| Product: |
NHL 2001 (PC) |
| Date: |
19/02/01 (60 review reads) |
| Rating: |
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Advantages: good graphics
Disadvantages: Still problems with goalies
Well, over the years the folks at EA have heard probably millions of gripes about how easy it is to score on breakaways in the NHL series. From playing about 40 games of NHL 2k1, they fixed that problem. When i first got this game, i pretty much expected it to be in the dumps, since NHL 2000 sucked. The demo sucked too, it was as if players were fed steriods intravenously in that game.
Interface, it's pretty slick, pretty much the same as previous years, although it'd be nice to display all the players on your teams attributes on one screen, but that's asking too much. Modes, the usual, nothing added. You can create your own jerseys now, but thats probably for little kids since most of us want to lead our favorite teams, in my case, the Pittsburgh Penguins, to glory.
Sound, its the same year in, year out..sound effects get better, voices are still repetitive after awhile, the ditty importer is nice, it allows you to put your own music into your game so all 14 year olds can put emimem in the game. Graphics, well, i run on a geforce 2/ 750 t-bird so its nice, the facial expressions are incredible, specially if you scan yourself into the game. Graphics in this game look better then ever, although there are no more smashing glass or knocking off helmets stuff.
Okay, that above information was for the casual player, for the serious one, its the gameplay that matters. Sooo..at first glance, the game was too fast, too much hitting, etc. it sucked. But then you realize that you can set personal AI hittings, and i suggest that everyone do this. You can slow down the game and make it a lot more realistic (or really really unreal, depending on how you like your games). This is quite cool. The game play is rather smooth once you tweak it down, the goalies are devastatingly hard to beat on breakaways, its usually 1 in 6 chance of scoring. However, they are prone to the long shot, which really kills you.
The 2nd patch fixes this up, but
not 100%, its really frustrating to score and then see the computer take one step over the blue line and lob it over the goalie. Scoring comes on deflections, shots and mostly one timers. Players react okay, although it'd be nice if the defenseman played the BODY instead of the PUCK. For some reason, the computer always gets to loose pucks quicker, and that could annoy some. Hitting is somewhat realistic, it'd be nice if they had a hold button, as now you are just restricted to hooking. theres a nice big hit button you can do, but you risk getting a penalty every time you do it, althought it can switch momentum.
oh yah, the momentum, thers momentum now, which is really good, as thats how most sports work. You do a lot of good things, your momentum goes up, and good things happen. Do bad things, vice versa. Shots are way too hard, i seriously doubt bobby holik can shoot 113 mph, but it happens in this game. Powerplays work nicely, short handed works okay. Fighting sucks in this game, nhl 99 had the best fighting. Nhl 2001, you just punch, you cant move so it becomes an exercise of button jamming. Basically, gameplay depends on how you tweak it, if you can find whats right for you, this game can be really entertaining.
for season mode, you'd think by now they would have a baseball mogul style GM mode, heck, even Madden's GM mode is nice, but there is none of that, there is trading, and the computer will make stupid offers and you can reject them, you can draft players and sign players (with no cash problems) and stuff, but its really non-realistic and non-detailed. Some of the trades the computer pulls off are idiotic same with te trades you can make with the computer. It'd be nice if they payed attention to this for once instead of adding spit to some persons face when he talks in a cutscene. Also, they need to put restrictions on how good a player you can make.
Thats all. I still think nhl 99 is the best.
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