NHL 2006
Game on! The lockout is over … Let’s play hockey!
Tags: NHL 2006 Categories: PS2 Reviews, Reviews
Posted by Craig "American Idle" Hansen on Sep 29th, 2005
| Title | Players | ||
|---|---|---|---|
| NHL 2006 (title page) | 1 - 8 | ||
| Developer | Publisher | Genre | Online |
| Sports | Yes | ||
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EA Sports published their hockey game last year, but the real NHL never even bothered with a season. Now that labor peace has finally been reached, the league is without its ESPN national TV contract, but is attempting to rebuild enthusiasm back into its fan base, having been nearly replaced in the meantime by NASCAR fans. But that’s the real world. In the videogame world, EA Sports’ NHL 2006 hasn’t missed a season – or a beat. Released just a bit early to be sure of where all the players ended up, you’ll want to download a roster update just as soon as one is available, which ought to be soon. That aside, EA Sports never went on a hockey strike but have been hard at work creating a game that is a marked improvement over last year’s offering.
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One of the first things you’ll notice is that, even without the extra money or hoopla, EA Sports has decided to celebrate the history of its series by integrating NHL 94 into the game as an alternate “mode” for the game. Just as Madden 05 offered three classic versions in the collector’s anniversary edition, NHL 06 looks back 12 years to one of its most popular incarnations for retro-hungry gamers. The button mapping is handled acceptably if not exactly flawlessly, considering NHL94 was a Sega Genesis/SNES-era product. It’s a nice add-on with no price hike attached.
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But the main attraction is NHL 06, this year’s game, of course. New this year are completely-redone puck and ice physics, which EA Sports has branded “RPM – realistic puck movement” physics. The puck in the game does behave more like a real puck, which is a good thing. The game also allows you to use the left analog stick to “deke” the goalie into a wrong move prior to taking your shot, as well as offering the right analog stick as a way to perform special shots on goal that are harder to guard, while still offering two “shoot” buttons. The redone controls have a more natural feel that makes the game more comfortable to play.
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One thing that’s gone, compared to NHL 94, is the old “control the goalie just as a shot is made” dynamic. Instead, this year’s game simply gives your goalie good AI, based on his player rating, and doesn’t require you to master transitioning control to your goalie and making a great save at the last second. This offers you the chance to play more hard-hitting defense to disrupt your opponent’s plans and create turnovers, as well as just smoothing out the experience of playing the game, making it all seem far more natural. My only gripe is that the button to switch which player you control doesn’t feel natural, though to EA Sports’ credit, the game allows you to switch up the control scheme to your liking.
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Franchise mode may not be as deep as Madden’s owner’s mode yet, but the game is inching closer. The game operates with all proper deadlines in place, so that if you’re looking to trade a goalie, you can’t do it later in the season; that attention to detail is an EA Sports hallmark. The new player editor is far more detailed and powerful than before, finally putting it on par with Madden. That’s good news for folks who want to create an avatar that actually looks like them.
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In easy mode, you will either lose big or win big; winning big being the more frequent option by far. Bumping up the AI above easy keeps games closer, but the cost is that you’ll manage fewer blowouts but the CPU will still beat you by a bundle on occasion. This effect gets more pronounced, the higher you raise the skill level. Penalties also get called tighter. In online play, the game is everything we’ve come to expect from EA Sports Online, while not having the deficit of a really fun-killing new feature comparable to Madden’s ill-conceived “cone of vision” feature. Thank God.
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The graphics are sharper than last year’s, though the end result is hard to detect given that there’s not a lot of top-side space left in terms of maxing out the PS2’s abilities. Sonically, the game features great play-by-play that includes far more personal comments on individual players than Madden ever has delivered. For example, playing as the Minnesota Wild, the announcers throw out there the observation that forward Andrew Burnette “has helped out a couple expansion franchises, including Minnesota.” That’s the kind of detail work that makes for good play-by-play; it’s the kind of detail work Madden never provides.
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The most enjoyable aspect of NHL 06, though, is how fast the game plays; in franchise mode, it takes very little time for the PS2 to sim between the games your franchise plays, and once you jump into a game, the time flies by, or at least seems to, thanks to a system that allows you to set period length to your desire, but maintaining a “20-minute” clock in the game, with your length-choice merely determined how quickly those 20 minutes tick off the game clock. It’s a nice touch. The game also isn’t weighed down by too-frequent replays and such; it simply plays faster than most other EA Sports games. What a relief!
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In the end, there’s not a lot of negatives to NHL 06. It may not be breaking a lot of new ground or delivering PS3-level looks on PS2, but it is a solid entry with enough new ideas and polishes to make the game appealing. While the strike may leave some hockey loyalists bitter, just keep in mind that that’s only the NHL’s fault; EA Sports put in a full season on the ice last year and is back again this year with a game that’s probably as good as it ever will be, until Xbox 360, PS3 and Revolution arrive.
| What Works | Score |
|---|---|
|
+ Classic NHL 94 tossed in without a lot of hoopla; plays great. + Solid graphics and game physics. + Never need to worry about goalie control; play defense! |
8.7 |
| What Doesn't | |
| — Changes between skill levels still fairly abrupt. | |
| Under the Shrink-wrap | |
| NHL 06 is probably about as good as this game can get on the current generation of hardware and offers a much smoother, faster game play experience than Madden and other EA Sports titles. | |
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Tags: NHL 2006
Posted by Craig "American Idle" Hansen on Sep 29th, 2005 and is filed under PS2 Reviews, Reviews. You can follow any responses to this entry through the RSS 2.0 feed. You can post a comment, or trackback from your own site.
