not even the best retro hockey game on the NES!

lynchie137
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Re: Can't beat classic hockey

Postby lynchie137 » March 17th, 2020, 12:13 pm

To me, NHL '96 for the Genesis is the best 16 bit era hockey game. Followed by NHLPA "93. Again, for the Genesis. Some of the other hockey games that came out around this time frame were also pretty decent. But these two are the ones I keep coming back to on the regular. I've been playing a lot of '96 lately, and I've been having a blast with it, leading my Montreal Canadiens to the Cup year after year. Sadly, however, I have to play it on an emulator, since the battery in my cartridge has long ago been tapped out.

Incidentally, while I am on the subject. How does one go about replacing a dead battery in a cart? Is it a relatively simple process that I can attempt on my own? Or is it something that I should leave to someone better suited to do??

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Re: Can't beat classic hockey

Postby VideoGameCritic » March 17th, 2020, 6:29 pm

You can find a lot of helpful YouTube videos on replacing a battery. It's not too complicated, but need to competent with the soldering iron, so I usually have a handy friend do it for me (I provide moral support and beer, which I guess are the same thing).

Ferf13
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Re: Can't beat classic hockey

Postby Ferf13 » March 17th, 2020, 6:46 pm

A couple of hockey games that I found to be real fun are NHL Hitz Pro on the Xbox and NHL Slapshot on the Wii, which uses the motion controls well.

lynchie137
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Re: Can't beat classic hockey

Postby lynchie137 » March 18th, 2020, 3:47 am

jon wrote:On top of those old games being good, there was also the players (maybe the golden age of hockey perhaps). There was Gretzky, Robitaille, Lemioux, Jagr, Fedorov, Yzerman, Messier, Sweeney, Roenick, Belfour, Roy. And way more fighting than there is now. Back then most teams had an enforcer who'd get into a lot of fights. The Panthers had this guy Paul Laus (late 90's though). Years ago I got like 2k8 or something and thought I'd get right into the dynasty mode but it was bad.


Yup. The game has changed so much in the last 20 years or so. And some may say that all these changes haven't necessarily been for the better. I really don't like the Coach's Challenge rule they put in place a few years ago. And I really don't like how they've pretty much eradicated fighting out of the sport, but have done little to nothing in the way of headshots or high sticking penalties. To me, both should be automatic game misconducts, followed by a mandatory suspension, as I really feel that they cause more serious injuries to layers than a good old scrap..

lynchie137
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Re: Can't beat classic hockey

Postby lynchie137 » March 18th, 2020, 3:48 am

VideoGameCritic wrote:You can find a lot of helpful YouTube videos on replacing a battery. It's not too complicated, but need to competent with the soldering iron, so I usually have a handy friend do it for me (I provide moral support and beer, which I guess are the same thing).


Thanks. I appreciate the input. Cheers.

bluenote
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Re: Can't beat classic hockey

Postby bluenote » March 18th, 2020, 8:58 am

As much as I loved the old '94 NHL hockey, the new ones are still just as good (if not better). I have NHL '15 for PS3 (the newest one I have) and play with my son all the time. You need to turn off penalties, offsides, and icing and turn on the "NHL 94" control scheme and it plays amazing! Lots of fun! Plus, the shootout modes is a lot of fun too.

Critic, you should try playing it like that and I'm sure you'll find it just as fun as the old games.


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