NHL 2005 review

Combine the grace of Katerina Witt (former ice-skating babe) and the brutality of a Mike Tyson boxing bout and you’ll start to get some idea about NHL 2005. This is a puck slapping, bone-crunching extravaganza and should appeal to those who like a challenge (and the odd punch up).

Aficionados of ice hockey will no doubt be mesmerised by the considerable lengths EA Sports has gone to in achieving a very realistic and above all authentic portrayal of ice hockey, and for those of you who think that all that padding and Hammond organ playing is for wussies, think again.

Ice ice baby

Not being a keen follower of NHL or ice hockey in general, I was a little reluctant to remove the plastic wrapper, let alone insert the disc into my Xbox but boy am I ever glad I did.

The game had instant appeal and while it took a while to get my head around the strategic plays, it didn’t take me long to get into the thick of the action and start honing my slap shots and body checks to good effect.

Unlike football games, NHL 2005 is a more technical game and choosing the right strategies is key to progressing into the higher levels and mounting a challenge against the top teams. From Offensive Quick Play Strategies to Defensive Quick Play Strategies, you’ll very quickly learn to adapt to the demands of playing this game and above all, while it’s very tempting to go looking for those all important punch-ups, a good body check is usually enough to keep the testosterone levels in check (pardon the pun).

Smooth as ice

As always, EA Sports doesn’t just make good games, it makea excellent games and the gameplay in NHL 2005 is for a better word, awesome. The movement of the players is very fluid and I couldn’t detect any awkwardness about the movement and interaction between teammates.

This is best exemplified with the brilliant and all-new Open Ice Control and Open Ice Support feature that allows you as the player to seamlessly switch between you and your other AI teammates who are either with or without the puck. Essentially this allows you to call the plays and not have to worry about complicated and clumsy button combo’s that have been the downfall of similar features in other games. Don’t just take my word for it, try it yourself. It really is that good.

Ice cold in Alex

Another strong point about NHL 2005 is the authenticity of the stadiums, crowds and general razzmatazz you would normally associate with a sport like ice hockey. For example, when playing as Finland in the ice hockey world cup (why Finland? My girlfriend is Finnish so I had no choice), the national anthem for each team is sung to perfection and you get a real sense of the occasion making the adrenalin flow before the first face-off.

You even get to see the coaches of the respective teams geeing-up their players and remonstrating about decisions and player misdemeanours which all adds up to the great overall presentation of the game.

Cool running

It would be rare for me to write a game review and not find some elements of the game that didn’t meet my usual high expectations but I have to say in all sincerity that I could find few faults with NHL 2005. The most obvious one would have to be something petty like it’s too technical or too Americanised.

This may be the case but hey, come on, did you ever complain that you couldn’t take somebody out off the ball without recrimination in FIFA 2004 or other football games? I highly doubt it. Let’s face it, the game might be a little OTT with numerous plays and strategies but for sheer excitement and a chance to kick some serious arse it delivers every time.

Serious fun

True followers of ice hockey will no doubt appreciate the strategic and technical representation of the game more than those, like me, who just want to bash hell out of the opposition while scoring a few slap shots in the process but either way it will be hard to find a game that offers a great combination of awesome graphics, gameplay and above all durability.

There is no way you can get bored of NHL 2005 and it is by no means easy so be prepared to put some serious practice in if you want to compete at the higher levels. Those guys skate mean and hit hard so you’ll have your work cut out!

In summary, I thoroughly recommend NHL 2005 and think it will be a big hit on the Xbox and future editions of this game will do well to improve on the 2005 edition.