Reviews

Posted by: jkdmedia

Last year was a really crappy time for hockey fans, seeing as there was no season that year. People wondered how one of the best sports around could not have a season. Thankfully this year hockey is back in full force which is good for fans of the sport as well as gamers. Since the Xbox 360 just launched it is only appropriate that sports fans get their NHL fix, so 2K Sports has just released their hockey game unto the gaming world.

There are several game modes that will keep you entertained for hours on end. The game modes are the same as in the previous version of the game: exhibition, season, playoffs, franchise, tournament, and party mode. Since all of the game modes from previous games are in here I will not do into depth on all of them but just mention the highlights of franchise and party mode.

The franchise mode is as deep as ever. Players will be able to do the normal things such as set rosters, coaching, and various other details that you have all become accustomed to while playing a game of this nature. One thing that is new in this game is the chemistry for a line. This mimics real life players, as the more you get your in game characters to play together in practice and in the game, they will get more comfortable with each others style and they will work better as a unit. This really makes the game feel more realistic since you will have to deal with what some of the coaches have to worry about every day.

The other mode that I really enjoyed playing and want to talk about a little more is the party mode. In this mode there are less then twenty mini games that are fun to goof around with. Many of these mini games are a great way to hone your skills on the ice for when you are playing a real game. These mini games are a nice treat to play with because it also helps break up any monotonous tone that you might be having during regular play.

One thing that I really enjoy about all of the 2K Sports games is that they try to personalize the game to make players feel that they are really in control of everything. With that being said the Skybox mode is back and is better then ever. Players will be able to unlock so many various things that it is unbelievable. All of the mini games that players can play with up there are great. My favorite game is air hockey. It is this kind of attention to detail that shows that the developers truly care about their fan base and want to make their games above and beyond for their fans.

As with any new sports game, people want to know what the newest features are. Well this game has two very important features that I feel need to be discussed because they change how the game is played. First off there is something called Cease Control, which allows players to take direct control of the goalie and help him to the proper spot to help spot the puck. When a puck is shot the game will slow down slightly to allow you to try to make a save. This addition really helps players to stop more goals and to make sure that you try to stay in the lead.

The other big addition to the game is that you can have more control of your team with On-The-Fly Coaching. This allows you to change your team’s strategy in real time to adjust for special situations. Having this control of your team will make players feel that much closer to that of a real game. I also liked it because if you see a weak spot in the opposing team you can adjust the way you are playing to exploit it more and hopefully gain some extra goals because of this.

I know that many of you want to know what the differences between the Xbox and the Xbox 360 version are; sadly I have not gotten to play the Xbox version of the game, other then demo’s and in-store game kiosk’s, so I can not make a full comparison for you. At the time of this review the only thing that I know for sure that has been changed is the graphics for the game. The graphics for this game are really good, better then what the Xbox version offers, but isn’t really up to snuff to a next generation game. Before I go into what needs to be changed, let me give praise to what the game does right.

Once players load up a game, they will notice a real improvement on everything on the ice. The surface is a lot shiner and reflects the light from the various angles in each stadium. The players have a lot more detail in them; on each player you will be able to see the mesh of their jerseys, designs of their equipment, and better facial details. The sad thing is that this is more apparent in all of the cut-screens but not as much during the actual gameplay.

See the problem with the visuals of this game is that it feels like the developers took the current graphics engine and just spruced it up a little to take advantage of the higher resolutions and more horsepower that the Xbox 360 offers. The graphics for this game look really good, but if you compare it to some of the other games available you will see that there is a big leap. I think this problem will be solved with a full year of game development instead of shortened development cycle to get the game ready for the Xbox 360 launch.

Commentary for this game is decent but at the same time feels a little on the mundane side. The reason for this is that the developers went for the commentating team of Bob Cole and Harry Neale who are really big commentators in the Canadian hockey world. The on ice sounds are pretty strong, and hearing the crowd cheer you on is really nice. The soundtrack to the game is filled with a lot of “lesser known” bands, but you can really get over that by plugging in your own mp3 player and jamming out to your own tunes while you try to make that extra goal.

NHL 2K6 is rated Everyone 10+, and it contains violence. It will take up to 2.10MB on your hard disk or memory card for game saves.

Gameplay: 7.9
If you have ever played an NHL 2K game then you will know exactly what to expect from this game. The new game features such as Cease Control and On-The-Fly Coaching really adds new options to the game. While the game is a blast to play I expected more from a next generation game.

Graphics: 7.9
The graphics are good, especially if you compare the Xbox 360 game and the Xbox game in motion. Sadly this game really doesn’t take full advantage of the hardware, especially if you compare it graphically with other games already released. Hopefully this will change next year since the developers will have more of a handle on this new console.

Sound: 8.0
The sounds from this game are really nice. The commentary is well done but at times it sounds a little mundane and repetitive. Being on the ice really sounds nice as you hear the crowd cheering you on. Best of all, if you don’t like the in-game music, playing hockey with your own tunes going on in the background makes this game all the better!

Difficulty: Medium
The AI in this game can be a bit challenging, but it is not impossible to play against. All in all this game is really fun to play.

Concept: 8.4
I really liked the new additions because they give the players more control of the game to create more strategies on how to beat various teams that are challenging them.

Multiplayer: 8.7
Playing this game on Xbox Live is really fantastic. The amount of options available to the players is astonishing such as getting to play in online leagues and even dabbling in the really fun party games.

Overall: 8.0
It is really hard to give NHL 2K6 this grade because I want to score it higher, and I would if this game was on the Xbox or PlayStation 2, but with this being a next generation game, it really drops the ball in certain areas. Everything about this game is really nice, yet it feels like a current generation game with a higher resolution. I do look forward to next year to see how the developers improve on the game especially since they will come to grips with the hardware more in that time period.