NHL 2K9
2K Sports has brought the fun back to hockey video games with an intuitive control scheme and hard-hitting action. NHL 2K9 brings a totally rebuilt NHL experience to life with a brand-new in-game presentation system, as well as fresh player animations and controls that you will enjoy from the moment you play your first game, until well after you become a seasoned veteran. Further adding to an unmatched level of fun and celebrating the NHL’s uniqueness are an all-new Zamboni mini-game, playoff beards, a new fighting engine and more. Complete with new commentary, a user-friendly franchise mode and upgraded online features, NHL 2K9 brings the fun back to game consoles.
Reel Maker 2K9 - you will be able to save, edit, share and rate user-generated NHL 2K9 highlight reels online 2K Beats - Featuring Pennywise, Bad Religion, The Offspring, NOFX, The Ramones, Inner Circle, Mastodon, Operation Ivy, High on Fire and more
User Ratings and Reviews
2 Stars not as good as last years
2 things i can complain about… ive been playing hockey games for years, and i like to play them at fast speeds. on last years, and all the years before you could adjust the game speed on a level from 0-100, 100 being the fastest, this one just has 3 speeds, slow, normal and fast… and fast plays like the adjustment on the old ones at like 50… i feel like im playing this game at slow motion, and it drives me crazy, i hate it… why did they have to change that? and also, the roster adjustment settings… if i want to update it, and sign free agents, and adjust my lines, i have to manually swap and change players from being listed as dressed, to scratched, and minors just to sign someone, so if i wanna put teemu selanne on the ducks, cause hes a free agent on this game, i have to send a scratched player to the minors, and send a dressed player to scratched just to sign one player, and keep doing that… before you could just trade and sign all the players you want, and then edit your roster when you are done… i understand you can just download the update rosters on live, but the latest update isnt that up to date, its updated up til august… its just very annoying for someone like me who likes to play the game with updated rosters, it takes forever to manually do it, unlike last years… very disappointed for something so simple they could have just kept the same and not changed.
3 Stars Not the greatest hockey title, but still pretty fun.
Well, I don’t think it’s a secret that EA unleashed a winner with NHL 09, but what about the 2K title? For the past few years, 2K’s game has rightfully achieved their own fan base through developing a game that was both fun to play and comprehensive. While this years game wasn’t as nifty as the games of 2K past, it’s still a good game in it’s own right that’s fun and easy to play. While die-hard hockey fans will probably steer toward NHL 09, NHL 2K9 might be a better choice for the casual hockey fan, not to mention younger hockey fans.
So what did I like about this game?
First off, the soundtrack RULES! Hands town, this is some of the best punk and metal ever complied PERIOD; let alone for a hockey soundtrack. The short version: Epitaph Records and Relapse Records dominated this soundtrack and provided some awesome tunes. The long version: Underground acts like Operation Ivy, Genghis Tron, and High On Fire make appearances while The Ramones, The Offspring, Joe Satriani, and Mastodon are some of the mainstream (or at least major label) acts making appearances in the game. 2K Sports hockey games have consistently had better soundtracks than it’s EA counterparts. This years 2K Sports game has the best soundtrack over any of the other hockey games 2K Sports that were put out; and considering that I’ve been a consistent fan of their soundtracks, that says a lot!
Also, the gameplay is decent because while it’s involved, it’s still easy to get the hang of. You don’t lose sacrifice much function if you decide to change the controls around to your liking. You only need to look at the instructions once (maybe a few times at worst) to get it figured out.
Finally, the AI for the gameplay was right on for a hockey game. You weren’t going to have a 4th liner perform Datsyukian Dekes, and it wasn’t like a first-line forward was going to get stonewalled by a backup or third-string goaltender. You could play the game without it frustrating the living you-know-what out of you.
So what didn’t I like? The franchise mode was a terrible disappointment this time around. That was the sole reason I liked the 2K titles over the EA titles for so many years (well, that and the soundtrack), but now many of the features I liked are gone (like having a fantasy draft) or are seriously hindered (you can’t trade prospects w/o calling them up, you can’t trade two players for one because the AI is not capable of managing the other team’s roster, and you can’t manage a minor-league team… and that’s to name a few.)
Also, there were still glitches that appear when you play the game. I didn’t mind as much when the titles cost $20, but it’s something that’s not acceptable considering the game had an initial cost of $40-50. I’m glad the price got dropped to $30, but even then, the Next Gen systems should have solved the irregularities that appeared in the PS2/XBox versions.
Be that as it may, if you’re looking for a hockey game that you can convince your friends, family, or significant other to play, NHL 2K9 is the better choice because it’s easy to figure out, it’s less expensive, and the overall atmosphere is geared more towards being fun than being serious. Hockey fans or gamers looking for a comprehensive game, however, are going to be slightly disappointed due to the bugs and overall lack of depth the game provides.
5 Stars Hockey Highlight
I bought this game for my 11 y.o. son. He is enjoying it a lot. He has other hockey games but this game is different and so he is finding it more interesting. The various location options, including a pond rink, are a bonus. Also, he is really enjoying the ability to be the goal tender in the game. He has actually played the position as a squirt and since then, has asked to play it full time. We opted not to go that way so, the game is filling in, sort of. Overall, the variety of options make this game lots of fun and even my other son who doesn’t normally like hockey games, is enjoying it too.
5 Stars Great follow up to NHL 2K8
First let me say that unlike the football series I am glad to see two companies trying for our sales dollars as this competition makes for better games.
Graphics: Superb. 2K8 looked great but improvements for 2K9 are visable. In particular the screen views are more intuitive -for example if you are playing by the boards you will get a closer view of the action. Most of the animations are very simliar to 2K8. In-game highlight reels are a nice addition as well.
Controls: Some complaints were made about the complexity of the controls in 2K8 and there have been some changes to make the game more accessible to newer players which uses less of top controls and more of the face controls. For those who got used to the controls in the prior year, they do make them still available in the options. On the fly coaching is still part of the game.
Gameplay: The game modes are the same as last year in terms of the non-live play including standard quick games, franchise and season modes. Live play has some additional features including: managing your team from a web-site, doing a live draft and trades. As with most sports games live roster updates are available. The play is very similiar to prior year although it feels more smoother.
All in all a great game that should be fun for newcomers and veterans and in my opinion is a better series than the EA sports hockey games.
2 Stars stay away from this years nhl2k go with nhl 09
Surprising as it is after now well this game was last year that this years game just blows. The animation is horrible, the game play laughable and other then the commentary for this ( i am a sanjose fan and they used their commentators) is just a waste of money. The goalies play like they have no soul for the most part. They really need to pump up next years title if they want any chance to be any where in the same league as EAs 09 from this year. This is the first time ever I have bought both hockey titles in the same year. Stay away from nhl2k9 and go with nhl 09 the game rocks
Buy/More Info
PS3 Games Sports 2k Sports, 2k9, Bad Religion, Control Scheme, Franchise Mode, Game Consoles, Game Playoff, Game Presentation, Game Speed, High On Fire, Hockey Games, Hockey Video Games, Intuitive Control, Mini Game, Operation Ivy, Player Animations, Presentation System, Seasoned Veteran, Teemu Selanne, Unmatched Level
