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Posted on: Sep 09, 2008
NHL 09
WORDS BY: Paul Curthoys
We love it when a sports game comes together. With NHL 09, all the potential this series has teased us with for the past two seasons has finally gelled into actual, grade-A greatness.
Strangely enough, a plain ol’ arrow is one of the things that deeply impressed us. And in some ways, it’s the heart of NHL 09’s new Be A Pro mode. For sports fans, that name says it all — create your wanna-be legend and take him from the AHL to godhood by controlling only him on the ice for as many seasons as it takes. Similar modes have been in sports games aplenty for years now, but NHL 09 really encourages you to play your position with an arrow that appears on the ice to show you where your player should be at all times.
Sounds simple — and it is — but it changes hockey videogaming from an individual sport to a team one. Suddenly, you’re not the master of everything, trying to do it all yourself. You’ll be rewarded with far more XP if you obey the arrow and stay at home on D when you should, call for passes only when you’re open, and generally don’t behave like a glory hog who can’t share the puck. Since XP gets you called up from the minors and placed on the top lines, that’s a pretty motivating carrot. We fell in love with hockey all over again by discovering just how challenging — and fun! — it is playing goalie, lumbering around as a punishing defenseman, or lingering at the blue line as a cherry-picking sniper.
Better yet, you can take your fledging superstar online and sign up for a 50-person club (essentially a clan). Any time two to six club members are online together, you can team up and represent your club in matchmaking in up to 12-player league or single-game action. And we gotta say, playing all-human hockey is a game-changing experience. Talented goalies will be your most prized players, and working together with other gamers instead of CPU-controlled chumpwads was incredibly fun.
Loads of smaller additions — separate offensive and defensive line changes, even tighter commentary by Clement and Thorne — only improve the game. The series’ thumbstickbased controls have also matured, adding defensive options (like sweeping poke checks, lifting an opponent’s stick, and pass blocking) that really complete the experience. Which is just another great reason to spend some quality time with NHL 09 — it’s one of those rare sports games that stands out from the crowd.
On Xbox 360
- Genius Be a Pro mode and 12-player online.
- Fully realized analog controls.
- Extra-purdy graphics, camerawork, and animations.
- Next year, how about some quick-sim options for when we're off the ice?
Sun, 10/18/2009 - 12:53
Posted by wickland
This was a pretty decent hockey game but I am looking forward to the newer edition coming out.
Wed, 05/27/2009 - 07:56
Posted by mikese
Ever since NHL 94 i've been hooked to hockey games even ones that aren't realistic where the players seem like their all on some anabolic steroids checking people through the boards.
Fri, 01/16/2009 - 13:32
Posted by ThunderChief66
I'm up for starting an online team with fellow OXM readers and/or OXM staff...anybody interested? Just send me a messahe on Live at ThunderChief66
Also, i agree completely with this review- this may be the best sports game I have ever played (except for MVP Baseball 05 of course, buts thats a different story...)
Fri, 01/09/2009 - 08:48
Posted by Iaijutsu
Hey Paul,
I was playing NHL 09 since i received it for Christmas and it worked fantastic. I then tried the new Prince of Persia and it requested to install a system update when I first inserted the disc. I installed said update and played PoP for about 25 - 30mins and got the dirty disc error. I turned off the xbox, made sure the disc was clean (which it was), and tried again, but received the error within 10 mins of starting the game.
So I shut it off, and decided I'd play NHL 09 again. Made it to the main menu and got the dirty disc error. Now, I had been playing NHL 09 without error for about a week before I tried out Prince of Persia and the system update was applied. Since then, I haven't been able to play NHL 09 without getting the dirty disc error and haven't been able to play Prince of Persia due to the error.
Fallout 3, after approx. 50hrs of play, has not received said dirty disc error. I have yet to try my Gears of War 2 and my older games to see if they fall victim to this error. Since Fallout 3 is working and is a great game I've continued to play that for now and once I'm done I may have to send in my Xbox 360 if this error plagues my other games.
As far as I'm concerned, it has less to do with the disc's from the companies as it does with the fact a system update was done to my 360 and since that update was applied with the packaged version of Prince of Persia, this error has popped up.
Again, up until that packaged system update, I received no errors at all with any of my games, including NHL 09.
Mon, 09/15/2008 - 12:32
Posted by Paul OXM
Hey, if anyone's experiencing the disc-read errors with this game that have been publicized elsewhere on the web, please post here or email me. I've asked EA to comment on it, out of concern that we might need to change the score if the retail game was buggy. EA reports that only 10 gamers have phoned their customer service about the error, so we're curious if this problem is widespread...or just well-publicized. For what it's worth, the reviewable version we played worked just fine.
Tue, 09/09/2008 - 21:52
Posted by Eviltattoo
THIS is THE game I've been waiting all my Hockey-loving life for!
It's funny, because JUST when I was beginning to give up on video-game Hockey, along come the demo for NHL '09.
After the brief tutorial to get me up to speed on the modern controls, I got my first taste of Be A Pro mode...and I was hooked (no pun intended)!
After playing BAP mode for about an hour or so, I rushed out to pre-order the game.
And after learning more about the EASHL online MMO-type mode, I knew I made the right decision.
No other Hockey game has made me feel so much like a part of a team.
Paul Curthoys hit the nail on the head with that one. It's MUCH more rewarding to contribute to the team winning, rather than just being the sole participant.
It's a great feeling to hit that perfect pass on the tape of a winger streaking up the ice, to see the CPU pull off a deke on a breakaway that YOU set up.
Tell me...when was the last time you cheered when YOU didn't actually score, but when the CPU did?
I can't remember that ever happening...but it does in Be A Pro mode in NHL '09.
A BRILLIANT game! EA Canada restored my faith in virtual Hockey again!
Buy this game, and get on a team in the EASHL.